In the Arena
I love a community of tryers and so did Teddy Roosevelt. One of TR’s most famous passages is dedicated to the tryers, the action-takers, the attempters. You know the one, the “Man in the Arena” speech. If you go to his brand-new presidential library in North Dakota, you get to hear all kinds of famous people read his gorgeous words.
“It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”
These words, written in 1910, could have just as easily been written in 2026 for you, the athletes of the Platte River Fitness Series.
At every finish line, I get to see the sweat of your trying, the dust and blood (and sometimes actual blood!) of the effort given at the level of your hearts and souls. Roosevelt speaks about action versus complacency and criticism. The PRFS family is a family of action. Everyone claims they want to be healthy, live healthfully, flourish and thrive, but it is those who actually put that want into action that win. And as I hope everyone knows by now, showing up to the starting line is the win. Sometimes you show up in old gray sweatpants or sometimes you show up in the coolest, newest tech gear. You show up as a result of methodical training, or you show up without much training because you know that showing up will motivate you to take charge of your health, wellness, and your life. You show up to support a cause or another person. Roosevelt also speaks of a disregard of the critics who sit on the sidelines but never get into the marrow of doing something hard and real. You show up to support and uplift your own effort and the effort of everyone around you. This is true for our race directors too. You understand that unless you are willing to host a race yourself, criticism lacks devotion and enthusiasm. It lacks empathy. Your show more grace than any other group of competitors.
Finally, Roosevelt speaks of winning and losing. That means real winning and losing. When you try, when you get off the couch and get out there on the course, you win, every time. The only way to lose is to never try, to hold back, to take the easiest possible path. The victory is found inside the arena. The only way to “win life” is inside the arena of life. Life, real, non-synthetic life, with pain and sweat and side aches and heart aches is waiting there. Health is there, a sense of accomplishment is there, friendships and family and being seen is there. So is disappointment and discomfort. As we reach the halfway mark in our season, I wanted to thank the athletes of the PRFS for being willing to get into the arena, race after race after race. You get all the credit. TR would give it to you joyfully. Thank you for spending yourselves in a worthy cause. Thank you for always daring greatly. It is an honor to watch you try.