I won’t get into why I decided to start running in the first place, that’s a story for another time.  Instead, this is about my first steps and how a simple 5k led me to become the (Marathon) Maniac I am today.

It all started on April Fools’ Day 2009, I gathered with 90 or so other “fools” in a park in a nearby community.  There we met our coaches and took our first steps through No Boundaries.  I had already decided I had no desire whatsoever to run any distance without a walk break.  Been there, done that.  I’m starting over from scratch, why cause more pain?

Our interval on this first half mile run was run 1 minute, walk 3 minutes.  That first minute, I thought I would die.  My left knee was killing me.   (Did I mention when I got out of the Marines, I swore I would never run again?  Oh, and I had been told on multiple occasions I would need knee surgery to be able to do any type of running without pain?)  No matter, we were supposed to run for a minute at a “conversational pace.”  You mean, I’m supposed to talk, too?  What did I get myself into?  While the single run minute seemed like to last a lifetime, the three minutes flew by, and before we knew it, we were running again.

That night, I met a few people I am honored to call friends now.  It was the beginning of some beautiful friendships and a lot of miles.