Stuff that Inspires Me...The Perfect Mile

In 2004 while on vacation in Negril celebrating our 15th anniversary with Denise,  a good - and by good I mean both large and high quality - amount of time lounging on the beach reading Neal Bascomb's The Perfect Mile.  To this day when I open the book, a little sand wafts into my lap, calling me back to that paradise of salt air, sunshine, hundreds of uninterrupted hours with my best friend, pina colada's served in coconut shells...ahh. T'was lovely indeed.

Which is ironic, given the story Bascomb tells. It's about Roger Bannister, John Landy and Wes Santer racing to become the first athlete to record an under 4:00 mile, something that at the time was believed impossible by many 'experts.'  In the end, it's Bannister who is first to accomplish the feat, in 3:59:4.  About six weeks later, Landy topped his time and the record continues to fall. Today it stands at 3:43:13, held by Hicham El Guerrouj of Morocco since 1999.

Don't be fooled, though, into thinking it's become easy. More people have climbed Mt. Everest than have run a sub four minute mile.

Here's a video of Bannister's race.

A couple of things stand out to me about Bannister's story. First, while he was obviously an amazing athlete, he was a true amateur. In real life he was, at the time, a British medical student who went on to be a respected neurosurgeon and Master of Pembroke College, Oxford. It's encouraging to read about a person who manages to excel in more than one thing at a time while getting paid to do neither.

Second, Bannister trained specifically for this goal for almost two years, after his disappointing loss in the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki. I love the endurance, his ability to keep his eye on the goal in spite of the obstacles and distractions that came his way. He was able to accomplish his goal, not by avoiding potential failure, but by constantly looking towards breaking the 4:00:00 barrier.

Finally, and perhaps most of all, it's Bannister's relationship with his training partners that stands out most.
Chris Chataway, Chris Brasher trained with Bannister for years and helped pace him on his record setting day. Brasher paced the 1st two laps, Chataway the third. Both put their own careers on hold. Chataway would be a successful politician. A conservative, he took a difficult stance in his 1st speech in Parliament in 1957, urging that the London cricket team not compete in apartheid stricken South Africa. Brasher went on to be an Olympic champion, sports journalist, and businessman. Together, they and founded the London Marathon.

Bannister's dream was theirs. As Brasher said, 'WE honestly believed that, if you have a dream and you work to make it come true, then you really can change the world. There's just nothing you can't do.'

It's the people God blesses us with who make life possible. Friends. Family. Neighbors. Those we allow to fill each of those roles. With is a powerful word.