- Courtney Buggs is program coordinator for the Special Collections Department at the Nashville Public Library.
“If you ever feel unsure about yourself as a person, go outside and watch a marathon.” Katherine Switzer said,
It’s funny how God works. April 29th, 2019 was both the best and worst day of my life.
That morning, my friend Emily texted me at 9:20 a.m.: “Are you interested in joining the 50-mile Nike Challenge in May?” I texted back 2 hours and 18 minutes later: “Yes, I'll do it.”
I wasn't worried about the challenge at all – I wasn't intimidated by the distance and knew I could run a total of 50 miles in a month – but I had no idea how it would benefit me.
I went to work as usual, but when I got home I found myself in a life-changing situation. On the afternoon of April 29th, I fell into a deep depression.
The next 10 days were absolutely awful mentally, I was basically surviving on water and running challenges, so I did it, and I did the best I could.
The next month was the 30 mile challenge, I ran 79.59 miles.
For a while, Emily didn't know what I was going through, but eventually I told her. We started running together and hanging out more. She and running became my support. I found rehabilitation in running.
The following month (July), running club 6RUN5 held its first run.
Over the next few months, I fell in love with running, formed great friendships with the members of the group, my mental health and clarity returned, and I began to feel fulfilled again.
In November 2019, we challenged ourselves to run a half marathon in April 2020. I still laugh when I think about it.
Don't get me wrong, I loved running and I love my friends. But a marathon? Running 13.1 miles nonstop with thousands of other people? That's terrible.
How did you prepare and finish it?Nashville Hot Chocolate Run After Years of Injury
Has registered.
I trained for a half marathon for four months in winter rain, sleet and snow, I sprained a hip flexor and was forced to evacuate during a tornado.
And then the half marathon was canceled due to COVID-19.
On April 27th, after battling another few weeks of painful depression, I woke up, created my own route, and set off for a 13.1 mile run.
I started at the corner of 12th and Wedgwood, not far from my house, walked down Wedgwood and arrived in the West End, two miles away, with eleven miles to go.
After 2 miles, I stopped at Team Nashville to buy some energy chews to get me through the journey I was ill-prepared for. I was exhausted but determined to finish. I headed into town, past WKND, NES and into the Gulch. After 4 miles, I was in pain. I was popping energy chews like potato chips.
At the 5 mile mark, the pain in my hip flexors started to intensify again. I kept pushing on because what I’m trying to do in life is move forward. In front of the Nashville Farmer’s Market, I spotted a series of inspirational messages written in chalk on the sidewalk along the route I’d taken. “Everything will be okay,” “There's hope,” “Just keep swimming.”
I'm tired, I'm hurting, I'm crying, but I intend to see it through to the end.
I continued on down Rosa Parks Boulevard, through the Germantown neighborhood where I used to live, stopping at an old apartment building that had been destroyed in the tornado to see how it was being rebuilt. 7 miles.
Katherine Switzer, First WomanOfficially entered the Boston Marathon and will be running again
I kept going, passing the Capitol, Hume Fogg, and Music City Center, and hitting miles 8 and 9. I pushed through the pain as I continued down 8th Avenue. I reached Sevier Park, and finished with a mile-long uphill run on 12th Avenue South.
I got home. I lay on the floor. I cried. I laughed.
I survived.
And now I join a long lineage of women who have been empowered by running.
In 1967, Katherine Switzer was the first woman to run the Boston Marathon.
The photograph of that day, showing the men grabbing her and telling her she was not allowed to be there, has now become historic.
Forty years later, her running continues to inspire.
That's why Switzer has dedicated her life to giving women every opportunity. On June 13, she spoke at the Nashville Public Library. Conversation@NPL series.
I know “life is a marathon” is a cliché, but it's so true.
It's fun, it's exhausting, it feels good to do, and sometimes I just don't want to do it at all. There are uphill battles that seem insurmountable, and some days I feel like I'm running downhill and I can't stop.
Run when you can, walk when you have to, crawl when you have to crawl, and never give up.
Every mile counts.
Courtney Buggs is Program Coordinator for the Special Collections Department at the Nashville Public Library. Continuing the great conversations that began in the Civil Rights and Women's Suffrage Room, Conversations@NPL is a long-running humanities-based public programming series hosted by NPL Special Collections that aims to encourage serious public dialogue about all aspects of culture, history, and contemporary society.
Conversations@NPL: An Evening with Katherine Switzer
- when: June 13th, with a catered reception starting at 5:30pm and the program at 6:30pm, followed by a book signing session.
- where: Nashville Public Library Conference Center, 615 Church Street, Nashville 37219
- Registration: bit.ly/kathrine_switzer – For any questions, please contact us at 615-862-5782
