Why is this night different than other nights?

In honor of the last Crossroads run before the marathon, I present to you the 4 questions of Thursday night runs at Crossroads.

Why is it that on all other nights during training we eat either healthy or semi-healthy but on this night we eat pizza? Our benefactor and friend, JJ provides all who run (and even those who don't) with free pizza to replenish our bodies after a run of the hills, river, or the good old out and back. On other nights we must provide ourselves with nourishment, and do so knowing that we will feel guilty if we indulge ourselves too much. But on this night we know that it is only normal and beneficial to not insult our gracious host and eat/maul the pizza that is set before us.

Why is it that on all other nights we drink all sorts of alcohol, but on this night we drink beer? On other nights, you may say I wish to drink a martini or whiskey sour. On this night, however, it seems only fitting to order and a IPA, or Bud, or Stella. After a run, a calorie-less drink is no good to anyone. We must find energy from some source, and we must do so as we wait for the pizza to arrive.

Why is it that on all other nights we stand around clean and without perspiration, but on this night we drink and eat in sweat? On other nights you may wish to wipe the sweat from your brow and pits and even shower before presenting yourself to the world. On this night we delight in the ability to forget such worries and enjoy the company of others in the same condition.

Why is it on all other nights we schlep on a train and run the many hills of Newton? On other nights you may run where you live, but on this night we all come together to experience what many claim to be the hardest part of the Boston marathon so that we all know the hills that much better as to make them a little more bearable when we come upon them not at mile 1 as we do on this night, but at mile 15 when your body is tired and your mind flagging. To experience the hills on this night is truly a mitzvah to your body.

Happy Pesach and Easter to all! Only 10 days away...