馬拉松賽: 「個人最佳」目標 / Marathon Race: Personal Best (PB)

這几年來,為了保持身心健康平衡,除了夏天在湖游泳,冬天在山滑雪之外,每年之春和秋季,都有訓練和參加馬拉松。加拿大賽跑有分短、中、長和特長距離,通常短就是100公尺至10公里,中大約是半個馬拉松21.1公里,長就是42.2公里,特長就是超馬拉松,有髙至l80公里或以上。我是業餘賽者, 不是精英之輩, 選擇參加馬拉松,目標是自己定的「個人最佳」時間,和職業選手和賽事的國際水凖不同。為什么我選擇自定的「個人最佳」為目標呢?我覺得我們生出來,就不是一定奧運的品質,十項全能。不幸的就是有些父母、師長、甚至個人,很多時有一個不實際的祈待,希望子女、學生、或自己每事都是名列前矛。沒有錯,人望高処,但這個高処的水準,是否現實? 我也有我的一技之長,但在馬拉松賽跑方面, 「個人最佳」Personal Best (PB),对我來說,就是最實際的目標和表現了。

In the last few years, in order to keep myself physically and mentally fit, I do a lot of open-water swimming in the summer and skiing in the winter, and every spring and fall, I train and participate in running marathons. Now, running races in Canada are categorized mostly by distance: short, medium, long and ultra-long. Usually, short means 100 metres to 10 kilometres, medium is around the half-marathon 21.1 km mark, long is 42.2 km, and ultra marathon may exceed 180 km. I am an amateur runner and not part of the elite. I choose the marathon distance with the goal of achieving my Personal Best (PB) time record, which is quite different from any professional or international race standards. Why do I choose Personal Best (PB) as my goal? I feel most of us are not born Olympians with decathlon abilities. Unfortunately, many parents, teachers, and even individuals themselves actually have that type of false expectations. They do expect their children, students, and themselves to excel in every aspect of life, with no exception. Sure, many people want to achieve, but the question is whether their goals are set too high and unrealistic. I am good at many things, but as far as the marathon is concerned, Personal Best (PB) is my most realistic goal and performance measure.