Lindsay Lohan is quietly discussing with her close friends about running the Los Angeles Marathon next year in 2014.

It’s not uncommon for celebrities to run marathons. It happens every year mostly in big city marathons, especially New York and Los Angeles.

Lohan has recently been inspired and coached by Olympian Shannon Rowbury after meeting her a few weeks ago according to Naughty But Nice Rob.

Shannon was shopping at the Nike store in her hometown of San Francisco and Lindsay and a pal were also there shopping. Lindsay is a regular at the Niketown Beverly Hills store and actually does some running near her Hollywood Hills home.

Shannon, who’s been dubbed “The Natalie Portman of Track and Field” because of her classic good looks and cinema studies (Shannon earned her Master’s Degree is Film History from Duke University and is planning a remake of the cult running movie from the 1970′s “Goldengirl.“) Lindsay is a fan of Shannon’s, who is ranked amongst the Top Female distance runners in the World. Shannon previously competed at two Olympic Games (2008 and 2012) and won a Bronze medal at the 2009 World Games as well.

I think this is great for Lindsay. As many of us know, running or working out can become as much if not more of an addiction than alcohol or drugs are for some. If Lohan can replace her old, damaging habits with something productive like running she could really do a 180 not only with her life but for her endangered acting career.

Lindsay naturally has a lean body with long legs and she could, with proper coaching and hard work, become a really good runner and/or marathoner.

Best of luck, Lindsay!

[source: NBNR]

Here is a look at where everyone is running this weekend. We had 13 responses this week. Good luck to everyone and Run It Fast!

To join Run It Fast – The Club then click HERE to read more details.

Last Annual Vol State 500K 2012

The Last Annual Vol State 500K begins this Thursday, July 11th. What is the Last Annual Vol State 500K? It’s a 314 mile foot race across Tennessee…in July. Because running 314 miles isn’t crazy enough, you have to do it in the refreshing heat and humidity of the south in the summer!

The Last Annual Vol State 500K is the brain child of Lazarus Lake (Gary Cantrell). It starts in Dorena Landing, Missouri with a boat ferry ride, runs across Tennessee, and ends atop a mountain at Castle Rock, Georgia. The runners can do this crewed or uncrewed (Screwed) or as a relay. If you are doing it in the Screwed category, you must carry everything that you will need and can only accept handouts/help from the kindness of strangers.

This year, 6 Run It Fast Club members will be running the Last Annual Vol State 500K, 3 veterans of the race and 3 newbies. 2 RIFers will be doing this crewed and 4 will be Screwed. Think only super humans can do this kind of run? Think again! Below you will meet 6 every day people…just like you and me…who happen to be embarking on a 314 mile journey to see what they are made of. Check out their stories below and then check the bottom of the post for links to follow them.

THE VETERANS

RIF #276 DIANE TAYLOR

Diane has completed 2 Last Annual Vol State 500Ks and will be running her 4th this year (her first attempt was derailed by blisters). She will be running it uncrewed again this year. The past 2 years (since running 314 miles across Tennessee was not enough), Diane drove to the finish line and started her race early by running towards the start line. Last year, she was picked up in Lewisburg as others headed to the start so she added about 100 miles on to her journey in 2012! We asked Diane why she keeps coming back and she said: “I can’t explain it but I would like to do it every year as long as I’m physically able. There are others who have run/are running this who are in there 70s so I hopefully I will be able to do it into my 70s as well.”

Since Diane is running this Screwed and has to carry her own pack with what she needs, we asked her if she brought anything extra with her. She said this year “everything in the pack is just what I need. It weighs 9 1/2 pounds without water and another 6ish pounds with water so it will weigh about 16 pounds when full. Last year, I carried/wore a badge that Shannon (RIF #171 Shannon Burke – see below) made to honor our friend Angela Ivory.”

Screwed runners are not allowed to accept help from anyone they know or from the crews of other runners but can accept help from random strangers, Road Angels. We asked Diane if she had encountered any Road Angels and she said: “many times strangers stopped to give me water/soda and twice Road Angels asked me what I needed and then went to get water and bring it back to me.”

Next we asked Diane what she learned about herself while running the Last Annual Vol State 500K and she said: “I guess you learn when you want something bad enough, you are capable of doing a lot more than you thought. If you really, really want it, it can happen.”

Finally, we asked Diane if she had any advice for newbies to the VS500K or for anyone who was thinking about doing it and she said: “Tell everybody that they can do this. You don’t have to be a super athlete or runner. Anyone can do it.”

Diane used herself as a reference for that last questions, saying that if she, who was an average person, could do this then anyone can. We don’t know about you, but we think Diane is pretty amazing! Good luck Diane!

***

RIF #171 SHANNON BURKE

Shannon will be running her 3rd Vol State 500K this year and will be running uncrewed. The first year she ran it, she hadn’t even done a 50 Mile or 100 Mile race yet! She didn’t finish that first year but came back determined last year and finished in 8:13:13:36. We asked Shannon why she decided to run this race when her longest previous run was only 42 miles (only with a race like this can you say “ONLY” and 42 miles in the same sentence!) and she said: “I didn’t look at it as 500K as much as a grand adventure.  Laz (Gary Cantrell) has a way of writing that sucks you into his world.  I followed Vol State during 2010 and knew I wanted to try it.  And I am gullible and have a group of fellars that encourage me to try these races.”

Then we asked her why she keeps coming back and she said: “Vol State truly is a race that anyone can do.  It all depends on how bad you want it.  After I failed in 2011, I spent the next year wishing for the ferry to get my chance at redemption.  (It was a really long year!)  It is truly a journey run and you learn a lot about yourself.”

And finally, we asked her what the best and worst parts of the race are for her and she said: “The best: reading a Laz post that lifts your spirits when they were bottomed out, the open road, learning so much about yourself and your strength within, napping on a porch swing after a wonderful lunch, and the chance to stop when you reach the rock.  The worst:  going to bed knowing you have to get up the next day and go again, relentless rain that chases you under a bridge just to get a little bit of silence, and the pain and despair you find at times and don’t feel like you will ever reach the rock.”

But we do know that Shannon reached the rock and we are sure she will again this year! Good luck Shannon! You can follow Shannon on Twitter: @s4121burke and you can check out her blog Yellow Bus Adventures.

***

RIF #1 JOSHUA HOLMES

Josh has run over 90 marathons and ultras and will be running his 3rd Vol State 500K with a crew supporting him. Last year he was 2nd Overall and shaved more than 2 days off his previous year’s time! We asked him what makes Vol State 500K different from the many other races he’s done and he said: “It’s a grand epic adventure that gets in your blood like a bad virus and never leaves it even once the race is over and you’ve finished it. You think about it almost daily and the bond you make with your fellow Vol State runners is almost a fraternal bond that brings about a special spark when you see a VS alum at another race.”

Next, we asked Joshua about his huge PR last year and if it was training or mental preparation that made the difference and he said: “We had some crew issues in year one and I went in just wanting to finish the race. I was conservative and I kept an eye on my crew, my 15-year old cousin, as much as he kept an eye on me. We had a grand time and we both learned a lot along the way. I was a stronger runner going into my second attempt, but more so I knew what to expect and the layout of the course having run it before. I also attacked it like one of the wild dogs you sometimes meet along the way.”

Then we asked him if the running 314 miles seemed less intimidating after having done it twice and he said: “At this point I know what it takes to finish it, but I keep raising the bar of what I expect out of myself and what time goals I set for myself. It’s 314 miles no matter how you slice it. If you are going to be intimated by a race before it starts then it’s likely this one or you’re an android.”

Finally, we asked Joshua what lessons he’s learned from Vol State 500K that he’s been able to apply to other races/life experiences and he said: “Mental toughness, physical toughness, blister toughness…about every form of toughness imaginable. The downside is that almost every race since Vol State is a bit of a let down, because Vol State is such an epic adventure.”

We are excited to watch Joshua tear it up out there this year! He’s a beast! Good luck Josh! You can follow his adventures on Twitter: @bayou or on his Facebook page: UltraJoshua. Also, Joshua is raising money for charity: water and if you would like to donate to his campaign, click here: 2013 Vol State 500K Endurance Run. In 2011, Joshua and RIF #2 Naresh Kumar (@iamarunr) raised $6,205 while running VS500 that year and they helped fund a well in Ethiopia! Let’s help him top that this year!

THE NEWBIES

 RIF #79 DALLAS SMITH

Dallas has run many, many marathons, ultras, and Ironman races. He’s qualified for Boston numerous times and holds a boat load (58 and counting) of State Records for ages 63 to 72 in Tennessee for everything from the 5K to the marathon. He will be running his first Vol State 500K this year and he is doing it uncrewed.

We asked Dallas why he decided to take this challenge on and he said: “The answer is I don’t think I know why. I am always ready for adventure & a new experience & VS certainly is that. What I don’t like to face is that I may be seeking redemption for failing on a similar run in Spain. That failure was a spirit breaker in its abject totality. I was whipped. As broken ad Cool hand Luke. It haunts me yet & I guess I’m looking for a 2nd chance.”

And since everyone can use a bit of luck, we asked Dallas if he was taking a good luck charm with him and he said: “I hadn’t thought about that til now, but actually I am taking a good luck charm, a pair of Kalenji socks I bought on that same Spain trip. Practically every race I’ve run since, I’ve worn those socks, dozens & dozens. They seem indestructible & I’ve always said they were the best socks I ever owned. Not too romantic, I’ll admit, but when I was deciding on socks they had to go in. They connect this race to my failure in Spain.”

Since Dallas first answered that last question, he was given a good luck charm to carry by his daughter which we think is appropriate for the VS500:

Finally, we asked Dallas if he was nervous or excited about any part of this journey he was starting on and he said: “I’m not nervous. Strange to say – because I’m quite timid – I’ve never been nervous before a race. I am surely not bragging about that but merely expressing reality and a bit of amazement at it. I AM anxious, anxious in the sense that I want to see what will happen. Kinda like after a marathon finally starts and you say to yourself, finally dammitt we can run. This race holds many mysteries for me. A big component is the dirtbag-life on the road. Separate from the mere running is the continual foraging for food, water and shelter. All that is a problem in itself and I am curious to see how it all plays out.”

We cannot wait to hear all about the adventures Dallas has out there and are sure it would make for a great book! (If you don’t know, Dallas is an accomplished writer and a wonderful storyteller. You can find links to his books on his blog Turnaround and follow him on Twitter: @smithbend)

***

RIF #159 DIANE BOLTON

Diane is a racing machine. She just recently completed her SECOND round of marathons in 50 States. She will be running her first Vol State 500K this year with the help of a crew. We asked her why she took on this challenge and she said: “Why..actually I’ve been asking myself this too..ha,ha. Actually, RIF has been instrumental in having me challenge myself. With this in mind Vol State offered me a challenge totally out of my comfort zone. I’m not afraid of not finishing but would regret if I didn’t try. That said, I will take it day by day learning much about my threshold as well as the wonderful adventures in ultra endurance running.”

Next, we asked her what she was most excited and/or nervous about and she said she was: “Most excited about the knowledge I will gain learning so much more from some fascinating very accomplished ultra runners. What I’m most nervous about…everything! I’m such a rookie here. But thankful for the many people helping me on this journey. Most importantly my guardian angel crew chief Phil Min (RIF #286). None of this would have been possible had he not offered to crew me, giving up his scheduled marathon and extra days to be part of this epic event. I hope he’ll still call me friend when this is all over. “

Lastly, Diane had this to say about the coming days: “Also worried I’ll get lost. This is an unmarked course. I get lost on my last loop of a 9 times around course! 🙂 One thing I know for sure…I’m going to laugh and I’m going to cry. None of this would have been experienced had it not been for the gentle push by some in this wonderful Run It Fast family.”

We know Diane is going to be just fine! And we are excited that she is taking on this challenge. Go Diane!

***

RIF #101 DAVID WINGARD

David will be running his first Vol State 500K this year and he will be doing it uncrewed. He’s run almost 100 marathons and didn’t start running until he was 52. Not only does he run, but he raises money for the Lazarex Cancer Foundation as well. You can learn more about David on his website Run David Run.

We asked David why he decided to do VS500 and he said: “I only decided about 10 days ago to do this race. When I did the Jackal Marathon series a couple of weeks ago, some of my close enablers, oh, I mean friends, explained to me why I needed to run this race.”

Next we asked David if he had done anything like this before and he said: “The longest race I have done so far is Camrades (54 miles) twice. I plan to do my 1st 100 mile racin in August – the Leadville 100.”

Finally, we asked him what he was most nervous and excited about the next 314 miles and he said: “I’m most nervous about having my 1st DNF. I am most excited about running a new race with my friends and running further than I have ever run before.”

Good luck David! We have no doubt you will do great and that this will be great training for your next big adventure! (David is planning to go for the World Record for hiking the Appalachian Trail in June 2014 – you can find more info about that on his website as well).

***

I hope you’ll join us in wishing good luck to all of our Run It Fast Club members and all the others running the Last Annual Vol State 500K. Once again, it starts at 7am Central Time on Thursday, July 11th. We will be posting daily blogs/updates here on Run It Fast so make sure you check back here or follow us on Twitter @runitfast. You can also do a Twitter search on the hashtag #VS500 to see all the tweets about this year’s Last Annual Volstate 500K.

You can also like the Last Annual Vol State 500K Facebook page here: Last Annual Vol State Road Race.

And finally, you can also check on the runners at this link to the Last Annual Volstate 500K Spreadsheet & Map. It will be updated twice a day with each runners position/miles as they head to the finish.

Don’t miss out on the fun! Who knows, maybe next year people will be asking you “You’re going to run how far?” 🙂

[photos courtesy of Joshua Holmes, Naresh Kumar, and Lisa Gonzales]

RIF #27 Anthony Ohrey and RIF #169 Billy Cannon finishing strong at the Run Under The Stars 2013

Have you ever run a timed race? Did you even know they exist? All over the country, there are 6 Hour, 12 Hour, 24 Hour, etc. races. They are usually run on a loop and they are lots of fun. I know what you’re thinking….Probably the same thing the rental car agent thought this past weekend.

Rental Car Agent: What brings you to town?
Me: I’m doing a 10 Hour race on Saturday.
RCA: Wow, where do you run to?
Me: Um, we’ll be running in circles on a half mile track the whole time.
RCA: *silence*…Good luck? *cue the this girl is nuts look*
🙂

Okay, so it may seem a little crazy but here’s why you should consider running a timed race if you haven’t done one already:

• There is no DNF in a timed race. You show up and run whatever you want to run during your alloted time. Some people go in to them planning to run a certain distance and then calling it while others plan to run the whole time to see how many miles they can run. Whichever method you choose is entirely up to you.
• You can’t get lost! I’ve run on half mile loops, mile loops, and 5K loops in the ones I’ve done. You are never far away from the start and/or aid station so you don’t have to worry about them calling out search parties if you miss a course marking and end up in another state.
• You are never far from an aid station and food and water…like I stated in the previous point. This means you don’t have to carry multiple bottles or a hydration pack and you don’t have to carry a ton of food and gels on you.
• You get to see your friends multiple times on the course. Most of the time, I see my friends at the beginning of a race (and sometimes at the end if they’ve waited for me) but with a loop course, you get to see them over, and over…and over again. 🙂 And the great thing is that since the race ends at a specific time, you never have to worry about them waiting around for you because you all end at the same time.
• You get to make a lot of new friends. For the same reason above, you will see many of your fellow racers multiple times on the course and get to spend a lot of time with them.
• They allow the middle and back-of-the-packers a chance to see/watch the fast guys/women.
• You can usually set up your own little camp – with maybe a chair or blanket or sometimes even a tent – so all your stuff is there within easy access. No worrying about what to put in a drop bag for when. Night time…no problem, just grab your light. Need a change of shoes or socks…no problem, just grab them and change them.
• Your friends and family that come to see you at the race get to see you multiple times without have to drive to various places on the course. And if they are tired, they can take a nap.
• Hey, you can take a nap if you want to.
• You always know where your competition is.
• You will find yourself inspired by everyone, fast or slow, because you get to see their triumphs and their struggles.
• It’s fun to see the miles adding up as you finish each loop.
• You don’t have to worry about bears, mountain lions, and crazed cows…usually. Crazy runners, yes. Wild animals, no.
• Did I mention access to great food is never far away? I’ve had pizza and cheeseburgers and tri tip and ice cream at some of my timed races.

For all these reasons…and probably a lot I forgot…timed races are a great place to set a new PR for a distance or set a new PL (Personal Long). You will be amazed by what you can accomplish at one!

I’ve done 4 so far and had a blast at each one:

New Year’s One Day 6/12/24 in San Francisco, CA – run on a 1 mile loop around Crissy Field on New Year’s Eve/Day with amazing views of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Presidio, Alcatraz, and the city. Both the 6 Hour and the 12 Hour end at midnight on New Year’s Eve.

Nanny Goat 12/24/100 in Riverside, CA – great, fun 1 mile looping course on a horse farm that supports the Wounded Warrior Project. There’s a variety of surfaces to run on so you won’t get bored.

RIF #1 Joshua Holmes having fun at the Nanny Goat 2013

Run Under The Stars 10 Hour Endurance Run in Paducah, KY – run on a 1/2 mile horse track, the race starts at 8pm on Saturday and finishes at 6am on Sunday.

Rohring Round the Clock 6/12/24 in Chula Vista, CA – run on a 5K loop around Rohring park with lots to see.

These are just a few that I’ve done. I hope to run Across the Years 24HR/48HR/72HR one of these years and will definitely go back to the others. You can find more timed races by checking out Ultra Signup.

What are you waiting for? Go find one and sign up!

Out Damn Negative Thoughts!

I’ve gotten into a very bad habit the past 6 months. I’ve become my own worst critic and I can’t seem to stop it.

When things go bad in a race, I start telling myself how slow I am, how much I suck, how I’m not trying hard enough, not working hard enough, giving up too easily.

When I don’t hit my times in the planned work outs that my coach set up for me, I find myself saying things like “He’s got to be frustrated with me.” Or “I bet he’ll be disappointed again.” Or “Maybe a coach is a waste of time.”

And when a friend teases me about running a 4 hour half marathon, I think “He knows me/my running better than most so I must really suck.”

I know I’m only making things worse. That it’s me who’s disappointed and frustrated (and embarrassed) and not my coach or my friends. I know that I’m not helping myself but…how do I stop it?

I’ve been in a funk ever since the DNF at Death Valley Trail Marathon. I haven’t raced well this year. I’ve been slow as molasses and my confidence is shattered. I doubt I can hit my workouts and I doubt I can keep a certain pace in a race and I think it causes me to live up…er, live down…to my expectations.

I’m tired of it. I want my confidence back. I want to be fast and feel fast.

I know that fast is relative and I know I’m not a 2:30 marathoner but I feel I have a sub 4 marathon in me. Actually, I don’t know what I’m capable of but I dream of going sub 3:55 and qualifying for Boston. I want to go sub 24 in a 5K and sub 50 in a 10K and 1:50 in a half. Or faster.

But to do that, I first have to quit telling myself I can’t.

On Saturday, I ran my 5th 5K. My 5K PR is 24:59 (set in 2011) but I honestly thought I would be lucky if I broke 30 minutes for the one on Saturday. I felt that 27 minutes would be a dream goal but I shouldn’t be disappointed if I didn’t hit it. I thought there was an outside chance of hitting 27 minutes. Maybe.

Then I’m not sure what happened but I got mad at myself. The night before the race I started thinking about what it would take to PR and I started telling myself that I could do it. On race morning as I warmed up I lectured myself over and over again to try. To not give up. To run as hard as I could and try to PR. That it wasn’t impossible. I could do it. But only if I tried. I started the race…determined.

I ran hard.

I finished the race in 25:15.

So…no PR but I ran so hard I thought I was going to puke at the end. I never told myself I couldn’t do it while I was running. I talked myself out of giving up and settling for the slower 27 min goal from earlier. I was happy with my effort. I had run it with my heart instead of my head and because of that, I got a surprise when the times were posted…3rd in my age group! Woo! This is my 5K medal on the left and my AG medal on the right:

🙂 If this were a Hollywood movie, that would be the end…the happy runner girl running off into the sunset with a new mind and a new determination to make her goals happen.

Well, this ain’t Hollywood….

On Sunday, I ran the Rock n’ Roll San Diego Half Marathon (my 24th half marathon) and I was back to my old ways. If you look at the McMillan pace calc based on my 5K time…

…I should be able to go sub 2 for the half. My PR for the half is 1:57:26 (also set in 2011) but I was telling myself to shoot for 2:10 and to be happy with 2:15. And when things went south during the race (I lost 6 minutes to hit the port-a-potty and then fell before mile 10), I started in with the negative talk: I suck, I should just stop racing, I shouldn’t have signed up for that marathon at the end of June because it might take me 5 or more hours to finish and my friends will have to wait for me. What was I thinking? I was frustrated and embarrassed again and beating myself up over it.

Sigh.

Bad habits are hard to break. I have GOT to figure out how to break this one permanently before I give up trying all together. I just don’t know how right now.

Any suggestions? How do you deal with the negative voices?

Here is a look at where everyone is running this weekend. We had 24 responses this week. Good luck to everyone and Run It Fast!

To join Run It Fast – The Club then click HERE to read more details.

Here is a look at where everyone is running this weekend. We had 27 responses this week. Good luck to everyone and Run It Fast!

To join Run It Fast – The Club then click HERE to read more details.

WHERE RUN IT FAST RUNNERS ARE RUNNING THIS WEEKEND (APR 27-28, 2013)

Storified by Joshua Holmes· Fri, Apr 26 2013 13:33:42

We have no answers from the senseless Boston Marathon bombings that took place yesterday. When we finally have answers they won’t make sense. They will just point a finger at some radical lunatic that decided to kill innocent people to make some sort of deranged point.

I covered yesterday’s Boston Marathon for 16 hours straight. Running is one of my passions and it’s part of what I do for a living. I had just finished most of the race coverage for Run It Fast when the bombs went off at the finish line in Boston.

It’s not the first time I’ve heard reports of ‘bombs’ at a sporting event. Usually those reports are erroneous or false.  So naturally at first I thought maybe a car backfired or some fireworks went off that wrongly set off the social media first responders with incorrect tweets and status updates.

However, the videos from the attack quickly reached the internet, TV, and we all realized that something very serious had just happened.  I created Run It Fast – The Club fourteen months ago and had been tracking all of our runners that were running the Boston Marathon. About half of our runners had crossed the finish line at that point, but the rest of them were on target to finish just about when the bombs went off.

That’s when it all started to hit home. The runners became real to us and you feel connected to the terror that unfolded collectively. The tragedy that happened yesterday, that happens 20x a day in Iraq and other countries, becomes surreal and a terror to you and those that have loved ones that were present. You may have begun thinking about your family, when you would have been finishing the race- if you had been there running it, and where your family would have been, waiting on you to watch you finish your first Boston Marathon.

Likely my family would have been near the finish where the bombs went off, and I would have been finishing within minutes of detonation.  Maybe I would have been over there on the sidewalk reconnecting with my family and waiting for fellow Run It Fast members to finish. What if? What if? What if?

Then at some point you start to think of the tragedy of the entire thing. Those poor people that were wounded or killed were just the victims of a random act of violence.  But really it wasn’t random to them. Random acts of violence are never random. They are deliberate and the victims are almost always selected beforehand even if their names aren’t known.  Someone intentionally set out to kill, injure, and maim dozens of people at the finish line in Boston.

Violence is an epidemic. It is in certain parts of the world. We can claim to be the land of the free in America but we live in a dangerous society. Some of us are privileged to live away from where most violence takes place, but our lives interweave us all, of every background and origin, into each other’s lives as our stories unfold.

I was jumped after a high school football game, at the inner city high school I attended, when I was a 14-year old freshman. That same year I was an innocent bystander in a race-riot at my high school. SWAT teams, police, dogs covered campus as most of us were simply trying to learn American history when in fact we were being caught in the middle of it at that very moment.  When I was 19, I was robbed at gunpoint in my apartment with a gun to my head. Six years after that I awoke in my apartment in Athens to the Greek mafia staring down at me.  What went down in that apartment in those early hours have never fully been discussed outside of myself and my roommate during that intense early morning wake up.  For now let’s just say that what Hollywood puts in most action/suspense movies is more believable.

Each incident was worse than the prior one. I always thought that my odds of being the victim of ‘random acts of violence’ had to finally be down to like infinity to one since I’d already been randomly selected multiple times. But I’m just as likely tomorrow to be the victim of some senseless tragedy as you are.

Most would consider that to be very bad luck. It was traumatic in part, but I was actually lucky.  Besides a busted lip from getting jumped I was uninjured physically. However, those events always stick with you. They hide for the most part, and you might think it never happened, but then something ‘random’ like yesterday happens and it all flashes forward to reality again and you start to think once again of ‘What if?’  You feel the pain more than most and your heart bleeds and your heart cries for those that lost a loved one or were injured.

The victims from yesterday will be told by many that they are lucky to have survived.  They won’t always agree with that assessment. They will have wounds that will never heal. They will have nightmares that will never resolve.  They’ll see a neighbor jogging down the street and be struck with tremors from what happened in Boston on April 15th.

But from the concrete absoluteness of obscurity comes small blades of hope and brightness as time passes and wounds heal.

When evil strikes it makes a massive splash that dashes the hopes from humanity, at least for a small microcosm.  Then great starts to surface because simple goodness wouldn’t be good enough to whitewash the atrocities of what that evil has done.

For good is better than evil and great trumps evil. Greatness is dormant in most of us and often needs a powder-keg, sadly perhaps literally, to set it off. But once ignited you start to see the best of humanity. Hope starts to rebrand itself in society when this happens.

When the bombs went off yesterday, we saw runners and first responders run towards the smoke and explosions to help and hopefully save our fallen brothers and sisters.

As Andy Durfresne said in The Shawshank Redemption, “Hope is a good thing, perhaps the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.”

Runners are tough people…some of the toughest people on the planet. Often what others might confuse for a white flag is a dirtied handkerchief that we take out of our pocket to tie around our bloodied leg so we can get up and keep marching forward.

A lot of humans that run do so because they’ve already dealt with something traumatic or overcome some bad injustice, act of violence, rape, death, cancer, depression, or life-altering event.

For when we run hard and run far everything leaves our systems as we become squarely focused on the most basic things like breathing, survival, where our next step will land.  It detoxes us and removes all the toxins from badness, heartache, confusion, and what troubles us in our daily lives.

But even the best of us can’t run forever and when we stop or the race is over we have to figure out how to survive and how to respond when evil strikes and fear starts to consume our lungs that were just filled with oxygen and endorphins that made us think that we could do anything.

And life is perhaps best summed up with just that. Where will our next step land when the race is over?

The events of yesterday and humanity’s track record would strongly suggest that step is towards the smoke and flames and out of the ashes, humanity will win the Boston Marathon!

The cover of this week’s Sports Illustrated is powerful with the famed photo of marathoner Bill Iffrig collapsed on the ground, after the bomb had exploded, with Boston Police officers surrounding him.

As we reported last night, Bill was uninjured and actually got up off the asphalt and walked the remaining 20-feet to the finish line (read more about Bill Iffrig HERE).  Bill’s a tough 78-year old grizzled runner.

Two things: 1. Bill never would have believed yesterday morning that he’d be on the cover of Sports Illustrated today and 2. There is no way in hell he would have ever believed the reason for him being on the cover.

The photo is powerful, iconic, and will be the lasting image from a horrible day in marathon and U.S. history.

More Posts from the 117th Boston Marathon

• Out of the Ashes, Humanity Will Win the Boston Marathon
• Photo of 8-year old Martin Richard Who Was Killed in Boston Marathon Bombing
• That Man Who Crumbled to the Ground During the Boston Marathon Bombings is Bill Iffrig
• Boston Athletic Association Releases Statement
• World Newspapers Response to Boston Marathon Massacre
• Bombs Explode at Boston Marathon Finish: Race Stopped (Photos)
• Lelisa Desisa Wins the 2013 Boston Marathon (Elite Male Results)
• Rita Jeptoo Wins Boston Marathon (Elite Female Results)
• 117th Boston Marathon Live Video Coverage (Watch)
• Live Blog: 117th Boston Marathon Coverage

That man who crumbled to the ground during the Boston Marathon bombings is Bill Iffrig and…..

…..he’s ok.

He got up off the ground, dusted himself off, and walked the remaining 20 feet to the finish line to finish the marathon in 4:03:47.

Yeah that’s an average time for the Boston Marathon except…..

…..Bill’s 78-years old or young and his time was the second best in his age division.

A race official came to check on him and helped him up.

Then, accompanied by the official, Iffrig walked the last 12 feet or so across the finish line.

“I ended up second in my division,” he said. “After you’ve run 26 miles you’re not going to stop there.” His timing chip marked his finish at 4 hours, 3 minutes, 47 seconds.

However, Bill was rattled as we all would have been in that situation:

“It was a close one though, boy. I’ll tell you, that scared me.”

Bill started running in the 70’s and hasn’t slowed down. In fact he’s very fast for his age. He know’s that he is not only fast but has outlived much of his competition as well.

“Not many old guys are as fast as me.”

He reminds me of my good friend, Dallas Smith, who is 72-years old and finished 4th in his age division on this tragic day.

It’s been a day full of bad news, stories, Tweets, and updates so it’s good to read something positive today.

I’m happy that Bill is ok. I’m even happy he got off the asphalt and walked the remaining 20 feet to the finish line.

He’s tough like everyone who ran Boston today and like all of the first responders and volunteers who did an amazing job under a lot of pressure.

Bill is lucky. Our thoughts and prayers go out to those that have been wounded and to the families of those that lost someone.

You can view a GIF of the explosion that knocked Bill down at the bottom of the page by clicking HERE. (I didn’t want to repost the video or GIF again on another page. I think we’ve all been traumatized enough by it today.)

UPDATE: The photo above of Bill is now on the cover of Sports Illustrated for this week. View the SI cover HERE.

More Stories from our Boston Marathon Coverage Today

• Out of the Ashes, Humanity Will Win the Boston Marathon
• Boston Athletic Association Releases Statement
• World Newspapers Response to Boston Marathon Massacre
• Bombs Explode at Boston Marathon Finish: Race Stopped (Photos)
• Lelisa Desisa Wins the 2013 Boston Marathon (Elite Male Results)
• Rita Jeptoo Wins Boston Marathon (Elite Female Results)
• 117th Boston Marathon Live Video Coverage (Watch)
• Live Blog: 117th Boston Marathon Coverage
• Elite Runners at the 117th Boston Marathon

[photo: Boston Globe]