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I'm no artist, but I can draw (inspiration) with the best of them

We draw inspiration from many sources and in many different arenas of our lives.  On my bookshelves I have dozens of memoirs written by military members throughout the 20th and 21st century.  These memoirs help me put my life and career into perspective and motivate me.  I have a Muhammad Ali poster with a training quote hanging up in my man cave (which Mila insists on referring to as the "guest bedroom").  Specifically, since this is a running blog, I wanted to delve into a few people that inspire my running.
The easy thing would be to talk about Pre (I do have a shirt with one of his quotes), Meb, or even Kayla Montgomery (E:60 Catching Kayla).  I want to focus on the less obvious choices.  The people that are personally inspiring to me.

I have touched a little bit on why I started running in other posts.  The long and short of it was that I had to.  I nearly failed a PT test and simply needed to improve.  Running ultra marathons definitely was not on the agenda.  I planned on running monthly 5ks as a way to have a goal to work toward.  With no real idea of where to go nor how to train, I started to contact my brother Andy.  Andy Pandy the butterfly chaser had been running since he was little, honing his skills by trying to catch butterflies in our backyard and eventually become a good high school runner.  Running continued to be a favorite past time of his and still does.  Andy is much faster than I am.  His best marathon is an hour faster than mine and his 5k time is about 5 minutes faster.  What inspires me about him isn't raw talent or speed.  It's the mental aspect.  Andy loves to study and learn.  He loves to apply his knowledge of physiology, running mechanics, and nutrition out on the race course.  He's inspired me to study up and learn the best ways to do something that I've come to love.  We also have edit access to each other's training plan for our next marathons (Grand Rapids for him, Houston for me).  Now THAT is some trust.

  I've previously detailed how I came to join Carrera (Come Out And Plaaayyeeeeaaaaayyyyyy) and how much that has impacted my life.  What I failed to mention was the lynchpin for that group, Terri Troll.  Terri didn't start running until her 50s, but boy did she do it right.  It seems rare that she doesn't win her age group, rarer still to not place.  That is one way Terri provides inspiration, through her longevity.  Terri's just as fast as I am, but old enough to be my mom.  That's impressive enough to me.  But what has meant more to me is her coaching and love for the sport and the runners in it.  There were many times in 2014 that it would be just Terri and me for miles.  She would tell stories and things she'd learned over the years from running and coaching.  And, we could always count on Terri to be there at the end of a training run or race cheering us on.  Coaching-wise, literally hundreds of people have done her drills and heard her training tips.  Every time I led PT for up to 250 people, I would pass on something I learned from Terri.  Now, living 200+ miles away, I've got Terri's voice in my head (usually telling me to slow down) while out on my training runs.  Looking through my photos, I found two that help describe Terri and what she means to not just me, but many in the San Antonio running community.  The first is Terri dancing with Jason after a race raising funds for him and the second is her out on the course cheering Mila and I on.
 

The third person I want to write about I've never actually been on a training run with.  We did dozens if not hundreds of lap around the karate mat together though.  I'm talking about the 2x NCAA All American Grant Fisher.  Grant and I were both black belts at Allen's Academy of Martial Arts from 2006-2007.  I joined the Air Force, Grant went on to become a world class cross country and middle distance runner.  He went undefeated for two years as a high schooler and was a 2x national Foot Locker champion.  I started to follow his career his senior year of high school and nearly had a heart attack when my internet dropped during the last half mile of his second championship.  Grant is a strategic runner, preferring to let others do the leading for him, then blowing past them during the last little bit of a race.  What's this taught me?  To be strategic with my running.  He also has motivated me to get off my butt when I'm feeling lazy.  Watching him pick runners off, moving from 11th to 6th (finishing in 13:30, 3rd fastest time ever by an American junior), during the NCAA 5k finals last week was enough to get me out the door for my 13 mile run.

Inspiration can come from many different people or places.  Who inspires you and why?

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