A Simple Gesture That Brings People Together

All of the UTMB race recap blog posts by the elite runners are great reads, and almost mandatory for us trail super fans. And not because you learn something new about race, but about the person behind the athlete. Joaquin Lopez’s blog is one of my favorite’s. And at Latinos Runs he shares his UTMB experience. My favorite part isn’t from the race, but the award ceremony after:

The next day, 30 minutes before going up on the podium, I walked into the tent by the stage, first of all the award winners to arrive. Soon enough people started showing up, Gautier, Baptiste, Ben, Blandine, Rachel, Lucy, and little by little the tent filled up. Gautier and I started talking and suddenly Hannes walked in with a six pack of German beers. He said hi, and with a lighter started popping the caps off the beers like a pro who knows what he’s doing. There we were, Ben, Hannes, Gautier, Baptiste and me, sharing stories with a beer in hand. For the first time in that tent, (although this was my third time there) I felt like one of the group, I wasn’t the shy Latino sitting quietly in the corner of the tent staring at the floor without talking to anyone. I was one more of them, laughing, asking questions, engaging.

I love this so much. Hannes, bringing a pack of beer to share with his fellow competitors. Yes, it’s the most German thing you can think of and that might make you smirk. But among all the stereotypes one has of “typical” Germans this gesture highlights exactly one of the core tenants of German life. It’s not about the beer, or the innate ability to open the bottles by any means imaginable, it’s the fact that his gesture of hospitality is what brings people together. It’s mid-September right now. Oktoberfest kicked off in my favorite city in the world München. And while folks talk about the Trachten or costumes, the absurd amounts of beer consumed and the absurd prices folks pay for them, most of all Oktoberfest is about the very notion of bringing people together, around a table, the “ice breaker” (if you will) being a Brezn, and a shared Prost over a beer. This is what brings people together. Be it 6 million gathering annually at the Theresianwiese in the heart of München or a handful elite athletes in a tent in Chamonix waiting for their finisher awards. Life can be that simple. And that is beautiful.