A serious reminder mixed with a splendid one...

Yesterday April 29th was all sorts of interesting amidst its boring snowy self.

 Many of you may seen the story about the car crashing into RNK Running in Parker. The owner of that store is a very good friend of mine going back years. Trent Briney and I ran against each other and as yet we became friends over the years. Trent worked at the Boulder Running Company with me in the later years of my time there.  Often seeing each other during our post collegiate quest to make the Olympic Trials our friendship was forged in the grind and dreaming that is the sport of distance running. Trent made it a couple times to the Trials as he was far better then I. Easily the race of his career was finishing 4th in the 2004 Olympic Trials Marathon in Birmingham Alabama. The nearest of misses in a quest that for most, never comes that close. On Saturday, Trent experienced a different kind of near miss.

Trent's polar opposite near misses, in both cases, 2004 and 2017...is a reminder to me how fragile and how incredible our lives are. On one hand... the agony and as yet remarkable success it was to be that close to the Olympic Games...we can only imagine what its like to be that close to the greatest of challenge and pinnacle of the sport. Since 2004 Trent has used his success in the sport to better the lives of countless others. It is a remarkable testament to the goodness inside his heart how encouraging and inspiring he has been to a national running community. Likewise...to think how nearly all that good he provides this world was nearly lost in a freakish, inconceivable moment. I am so thankful he will continue to be here...inspiring others and being the incredible person he is.

Meanwhile....early on April 29th on the streets of Columbus, Ohio.... a young lady who knows the pain and exhilaration of narrowly missing the Olympic games that Trent knows...Natosha Rogers was continuing to write her own life story using the sport of distance running. Rolling through Columbus in a rain storm, Natosha Rogers used her exemplary mindset and physical ability to win the United States Half Marathon Championship...her one hour ten minute performance, its own type of thunder.  Natosha is in her own right a testament to determination and perseverance amidst all sorts of negative life circumstances. She has been down and out more times and in more ways then most of us and she continues to be a lighthouse of hope and pride for all of us.

Incredible people like Natosha Rogers and Trent Briney and their stories remind me that sport is special for its inspiring physical quality yes, but more so for its ability to bring people together. For them they cherish the successes they have achieved, but I bet you anything they will tell you how much more they cherish the friendships. You see... it's really something to see Trent's facebook page after a near miss on Saturday. Talk about special. He has impacted so many the outpouring of love and support for him is a direct reflection of what he has brought to this world.

There is something so special about what we have in the American sport lifestyle. Chiefly working together, creating friendships and great experiences that create wonderful memories are the real achievement. It can all be gone in an instant, as Trent's narrow miss reminds us, thus giving us all the more reason to celebrate the good when it occurs and likewise help each other when the chips are down. This weekend I am reminded to encourage us all to find ways to live with gratitude daily, and put as much good as we can into each other's lives while we have the chance. Whether that is pushing ourselves to a Championship that inspires or helping pick up the pieces from the unlikely events in our life, to simply being kind to all who come across us on a daily basis, we should cherish each other and all the moments we have in life.

I will see you all on Monday.....meet in Coach Gysin's room at 3:30pm....