The “I Love Me” Wall

Every athlete should have an ” I love Me” wall.

I am not sure how common this concept is with other people.  Not sure what you call your collection either.  Paul and I have always referred to this as the “I Love Me” Wall.  It’s a collection of medals and photos from my now 25+ years of athletic competition.
I think mine all started with the simple shadow box with the 3 medals in it.  It has my gold medal from being the NH Road Race Champion, then my silver medal from the 4×100 meter relay in high school., followed by my bronze for my finish at the now defunct Otis Road Race on Cape Cod.
Also up there is my 1st place from the Vermont 50 mountain bike race, first place from the inaugural NH 100 mountain bike race, finisher medals from my half marathons, finisher medal from the 2010 Reach The Beach Relay  and various other placings from bike racing and running.
The wall also gives me a chance to remember some great moments from racing and meeting some super stars of the sport(s) I love.
One of my more treasured pictures is the one of Paul and I with Greg Lemond.  Then to the right of that is my photo from 1996 sitting in between then current women’s national road race champion Dede Demet(Barry) and Atlanta Olympic bronze medalist Clara Hughes (I had a HUGE crush on her).
I’ve got other awards sitting on my bookshelf that don’t quite hang on the wall.  What I need to do is install a small shelf to show those off.

The goal here is not vanity, it’s more to remind yourself that all the hours of training, eating right, rest, etc do pay off.
I’m never going to be a “Pro” and I spend way more cash in entry fees and equipment than every cash prize I have ever received.
Paul and I have always been more pleased with “hardware” (medals, trophies, etc) than a $45 check for winning a race.
I’ve even got Mia started on her own wall now too.

So, what do you think?  Odd? Self Absorbed?  Paul and I cannot be the only two who do this.

Thanks for reading

-Pete