A sea of perseverant runners floods natural venues. With beautiful scenery draping the background, they disregard their screaming legs and pounding hearts, bearing one goal in mind—to accomplish a marathon, 26.2 miles.

Upper School history teacher Julie Wheeler and Upper School math teacher Troy Thiele have run several marathons over the past few years, dedicating time to build endurance in order to accomplish what “ very few people do in their lives,” as Thiele said.

Both athletes seek to qualify for the Boston Marathon held annually in the spring, a competition where only qualified runners can participate. Wheeler has run Las Vegas, Cape Cod, Los Angeles, California International, and Seattle marathons. Having run several half-marathons and the Los Angeles Marathon as well, Thiele has also participated in the Virginia Mason and San Francisco marathons.

Marathon preparation requires a significant amount of effort and discipline, according to both Thiele and Wheeler. In a four-and-a-half month training program, Thiele would typically run three shorter distances during the week and one longer one on the weekend, running forty miles on average every week. With an assortment of speed-work training, interval training, and six-mile runs, Wheeler has also been working with a trainer to get stronger.

For Wheeler, running a marathon before age 30 was one of her life goals.

“[After my first marathon,] I thought, ‘ Hey, it wasn’t that bad,’ and I’ m a little competitive, so I thought that I could do better the next time,” she said.
Thiele had initially believed that “[running] was kind of a means to an end” for the contact sports he grew up playing. As the years passed by, however, he realized its value and was motivated to participate in marathons for “the enormity of the challenge.”

“As I’ve gotten older, it’ s become harder to do the wear-and-tear of contact sports,” Thiele said. “[Running is] my opportunity to feel like I’ m somewhat still physically active and somewhat athletic.”

Wheeler loves the independence of running as an activity.

“Running, what I like about it, is that it’ s you. It takes you and a pair of shoes, and that’ s all you need,” Wheeler said. “You don’ t need gym time, and you can do it anywhere. Your performance is based solely on your own effort.”

During the course of four grueling hours, Thiele enjoys the relationships that can be made with fellow marathon runners.

“When all of sudden you have a big conglomeration of people around you [. . .] and run at same pace as somebody else, you have time to talk. Talking’ s your best friend [during marathons], and I’ve had some great conversations with people,” he said.

The two athletes also feel inspired by the perseverance evinced by runners.

“[You] see people coming from all different levels of fitness, from different walks of life, and no matter what, a marathon is a challenge, and when you finish that, it’ s quite an accomplishment. […It’ s inspiring to] see people who never thought they could do it. [. . .] They push themselves, and that’ s the most memorable,” she said. “Your body can handle a lot more than you think you can, but it’ s in your head, so it’ s inspiring.”

The marathon experience has its downs. To support an anxious friend running her first marathon, Thiele ran the marathon without training, and his “knees and ankles had taken a beating.” Wheeler had the experience of “ hitting the wall” that results in excruciating pain in all parts of the body.

“I was feeling really good, and then [suddenly], just BAM! Every part of my body hurt, and I never felt that before,” she said.

For aspiring marathon runners, Thiele emphasizes the importance of “staying true to [one’ s] routine” and “ listening to your body if it’ s hurt.”

Wheeler said, “I think that it’ s something so many people say: ‘You know, I could never run.’ But I think everybody can. [. . .] If you don’ t want to, you don’ t have to, certainly, but I think that even if you don’ t run in a marathon, go—go out and watch one. It’ s an experience that I think everybody should have.”