2: A little about me

I have a loving wife and two beautiful daughters. I am an Orthodox Christian. I work at Indiana University. And, I am originally from Walla Walla, Washington. As this blog takes shape, it should become apparent how each of these aspects of my life have shaped my perspectives on running. And, though I have come into it late in life, running has not only shaped me into a better person physically, it has also added much to the other dimensions of my life.

Age to me is just a number. I've seen people seem quite devastated by whatever number applies to them at a given time, but I have been fortunate in being able to not let the numbers bother me. You either age or you die. That may sound a bit morbid, but I prefer to think of it as a blessing. The more we age, the more opportunity we have to enjoy what we have been given in life. That being said, it may be useful to reveal that I have aged to the number 50. And, as I approached my 50th birthday, for the first time in my life, I began to consider myself A Runner.

I had never thought of myself as a runner. I have been, athletically, at various time in my life, a swimmer, a wrestler, a thrower, and a cyclist. Running, when forced upon me, was a necessary evil -- part of the package, if you will, of the preparations to do what I really wanted to do. When I last competed athletically, it was to throw the shot put and discus in college. I like to say that my preferred running distance was 7 feet -- the diameter of a shot put ring. For "distance running," the discus ring is 8 feet 3 inches. Sure, running is a necessary part of a thrower's training regimen, but speed may be hard to come by. At many college track meets, they will stage a weight man's (thrower's) 4x400 relay. After one such race, my coach approached me after the finish. He said, "you know, Weber, I was watching you run the back straightaway. Your running form is actually pretty good. But it is really quite amazing how slowly it propels you."

As I entered the post-collegiate recreational athletic stage of my life, bicycling is what propelled me. In college, I had stopped short of entering competitive cycling so that I could protect the activity for its pure enjoyment. Cycling had become a sanctuary for me. It was safe, serene, even meditative. Add to this the fact that I had custom selected each piece of the bicycle as I built it over nearly two years, giving it a personality to fit what I wanted in a ride, it was easy to "be one with the bike." Of course, I still enjoy my bicycle. What amazes me about my transformation into a runner is that it, too, has become a sanctuary.

Up next: The Unreasonable Midlife Fitness Challenge: Hitting Stride