Running With Rachael

Running with Rachael.

It seems like it should be a class you sign up for at the gym.  Or a web mini-series or something.  I picture a whole group of girls, cheery and excited about running...  their ponytails swishing as they jog down the road, with Rachael at the head, periodically turning around and running backward, totally keeping pace while spouting words of running wisdom.  Trust me, it's going to be a thing.

Rachael was my roommate for a brief period while Rick and I were dating.  She had been a close friend before that, and has been a close friend since.  Rachael has always been an inspiration to me.  She faces life head-on, with a perkiness that would be annoying if she wasn't so darn lovable.  She is Amelia Bedelia in the flesh, and life was never dull with Rachael around.  One time Rachael decided that she wanted to learn to sing.  So she signed up for voice lessons and didn't give up, and now she is a beautiful singer.  She proved herself in a highly successful family by fighting her way through law school and becoming a pretty darn good lawyer.  (should I ever need those services, I would totally go to her!)  She is a talented and witty writer, a genuinely good person, and a loyal friend. While Rachael and I were roommates, she decided that she wanted to get herself into shape and so she started running.  To be honest, I think we all thought that it would fizzle out in a few days.  But it didn't.  Morning after morning, Rachael would hit the trail and we would see her return all red-faced and sweaty and awesome.  As it turns out, Rachael is a pretty darn amazing runner.  She has run several marathons, relays, halfs, and most recently an ultra-marathon.  See, I told you she was awesome!

When Rachael was in town in June, she texted me begging to join me on a long run.  I couldn't fathom why she would want to run with me, considering that she was a MUCH faster runner than I am, and I would just be holding her back.  But she assured me that she just wanted to be able to spend some time with me, and going on a long run seemed like the perfect time.  So we set up a plan and a time.  At that point, my longest run was a 9-miler that I had run alone.  Rachael suggested that we do 12 miles, and the thought terrified me, but I was too proud to tell her that, so I agreed.

We ran the bottom part of the marathon course.  I was anxious about the distance.  I was anxious about the downhill course.  I was anxious about running with someone who was clearly more cut out for it than I was.  It was a great run.  I was able to run nearly all of it, with only a little pain in my knee.  I was so proud of myself for completing a distance that had seemed so out of reach only a couple of months before.

Which is why when we were retrieving our car at the start line, and Rachael suggested that we run again the next weekend, only doing a distance of 13.2 miles this time, I readily agreed.  (Rachael couldn't just settle for a half marathon distance, she wanted me to complete MORE than a half marathon distance, so we ran 13.2 miles).  Our second run together was even better than our first.  I was hoping to complete the 13.2 in less than 2 and a half hours, and we beat that time by about 5 minutes!  At the finish line, which was her parents house, she had her mom take some pictures of us together, and insisted on laying on the ground, pretending that I had beaten her to the ground.  (you see what I mean about being a loyal friend?)  

Those runs with Rachael were another breakthrough in this process.  I felt that crossing that line into double digits, even so far as a half marathon had turned me into a real runner.  And I found that running long distances was fun.  Really fun.  Truly fun. 

So thanks, Rachael, for coaching me through the tough spots, and for making me believe I was awesome, even though I am totally less awesome than you are!  And you totally look better after 13 miles than I do!