WOW, thank you so much to those that sent in your finish line photos. They are all amazing and I absolutely loved reading them all (about 200 entries!!). I can’t even tell you how many of them made me cry. I narrowed it down to 15 for the contest today but I will be posting the others throughout the month because they are all so incredible. You guys are truly amazing.
Go ahead and vote for your favorite picture/story in the comments pretty please.
Just vote by telling me which number is your favorite. THANKS!!!
#1.
#3.
This first one is from my first marathon. I ran a 3:09 first time. I cried tears of pure joy as I approached the finish. This is about 30 ft from the finish shoot. I had just gone through a deep postpartum depression a couple years prior and I just felt on top of the world. I came to know that I could do anything I put my mind to. I was weeping but smiling and yelling out loud “I did it. wooohooo” -in this picture. :)
#4.
#5.
This is me running towards the finish at my first Ironman. Ironman Mont Tremblant in August 2012. The finish chute is so long and there are SO many people all screaming like you’re the winner. This is the moment I could hear the announcer saying “Mary Minutella from Windsor, Ontario. You. Are. An Ironman!” I trained for this race during one of the toughest years of my life – having separated from my husband, selling our home, etc. So much self doubt was put to rest that day. One of the hardest, most amazing days of my life and this was the the BEST part! I cry like a baby everytime I think about it.
#6.
#7.
This picture was from the finish of my first marathon in March 2013, with my best friend, Erin-Leigh. I never wanted to do a marathon until she convinced me to do it with her. We decided to fundraise for an amazing organization called She’s the First (shesthefirst.org) through our training and running our first marathon. We raised over $9,000 in support of the education of 26 girls in Nepal through our race. This picture reminds me to dream big. It was a life changing experience.
#8.
On March 23, 2014 my dad ran his first half marathon and I was blessed to have run every step right next to him. My dad was with me when I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis only 6 months prior. I’ll never forget that in the doctor’s office right after being told I had MS and all the physical and mental ways it would likely affect me, my dad told the doctor through a cracking voice and tears in his eyes, “We’re supposed to run a half marathon in March and we’re GOING to run that half marathon.” And we did :) We ran every step together. It was incredibly special and one of the best days of my life!
#9.
This is from my first full marathon, May 2013 at the Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon. Somehow I managed to find the time to train alone, work full time with a 75 mile one-way commute, and be a sane single parent to a 3-yr-old, living with my parents. This face is the culmination of all the sacrifice, and mental and physical perseverance I’d accumulated since I found myself alone when my son was 6-months old.
#10.
This is a photo from the finish of my very first half marathon (Buffalo Creek Half Marathon – October 2013). I had only been running for a little over year at this point. I went from being a completely sedentary obese person at the beginning of 2012, to a half marathon finisher and 80 lbs lighter by the end of 2013. Needless to say, the finish of this race was very emotional for me. I was about 100 feet from the finish when I saw a group of people from my running group who waited around to cheer me in. That’s when I burst into my “ugly cry” you can see in the picture. Even though it is probably one of the worst photos of me in existence it also is one of my favorites.
#11.
This is a picture from two years ago back in high school. Thats me on the left with my training partner/mini me on the right. We actually got in a lot of trouble for crossing the finish line together… but we pulled each other through the race taking turns encouraging each other to hang in there and it just seemed right. This race wasn’t a PR or anything but it reminds me the importance of teamwork in running.
#12.
This was my very first 1/2 marathon (9-22-13). I had just turned 50 a few weeks prior to the run. Anyhow; this was just a BIG accomplishment for me. I have never been a runner in my entire life. I was diagnosed asthmatic at age 4 and have never been able to any kind of running. That said – I started running about 11/2 years before I ran this race. Early in 2013 I made up my mind to commit to doing a 1/2 by the time I was 50 (I was able to register for the race, but it happened shortly after I turned 50). I did all of my training on my own (running by myself). I had a great support group in my husband while doing longer runs..he would come out on the bike to bring me a little snack or drink of some type. Thank You David! My kids were else great supporters – while not living near me they cheered hard. And; on the day of the race I had my own little support group. They came out on their bikes and showed up along the course every few miles. My silent goal was to finish this race in 2 1/2 hours, and I DID IT!! I finished in 2:22 and felt terrific during the entire race. I have continued to run and will again run this 1/2 this coming September. Every time I look at these pictures it brings tears to my eyes that I can actually run like this and will keep running like this! I still have my runners high!!!
#13.
My sister, Nikki, and I just crossed the finish line of the BAA Half Marathon in Boston in Oct. 2012. About 8 months before the race, we lost our mom to breast cancer. Neither of us were runners but decided to join to the Dana Farber Cancer Research team and train for this race, while raising money for a cause that means a lot to us. The race was hard, but remembering the strength our mom showed during her painful year-long battle with cancer pushed us to the finish line. We know she was watching over us the whole way, and was proud to see us do this for her!
#14.
This was the Star Valley Half Marathon that took place on July 13, 2012. This was a very meaningful race because my mom had passed away three months prior and I was struggling with the loss, and the morning of the race I unexpectedly found out I was pregnant. I did not want to run, but my hubby pushed me to do it for my mom and little girl. It was very emotional to cross the finish line!
#15.
I decided to run a series of 3 races the same year I lost 50 pounds. I had zero running experience and had no idea of what I was doing. My first 4 mile race I wore slip on tennis shoes. Let’s just say that was not a good idea since my feet were rubbed raw. The next race was a 3 mile and I still didn’t wear shoes that were roomy enough, so my toe nails hurt like crazy. The last race, a fun 4 mile Halloween race I figured out that I needed real running shoes and placed 1st in my age group. I came a long way from that middle aged woman who sat on the couch. I kept telling myself when I was running.. you can do this! I ran as hard as I could to the finish line and collapsed on the grass.
VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE!!! The winner gets a bunch of goodies that any runner would love!
704 comments
Hillary L.
They are all so good! But #4 gets my pick!
Laura
My vote is #13 although they are all great stories!
Amanda L
#10!
Rachel
1…the sacrifices (big and small) we make because we’re mothers.
Ashley
6! That guy is amazing!
Adrienne
#5
Megan
#1
sarah
number 2 for sure!!!!
Abby
#1 I love but #13 and #14 are close seconds. I cried (at work) as I read these stories, so inspiring.
Bee
Oh my Janae! how can we choose just one? They are all good. So I’ll vote by the cry factor and that was #8!
Steph
#8!
Claire
#8
Kim
#8. These are all so awesome though! Thanks for sharing!!
Casey
3!
kristen
#4
Jennifer S.
#10!!!! That is a “hometown” race for me! I also loved #5.
Erin
#11 I love that the two of them worked together encouraging each other during the race, and decided to finish together.
Dede
14!!!
Diane
#4 really touched me. So many wonderful pictures and stories!
Caitlin
#1. Isn’t that what running is all about? Enjoying the moments.
Christina
#1
Britt B
#14!!
Lindsey
Eek hard decision, but I vote for #5!
Wilhelm
#1 :)
Megan
My vote is #8, but they are all truly inspiring!
Kelly H
#10.
Fiauna @ Fifi's Fat Farm
#4 and #14, can’t choose between those two.
jane
#8 had me in tears!!! So powerful! But they are all amzing!
jaime
These were amazing stories! #8 has my vote :)
Lisa
#4
Lindsey
Oh my gosh they are all incredible. I vote #10
Janice
#8
meg
#10
Amy @ fitnessmeetsfrosting
Oh geez I should not have read this at work. Crying like a baby. Good thing no one was around :) This is so hard as they are all amazing stories. I guess #8??
Wendy
#10
shirley lemay
#4, but all of these are great and made me cry!
Tiana Rehe
Everyone’s stories are so great and motivating! I am picking #10, because running is hard enough for a healthy person, so when a sedentary person decides to tackle 13.1 miles I am impressed and she looks like she has worked so hard.
Beth J
#1! So sweet and selfless!
Christina
#8
Darci
#4
Vera
These are all amazing and so inspirational. I feel like I need to go for a run right now! My vote goes to #8.
AJ
All of them are so great! I vote #5
alicia
#9
Allison Legnon
#8!
Audrey
#8 – nothing like a father’s love/support for his daughter!!
Stefanie
#7
Lauren
1!
tam
#6–what a story!
Penny McAllister
#8 way to go!! Got my vote!!
Kathy
#10
Renee A
#10
Johanna Naama
#1
Laura O
#1! 10 and 12 were close seconds!
Wendy
#10!
mary
Number 6!!
mary
6!!!
Brooklyn
14, made me cry!
Jamie
#5
Erin
So hard to choose, but I vote:
#8
Abby
#8
Lynn
Oh man! Crying at my desk, my vote has to go to #14.
erika
#4…………
Judy
Absolutely # 8!
Ali @ neon runnerd
#10
Callie
So so so hard to choose!!!! Each of these touched a place in my heart! I have to with #8 though! Very moving and an amazing story of triumph!
Ashley
#8 Such a touching story.
AJ
7
Julie B
#8 the best team is a girl and her dad
Nk
#4… what an amazing selection of finish line stories!
Marci
#6!
Amanda
#13
Amber
#5
Belinda
#8
Lesley
I vote for #6 although each story was incredible!
Ian
#8
Nicole S.
#8 ❤️
Meegan
#8, but they were all so inspiring!
Whit
#1
Beth
# 4
Susan S
#1.
Christina
It would be completely impossible for me to pick a favorite between my top two, which are #8 and #10. Holy tears Batman.
MaryAnne
Amazing stories, all if them but #1 really got to me for some reason (I don’t even have kids!) so it gets my vote.
Kailey
#8- it made me cry!!
Juliana
#6!
Danielle
I LOVE THEM ALL! Running makes us all feel extraordinary for different reasons. Here we have extraordinary moms, extraordinary daughters, extraordinary survivors….the list goes on. It’s so hard to pick one, but I will pick #6 because my right ankle/foot (status-post three stress fractures) frequently feels like it is going to give out at the end of races. I have a perpetual fear of falling just before the finish line. #6 shows me that a fall doesn’t mean you can’t finish.
Kyleen
#7!!!
Patti
#13!!!
Beth
I vote #8!
Candy
#14
Summer
#6!
Caitlin @ RunMimsie
#5 made me a little teary. Ironman seems like a HUGE accomplishment and I’d probably be crying to hard to finish strong if that were me! haha :)
Ashley H.
10!
Laura
I cried reading this entire post. #8 gets my vote but love them all!
Toby B.
#3…Lily needs to remember how great she is!
Beth
#12!!
Kelly
#8
Nicole
#4
Too difficult to choose only one! The stories behind each picture are so touching – really makes me feel grateful for all I have and motivates me to push myself more when I’m having one of those cruddy days.
Shari
All of these stories are amazing and inspiring but #4 really touched my heart!
Hannah @ CleanEatingVeggieGirl
Such a hard choice…but #8!
Stacy
#4!!!! Very moving.
Lisa @ Running Out Of Wine
These are all amazing stories! Its hard to choose but I’m gonna vote for #6.
Kay miller
#8
Abby
7!
C.D.
#1 – all of the stories are great, but #1 warms my heart.
Beth W.
#8 – Inspirational!!!!
Laura @ RunningJunkie
#6
Holly
You are killing me with this. SO hard! & so inspiring!! Wow, tears for sure.
#1. I LOVE it. So important to remember.
Jenna
#4!!
Kathryn
#14
katie
#6
paige smith
I vote for #8
Becky
#12!!!!
Tiffany
#3 LILY
Ursula from Wisconsin
#4 !!!
Aaron Campbell
#3
Lily has busted her buns to get where she is right now. She is super dedicated!
Cassie
#4!
Kelly
I love ALL of these so much but I vote #4 !
Cristy
#8
Marissa
#8!
Senga
#3
Jen
#2. Because I wish I would’ve turned to running after a nasty break up a long time ago.
Sana
#9!
Jessica
#5
Michelle @ A Healthy Mrs
They’re all wonderful! #8 is the one that gets my vote :)
Katie
#1
Blake Casares
#1, but #10 is a very close 2nd!
Bianca
# 10!!
smoresy
#3. go lily go!
Lily
^^^^ Hungry Runner girl, that is ALLIE SCOTT MOORE! 5x MARATHON CHAMPION. I LOVE HER!!! Thanks ALLIE!!!!!! :)
Lily
TOU Champ I meant. Go ALLIE GOOOOOOO! haha
tracy
I can’t pick one. They are all so touching and inspiring. Thanks for doing this contest. The are all winners.
Nancy Limburg
#3 for sure!!
Jacinta W.
#8
Jen
# 15!
Katie
#8!! Wow.
stephanie rigg
what amazing stories. I love this!!! I’m going with #8.
Erin Henderson
#14!!!
Mindy
#1
Liz @ Carpe Diem and Run
#14
Naomi
#8!
Kiki
#5 !
Kathleen
#3!
Amanda
#8- they were all amazing but this one hit really close to home for my family!
Laura
This was so hard to pick but #8 touched me the most!!!
Jen
They were seriously all great. Really. Good picks.
Since you said one, I am going to go with 8.
Also great idea for a contest. I loved reading these.
MVH
Number 3 yo.
Polly @ Tasty Food Project
I would have to say #5 is my favorite!
Rachel @ My Adventures As A Rinderknecht
These stories are amazing! #1 is my pick :)
Jamie
#8!
Elizabeth
Tough to pick! #2 gets my vote.
Gloria
Number three gets my vote!! She’s an awesome woman, wife and a wonderfull Mom!!
Melissa
Tough decision…but being a Daddy’s Girl, I’m going with #8