This is by far the most brilliant piece of reportage I have yet found on this site.

I laughed hard enough to shit myself in lieu of those runners who did not.

I celebrate you, Brittney.

This Bud's for you.

Klaus talks as if he hasn't been here long.

The bodies of those who push themselves far beyond the limits of conditioning... do amazing and - yes - appalling things.

Your use of "done been punched" leaves me homesick for a place far different than that in which I live.

Gentler congratulations are due, I might add, that you hauled yourself to Nashville at an ungodly hour of the morning... and managed to arrive with your caboose still attached, crusty eyes and all.

I remember when the Ironman triathlon was getting big, and Wide World of Sports covered it. One of the women finished the race with shitty drawers. The commentators tried to dance around the issue, euphemisms flying everywhere. I was just a kid, and I remember when I realized what they were talking about. It scarred me. Scarred me deep.

People who physically exert themselves when they are not being paid or getting laid are nuts.

My only excercise consists of 12-oz curls and I am stll a svelte 180 at 6' 1".

Also joggers should be hooked up to treadmills and forced to produce electricity. I see joggers on my lunch hour! In New York. Why don't they spend their lunch hours in bars like sensible people?

I'm just jealous of JonMC's metabolism. Bastid.

There's some sort of nipple protector runners can get so they won't finish races with bloody nipples. I don't remember what they're called (and I am SO NOT gonna search for "bloody nipple prevention" while I'm at work.)

Also jealous of his skinny-ass. That is so not fair.


And j-po: I read that the first couple of times as "scared deep." It sounded so Southern and not-quite right. Now I know why. Because I can't read s'gud.

"Scared deep" *does* sound Southern, nowthatIthinkufit. It's almost as good as "might could."

I'm way guilty of the occasional "might could."

You might could not make fun of me for it either.