Here’s a shout out on Father’s Day to all the Dads out there making their kids’ lives great. This story comes from my cousin, Jeff, and his training partner. Jeff is an inspiration in many ways (to me personally and to many others) that this blog doesn’t touch. He is humble, and doesn’t mention any of his major running achievements below, which include 20 full marathons and 10 Boston marathons. He essentially quit competitive running two years ago around the time Rhys was born. Jeff inspires in many ways, but today focuses on what a great Father he is. Happy Father’s Day, Jeff, and to Uncle Tom, who made you! We know he’s smiling down on that special relationship you have with Rhys. Enjoy!
By: Jeff Turner
I’d like to share something about this son of mine – earlier this week we ran our 1,000th mile together!
When Rhys was born a little over two years ago, I was pretty burned out on competitive running and had already scaled back on the amount of time I was dedicating to the sport. I knew I wasn’t going to quit running altogether, but I was so excited to be a dad that training and competing were no longer going to be a priority. With the exception of a few miles here and there surely this new little time-and-energy consumer would be the reason I’d retire from racing for good.
When Rhys was about six months old he was big enough to start going for runs in his baby jogger. I started pushing him a little and it created a new way of looking at things. Instead of concentrating on “training” it became a time for us to get outside, take in the scenery and even bond a little. I didn’t push him a lot at first. By no means did I dislike pushing him, but I still preferred to run solo if possible. There were times I only pushed him a day or two a week and other times I’d go a few weeks at a time without pushing him at all. Never would I have imagined I’d enjoy pushing him as much as I do now. Perhaps he enjoys it the most.
Sometime around the beginning of the year, I slowly started to enjoy running a little more than I had in a while. The winter weather in Arizona was near perfect so I started running a few more miles here, adding an extra day there, and once in a while I’d even push the pace a little. But, there were still those days where I’d wake up and not feel like running at all. Any thoughts I might have had the day before about a possible return to racing had vanished overnight. This was also about the time I started noticing how much Rhys was enjoying our runs. To the point where he was starting to bring me my shoes and say, “daddy run”. Then he’d walk over and point to the shelf where I keep my Oakley’s and say “daddy eyes”. Even if I didn’t feel like running, Rhys had other ideas so how could I say no? Next he’d grab his blankie and a stuffed animal…or two…or three and lead me to the garage door where his chariot awaited on the other side.
Most days, if I want to run, pushing Rhys is my only option so if he didn’t enjoy sitting in the stroller (for up to an hour and a half) as much as he does, I’d hardly be able to run at all and I definitely wouldn’t be racing. Over those thousand miles, I can count on one hand how many times he’s acted up or gotten fussy. As long as he’s having fun, I’m having fun so hey, while we’re at it…maybe I could race again. So, I figured what the heck and registered for the Phoenix Half Marathon. I wasn’t sure how I’d train and still maintain what had become our daily “fun runs”. Running with a stroller and training with one are two different things so was there a way to do both? There was only one way to find out so I gave it a shot and through trial and error I figured out what seemed to work. I was able to run a few workouts on my own but for the most part, if I wanted to get ready to race again, Rhys was coming along for the ride. I came up with my own “stroller workouts” and the results speak for themselves. Not only did I beat my goal at the Phoenix 1/2, but I’ve now run 7 races this spring and just recently some of the best races I’ve run in a few years.
I don’t have to run and I certainly don’t have to race. It still isn’t a top priority but because of Rhys I’m enjoying the sport more than I have in a long time. I never used to listen to music when I ran but now we turn on Pandora, crank it up, and off we go. He waves and greets the regular neighborhood walkers and points, giggles, and shouts, “ruff ruff” to the dogs we pass. He’s quick to let me know a bird or plane is flying overhead and if nothing else is going on, he’ll often hum to a tune or check in by turning around with a smile and saying, “hi, daddy”.
Here I thought Rhys would be the reason I’d quit racing…who would have thought he’d be the reason I’d start again? I went from preferring to run without him, to preferring to run with him. When Kristi and I announced her pregnancy, we did so by saying “New Training Partner Coming.” You better believe it! My son is the best training partner I’ve ever had and I’m going to continue to enjoy each and every mile we have left together because I know how limited they are. That’s going to be a sad day but then we’ll just be off on our next adventure together. Perhaps the golf course? In the meantime, I’m looking forward to at least another thousand miles. Thanks, little man!
