As anyone may have noticed, in the past month this here blog has fallen a wee bit by the wayside. There is, however, a good reason for this: I was in the final throws of training for a marathon. Yes-sir, I was making a mad attempt to follow that elusive unicorn that it the Boston Marathon. As the marathon was yesterday I thought today would be an excellent day to honor lady runners of all sorts, particularly those taking part in the whole marathon process.
Who: Kathrine Switzer
Age: 64
Why she kicks some serious butt: In 1967 Ms. Switzer became the first woman to run the Boston Marathon. Throughout the race she was harassed, shoved, and was attempted to be forcibly removed from the race by an official (shown above). Not only did she finish the race, she then went on to win the New York Marathon in 1974 and take second in the Boston Marathon the following year. It is truly awe inspiring to me that someone could have the guts to carry on through such an experience like that and not become down hearted and just plain quit. It is challenging enough to train for a marathon, even when you have the most supportive group of friends and family, so going it alone seems staggering to me. Ms. Switzer's courage opened doors for many, many, more fantastic and talented female runners and it certainly leveled the playing field (so to speak).
Who: Kara Goucher
Age: 32
Why we like her: To me, Kara Goucher represents the dozens of incredible elite female runners all around the world. She has long been touted as "America's Sweetheart" of distance running, and she is just so darn hard not to like! Her times are incredible even though she is not a winner all the time. But what is so impressive about Ms. Goucher to me is that she ran the Boston Marathon this year only a short time after having a baby! And she came in fifth! She demonstrates the kind of go get-em attitude and dedication to sport that often gets overlooked in women's sports; but with Kara it is hard to ignore. Congrats Kara!
Kelley Moodie (L), and me (R)Who: Kelley Moodie
Age: 21
Why she is awesome: Okay, so I admit this may be an addition to make up for all those long lost "familiar face friday" themes of yore, but she just fits so darn perfectly with the theme of this week! Kelley is one of my closest friends of all time, and together we have tackled some of the more challenging races in Boston (yesterday's marathon to be included. Yes, thats me looking dweeby after our first half together last fall). Kelley inspires me as a female runner because she is always dedicated to running for a cause. Although she was a short-er distance runner in high school, personal events have led her to jump in to distance running with a vengeance. Most of these distance runs lead to fundraising for cancer research; this year alone Kelley raised just over $3600.00 for Dana Farber Cancer research. But it is not the running, or the raising money that stand out alone. Kelley represents the type of female runner who is dedicated to helping other people through her personal endeavors. She is not alone in this venture (about one fifth of people who run the Boston Marathon run for charity...and thats just in Boston!), but she is certainly a stand out to me.
So cheers to all you female runners out there! Your dedication to yourself, and others is truly inspiring!
Who: Kathrine Switzer
Age: 64
Why she kicks some serious butt: In 1967 Ms. Switzer became the first woman to run the Boston Marathon. Throughout the race she was harassed, shoved, and was attempted to be forcibly removed from the race by an official (shown above). Not only did she finish the race, she then went on to win the New York Marathon in 1974 and take second in the Boston Marathon the following year. It is truly awe inspiring to me that someone could have the guts to carry on through such an experience like that and not become down hearted and just plain quit. It is challenging enough to train for a marathon, even when you have the most supportive group of friends and family, so going it alone seems staggering to me. Ms. Switzer's courage opened doors for many, many, more fantastic and talented female runners and it certainly leveled the playing field (so to speak).
Age: 32
Why we like her: To me, Kara Goucher represents the dozens of incredible elite female runners all around the world. She has long been touted as "America's Sweetheart" of distance running, and she is just so darn hard not to like! Her times are incredible even though she is not a winner all the time. But what is so impressive about Ms. Goucher to me is that she ran the Boston Marathon this year only a short time after having a baby! And she came in fifth! She demonstrates the kind of go get-em attitude and dedication to sport that often gets overlooked in women's sports; but with Kara it is hard to ignore. Congrats Kara!
Kelley Moodie (L), and me (R)
Age: 21
Why she is awesome: Okay, so I admit this may be an addition to make up for all those long lost "familiar face friday" themes of yore, but she just fits so darn perfectly with the theme of this week! Kelley is one of my closest friends of all time, and together we have tackled some of the more challenging races in Boston (yesterday's marathon to be included. Yes, thats me looking dweeby after our first half together last fall). Kelley inspires me as a female runner because she is always dedicated to running for a cause. Although she was a short-er distance runner in high school, personal events have led her to jump in to distance running with a vengeance. Most of these distance runs lead to fundraising for cancer research; this year alone Kelley raised just over $3600.00 for Dana Farber Cancer research. But it is not the running, or the raising money that stand out alone. Kelley represents the type of female runner who is dedicated to helping other people through her personal endeavors. She is not alone in this venture (about one fifth of people who run the Boston Marathon run for charity...and thats just in Boston!), but she is certainly a stand out to me.
So cheers to all you female runners out there! Your dedication to yourself, and others is truly inspiring!
