Just get me to that last loop

Yesterday, I ran the Chopawamsic 50K with my buddy Solomon MOrris Whitfield. It was my attempt to run two ultra-marathons in one month, something I've never done before. 

The race was made up of five 6.2-mile loops. On our first loop, I told Solomon, this is really a 4-loop race for me. He looked at me, maybe a bit perplexed... 

It's a 4-loop race, I told him, because if I get 4 loops done, I'm doing the fifth one. 

I won't quit. 

Not that condensing the race in my mind made it any easier. Outside of the Georgia Jewel, this is probably the most challenging course I've run. It was a mix of everything that can challenge you on a trail: elevation, rocks, roots, tight single track paths. I've run courses heavy on one of two of those things. This one had it all. 

But early on, there was something else I noticed about this course. I was running on one of the most beautiful pieces of property I've ever run on. As frequently as I encountered hills and rocks and hanging branches knocking me on the head - because I DID encounter that branch! - I found myself awed by beauty. 

Many times throughout the day, MOSTLY joking, I reminded Solomon that just two weeks ago I hadn't heard of this race. Now I'm here. One Olive Garden chat later, and I'm out in this Prince William Forest Park. 

Amidst the pain, because of that beauty, I could only feel thankful for that. 

Early in the race, we encountered a man cutting a hole in his shoe. Having just paid a fortune for a new pair of shoes myself, I was aghast. Who cuts up a perfectly good pair of shoes?! 

The man told us he'd read this was the best way to get relief when running with a fractured toe 😮

We encountered that man several times throughout the day. He was always smiling. Always cheering us on. Always running with that hole in his shoe. 

Later in the day, on our final loop, we came across this same man running with friends he hadn't been with earlier. He stopped us and said he wanted to introduce us to the Reverend Mike. He told us at the age of 75, Reverend Mike had just completed his first Ironman. You could see the pride on both of their faces. 

One for having done it, the other in the man who did it. 

A short time later, we ran into Solomon's wife Leah Whitfield and their daughter MJ. These two ladies spent a long day keeping up with us at various stops in the park. Always with perfect timing.  Always hauling my cooler out and having it ready for me to grab a snack or a drink. 

I opened my cooler, and it looked like all the cokes were gone. I dug around in the bottom, fishing - searching - hoping for a miracle. And there it was. Closest to the ice at the bottom of the cooler and feeling colder than any drink I'd ever had - there was one more coke. 

I looked at Solomon and said, that wasn't Reverend Mike we just met - that was GOD!!

We laughed. 

We laughed a lot yesterday. In fact, on our final loop, a group of ladies who were out there supporting friends, said you two always have smiles on your faces. 

I made Solomon promise me. One day, we're going to have a reunion of all the people who have ever run with me. Some who have stormed off in my running grumpiness, some who have scolded me for it, some who have refused to ever run with me again because of it - all with good reason 🤷‍♂️ But I made him promise to remember and repeat where we were - loop five and mile 26 - in the Prince William Forest Park - when I was accused of smiling all day long!!

He said he would.
 
And I believe him. 

Yesterday was a long day. For Solomon, he probably spent 3 or 4 hours more out on the course than he had to. And he only did it for one reason - to get me to loop 5. This guy has been with me from day one of this running journey; this guy gets what's going on inside me knowing how hard it's been to get where I am, and how badly I want to get to where I'm going.
 
It's because he's selfless, yes. But more than that, at the finish line yesterday, when we exchanged a fist bump, he knew he was bumping fists with a guy who was proud of himself. And I knew I was bumping fists with someone who was proud of me. 

You know, yesterday was a lot like life these days for me. Most days, I wake up and have no idea how to get to the finish line in life. But I do know this - I remind myself of it every day - if I can get to loop 5, I won't quit. 

Tomorrow is loop 5. 

Today is every loop before then. Today is when I have friends who come along side me to share in the challenge - but also in the breath-taking beauty of it all. Today is when I put in all the hard work to get to that final loop - to best set myself up for tomorrow. 
When we started loop 5 yesterday, Solomon looked at me and said, this is where we wanted to get. This makes this loop a victory lap. 

So today - today is loop 5. Today is a victory lap. And I won't quit. Which in turn sets up the likelihood that tomorrow - tomorrow too can be a victory lap. 

It's always up to us, but it starts with knowing and believing - you just get me to that last loop - you get me there - and I WILL NOT QUIT.  
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I just wont.