Twin Cities Marathon, Mile 25

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Focus on the finish. All else follows.
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I’ve stood on the curb and cheered runners on in the Twin Ciries Marathon for several years now. It must be one of the most beautiful maarathons in the country. Crisp air, autumn colors in the trees. It should be a joy to run. But once I tried a 5K run (a mere shadow of the 26 mile marathon) I realized that the runners never see the scenery.

At the beginning is the crush of 10,000 people eager for the test. By mile 25, some are limping, some are crying, most are hurting, all are simply focussing on putting one foot in fromt of the other, again, again, again. At the end is simply the gratitude that it is over. They will likely wait till tomorrow to be proud.

And, proud they should be.