Spirit of the Marathon

Spirit of the Marathon is a film that explores the emotional experience of running a marathon. It features professional athletes including Deena Kastor and Daniel Njenga in addition to several amateurs - two first timers - as they train for, and eventually cross the finish line at the Chicago Marathon.

Cinemas across the United States welcomed runners and non-runners alike to a special showing of this documentary. I scored a front seat to the sold out showing at Regal Fenway Stadium 13. I was impressed by the training regimens of both Deena Kastor, Olympic Bronze Medalist, and Daniel Njenga of Kenya. As a child, Daniel Njenga used to run five miles to and from school on a daily basis. Deena Kastor runs over one-hundred miles every week.

I was able to relate to many of the amateur runners. Several of them were raising money for a charity team, but many of them were hoping to qualify for Boston. I was unable to keep up with the gentleman who struggled on the treadmill to maintain a record setting pace, but I enjoyed the story of the father and daughter seeking to run their first marathon together. The woman who was running the marathon in support of the agency that set her up with her adoptive parents classified me as a "zen runner," and I thoroughly enjoyed her story as well.

I had a strong desire to run at the conclusion of the movie. I just want my knee to heal, so that I can lace up my running shoes and kick cancer in the butt!

There will be a second showing of the movie on February 21, 2008. Go to http://www.marathonmovie.com/home.html for more information!