An Imponderable Enterprise

The Men's Olympic Marathon took place this morning, and once again the American men did not do as well as expected.  Ryan Hall dropped out early on, and in an interview afterward seemed shocked and baffled; he said that his hamstring began to tighten, and it got worse, not better.  It was the first race in which he had ever been listed "DNF."  Abdi Abdirahman also dropped out, but Meb Keflezighi surprised everyone by advancing from 19th or 20th to a fourth place finish. The winner, Stephen Kiprotich from Uganda, "came out of left field," according to one NBC commentator.

If the performances of even these elite runners can be so unpredictable, how can we ever know what will happen to mere mortals like myself on the day of reckoning?  It is a grueling race and anything can happen.  As the legendary Alberto Salazar has said, "Running a marathon is in many ways an imponderable enterprise.  No matter how thoroughly you prepare, there is always an element of discovery and surprise, sometimes gratifying; more often, unfortunately, otherwise."

My 12-mile training run yesterday went well.  No surprises.  There is plenty of time for that later on, and especially on November 10 between the Start and the Finish.