The Marathon has Just Begun!

Well.....I made it 4:17 for my first marathon, not as fast as I wanted but apparently faster than the average first marathoner.  Either way I will take it and the event was a great time.  If I said it was smooth sailing the whole way I would be lying like crazy.  Miles 22 through 25 were an experience in pain that I had no idea was coming. At the beginning of mile 26 when I could see the end in sight I had a decision to make.  Either walk and have it hurt like hell or run and have it hurt like hell for less time.  I picked option number two and finished the race.  I was very grateful for the family and friends that were strategically placed along the way.  Even though I saw them for a grand total of less than a minute, it is amazing what a friendly and loving face can do to lift your spirit and keep you pressing on.

Another pleasant surprise I encountered during this great event was all the information and advice that you gain along the way.  Information such as, beer at the finish line, naked cheerleaders one mile ahead, and Chuck Norris never ran a marathon were great tid bits of info. that kept me forging forward.  The advice was equally as encouraging.  I don't know how I have made it this far in life without signs like, finish before the rapture, 26.2 miles because 26.3 would be crazy, and last but not least, don't sh**t yourself.  I think Confucius rolled over in his grave. 

I would like to thank everyone for all the support along this journey and I don't think, by now, that I need to insert anymore cancer metaphors.  If you are wondering how to get involved just participate in any of your local Relay for Life events. When I say participate I mean spend time at the event reading luminaries, listening to speakers, and visiting with all the team members that have worked so hard to achieve the same goals that my family and I are trying to achieve.  If you really want to leap in, spend the whole night walking on the track and taking in the emotion of the event.  It won't take long to figure out why we are so passionate about this cause and want to prevent others from experiencing all the BS that we have experienced.  If you are local to me our event starts at 5:30 pm June 3 and ends at 6:00am June 4, in Lisbon ND.  Hope to see you on this continued journey to beat the hell out of cancer. 

Remember the Moms

Thanks to all the participants in the Running for the Ribbons 5K run.  We had our first really nice spring day for the run, a great time was had by all.  Running for me has been less than impressive after the last long run.  Up until 3 days ago my hip was still in pain from the last 18 mile run.  My common sense (wife) suggested going to the doctor if it didn't get better by Wednesday.  I ended up going in on Monday just to find out what was going on.  It turns out I needed new shoes and here I am on Friday with no hip pain.  On the down side, now my common sense knows I don't have a hearing problem and I am going to have to come up with a different excuse for not listening to her.

On the theme of the Mother’s Day Holiday this past weekend, we should celebrate all the wonderful firsts that Mothers get to experience with their children.

Please take a moment of silence for some of the firsts that a cancer Mom endures.

Firsts such as the following:

 The first time she has to use a brush to literally comb out her daughter’s hair after her first round of chemotherapy.

 The first wheelchair ride because the cancer has overtaken her daughter’s spine and can no longer walk. 

The first eye patch to cover one of her daughter’s eyes, so that she no longer sees double, because the cancer has also affected her vision.

The first time her child looks at her with tears in her eyes and searing fear in her voice, barely squeaking out the words “I don’t want to die”

The first time she has to look at her child with tears in her eyes and searing fear in her voice and tell her daughter that she is indeed going to die.

The above are just a few of the firsts that my wife and too many other Mothers are forced to experience.  Please remember it doesn’t matter if your child is 8 or 58 we are all equal in this cancer fight so we must keep up the work. 

 Fargo Marathon in less than 2-weeks – May 21, 2011 – come and support all the runners.

Last 20 mile training run!?

Life on a personal level has been busy since the last post, hence the reason for 2 weeks without an update.  Training has been pressing forward though. I suffered a minor setback with a sore hip after the 20 mile run on April 17th.  I had to take a couple days off to avoid further injury.  Not feeling 100% I was a bit concerned all this past week with my last 20 mile run looming on the horizon for this weekend.  Nonetheless Saturday arrived and I had to get it done, so the plan was a nice easy run just to get the miles in and not injure myself.  The first 5 miles were pretty much pain free and I was able to establish a very nice pace.  At mile 5.5 as if to say, "hey dumbass I thought you were going to take it easy", my stomach started to cramp.  I am not talking a side ache either, I am talking gastrointestinal cramping that didn't subside until mile 6.5.  After working through the cramps I continued on at an EASIER pace to avoid injuring myself.  At around mile 12 my thighs, calves, and hamstrings started to feel a little tight.  That tightness was not supposed to be happening, I have run this distance many times before.  I must have been a bit dehydrated,  so I made sure hydration was a priority and if I needed to stop and stretch I would.  By mile 15 I had to do just that, after taking a walk/stretch break I continued on feeling pretty good.  Mile 16 brought searing pain to my right inner calf, I actually felt like someone was shoving a hot knitting needle into my leg.  Shortly after the calf pain started two of the toes on my right foot started to cramp also.  In the name of self preservation, yesterday was an 18 mile run instead of 20.

I think at least one major physical battle was what I needed to drive home the message and the training.  Through all the pain I still had to function for the rest of the day and I didn't feel near as terrible as someone being treated for Cancer.  The amount of suffering cancer patients endure is unparalleled and I am in awe of the strength of every single one of them.  I also do still feel like we can do better in helping relieve some of that suffering.

P.S. The weather was terrible yesterday, I am just really sick of talking about it.