Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Props to My Father-in-Law

Any way you measure it, my in-laws are amazing people. Each of them has decades of competitive running to their credit. For many years, they went on bicycle camping trips every summer, on which they rode many hundreds of miles, some of it in very hilly terrain.

One year they rode bicycles across Death Valley.

In July.

Individually and together, they have maintained a decades-long testimony to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. But what I love about their brand of spirituality is that it has physical manifestations. Long after their age-peers have retired from active pursuits, they continue to push themselves to achieve amazing things.

My father-in-law, Don Walkwitz, will turn 76 next month. Over the weekend, he ran a 5K race in 24 minutes, 52 seconds at the Get Fit Tulsa event. Here, I will do the math for you: That is an average of exactly 8 minutes per mile for the 3.1 mile course!

In this race, my father-in-law beat guys in their 60s, 50s, 40s, 30s, and 20s. If I had been in Tulsa that day, he'd have beaten me, too.

Godspeed, Don!

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