Welcome back to my blog detailing my research of the Limits of Human Endurance! I am sad to report that this is the last blog that I will be producing. I am also disappointed to report that I do not think that I will be able to run my treadmill test as I had planned, but will further analyze my own, already-completed runs and several other runners and one basketball player.
I am convinced that what allowed our friend, Walter Bond, to make it through the adversity and push the limits of human endurance was his positive attitude and hard work ethic. As stated in the background blog about him, Walter asked his trainer to carry him to the bike and tape his cast to the pedal. The amount of fierce tenacity, self-belief, and love for his sport that Walter possessed gave him the strength to keep pushing and never give up. Not only did the man achieve his dreams, he also surpassed them in becoming the first ever un-drafted, rookie, free-agent, in the history of the Dallas Mavericks to start opening night.
The next athlete in question, Steve Prefontaine, was an icon in the running world in the late 60's through early 70's, when he tragically died in a car accident. Prefontaine started out as a national star, breaking the national high school 2 mile record and going on to run at the University of Oregon. During his time with the ducks, he broke every American record from the 2,000 meter to the 10,000 meter, and made the United States 1972 Olympic team. In one particular instance, Prefontaine severely cut his foot while enjoying the night festivities in a motel at Nationals. He had to race the 5,000 meter, and was lucky that since there were only 20 entries, there would be no heats or qualifying races. His cut required around 5 stitches. The coach at the time, Bill Bowerman, told him he would not race, because the cut could compound and rip his foot in half. Pre, however, had other plans and Bowerman recalls him saying, "Coach, you don't know what will happen if I race... but you do know what it will do to me if I don't. Let me race." Prefontaine raced several days later, winning the D1 national 5,000 meter title in record time. After he finished however, he fell off of the track in a state of extreme pain, his white spikes stained red with blood and at the point of complete exhaustion. Upon removing his spike, they found all of his stitches to be ripped and the cut, now a deep gash, gushing blood. I am convinced that this quality and this quality alone, being his sagacity and sheer guts, is what allowed Steve to overcome the limits of human endurance. Later, in the 1972 Olympics, Steve raced the 5,000 meter, ultimately taking fourth, but leading the whole way. Steve was quoted before the race stating, "There may be people who can beat me, but they are going to have to bleed to do it," and "I want to work it out to be a pure guts race, because if it is, I am the only one who can win it." He ran the last mile of his 5,000 meter in record time, leading the whole way until the final sprint, clocking a 4:02 mile, and still losing. This pure sagacity and toughness is hard to replicate and can only be truly expressed by my favorite quote of all time, by Steve himself; "I can endure more pain than anyone you have ever met. That't why, I can beat anyone I have ever met." Like Walter Bond, Steve was one of the most positive-minded people to ever walk the Earth, and believed in himself utterly.
I hope you have enjoyed my favorite two stories of all time regarding the limits of human endurance. In my final presentation, I will be covering more athletes that pushed the limits of human endurance, as time does not allow me to do so in my blog. I intend to cover 2 more runners at least, and likely more. Thank you for following my blog for the last 8 weeks. Goodnight, and Godspeed. We are in the Endgame now.
I am convinced that what allowed our friend, Walter Bond, to make it through the adversity and push the limits of human endurance was his positive attitude and hard work ethic. As stated in the background blog about him, Walter asked his trainer to carry him to the bike and tape his cast to the pedal. The amount of fierce tenacity, self-belief, and love for his sport that Walter possessed gave him the strength to keep pushing and never give up. Not only did the man achieve his dreams, he also surpassed them in becoming the first ever un-drafted, rookie, free-agent, in the history of the Dallas Mavericks to start opening night.
The next athlete in question, Steve Prefontaine, was an icon in the running world in the late 60's through early 70's, when he tragically died in a car accident. Prefontaine started out as a national star, breaking the national high school 2 mile record and going on to run at the University of Oregon. During his time with the ducks, he broke every American record from the 2,000 meter to the 10,000 meter, and made the United States 1972 Olympic team. In one particular instance, Prefontaine severely cut his foot while enjoying the night festivities in a motel at Nationals. He had to race the 5,000 meter, and was lucky that since there were only 20 entries, there would be no heats or qualifying races. His cut required around 5 stitches. The coach at the time, Bill Bowerman, told him he would not race, because the cut could compound and rip his foot in half. Pre, however, had other plans and Bowerman recalls him saying, "Coach, you don't know what will happen if I race... but you do know what it will do to me if I don't. Let me race." Prefontaine raced several days later, winning the D1 national 5,000 meter title in record time. After he finished however, he fell off of the track in a state of extreme pain, his white spikes stained red with blood and at the point of complete exhaustion. Upon removing his spike, they found all of his stitches to be ripped and the cut, now a deep gash, gushing blood. I am convinced that this quality and this quality alone, being his sagacity and sheer guts, is what allowed Steve to overcome the limits of human endurance. Later, in the 1972 Olympics, Steve raced the 5,000 meter, ultimately taking fourth, but leading the whole way. Steve was quoted before the race stating, "There may be people who can beat me, but they are going to have to bleed to do it," and "I want to work it out to be a pure guts race, because if it is, I am the only one who can win it." He ran the last mile of his 5,000 meter in record time, leading the whole way until the final sprint, clocking a 4:02 mile, and still losing. This pure sagacity and toughness is hard to replicate and can only be truly expressed by my favorite quote of all time, by Steve himself; "I can endure more pain than anyone you have ever met. That't why, I can beat anyone I have ever met." Like Walter Bond, Steve was one of the most positive-minded people to ever walk the Earth, and believed in himself utterly.
I hope you have enjoyed my favorite two stories of all time regarding the limits of human endurance. In my final presentation, I will be covering more athletes that pushed the limits of human endurance, as time does not allow me to do so in my blog. I intend to cover 2 more runners at least, and likely more. Thank you for following my blog for the last 8 weeks. Goodnight, and Godspeed. We are in the Endgame now.
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