Hi Kit.

Hey Rachel.

Kit Fox Reporter for Runner's World is with me today because together we're going to tell the story of a soap opera.

Or I guess in the running world, something close to it.

The story has all the elements.

There's lying, cheating, concealed identities, death threats.

Public shaming, reputations ruined, a runner banned from a race for life, but also spreadsheets.

I can't remember the last time I saw a spreadsheet in a soap opera.

Okay, so the spreadsheets might be unique to this particular story, but they still play an important part.

I love a good spreadsheet story.

It didn't start with spreadsheets. It started like so many things in life with a Facebook post gone viral.

You might remember the headlines.

See this dad's powerful response to principal over his kids' absence from school.

Articles popped up on the Today Show blog, Philadelphia Magazine.

So here's the gist. In 2015, this dad pulls his two kids out of school for a few days for a trip to Boston.

That's because this dad's a runner and he's going to run the Boston Marathon.

So the dad notifies the school that his kids will be gone.

But in response, the principal writes the parents just like this standard letter.

I'm going to paraphrase it here, but basically the principal writes,

I want you to be aware that this school district does not recognize family trips as excused absences.

The absences will be unexcused.

If the kids continue to have unexcused absences, it will result in a referral to an attendance officer.

...