It's over

Musings on retirement after 30 years of competitive running, at various levels (including international mid-1990s). Hopefully applies just as well to retiring from any long-standing activity which you hold dear.

IT'S OVER
(or “Tears, Tantrums, and Trainers”)

After much soul-searching, it's sadly time to quit
There's nothing left to give in this tired old wit
It's been a thirty-year journey running this race
The cumulative effort etched into lines on my face

Too little recognised to be termed a 'career'
Just a brief shared intensity, then trophies and beer
Six hundred races, somehow twenty-eight of them won
It was around competitions that we had most of the fun

Training groups' banter I'm sure I will miss
How else to achieve such 'on the edge' bliss?
It's an addictive business, managing euphoria and pain
For the determined and disciplined, but not for the vain

The transition seemed so logical, from jogger to winner
The training getting harder, and the body getting thinner
The rest of life scheduled round the compulsion to run
Big-time national race ambitions crowded out the fun

Devil-may-care life switched to healthy routines
Beer and kebabs switched to lean meat and greens
Momentum and focus on big championship races
Compete to the death, before finish-line embraces

Twice-a-day training, never missed despite work
Not allowed shower “would be too much a perk”
But such small adversities all spurred on the zest
The self-imposed mission to win a British vest

Sure enough mid-nineties the running dreams came true
But be careful what you wish for, a high price was due
Chronic viral illnesses and fatigue off the scale
All that work to get me there had set me up to fail

But it's all been worth it, what else gives us this chance?
To be up against greats, and crash their post-race dance
Running's ultimate truth, “you get out what you put in”
If only everything in life was such a simple “win-win”

© 2011 northern monkey

Author's Note

Musings on retirement after 30 years of competitive running. Hopefully applies just as well to retiring from any long-standing activity which you hold dear. Look forward to hearing what you think.

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LA Lorena

More than a touch of melancholy in this write. With such dedication and commitment, running (substitute anything here) is your life, not just a part of it. It must be a terribly difficult transition to give it all up so suddenly. When activities like this become WHO we are, as opposed to just what we do, the cessation can be akin to an addict quitting cold turkey. I hope you find new passions to soothe you, perhaps mentoring new runners, becoming involved with organizations to promote the sport etc.