It is Oct. 6 at 7:30 a.m.. The sun has risen and the air temperature is at about 60 degrees. Thousands of prepared runners line up at the starting line. Feelings of nerves and excitement rush through them as they are only a few minutes away from their big moment.

Headphones in. Time tracker on. And the horn sounds to start. 

Assistant Principal Erin Steep participated in running in the Cowbell Marathon on the morning of Oct. 6.. This was Steep’s first full marathon, coming in at 26.2 miles. Steep has been running for about three years.  She has participated in many races along her way, three of which have been the The Missouri Cowbell. Two of the times she ran the half marathon and this was her first time with the full. She has also ran in races such as Go St. Louis and Race 13.1.

“I heard a school administrator one time say that we need things that you can complete because with our jobs, there is no end point,” Steep said. “It’s not like you are completing individual projects. It’s ongoing. As soon as you make some progress with a group of students, you get a whole new group, so it’s never ending and it’s never completed. So to have something in your life that is completable is a good thing. It gives you that feeling that you’ve hit a goal versus just ongoing.” 

Steep became soon to realize that she wanted to prove to herself she could stick with something. Running a marathon takes dedication and perseverance so she began training the first week of June using a marathon training plan she found online, running four days a week. Other than one week when her family was in Florida, Steep did not miss a run. Sometimes, it would become difficult for Steep. For example, she would be running more than 10 miles on after school on Wednesday’s, which takes a lot of time away from her family, but she knew that she was dedicated and wanted to stick to her plan. 

“I have always been interested in the ‘mind over matter’ and what your body really can do because I would guarantee that 99 percent of the people in this building right now, if they wanted to go out and go a half marathon could probably do it,” Steep said. “I’ve just always been interested in the whole ‘mind over matter’ and what you can do if you are willing to be tough and get through it.”

It is not unusual for runners to feel nervous on race day. Math Teacher Shelbi Dillon is a frequent runner and before races she has nerves but states, “I usually just tell myself that I can do it.”

On race day, Steep was nervous because she had never ran the distance of a marathon before but she was confident because she had stuck to her training plan. 

“I don’t personally run but I think it’s amazing for those who do,” senior Emma Quinn said. “It is something I could never do, but I am really proud of the people who do it.”