30/08/2026
EVERY RACE IS AN OPPORTUNITY
I brought one of my old racing logs to practice because I wanted to show the boys something that I learned a long time ago:
Every meet is an opportunity.
An opportunity to challenge yourself.
To push yourself.
To improve.
To get stronger.
To break barriers.
To run a PR.
And most importantly, an opportunity to battle that voice inside your head that starts talking when things get uncomfortable.
Slow down. This hurts. Back off. You can't hold this. Quit.
One of the greatest things running can teach you is how to fight that voice.
I learned early in my career to take advantage of every opportunity I had because you never know when it might be your last.
Back in 1985 and 1986, we raced constantly. We could have meets every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday from September through November.
But I never looked at a dual meet as just another meet.
Every time I stepped on the starting line, I tried to tell myself:
“This is the race. Get after it. This race can make you better. Don't finish wondering if you could have given more.”
People sometimes ask me what my best cross-country race was in high school.
My answer might surprise them.
It wasn't some huge championship race.
It was a dual meet against Belleville on September 16, 1986.
I went hard from the start, ran basically by myself, and finished the 5K course in 14:54 — winning the race by close to TWO MINUTES.
Nobody was pushing me.
Nobody was on my shoulder.
There wasn't another runner forcing me to keep the pace.
I had to push myself.
That race taught me something I've carried with me ever since:
Sometimes you just have to GO FOR IT.
We put so many limitations on ourselves before we ever find out what we're capable of.
We stare at our watches. We worry about whether we're going too fast. We listen to the negative voice in our head. We hear people telling us to be careful, don't push too hard, don't do too much, because you might have a bad race.
Yes, you have to train smart. You have to recover. You have to take care of your body.
But there also comes a time when you have to COMPETE.
There comes a time when you have to leave your comfort zone and find out what's on the other side.
There comes a time when the watch doesn't matter.
When the predictions don't matter.
When the limitations you've placed on yourself don't matter.
You just have to be willing to GO.
That's what that 14:54 race taught me.
Don't wait for the perfect race.
Don't wait for the perfect competition.
Don't assume you already know what you're capable of.
And don't walk away from an opportunity wondering what might have happened if you had been a little braver.
Take advantage of every opportunity you get.
Challenge yourself.
Push yourself.
Fight when it hurts.
Fight that voice telling you to slow down.
And every once in a while, forget about the limits you think you have and...
JUST GO FOR IT! 🔥🏃♂️
