The Finish Line
What does the finish line mean to racers?
- What finish line? I’m having a blast out here with my BFFs!
- There’s a finish line? Rats! I LOVE being out here racing. I could do it all day, and night!
- Yeah, I’m going to try to see that thing before sunset. Just keep moving.
- That archway! Been training for month to run under that thing!
- It represents a huge personal goal accomplished!
- So, I DID come back ALL THE WAY from that injury! Yes!
- There it is, just 400 yards away. Go! Catch that person just ahead!
- Miles yet to go. Hours. But I know it’s there. One foot ahead of the other. Again. Again.
- Family! They are waiting for me. I want to make them proud!
- IF, if I get there first, I’ve won!
The finish line means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. For the vast majority, it has a magnetic pull that is almost magical. Just about everyone thinks about it during the race. For some, it means the end of pain. For others, it’s a serious competition that they want to win.
Many have that golden line in mind while they train. They visualize what it will be like when they cross it and accomplish, well, whatever their goal was. For a few, it represents a lifetime achievement that goes beyond their wildest dreams.
We’ve all watched the Hawaiian Ironman finish on TV. A few of us have watched in person. A very few have been in that race, and just getting to that finish line before midnight was something we dreamed about for years. Television lights and cameras. Massive crowds lining the last half mile. Flags of the nations all along the red carpet. Athletes from around the world being called in. Physically challenged athletes that amaze everyone.
Let the finish line do its thing. Whatever that thing is for you. It can be a powerful motivator. It can be that which signals entrance into a brand new you…a confident you…a different, more positive you.
Picture it. Dream of it. Let the gravitational pull draw you in. Let it get you out of bed for that next workout. You won’t be sad you did. And when you cross it, whether you experience joy, relief, tears, whatever, absorb the power of it and be a better person because of it.
