New Balance Gladiator Contest #nbgladiator

So, I’ve been toiling away in my attempts to get my latest race report out and distracting myself by popping on and off Facebook, one of the greatest time wasters, when I came across this contest to run in the Rome Marathon in March. What? And then my photo made it in…WHAT? And now I’ve survived the first round! WHAT? WHAT? So I’ve decided to write this post in order to compel as many folks as possible to pop on over to Facebook and vote for me.

UPDATE: I'm out of the running, but a big THANK YOU to all who supported me by voting and spreading the word.

How am I a Gladiator? You might ask…in comparison to my many buff and bold looking competitors…well let me tell you.

It all started with this…a baby, my oldest daughter Catrina McAlister…and a jogging stroller. 

Twenty years ago I began running as a way to get in shape and lose weight after having my oldest daughter, Catrina. I pushed her in a jogging stroller until she was seven years old. On these runs she learned to love the outdoors as well as running as I would have her get out of the stroller and run with me. Soon she was strong enough to run well over a mile. Little did I know that this was the beginning of what would one day become an elite high school running career that would lead her to compete in such prestigious races as NXN and Footlocker Nationals and eventually gain her a spot running for the University of Colorado. Even more surprising to me in hindsight is that it would lead to myself becoming someone who could also win races.

During this time I battled it out in the Dojo…at Cal Poly Pomona…earning my black belt in Kenpo Karate. That meant I had to fight guys like this…

 

And this little lady…probably the most scary one of all... 

 And yes…it was real…and no they didn’t go easy on me…they knew that this would be a disservice to me and to the art. I needed to learn to defend myself for real. And it was here that I learned to be relentless. I learned mantras: “30 more seconds,” “One more kick,” and of course “If it was easy we’d give it to the nursing home patients.” More importantly I learned to believe in myself against all odds. And to never give up.

Then I did this:

Yes, I broke my leg…the tibia & fibula all the way through! I was in a full-leg cast for months!

Doing this: 

A few months later, in 2007 this happened:

  

It was a whole new kind of battle. But I gathered my strength from the lessons that I had learned in my life before. It was also and enormous blessing to our family. But pushing that double jogging stroller sharpened my focus and determination. It honed my patience. It made me even stronger. It prepared me for races that were down right hard. It strengthened my will and my resolve. And it prepared me to not give up, ever.

Next thing I knew this was going on:

Photo courtesy of Image of Sport

Photo courtesy of Image of Sport

And then this:

And before I knew it, I found myself winning my first race EVER. A marathon…what? 

And then I won again…WHAT? And again…WHAT? WHAT? And yes,…I’m winning a marathon in my contest photo…and setting a course record…one week after running a previous marathon and a new personal best. If that’s not a gladiator, I don’t know what is. 

Well really, I do…this is what my husband does: 

And he doesn’t just jump over fires…he runs into them. Now that’s a gladiator.