WHY I RUN: Daniel and Brenda Gail Wall met on the road — a road race

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first in an occasional series, Why I Run, on Southwest Georgians who are runners, especially those who are running as seniors.

ALBANY — It’s been more than 25 years since Daniel and Brenda Gail Wall met while training for the Atlanta Half-Marathon. As time has passed and the landscape of some of the races they’ve entered may have changed, two things remain the same for the couple — their love for each other and their love for running.

Before meeting in 1991, each of the two decided to take up running as a recreational sport and would eventually join the Albany Runner’s Club. Brenda, a speech pathologist, described the activity as a “stress release,” something that just allowed her to come home and escape the pressures of the workday. Daniel, a former administrator for the Georgia Housing and Finance Authority, echoed those sentiments, adding how easy it was to undertake the activity.

“It was associating with friends and looking for a stress release,” he said. “It’s simple, all you had to do was put on a pair of shoes and some shorts and go out the door. You didn’t have to join any clubs or pay any fees.”

Brenda got her start in competitive running in 1977 after hearing about it from friends and seeing YMCA advertisements.

Daniel started two years later and recalls his first race being the Peanut Run. During that race, he said, he learned some hard lessons about his new hobby.

“You found out your limitations because there were people there better than you,” he said. “You might feel like you’re real good until you get to the competition and you’re not out by yourself anymore.”

Since then they have continued to enter races throughout Georgia, most recently the 2017 Home Run 5K Race in Americus this past month.

While they don’t post times that are as competitive as they used to be, Brenda said the sense of accomplishment felt after a race is what keeps them going.

“Just the idea of showing up, meeting the challenge and completing the race,” she said.

Competitive running has allowed the couple to travel all over the state and see parts of Georgia that they otherwise would’ve missed out on.

Daniel added that, in addition to the traveling, running comes with extra health benefits for them at this stage in their lives, including energy, weight control and an improvement in their overall mood.

“You used to come home from work after having a bad day, go out and run a few miles and feel completely different,” he said.

Brenda added that as long as they’re able, they’re going to keep participating and living an active lifestyle.

“And sometimes your body might reject going out to run,” she said. “So you might find another avenue of exercise. At least it gets you out doing something and that’s what it’s all about, getting out and doing something.”

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