Instead of focusing on the latest Mar blogging hiatus of 2023, I’ll briefly say that it is no coincidence that I finish school (finally) and am struck with inspiration to write a Mini Tale once again!
One personal sequela of the COVID pandemic came in the form of changing my running habits. Am I blaming COVID for my running hiatus? No. I had a spot in the 2020 NYC marathon that I deferred to 2023 after it was cancelled due to the pandemic. I had started a master’s in nursing education in the summer of 2020 and thought that it would make sense to run the 2023 marathon because I would have graduated by then and would have time to train and celebrate.
From 2020 to 2022, I really didn’t run. A little run here and there or a one-to-two-mile warm-up on the treadmill before boxing class, but not much. I had enjoyed my marathon experience in 2018 and was excited to run again in 2020, but after these last few years, I didn’t really know what I wanted anymore. Was I okay with being a one-time marathoner? There is absolutely not one thing wrong with that. Would I give back that coveted spot that I had worked hard for?
For those of you who know me, you already know the answer, but I still had my reservations. I’m turning 38 this year, my life has been papers and reading and work and projects and clinical and papers… had I let go of that life of aerobic and anaerobic work? Was I interested in running 15-20 miles a week again? I really didn’t know, but I “swiped” that credit card and paid for my spot in the 2023 NYC marathon anyway. Insert Mar voice here, “Let’s just do it!”
In the waning days of my final ‘senioritis’ semester of school, I started feeling my vibe again. I was going back to my gym, working out on the Peloton, dabbling in a run here and there. I found a podcast that has been really inspiring called “The Running Explained Podcast,” hosted by Coach Elisabeth. Coach Elisabeth sounds like me, a person who found running later in life (we didn’t do a lot of running during my dance years) and voraciously wanted to know everything. I’ve been enjoying listening to her podcasts while I run – I know, super meta.
As I paid for my marathon spot, I also told myself that signing up for a bunch of races would motivate me in my training. Of course, one of the first ones happened to be the Shape Women’s Half Marathon in Central Park. I figured, this race will be a test of how I feel after a half on just a small amount of training. I made it up to 10 miles during my own slopped together training plan and then did a brief taper before the race. The race actually felt great! I couldn’t believe it! I had a fantastic time (2:17:37) and only had some moderate soreness. Of course, my heart rate zones were through the roof, but I’m working on that. Don’t tell Coach Elisabeth.
On a recent training run, I was impressed by a story, a true story. I like to vary my runs by including Peloton Outdoor and on this day, I did an audio session recently hosted by Becs Gentry on the app called “45 min WHM (Women’s History Month) Celebration Run.” During the training, not only did she play inspiring music by or inspired by female artists but she also told the story of Katherine Switzer. Switzer was the first woman to officially run the Boston Marathon in 1967.
In 1966, Bobbi Gibb ran the Boston marathon, but not officially. She hid in a bush, hiding her gender in a hoodie, and when the race started, she joined the group of runners. She wasn’t allowed to enter the race due to her gender. In 1966!
Switzer had to convince her trainer, Arnie Briggs, to take her to Boston. In training, Switzer proved herself by running five miles above the 26.2. She signed up for the Boston Marathon as K.V. Switzer (how she signed her name) and paid $2 for her entry.
Women were finally allowed to run in the Boston Marathon five years later in 1972.
One of the amazing parts of her story happened at the two mile mark. The race co-director, Jock Semple, ran up behind her while trying to pull off her race bib numbers (261). Switzer recalls the day saying that as he swiped at her numbers, he said, “Get the hell out of my race and give me those numbers!” Briggs tried to reason with Semple but ultimately her boyfriend, Tom Miller, body checked Semple while Switzer ran away.
She ultimately finished the marathon in four hours and 20 minutes. Can you imagine the pressure?
While I was running a very brief four mile easy run in my neighborhood, I was trying to imagine what that must have been like. What went through her mind? What a weight on the shoulders of Switzer! Another quote from her: “Because if I don’t finish this race, nobody’s going to believe women can do it and they’re not going to believe that women deserve to be here. I have to finish this race.” She was changing history at 20 years old. She continued to change history throughout her life. She was not only lobbying for women to be able to run the Boston Marathon but also to add the women’s marathon into the Olympics, which happened in 1984. She ran the Boston Marathon in 2017, fifty years after her history making run at the age of 70… and she wore her same number, 261.
I can run the marathon now because of women like Gibb and Switzer, and many others. This lightened my run considerably and I thought to myself, “I need to write a mini tale about her story!”
References
Gentry, B. (2021, March 8). 45 min WHM Celebration Run [workout]. Peloton.
Kotecha, T. (2021, December 15). Kathrine Switzer: First woman to officially run Boston Marathon on the iconic moment she was attacked by the race organizer. Sky Sports. Retrieved May 21, 2023, from https://www.skysports.com/amp/more-sports/athletics/news/29175/12475824/kathrine-switzer-first-woman-to-officially-run-boston-marathon-on-the-iconic-moment-she-was-attacked-by-the-race-organiser
Scott, E. (Host). (2021, February 26). Running Explained Q&A (season one, episode one) [Audio podcast episode]. In The Running Explained Podcast. Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/episode/4yqli82Qd4MdCCEAnOCeVq?si=k9epII98RzK6iO7oC2_jAg
Mar Tells Mini Tales 