Completing my 8th straight LA Marathon was a huge thing for me. I could not imagine ten years ago that I would even run one marathon. Running was never my strong suit in junior high or high school. My running really consisted of running up and down the basketball court. Being embarrassed and completely demoralized after finishing the first LA marathon may have something to do with why I am still going.
You could not write a story like mines or maybe you can, after all this is Los Angeles. I crossed that finish line in 2004 and felt like someone hammered both my feet with a sledgehammer. My feet ached and my legs were so sore from cramping up at around mile 7 and all I could do was sit after crossing the finish line. Though I was exhausted, I was so honored as the medal hung from my neck. I really wanted to get over to see my dad and show him the medal. I told him I would run the marathon in his honor because he had battled colon cancer for at least three years and I figured if he could battle cancer, I could battle too for a few hours but at that moment, I just wanted to go home and sleep. When I tried getting up the next day, it was like I had been run over by a truck several times. My phone repeatedly rang but I ignore it. I finally answered my phone thinking it was just people calling to congratulate me on the marathon but it was my mom telling me my dad had passed away during the night.
Short lived was my accomplishment. The only memory I had from the marathon was my purple toenails and my bruised calves and hamstrings. I took my first medal and I hung it around my dad’s neck because he earned it for his battle. It was at that moment that I knew I would be back the next year running the race again. The race really became an anniversary for me, and the passing of my dad. I looked at as a day to pay homage and to go out there and give everything I had because no matter how much pain my dad was in, he just kept going and when he wanted to give up I wouldn’t let him.
Sometimes people do not understand the passion that runner’s have for running. I have lined up the past eight years of the LA Marathon, one time with the flu, one time with a fractured big toe, and this year after a 3 month break from running because of 3 cysts in my left knee and at no point before the marathon did I believe I would not run the race but it is funny that every person who is folded into their sofas criticize those who have a goal bigger than the sofa. When people cannot see themselves doing something that someone else attempting to do, it is called crazy or stupid. That couldn’t be more the case this past Sunday when legacy runner James Smith refused to stop after falling and hitting his head around mile 24 of the race. With a horrible gash on his head and bleeding like crazy, Smith was determined to finish the race at all cost. After he somehow summoned the resolve to continue on to the finish his twenty-sixth straight LA Marathon, he was taken to the hospital to treat what was a subdural hematoma.
Stupid and crazy is what most replied about his decision to carry on in the race. These comments obviously came from people who have no concept of what it means to commit to something and no matter what obstacle they face they get it done. Being a legacy runner is not just and everyday thing. Running every single LA Marathon since its inaugural race is priceless and for him to come so far to think he would just quit is beyond comprehension. His passion, his drive and his desire to keep his streak going is motivation for me but it also validates the reasons why I continue to line up each year no matter what. People set a precedent for all types of things and you follow their lead or make your own way but to criticize them means you have yet to understand what life is all about.
Competitors compete while the critics just watch.
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