I bet that title got some people’s attention.

Especially if you know me at all.

I do not run.  A few of my close friends in the past have spent time trying to “teach” me to run.  They were great teachers but apparently I am not a quick study.  Obviously, running is NOT like riding a bike since once you learn to ride a bike you never forget. I know I must have ran as a child. At the very least I spent a year as a 2 year old once and I needed to run away from my parents

I always joke, “if you see me running something is probably chasing me.”

Which led me to this fabulous idea regarding training for a 5K.  The research into this has been low I will admit.  It’s really just in the planning stages at this point. 

All kidding aside there probably are people out there who research what motivates people to run.  They probably have all the great ideas of having the race support a good cause, giving out t-shirts and free snacks at the end, trophies and medals….

However, I think of those things and my affinity for running does not increase at all.  Am I a heartless person who doesn’t care if we find a cure for cancer or free prisoners in other countries or save cute little puppies?  I don’t think so. In fact, I think you would be hard pressed to find anyone who would say “no, I think cancer is cool, those prisoners are getting what they deserve and I’ll just take those puppies out myself {insert evil laugh here}.”

So, I’ve come with up with THE motivational tool that I think will finally work for me.  It didn’t just come to me, I’ve been saying it all along!

I referred to it above and you probably thought I was just kidding.

Here’s how it would go:

{Race advertisement shows a ferocious bear (or tiger) growling with it’s mouth open, sharp teeth exposed and dripping saliva to show you are about to be the next meal.}

FOR THE RELUCTANT OR DEFIANT RUNNER….THIS IS YOUR KIND OF RACE.
Want to lose a few pounds but not your life?
Want to test your fight or flight response as you are getting up in age?
Come to the race of your life! Literally.

Then when the actual race day arrived, the animal handler who has kept food from their beast would be at the starting line.  Now don’t freak out…the animal would be in a cage. 

Until the starting whistle…then the gates would open on the beast and off we would all go!

I understand that this may seem a little drastic, or possibly that it might terrorize the fans that have come to watch (maybe not if you’ve met the Romans).  For those of you who may not be 100 percent on board we will still offer a t-shirt and medal at the end.  It’s not like we would have to really buy that many…{insert evil laugh again}.