1 post tagged “marathon”

Last night a friend and I went to see a showing of the running documentary Spirit of the Marathon.

What an amazing film! The documentary follows five runners - ranging from first-time marathoners to world-class Olympians - as they train for and participate in the 2005 Chicago Marathon.

Between 2002 and 2005, I ran (OK, ran some walked a lot) five marathons with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training program. I loved this program, met some amazing people and raised a bit of money for an incredible cause. Unfortunately, I didn't listen very well to my body and I injured my knee training for the 2005 Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati. I got some medical attention and managed to get through that marathon, but sort of drifted away from the program and running after that.

Last night's screening was a wake up call and reminded me how much I really miss running, especially the camaraderie you develop over the four months or so it takes to train for a marathon. Spirit of the Marathon did a very good job of showing how important that group training setting can be. I'm now inspired to pick up my running once again. Maybe I'll even train for another marathon one of these days. I haven't run Chicago yet...

If you missed the movie last night, you're in luck. Due to popular demand, the producers have added a second showing of the film on February 21, 2008. You can find more information about this encore presentation here.

On a related note, I found it curious that there was no mention whatsoever of Team in Training during the movie, even though hundreds and hundreds of purple-clad TNT runners/walkers participate in the Chicago Marathon each year. In fact, just about the only image of a TNT athlete was a runner from the Atlanta area who happened to finish the race at the same time as one of the featured amateurs.