With hundreds of inspirational #WhyIRunVan posts across social media and email, we thought we’d share some of the great stories sent in to us, through our blog
Hi BMO Vancouver Marathon:
This is Why I Run Van:
I’m 70 years old and have been running basically all my life. Ran a few marathons in the early 1980s which included the 1982 Vancouver Marathon. Fast forwarding 30 years to 2012, my then 40 year old daughter decided to start running. I guess she thought that if her good old Dad was still running after all those years, there must be something to it. As a result she talked me into running the 2013 BMO Marathon with her. It was such a great experience to do this with your kid and she got a lot out of it as well. One can’t put a price on the bonding that training and running races together brings. We also went in the 2014 BMO and will be going in it again this year. Looks like I’m going to have to keep this up. 🙂
So even though I’ve “been there, done that”, I Run Van……. for my daughter.
Murray McColeman
Our Marathon
THE CHARACTER OF THE “ELITE” RUNNER
Amidst the shadows of anxious voices
and unspoken fears,
I stand
Medalled a winner.
Yes,
I stumbled
over years of unuttered insecurities
only to leave such half truths
strewn upon the passing kilometers.
On that day,
In that race
I clung to the voice of truth,
A runner’s truth…
A conviction found
in the very flesh and blood of endurance.
What separates one from the finish line?
Simple,
Just not showing up
At the start;
living only with excuses of what might have been.
A race
Speaks volumes
No clinic can ever teach.
Life’s invitations
do not come
with guarantees.
Control
is an illusion
created by those
who serve up ego….
When, really, effort and self-giving
are all that is called for.
Step by step
in the now of each split second,
all of life’s choices presented themselves.
And I answered
with every ounce of my being,
in the only way
I have ever known how.
And so today,
I stand
Medalled a winner.
But this story, our marathon
Of myth, madness and miracle
does not end here.
Life’s races, endless miles of weary steps,
are never really run alone.
Only youth dare think
Such journeys can be won
With single vision and solitary pursuit.
WHEN ALL IS SAID AND DONE,
WHEN LIFE’S RACES ARE FINALLY NUMBERED
AND MEMORIES OF PERSONAL BESTS
FILL THE TALES OF YESTERYEAR…
IT WILL BE
THE LONG SLOW RUNS
PACED BY PRECIOUS RUNNING FRIENDS
THAT WILL FOREVER REMAIN IN OUR HEARTS.
FOR WE STOOD TOGETHER,
RAN TOGETHER, RAIN OR SHINE….
ONLY TO RUN AND RUN SOME MORE.
WE STAND TOGETHER TODAY
FOREVER MEDALLED,
WE ARE WINNERS
TRULY WE ARE THE ELITE!
Thank you to Britta, Deanna, Jackie, Jessica and Sandra for all that you have shared with me.
Lynn Haley
Why I love to run, what’s not to love!?
It’s:
My time
My think time
My let it go time
My clear my mind time
My let’s beat my last pace time
My catch up to the person in front of me time
My health time
My ability to run time
My let’s try a new a new place to run time
My heart time
My music time
My views of the world while running time
These are the reasons why I love to run, it sets me free from any worry we face day to day. No matter how short our days are and busy we are, there’s always time for running!
This is why I signed up for BMO Vancouver Half Marathon, I want to take my running adventures international!
I am training for my first full marathon while leading beautiful people to complete their first half marathon. And I get to one day be an adoptive mom and show my wee one that while I was training I was lucky enough to run by this beach. And those ladies and my wee one inspired me to get the mojo flying to have the Vancouver Marathon be my first full!!!! Holy running shoes!!!