"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take."

For many people a marathon is a bucket list item. It conjures up images of elite athletes breaking the finishing tape in blazing two hour times, and gritty athletes on their last leg hobbling the final 0.2 miles. However, these images sometimes enforce in one's mind an attitude that the marathon is for the most exclusive athletes, or those rare people who love to push their body to the point of extreme suffering. While most of us will never win Olympic Gold or have the desire to push our bodies to failure, that doesn't mean the marathon is not for us. The Marathon is for everyone.

We all have busy lives. Heck, some of us struggle cooking dinner every night; let alone train for a marathon. "26.2 that is just too far. Someday... when I have more time." Well let's be honest, we 're never going to have more time. There will always be something. Whether it is work, the fear of the distance, or kids soccer practice-- you will always be able to find an excuse.

If a marathon is on your bucket list, the best advice I can give to you is JUST SIGN UP. You will figure it out. You will be able to find an hour a day to run and train. You will be able to fit in a long run on the weekend. Once you commit you will find a way to work it out. Sure you will miss work outs, and have nights where you think, "What have I done, I'm not going to be able to finish." But trust me you will. The feeling you will have crossing the finish line will be second to none. All the time training, all the fear, the memories of the fun runs and the not so fun hill repeats, new friends made, and the toe nails lost, will rush through your mind as you run through the finisher chute. Monday morning will come and someone will ask you how it was and you'll say, "It wasn't that bad, I'll definitely do it again."

Years from now you will think more about the things you didn't do, rather than the thing you did. So sign up, challenge yourself, and enjoy the journey. Who knows after this you may just want to sign up for next year. - Ambassador Matthew Wallace