Houston Day 1: Passion

by Seth Hasty on January 12, 2012

As I sit on the frozen tarmac here in Maine, my flight headed due south towards The Lone Star State for the Olympic Marathon Trials taking place this weekend, I can’t help but reflect on what got me here.  It sure as hell was not my 3:03 marathon PR (hey, if I can shave 43:00 off maybe they'll let me run!).  Perhaps if I knock 16 minutes from my half PR within the next 3 days I can race on Saturday (darn, I forgot to pack my Wave Mushas!).

To be honest, how I got to the Olympic Trials in Houston is no different than how the near 400 qualified runners, including 18 of our own Mizuno runners got here.  Passion, dedication, hard work, and of course... that "Never Settle" attitude.

Thinking about the many different paths we all took to get here at the Trials, whether you're a runner, trainer, coach, sales rep or a humble writer (hi!) we all work extremely hard to be able to do what we absolutely love for a living.  Maybe I'm not putting in 100 mile weeks (maybe? o.k... I'm not) but while Serena Burla is out there killin' it in training, I'm also working answering product questions, helping runners find the perfect shoe, and resolving issues to keep runners running!

As I look around this plane at 10,000 feet I wonder what all the other passengers’ passion in life is.  Someone could be a yoga instructor; another might live for photography or day dream about fly fishing. The woman across the aisle might own a delicious bakery, or be perhaps be an artist.  It's obvious the guy next to me has a passion for cologne!

My passion is running and I want running to be my job, problem is... I'm not fast.  So much like an ugly fashion model, I had to find a loop hole.  Realizing I love talking running, being around runners, and of course my love of running shoes I found another path.  I was not going to give up on my dream, just as these runners would never give up on the Olympic Dream!

So here I am a few years later working with Mizuno Running, my goal is to bring you as close to our elite athletes as possible, while sharing our Never Settle ethos with runners everywhere.  You'll see me out on the road, at races, at expos and I look forward to meeting every single Mizuno runner to talk shoes, training, I'd also love to share some miles with you while we talk about how cute our kids are (hey...I'm a new Dad).

The bottom line is I found my passion, and it got me to the Olympic Marathon Trials... where will yours take you?

Never Settle.

-Seth