Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Navigating Nature...

“Is this level of athletic competition the ultimate distraction from real life?  Or is it a form of prayer.” -Norah Vincent

Trail running is a different animal than road races. Lots of marathon runners don’t like the trail runs because they're so hard to get a fast race time. But some runners prefer the mental toughness it takes to tackle the trails.  

After a bit of a hiatus (I think the 2011 Boston Marathon was her last official race), Andie entered a 35 kilometer trail race in Woodside a week ago and made a nice comeback: 2nd woman to finish and 10th overall.  Not bad considering she rolled (and subsequently sprained) her ankle at mile 17 and still pushed plenty more miles to the finish line.  Go Andoo! 

Andie’s thoughts about trail running reminded me of the quote above because there can be something almost prayer-like in the beauty of a trail run.  Or, here are  Andie’s exact words:  “I love the trails; navigating nature, fresh clean air to breathe, trees overhead and vistas to admire as your inner thoughts are free to explore as you push up the hills and cruise down, allowing your body to let go and guide you.”  Andie’s sentiments are definitely enticing me to take on some adventures in the beauty of the trails.  Sign me up!