The Bible instructs Christians to “run the race with endurance,” but even the writer of Hebrews would have to admit that even the thought of running 26.2 miles is enough to make one’s legs sore.
A physical marathon may not have some grand spiritual significance for the Hebrews metaphor, but Taylor Whitmore, lead pastor of Southridge Baptist Church in Jefferson City, crossed the finish line at the April 17 Boston Marathon and ran that race with endurance: all 26.2 miles up and down the rainy hills of the city.
A runner since high school, competing in the Boston Marathon — the premier event in the running world — has been a goal of Whitmore’s for years.
“If you get nerdy about running, this is the event,” Whitmore said. “People put it on their bucket lists if they’re runners.”
He qualified for the race in November of 2021 at the Indianapolis Marathon with a time of 2 hours and 49 minutes and 18 seconds. His time in the Boston event was a touch slower, crossing the line at 3 hours, 13 minutes and 13 seconds.
“It was satisfying, but I did not do great,” Whitmore joked. “Boston is a pretty difficult course, and I didn’t expect to run what I ran when I qualified. I expected I was would be 10 minutes slower, but I really, objectively had a bad day. Sometimes your legs just don’t have it.”
Notoriously difficult
The course through the streets of Boston is indeed notoriously difficult. The first 10 miles are downhill, which sounds easy since gravity is assisting, but that means harder landings with each step, and more strain on knees and quads. After that, miles 16-21 are a series of four large hills, with the final big obstacle known as “Heartbreak Hill.”
“It’s a brutal hill,“ Whitmore said. “If you have anything left in the tank at that point, you’re going to get beat up.”
Though he was nearly an hour behind the race winner — Kenya’s Evans Chebet finished in 2 hours, five minutes and 54 seconds — Whitmore was still in the top quarter of the nearly 30,000 runners from more than 100 countries that competed.
Beyond the ups and downs of the terrain, the weather wasn’t exactly picture-postcard quality, with temperatures in the 40s and 50s and rain falling the entire course.
“While you’re running, it’s actually enjoyable,” Whitmore said. “The crowds were great, cheering and screaming their heads off even in the rain. But then you finish and you’re soaking wet, miserable and you have to walk back to the hotel freezing cold.”
Finding purpose in the long miles
But beyond reaching a goal and checking off a major accomplishment, he said running for him is a gift from God, one that helps him stay healthy — mentally, physically and spiritually.
“The Lord has used running in purposeful and significant ways in my life,” Whitmore said. “Especially in my college years, but even now. Through running, He’s drawn me back to Himself. It’s not like I’m praying every moment I run or that it’s a crazy worshipful experience, but I’m truly thankful to Him for running. It makes me healthier, more efficient, I sleep better, and I just do better in all of life when I’m running. It helps me have goals beyond ministry or ‘church-related’ goals.”
Whitmore said he “probably” will run in another marathon, but he doesn’t have any definite plans yet. Training for this marathon meant at least an hour a day of training, time away from his wife, Jacquee and family.
“She deserves huge credit,” he said. “Every day after work, every Saturday morning, she’s staying with them an extra hour while I run.”
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Brian Koonce and originally published by the Pathway.
