Have you ever attended a race and cheered runners/walkers on from the sidelines?I've been on both sides.  A runner and a spectator.As a runner, I'm sadly one of the mid-packers at best.  Depending on how disciplined I've been, and how cooperative my leg is being (more specifically, how much or how little my piriformis is acting up), I'm either a mid-pack runner, or one of the plodders near the back just trying desperately to finish and wondering often out loud why I decided to sign up for another race."Pain is inevitable.  Suffering is optional." Haruki Murakami I've also been to many races and cheered on other runners/walkers.  Whether cheering on my husband in a race, or riding our bikes around to see runners in a local run, I'm endlessly amazed at the courage and strength of all runners and walkers.  I am in awe at the seemingly effortless stride elite runners display, whether on mile 1 or mile 26.2 (I haven't watched an ultra yet...)....their pace, their stride, their calm facial expression....all seems constant.  Impressive.  Yet....to me there is something equally yet differently amazing about those runners/walkers who are striving to be mid packers at best, and often times struggling to just. make. it. to. the. finish. line. This past weekend I ran Dexter to Ann Arbor half marathon as a training run for the Berlin marathon, scheduled this fall.  I was under trained, and not prepared to run the never-ending route of hills in 80 degree temps.  But the beauty, twisted as it might be, of running a race that drops you off at the finish...there is no other way to get to the finish line than to just. keep. swimming.  I mean running.  So what's it like running mid pack at best?  Good and Bad.Spectators:  sometimes....are less than enthusiastic by the time the slower runners emerge from the depths of a course.  Advice....if you commit to go to a race, if you are able, stay the entire time.  As someone who has struggled to finish a race, believe me when I say your "You're doing awesome" even when I don't feel like it is oh so sweet a song.  Thank you to those who stay until the last courageous soul passes you on the course.  It may be his or her first/last race.  Make it awesome for him/her!Stories: yes, when you are plodding along, there are often so many stories swapped.  The: How did you start running?  How long have you been in recovery?  What injury are you currently dealing with this season?  What's your next race?  What's the best medal?  Who is here to cheer you on today?  What time did you get up today?  Why do you keep signing up for races?   Who told you that you weren't good enough?  I love it.  It's a seamless transition for me from my work life (as a therapist) to my running life...I am endlessly curious about "the stories" of why people run, and more importantly, why they continue to run.  Perhaps if I was an elite, I'd never learn all of these stories on my run, for my focus may be different.  Don't get me wrong, I'd love the opportunity to be an elite, or a front of the pack runner, or in corral A or B or somewhere above H....but I'm able to run...and above all else, I'm grateful.View from the back: Shirts.  Quotes of motivation.  Bible passages.  Names of runners.  Reasons why he/she is running.  Costumes.  Runners dressed in full on military or this year firefighter gear.  Yes...that is where we are all hiding.  Many of us mid-packers at best are running for many reasons 'beyond' the race, and often times, when you're in the back...you have many, many miles to read (on the back of runners shirts) the who/what/why people are running.I leave with one last quote...This is a thought to ponder that sums up why I run.  When I started running 9 years ago, I was an ocassional gym attendee at best.  I did my workouts on my own, and didn't feel like I was particularly athletic.  Something, and I don't know what clicked in me, and I decided to just start running.  A block.  A couple of blocks.  A couple of miles...and now marathons.  My childhood/teenage/young adult self would NEVER have believed that was possible.  Now....not only do I have a great group of friends I refer to as my "running friends" but each race I do, I meet new people who are often just like me...running to be a bit better person than we were the moment we started the race.  In the mid or back of the pack (and ok, front runners..."maybe" you have this too....I say with a smile)...."The reason we race isn't to beat each other, it's to be with each other." Christopher McDougall.Peace.....