Greetings

"Ryan used to say that he'd 'rather wear out than rust out. If he could script the end of his life, I don't think he could have wanted it any better. Not many people get to end their life doing the things they love, and he did."-Joe Shay, Ryan Shay's father.


Endorphin - Any of a group of peptide hormones that bind to opiate receptors and are found mainly in the brain. Endorphins reduce the sensation of pain and affect emotions

Fanatic - a person with an extreme and uncritical enthusiasm or zeal

Endorphin Fanatics
This idea has been on my brain for about two years. This idea of creating a place to share the best of what I know with everyone I know. I do this with the hope to learn even more. To become a better person, a better husband, a better father and a better athlete.
The events of this week in the world of Endorphin Fanatics has been emotional. I stood at the finish line of the US Men's Olympic Marathon trials. I witnessed one of the great performances in years. Ryan Hall ran the perfect race. He was in total control from the start. He showed the world that he is ready to take on the world next summer. I love his response to the question "When will you start training for Bejing?" "I started training when I was 15 running around Big Bear"
What was even more fun was to share this event with Mary and Marco. They braved the cold and the wind and both shared with me how much they enjoyed the race. Even Marco can tell you the three guys that qualified for the Olympics.
About 6 hours after the finish we heard the sad news that Ryan Shay had collapsed and died on the course. Throughout the week on sites like letsrun.com and runnersworld.com the running community has shared their thoughts. Most of the quotes from people who knew Ryan said he was very driven. That nobody worked harder or wanted it more than he did. The quote from his dad reminded me of something I was taught a few years ago. I was taught to sit down at the end of each day and ask myself this question "Can you put your name to that". Your name is all you really have and if you are willing to put your name to the efforts you made during the day than you can say it was a great day. From every thing I've read this week about Ryan Shay it sure seams to me that he tried to make every day count. I never met him but I sense he put his name to more days than not.

I hope you enjoy what you read and come back often.

It's a good life....
Dave