It’s time to talk about the elephant in the room. I’ve been avoiding this post ever since I signed up for Miami and I don’t think any of you would even really care if I didn’t post about it, but as a running blogger I feel compelled to discuss it. Actually, I’m really nervous about hitting the publish button on this one….

As most of you know I’ve been hitting my training runs hard during this marathon cycle and I have made mention of a “lofty” goal. Before I get into this “lofty” goal (AKA The Elephant) I need to tell a little story of my actual most controversial post.

Picture it. Florida, 2009 (or early ’10, I’m not an elephant. I forget.). A new-ish runner/blogger named B.o.B. writes a post about what all the hubbub is surrounding the Boston Marathon. Said newish runner hurts some feelings, gets folks all riled up, feels really bad about it and takes down post.

Honestly, I used to think the Boston Marathon was a crazy obsession. (SEE: why I hurt some feelings.) And since I was no where near being fast enough I would joke that I’d have to get there when I was 80 or when my age and the time just converged organically.

The thing is, after the that post, I talked with my running buds about it and they all had different reasons for wanting to qualify and most of those reasons were really just about setting a goal and reaching it. Or qualifying with friends. Or just flat out feeling good about themselves and using it to get through rough patches in life. Hell, isn’t that what running in general is all about? In my naivety I didn’t understand this and still feel sheepish for having written that post. Who was I to crap on someone’s dream?

All of that being said, I started getting faster. I started looking at those qualifying times. I started wondering if I could do it. I wondered if I should just push myself or keep my goals more manageable. But of course, like my typical maniac self (SEE: ran first death march marathon with 7 weeks of training) I decided to give it a go. I’m at a time in my life where I want to push myself. I also need the focus required of this goal.

Granted, I have to cut A LOT of time to qualify. I went back and forth on writing this post because I wondered how I would feel if I didn’t qualify and had to face you all and also how I was basically eating my words from a few years ago…but then I remembered how awesome and supportive this blog community is. I am human! You all are human! What the crap am I so worried about? People make mistakes and if I don’t qualify, it’s OK.

As I said in my first look at this BQ stuff, if it happens for me when the stars align then that’s when it’s supposed to happen. And the beauty of setting such a lofty goal is that even if I don’t hit the goal time needed to BQ I’ll still have a shot at a killer PR. Not to mention, a wonderful trip to Miami with about 30 of my running buds. It’s really a win-win regardless of what happens.

What are your thoughts on the BQ stuff? Are or were they the same as mine?