Falling is an inevitable part of running. It's going to happen to everyone sooner or later. Little kids fall all the time and just brush it off---get up and start running around again. It's different for grown ups. Falling is a frightening experience and seems to happen in slow motion (like the six million dollar man or bionic woman) and there is no way to stop it from happening--you just have to go with it and try not to get hurt. I have had 3 falls that I can think of off the top of my head. A few years back I took a fall --I was pretty scratched up but not really hurt. The only reason I remember it is because I landed about 2 inches away from a giant pile of dog poop--people really need to scoop!! The next time I fell, I really injured myself. I tripped while hopping onto a sidewalk. I was really banged up. I bruised my rips and tore up my shoulder, knees and arms. It took about 6 months for my ribs to heal--they may have healed sooner if I took more time off from running but runners do not often make good decisions about these things. Anyways, I fell again last week. Luckily, I fell mostly in the dirt. I re-injured my shoulder and ribs a little but thankfully missed hitting my head on a the guardrail by 6 inches. The funny thing about falling is trying to get up. Cars are driving by--it's embarrassing--trying to shake it off--assess the damage--what to do next? Anyways, I had no choice but to run to a local gas station covered from head to toe in dirt, cuts, and blood. Thankfully, they had a hose and I was able to clean up--so now I was soaking wet from head to toe and had to run about 3 more miles to get home. At least I felt good enough to finish the run--- a more sensible person would have called it a day though!
The whole idea of falling makes me think of the famous explorer George Mallory. In 1924 George Mallory fell while on his third attempt to summit Mount Everest. Unfortunately for Mallory, it took 75 years to find his body. I read about his incredible journey (during my non-fiction phase about 15 years ago) in Last Climb The Legendary Everest Expedition of George Mallory by David Breashears and Audrey Salkeld. This is an excellent book about the race to be the first to summit Mount Everest. Although Norgay and Hillary were credited with this feat in May of 1953, there is still debate as to whether Mallory and Irvine reached the summit in 1924 before falling. Not sure anyone will ever know. The book is about 240 pages of vintage pictures, letters and diary entries of Mallory and the other climbers on the expedition. It is an excellent read full of interesting information. Early exploration is fascinating and can in no way be compared to climbers today with all of their modern technology. Just one look at their equipment and gear and it's a wonder they could summit any mountain. Sheer will and determination, reminiscent in many ways to running. On a side note, George Mallory II (grandson of George Mallory) reached the summit on 1995 in remembrance of his grandfather. What a way to honor one of the most famous explorers in history!
No comments:
Post a Comment