Posts Tagged ‘mile markers’

The New Gold Standard for Marathon Spectators

Marathoners are eternally grateful for the motivation and support of their friends as they endure the tribulations of covering 26.2 miles. Geoffrey Lussier’s friends, however, went the extra mile, so to speak.

At each mile of the Houston Marathon, Lussier was greeted with a large poster of his face, along with some comedic or motivational words.

“I did not know until I came over the bridge at Mile 1 and saw my face,” he said. “At first I wondered how many they had put up, then I kept on seeing them. Around Mile 6 or 7, I couldn’t wait to see the next one.”

The Houston Chronicle kindly posted the contents of each mile marker to accompany its story. Here they are:

• 1. • Lookin’ good! (So far. …)

• 2. • Adrenaline got you this far. All guts from here!

• 3. • Seriously, who fartleked?

• 4. • It’s all uphill from here.

• 5. • Runner X-ing

• 6. • You’re not slow, you’re enjoying the course.

• 7. • Relax. You’re not going to win.

• 8. • I love the smell of 22,000 runners in the morning.

• 9. • 26.2, because 26.3 would be CRAZY!

• 10. • When Chuck Norris hits walls, they fall down.

• 11. • Johnny Knoxville wouldn’t even do this to himself.

• 12. • Only 5.3 miles to finish! (if you take the most direct route)

• 13. • You’re already a winner. You won the lottery to get here.

• 14. • Nobody to blame but yourself.

• 15. • Toenails were made to fall off.

• 16. • If you were a Kenyan, you’d be done by now.

• 17. • Shirt, how do thou chafe me? Let me count the ways. …

• 18. • You paid $115 for this?

• 19. • Sweating = fat cells crying.

• 20. • Your training runs ended here.

• 21. • At this point, it will hurt just as much to walk.

• 22. • Humpty Dumpty fell off the wall you just hit.

• 23. • Graveyard ahead. Look alive.

• 24. • Give me a high five!

• 25. • If pain is temporary, why does this feel like an eternity?

• 26. • Congratulations!!!! Almost. …

That certainly raises the bar. Have your family and friends ever outdone this at a race?

Friday Five: Creative Marathon Mile Markers

Some marathons decorate mile markers with artwork, advertising or inspiring slogans. The Marine Corps Marathon even had “sign spinners.”

But race organizers are really missing out on an opportunity. Here are five things I’d like to see as marathon mile markers:

1) Wet bars.

2) Ice cream trucks.

3) Full-length mirrors.

4) Burma Shave-style progressive signs. Think of the possibilities. You could post a joke at Mile 14 and the punchline at Mile 15. You could post a trivia question at Mile 18 and the answer at Mile 19.

5) Strip poker. You could have a photo of fully clothed people at Mile 1, with photos of the same people in the same pose in subsequent miles, each time with one additional article of clothing removed.