It's the Rundown, and it's here all week.

Sometimes you have a dream week, run, or race, and it’s what you hoped it would be. Dianna and Annalisa are officially triathletes – what a inspiring day, even for those of us who thrash in the water like a drunk drowning. Dark O’Clock set a goal and kicked its ass. Dawn ran a relay and even shared her socks. BD did a personal best on the 5K.

Sometimes, though, you hit the wall. Sometimes during the race, sometimes before or after.

Maybe it’s a race that turns out harder than we expected. It might be something you’ve lived with your whole life, like Brooklyn, but refuse to be beaten by. Injury takes its toll: Mark tells how he endured pain for years before finding a treatment that works and keeps him on the road, shoes or no shoes. In a thoughtful post, April-Anne shares a hard long-run day and the reasons why a runner might fall out of form. Chocolate Runner did the smart thing with his foot pain and lived to run another day. Stephanie’s run the numbers, figured the odds, and is going to run her marathon after all, no matter how many hours on the elliptical it takes. Nic’s recovered from a stress fracture, and ready to tackle the San Francisco women’s marathon in October, hangover or no hangover (Nic is my kind of runner). After a few great races, Sarah is doing what it takes to get herself back on the road and feeling good, and all our best wishes go to her.

When it gets hard, Alison finds encouragement with running partners, in a post that shows how sometimes it takes the presence of another person to make us hit the road. Chelle gets through her race even when stung by bees!


It’s at times like this that I’m thankful for the Running Blog Family. A few years ago, if you were injured and your partner or lover or friends or family weren’t runners, you could have been on your own, without access to people who truly understood your pain, your struggle, or your goals. Now we have this huge worldwide family of talented runners who understand, help, and encourage. Thanks to The Miracle That Is Technology ™, this is a fantastic time to be a runner.