See the Finish Line

As Aleck and I hopped into my bed with our hot chocolate, we pulled a blanket over our freezing feet.  I flipped on the television and we began watching an Xterra race.  The competitors were finishing a mountain bike portion of the race and were transitioning into a grueling 10k trail run.  We watched the leaders streaking through the narrow trails like deer running perfectly through the forest.  Each step seemed to be perfect.  They climbed steep hills and leapt over fallen trees.  It looked so easy.  The men’s race was pretty uneventful, except for watching Lance Armstrong come off the bike in 2nd place only to fall to 23rd place during the run.  The women’s race was different.  The 1st place woman, after the bike, had about a 7 minute lead over the next woman.  The 3rd place woman, after the bike, was known to be a strong runner, but being behind  7 minutes made things seem impossible(at least to two guys drinking hot chocolate).  As the race continued, the leader began to fade quickly.  The third place woman zipped past the 2nd place woman with such speed both Aleck and I let out a “Wooow…she’s fast!”  The final stretch of the race was a strip of beach the competitors had to run on before turning up to a grass trail to the finish line.  The 1st place woman had retained her lead and was on the sand.  She was barely jogging and was zig zagging so badly, race fans had to push her back onto the course.  The commentators then began talking about the grueling effects of this kind of race on the mind and body.  Next the broadcast switched to scene after scene of runners and bikers falling, quitting, and collapsing.  The footage showed crumpled bodies being carried off.  It showed muddy wet racers collapsing and crying in defeat.  The coverage flipped back to the 1st place woman struggling as the strong 3rd place woman sprinted past her and through the finish line banner.  The woman who had once held a 7 minute lead now was staggering like an intoxicated person trying to walk a straight line for a police officer.  She was steps from the finish line and collapsed.  Medical crews were on her immediately.  She did not finish.  Aleck asked, “What happened? Why did she quit?”  I explained what happens to the body when pushed to the max and that she didn’t quit.  She definitely did not quit.  Aleck handed me his empty hot chocolate mug and said “I believe I would take a shortcut.”

It is said the majority of runners who drop out of a marathon quit toward the end of the race but before the finish line is in sight.  They don’t quit earlier in the race.  One of the reasons could certainly be due to the physical stress on the body over the many miles.  Dehydration or other physiological factors could also affect a runner’s mental state leading them to quit.  Almost NEVER…NEVER does one quit when one can see the finish line.  There is a mental lift…a surge of adrenaline…extra energy to be found when one can see the finish line…the end.  You can apply the “finish line sight theory” to life.  If people SEE the finish line(the end of a goal…or the the end of a struggle), they should be more likely to push through and succeed.  However…..I think there are plenty of people who don’t have a finish line…they have no goals.  I believe there are MORE people who have a finish line, but have no race course.  And when they finally see their race course spread out before them, they choose Aleck’s method…”I believe I’ll take a shortcut.”  This applies especially to young people today.  I won’t get into all the theories as to why this is the case… like :  It’s the parent’s fault for not saying no…for wanting to live through their children…for being an endless money supply.  It’s the school’s fault for not cutting players from teams…for requiring the whole class to be invited to a private birthday party or you have no party…for not keeping score…for not wanting to offend anyone…and for handing out “made up” awards.  It’s the media’s fault…TV shows like American Idol…athletes making millions of dollars…bonehead 20 year olds in New Jersey making millions of dollars…Youtube making everyone famous…It’s the politician’s fault for making people believe the Government will take care of them…through entitlements, bailouts, and other things people are “owed”.  WHATEVER the reason is…it’s a fact…people want to cross the finish line without running the race…without getting dirty, wet, dehydrated, and crampy…without struggling, fighting, pushing, sweating, and crying.  I had a trainer come into my gym and TELL me he was going to observe and learn from me.  He TOLD me he had the best certification(an online certification that takes 15 minutes and $499 to obtain) and that any other certification, including CSCS(mine), was junk.  I had another trainer apply while cussing every other word he spoke to me.  I had a college student come in and ask me if I needed any help and when I asked him why his thumb was bandaged he answered, “Dude, I was drunk and tried to open my beer bottle with a knife and slit my thumb tendon.”  And I’m not making this up…The same guy came in a few months later with his foot in a cast looking for a job and said, “Dude…I was partying and sledding down a hill  and broke my ankle.”  I had another guy come in and tell me he would work for me if I could give him 30 hours a week of training clients and $50,000 a year…with most Fridays off.  I am not kidding.  Ask a college student what his/her plans are after graduating.  Ask any business owner who has interviewed ANYONE… about the answers to some of their questions and about the interviewees’ expectations.  I’m telling you…It’s crazy.  What happens is when things get hard now, people think they’re impossible.  Now we have a society that never completes anything.  We have a society of shortcut seekers and if they don’t find a shortcut, they sit and whine about it.  In the words of the famous bodybuilder Ronnie Coleman, “Everybody wants to be a bodybuilder, but don’t nobody want to lift this heavy a#$ weight!”  So what do we do about it?  If you’re a parent, don’t let your child quit.  Teach them they are responsible for their own actions and for their own happiness.  Explain the reality of having to ALWAYS work hard to get anywhere or anything of value.  If you are a teacher or a coach, explain the value of preparation, determination, and perseverance.  The woman Aleck and I saw collapse feet from the finish line in the race we were watching is extremely rare, yet it is exactly what our society needs.  We need children and adults who will NEVER give up…NEVER.  This is the important part :  ALL of those values mentioned above are important whether life is easy or hard…fair or unfair.  I once read about a track coach who would tell his runners “Stay to the left and get back here as quickly as possible.”  Wouldn’t it be great if the race…if life was that easy?  If we only needed to stay to the left and go quickly?  The problem is, the race isn’t that easy.  Life isn’t easy.  There are obstacles and distractions throughout the course, but if we are equipped with the right values, we’ll always SEE the finish line. And if we end up collapsing a few feet from the finish line, we are victorious…..What more could you ask of yourself in life than to give it your everything….Never giving up….Never quitting. 🙂

“I firmly believe any man’s finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is the moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle – victorious.” – Vince Lombardi

 

3 thoughts on “See the Finish Line

  1. Joan Jackson says:

    Excellent article! A wonderful New Year Resolution to strive for.
    Thanks, Joan

  2. I think it is human nature to go for “immediate gratification” Certainly, the internet has bread a society in which we gather information and, therefore, results faster than ever. It seems few things take long-term effort and endurance. However, there are still many important aspects of life that do require diligence and hard work- physical fitness, relationships, child rearing, and healthy eating are a few. There are no “short-cuts” in being successful in those. But, I am with Aleck and I will take all the short-cuts I can!
    Thanks for another thought-provoking post, Anthony!

  3. Betsy Gillespie says:

    Amen! Very well said Anthony! And to add to your thoughts….achievements accomplished with hard work & discipline are much more rewarding than taking short cuts. So much more is learned & enjoyed during the journey of the “race”.

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