Making Fine Wine Out of Lemons

Let's set the scene:

Thirteen days ago, I'm just about at the Mile 10 flag at the Eugene Half Marathon, passing a couple of runners. Up to this point, every aspect of this race has gone exactly according to plan. My legs feel strong, even as I kick it up another notch with under three miles to go. I'm on a pace will give me my best half marathon in over a year.

All of that falls apart as I pass the Mile 11 flag. A sudden, sharp and unfortunately, familiar pain develops on the outside of my left knee. It's an IT band that I had thought healed barking otherwise.

Swearing under my breath, I stop for about 10 seconds. Past experience tells me that doing so will buy me time to resume my racing at only a slightly diminished pace. If I'm lucky, that will be the only time I feel it.

I'm not lucky. The IT band sounds off three more times, causing three more stops before I finally enter the home stretch on the track at Hayward Field. I paste a smile on my face for Jim and Mark - two friends in the stands who came to watch my finish.

The timer overhead shows that I'm just over three minutes slower than I'd intended. Needless to say, I'm not happy over this turn of events. Instead of chatting with the other runners, I make a beeline for the exit, finding my friends so that I can get away from this otherwise hallowed ground as quickly as I can.

Had this happened at home, I’d have maintained my sour mood for the rest of the day, brooding over my misfortune.  However, for key reasons, that simply could not happen.

1. My Friends Deserved Better.  Jim and Mark are two of my oldest and dearest friends. Jim actually drove over seven hours and took several days off from work for our reunion.

2. They Know Exactly What I’m Going Through.  The first time the three of us were together was at a high school track meet in 1979.  After warning me that he and Jim were catching up to me during a 3000-meter race (a feat that he has yet to live down), Mark blossomed into one of the top high school distance runners in the state.  Unfortunately, his promising future was ultimately wiped out by injuries.  Running had also been an important part of Jim's life until he also had to stop due to injuries as well.  In a different world, both would have been in that race with me.  Being with them that weekend reminded me how truly lucky I am that I can still train and compete in a sport that the three of us deeply cherish.

3. I’m in Eugene and I’m in Wine Country!  Hey, I didn’t take several days off from work during our busy season just to burn off thirteen hundred calories on a Sunday morning.  Eugene is more than just “Tracktown.”  The area is home to some amazing wineries that the three of us intended to savor.

Putting a good face on all of it, I ventured into the rest of the day. 

Just a few thousand people for the start of the 2025 Eugene Marathon & Half Marathon.

How did it turn out?

We had an absolutely incredible afternoon that started with Jim charming his way into a personal tasting at a wine-makers home.  This occurred when we saw a tasting room near my hotel being dismantled and Jim struck up a conversation with one of the co-owners. It wasn't ten minutes later that Jim had snagged a personal invite to their home for a tasting of their remaining vintage. (And in perfect Otter from "Animal House" manner, he asked if he could also bring his two friends.)

You find the strangest things on the bathroom floor at Hayward Field.

While loosening up our palettes with tasty wines from a couple of nearby wineries, we made our way to the stunning home of these winemakers where we were treated to three absolutely magnificent Pinot Noirs under candlelight in their stunning wine cellar.  Adding to this magnificent afternoon, joining us were two of their friends who used to manage a restaurant on the Oregon coast that was a personal favorite of my parents.  (No, I didn’t tear up when I learned this.  But I did a silent toast to Mom and Dad.)

As if that wasn't enough, we learned that the co-owner of this winery had once been a co-hostess with Pat Robertson on the 700 Club before moving her life in a different direction and helping produce wine that was served at the Pre-Inaugural dinner for President Barrack Obama. She's also a former journalist who has written several books.

How could thoughts of a bad race take anything away from such a remarkable experience?

Thoughts of that race dimmed further on Monday as I journeyed an hour north to visit another old friend, Chris. He was a former teammate and roommate from Western Oregon University.  I spent the day with him and Karen, his delightful fiance as well as catching up with another old friend, Tim. This guy holds the distinction of being the first Western Oregon runner I met nearly 45 years ago.

Driving back to Eugene, it hit me how blessed I am, not only being able to run as I do, but to still have friends from those astonishing years.  Those two days also served as a reminder to cherish each day, each race - even the bad ones! - and each friend that I have. This was all further underscored by the wonderful texts, emails and even videos I received from everyone in the Des Moines running community over this memorable weekend,

The half marathon may not have been what I wanted. But even a PR would have paled next to the valuable lesson I learned. That newfound understanding is something else I owe to these dear friends.  

Thoughts? Similar experiences? Feel free to share them either in the comments below or on Facebook. And thanks for reading my blog!

Wine Country in late April!