Delusional & Dejected in the LBC

So many things in our lives are centered around numbers…our age, our height, our annual income, the cost of a pound of bacon…all numbers that affect our daily lives in their own special way.  For me, over the next few months all of my running will center around one number…26.2.  Yes, for reasons I still don’t fully understand, I have signed up to run the LA Marathon.  It all happened so quickly…I was strolling through the expo for the Long Beach Marathon (I ran the ½ marathon – report below), my nostrils filled with the scent of new race t-shirts and muscle conditioning spray when I came upon the LA Marathon table.  The nice lady was offering a free t-shirt to everyone that signed up at the expo…WOW!!  Free t-shirt!!!!  So, I turned to my 12 year old daughter…”what do you think, should dad sign up for the LA Marathon?”    “It’s up to you dad…you can if you want to.”   What conviction, what drive...with motivation like that how could I NOT sign up?!?!  So, with one swipe of my credit card my fate was sealed.  On Mach 18^th, 2012 I will attempt to travel 26 miles 385 yards on my legs…I have a feeling I might be a bit delusional – especially considering my Long Beach half marathon performance.

2 hours 30 minutes…2 hour 30 minutes…2 hours 30 minutes…this was my mantra for the first 9 miles of the Long Beach marathon.  The prep was good, I did a shorter long run, but my legs felt good the week before the run and everything seemed to be going ok…staying clear of odd food, drinking plenty of water, and getting plenty of rest.  The pre-race was pretty uneventful…and except for the uptight runners yelling at the guy with the dog in the stroller, it was pretty relaxed…considering there were 20,000 people jammed into a tight space.  (Did I happen to mention that running a race with a stroller is a kin to spitting in someone’s face? Just sayin.)  The first five miles went by well…on perfect pace for a 2 hour 30 minute finish…despite the fact that Famous Dave’s decides to start cooking those amazing ribs at 6 a.m…it took every bit of will-power in my body to run past Famous Dave’s without stopping for a quick half rack of baby back ribs.  Then I got to Denise and the girls…Katie jumping up and down, Denise taking pictures and Danielle peeking out from underneath her blanket as I ran by…such a great morale boost!  They almost made me forget I was developing blisters in both my feet. 

Half way mark (6.214 miles) time: 1:08:44 – average pace: 11:28 – perfect pace!  Then it was on to what I had expected to be the toughest part of the run….the 3 miles along the beach bike path…I had imagined a feeling of being in a desert, surrounded by sand, camels and searing heat…in reality, it wasn’t that bad…except for the blisters…oh and I started to feel sick…I really thought that if I stopped I was going to hurl…so the conversation started in my head…maybe getting it over and done with would be better…that was all I could think about for ½ a mile…hurl, don’t hurl, hurl, don’t hurl, hurl, don’t hurl, hurl, don’t hurl, hurl, don’t hurl,.  Unfortunately the increasing pain in my feet made the state of my stomach less urgent…and so it happened…after 9 miles of fairly consistent running, I started walking.   

The next 4.2 miles were wrecked with pain in my feet from the blisters and a decreasing urge to lose the previous night’s dinner plus I was starting to get dizzy.  Not an ideal running physical state.  I could feel 2 hours and 30 minutes slipping out of reach, which only served to further increase the feelings of dejection.   Then like a mirage in the desert, there was the hotel that marks mile 13…I was at mile 11, but I could already see it; or was I imagining it, either way, I decided to use all of my powers of persuasion to force my legs to run through to the finish…instead they rebelled…maybe I should have fed them some ribs at mile 5…2 hours, 43 minutes and 43 seconds after I crossed the start line, I stumbled across the finish line, I got my medal, my banana, water, and the kind of gross coconut water drink knowing that 26.2 miles is technically only twice as long as 13.1 miles, and yet it will require so much more than twice the effort…what have I gotten myself into?!?!        

Running while sober? Preaching with chains.

I am always amazed by the things you see while running...there's the usual...road kill, beer bottles and more cigarette butts than you can count. Every once in a while you run you come across something unique...the credit card sitting in the middle of a parkway, the coyote in the middle of the city and the guy who was trying to help me avoid a RWI (running while intoxicated). During my run Friday night I came across a cyclist that motioned for me to slow down...not that I run that fast, but apparently he had something he needed to share...danger up ahead?...little Jimmy fell in the well?...with a serious face he warns me, "hey man, watch out, the cops have a sobriety check point ahead!". REALY?? Boy was I glad I got the heads up on that one!!

Church today was awesome. Talked about how Peter viewed his imprisonment as an opportunity to expand God's kingdom. His chains were not an obstacle, but instead they were an opportunity to evangelize to the guards. And sure enough...Roman soldiers helped to spread the message of Christ as they traveled throughout the Roman Empire. So what "chains" do we have that God can use?

1st Post

There is just so much going on in my life, so the logical thing to do is to share it with the world!  The blog is called "I run by faith."  Simple explanation...for about 2 years I have been running.  3 half marathons, 1 10-k, and a few 5-k's.  I may not be too much faster than an 80 year old lady on a scooter, but I find running to be very relaxing...in a painful sort of way.  The faith part...well, I'm a deacon in a Lutheran church and I am in the process of becoming a pastor.  So, in addition to work, family and everyday stress, I wonder if I can survive 26.2 miles and I wonder why God can't find someone who isn't as messed up as me to be a pastor...there must be 100 guys more suited to the task...just in my neighborhood!! 

So, that's it...this blog will be about my runs...the pains, blisters and struggles of the road...and the struggles of writing sermons every week,  caring for the people who put up with me every Sunday, and trying to find a way of writing a 3 page autobiography for seminary without sounding cheesy.