The Rest of the Story: “52 Miles To Freedom”
Just 30 days after beginning the habit of running—something
that had been so foreign and unpleasant to me for my entire life—I
had completed 50 miles, culminating in my first 6-mile run. I called
Jon to celebrate. He was excited for me, and always looking to help
me raise my own standards, he presented me with a challenge. Jon
knew me well enough to know that in the peak emotional state I was
in, I would likely accept any challenge. “Hal, why don’t you run an
ultra-marathon? If you’re going to run 26 miles, you might as well
run 52.” Only Jon would suggest such logic.
“I’ll think about it.”
This time, when I told Jon I would think about it, I actually
meant it. I was intrigued by the idea of pushing myself even further
and running 52 consecutive miles. Maybe Jon was right. If I was
going to run 26, I might as well run 52. I mean, shoot, if I could go
from running zero miles to being able to run 6 consecutive miles in
just four weeks, and I still had six months until the Front Row
Foundation’s annual Run for the Front charity run, why not set the bar
a little higher and go for 52? So I did. I was even somehow able to
convince a friend and two of my brave coaching clients to do it with
me!
Six months later I had logged 475 miles, including three 20-mile
runs, and had traveled across the country to meet with two of my
favorite coaching clients James Hill and Favian Valencia, and long
time friend, Alicia Anderer, so the four of us could attempt to run 52
miles during the Atlantic City Marathon. Jon even flew out to show
his support. There was just one logistical challenge though: Atlantic
City wasn’t set up for any “ultra” marathon runners. So, we
improvised.
We met on the Boardwalk at 3:30am. Our goal was to finish our
first 26 miles before the official marathon began, then complete the
second half with the regular marathon runners. The moment was
surreal. The energy between the four of us was a blend of excitement,
fear, adrenaline and disbelief. Were we really going to do this?!
We might have been able to see our breath in the chill October
air had the moonlight been brighter. Nevertheless, our path was well
enough lit, and so we began. One foot in front of the other, one step at
a time, we moved forward. We all agreed that was the key to our
success that day—keep moving forward. So long as we didn’t stop
putting one foot in front of the other, as long as we kept moving
forward, we would eventually reach our destination.
Six hours and five minutes later, largely due to the collective
support and accountability of our group working together as one unit,
we completed our first 26 miles. This was a defining moment for each
of us. Not because of the twenty-six miles we had behind us, but
because of the mental fortitude it was going to take to get ourselves to
run the twenty-six miles we had ahead of us.
The excitement which permeated every fiber of our being just six
hours earlier had been replaced with excruciating pain, fatigue, and
mental exhaustion. Considering the physical and mental state we were
in, we just didn’t know if we had it in us to duplicate what we had just
done. But we did.
A total of 15 ½ hours from the time we started, James, Favian,
Alicia, and I completed our 52-mile quest… together. One foot in
front of the other, and one-step at a time, we ran, jogged, walked,
limped and literally crawled across the finish line.
On the other side of that line was freedom—the kind of freedom
that can never be taken away from you. It was freedom from our self-
imposed limitations. Although through our training we had grown to
believe that running 52 consecutive miles was possible, none of us
really believed in our heart of hearts that it was probable. As
individuals, each of us struggled with our own fear and self-doubt.
But the moment we crossed that finish line, we had given ourselves
the gift of freedom from our fears, our self-doubt, and our self-
imposed limitations.
It was in that moment I realized that this is a gift of freedom not
reserved for the chosen few, but one that is available to each and
every one of us the moment we make the choice to take on challenges
that are out of our comfort zone, forcing us to grow, to expand our
capacity, to be and do more than we have been and done in the past.
This is true freedom.
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