I have been thinking a lot about the pre-race jitters that I wrote about two days ago. I made a comment in that post about the fact that much of the anxiety about races comes from worrying too much about things that can go wrong – things that are out of your control. We really don’t need to worry about these things, because there is essentially nothing you can do to prevent them.

Having said that, everything will, at some point, go wrong.

I remember doing an exercise at a running event where the speaker asked everyone in the audience to raise their hand if they had DNFed (did not finish) an event. Almost everyone raised a hand. “Yes,” he said, “something bad happened to each of you one time, but you are all still here. You’re back for more. And you’ve got a good story to tell.”

It’s true. Bad unplanned things do happen, but you just persevere and come back to try another day. And tell the stories to people.

So as I head for San Diego, I thought I would share some of my signature melt-downs, mishaps and screw-ups, to illustrate that things don’t always go according to plan. So if you’re asking, “what’s the worst that can happen?” before your next race, have some consolation that these are already taken.

Rock N Roll Marathon – my prescription sun-glass lens pops out of its socket and breaks on the group two minutes before the start, making me run the race with correct vision in one eye and the other all fuzzy.

Portland Marathon – being bitten by a spider on the cheek a few days before the race and having my face swell up to twice its normal size. (This one I wasn’t able to run.)

Hood to Coast Relay – choking on a packet of chocolate gel in the dark and emerging from the run segment with chocolate completely covering my face. It looked like an outhouse had exploded.

Ironman Arizona – stepping on a cactus needle two days prior to the event, thus having to go to the ER for the infection in my heel, and needing to spend almost two days lying in bed before the race.

Tucson Marathon – having my legs completely seize up after 15 miles of running downhill, producing excruciating pain, and forcing me to walk for about the last eight miles.

Pacific Coast Triathlon – Not being able to find my prescription sunglasses on the special needs table coming out of the swim, making me very dangerous in the bike section of the race.

Rock N Roll Arizona Marathon – Having the pace setter go out WAY, WAY, too fast, forcing us about four minutes ahead of pace in the first 10K and six minutes in the first half. Complete melt-down ensued in second half.

Rock N Roll Marathon – Trying out a new “Fuel Belt” and finding out the hard way that my arms knock the little bottles out of their holsters, causing me to lose essentially all of my gel in the first three miles of the race.

Mazatlan International Triathlon – Taking a wrong turn on the run course and ending up so off course that a motorcycle from the event had to come and get me.

Hood To Coast Relay – Discovering that a Porta-Pottie was out of toilet paper about 30 seconds before our runner came in to the exchange to give me the baton – and it was already too late if you know what I mean.

Yes, I could go on and on. But the point is that when things don’t go as planned. You should just keep on doing what you love. Keep on chasing your dreams. You may not have that perfect new PR to talk about, but you’ll have some great stories to tell.

Keep at it.

Coach Joe
PS – I’m off to San Diego to attempt to run 2 marathons in the next two days. Crazy? Yes. Are we able to do it? You’ll just have to come back and find out in my San Diego Rock N Roll Marathon coverage coming the next few days in Running Wild with Coach Joe.