Roger Bannister

Paul, Roger, Pre[fontaine], You and Me (Say it rhythmically and it rhymes real niceJ)

Runner's World reminded me that today is the anniversary of Roger Bannister's historic sub 4:00 mile and below is a video of that race. I had written this post and saved it a while back and found it appropriate to take it out and unleash the power of following what you know to be true despite fierce opposition and criticism.

Roger Bannister, born 1929, with time would run a mile close to four minutes which inspired him to believe that a sub four-minute mile was possible. People had believed, for a number of reasons, that the sub four-minute mile was impossible, but on May 6^th, 1954 he did it. He proved all the disbelievers wrong.

Steve Prefontaine knew this too. He knew that he shouldn’t put limits on himself or anyone else, thus titled one of his movies “Without Limits”. There’s a lot to say about Pre, but we’ll leave it at that—He didn’t listen when people told him he couldn’t, and even though he had great success and some failure he always believed he could do whatever he wanted to.

There was an apostle of Jesus Christ named Paul. He persecuted the disciples and apostles of Jesus, but then he had a vision from God and began to preach what he knew to be true. He encountered a lot of opposition. In the 26^th book of Acts in the New Testament you can read the full account. He stands up for what he knows he saw and almost persuades king Agrippa to be a Christian as he himself says. Eventually he would die a martyrs’ death for what he knew to be true.

My buddy told me I couldn’t break four minutes for the mile. Whenever I talk to people about going to the Olympics they’re usually pretty accepting, but then when I tell them my current times they become a little skeptical. But I know what I have felt. I know I can accomplish my goals and dreams.

You can make the same choice. In an introduction to a writer that I heard the following quote, “Before you settle for the real world, shoot for the perfect world.” This life will never come again. Shouldn’t it be the one you want? Shouldn’t you being doing what YOU want to do and accomplishing what YOU want to accomplish? I know that as we listen to our hearts and fight the opposition and criticism we all face, we will find ways to do the things we truly desire. Have a good day and run fearless!