Through the miracle of google or some other search engine, the folks at the Greater Washington Sports Alliance, organizers of the SunTrust National Marathon, found out about my difficulties with the Los Angeles Marathon and kindly offered me a complimentary registration to the race here in DC. In addition, they have made me a “featured runner” and will highlight my training, reasons for running, etc. I am flattered beyond words that they think my story is interesting enough to share with the broader running community. More importantly though, is the opportunity this presents to increase awareness of pancreatic cancer and raise additional money for the Lorenzen Cancer Foundation, the charity I’m running on behalf of to support Kate in her battle with stage four pc. For those visitors who found my site through the SunTrust National Marathon email, I’ve pasted my first blog entry below so you can understand the purpose of this blog and why I’m running. Please feel free to read through old blog entries and of course provide feedback. Welcome!
Monday, June 30, 2008
Welcome
On a clear, unseasonably mild, Saturday afternoon back in January 2007, I experienced the nightmare of every avid runner --- injury. One minute I'm running 7 minute miles and dreaming of a run at a Boston qualifying time, the next I'm limping back home on a bum ankle hoping against hope that the pain is temporary, a small bump on the road to marathon glory. Well, after two rounds of x-rays, six weeks of physical therapy, and no diagnosis, the orthopedist ordered an MRI, and as I suspected, a serious underlying problem was discovered, the dreaded ganglion cyst. No, this wasn't life threatening, but it took away my life as a runner, at least for the time being.
The only option to get back to running was surgery, and not an easy one. Because of the location of the cyst, an arthroscopic procedure was out of the question. Nope, I was in for good old fashion open surgery. And so it went. On June 1, 2007, I underwent a 2+ hour surgical procedure at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Northwest Washington, DC, to remove the cyst, clean up some scar tissue, and get me back on the road to running. The expected recovery time was six weeks, but as it turns out, the procedure was much more complicated than originally anticipated, my body didn't react well, and it's taken over a year to recover.
I'm writing this blog to chronicle the challenges of recovering from surgery, getting back into shape, and training for a marathon, the 2009 Los Angeles Marathon, as well as to share my passion for the sport of running, which has made such a positive impact on my life.
But what about the last part of the title, raising money? At the same time I sustained the ankle injury, my friend Kate (who got me into all this running non-sense in the first place over 10 years ago) was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer. She is fighting pc really hard, going through treatment, and not only surviving, but living as full a life as possible. I admire her strength and fight, and want to support her as she goes through this difficult period. And in that spirit, I am raising money for my marathon run in L.A. to support the Lorenzen Pancreatic Cancer Foundation. Donations can be made at the following webiste: http://www.active.com/donate/pancreaticadedicat08/beatpc. Also, for a look at Kate's inspirational blog as she fights pc, go to http://www.katethaxton.com/survivingpc/.
Thanks for taking the time to read this post and I look forward to sharing with you the trials and tribulations of training for 26.2
Friday, October 17, 2008
Sunday, October 12, 2008
A Friend Goes Down to Injury
I have written extensively about what it’s like to experience and recover from a difficult orthopedic injury. Unfortunately, my good friend Mike has just fallen to a horrible sports injury, a snapped Achilles tendon. Mike was playing flag football last week, heard a pop, and fell to the ground. Shortly later at the hospital, Mike got the bad news: his Achilles tendon had snapped in two and he underwent emergency surgery the next day to have the tendon repaired. For two months, Mike will be in a cast and unable to put any weight on his right leg. He will then undergo physical therapy. Total expected recovery time is 6 months. To make matters worse, Mike just started business school and has two children under the age of three, including a precious one month old little baby girl. Needless to say, Mike’s wife has her hands full. I can definitely sympathize with Mike’s situation and wish him a speedy recovery!
Monday, October 6, 2008
Appreciation
As I was eating my delicious fried chicken dinner on Saturday night at Jacques-Imo’s in New Orleans, a feeling of appreciation came over me. For almost the first 32 years of my life, I took for granted being able to walk and run, to live my life without a care in the world; disease, pain, and adversity --- those were things that happen to other people, not to me, and not to my friends. Life just seemed to float by without major upheavals. Sure I had my ups and downs, like everybody, but overall life was good.
Injuring my ankle, having surgery, and going through a difficult recovery has changed my perspective. Not being able to walk for almost two months, and thinking at one point that I was sentenced to a lifetime of pain, will have an impact.
What I appreciate now, in a way I never could two years ago, are the little things in life --- a simple get together with my parents, a night out with my friends, a walk on the beach, sitting on a park bench and reading the newspaper. What I appreciate the most, however, is good health. My ankle is fully healed, I’m running again and training for a marathon, and I have no major health issues whatsoever. I’m fortunate, I’m lucky, and I know it.
Unfortunately, there are others in life who aren’t so lucky, people like Kate. The other day I was reading her blog and listening to the audio interview she gave to the New York Times. She is fighting her heroic battle against cancer not only by going through medical treatments, but also through her determination to keep doing the little things --- working, going to the grocery store, the activities we all take for granted as the normal part of life. She does this with great wit and humor, as evidenced by her inspiring blog.
Ankle injuries don’t come close to cancer, not by a long shot. However, having gone through my own little health struggle has given me a better perspective and appreciation of just how important our little routines are in life. In fact, I would argue it's the little things that are the essence of life, though we may not always realize it until we have them taken away from us.
Injuring my ankle, having surgery, and going through a difficult recovery has changed my perspective. Not being able to walk for almost two months, and thinking at one point that I was sentenced to a lifetime of pain, will have an impact.
What I appreciate now, in a way I never could two years ago, are the little things in life --- a simple get together with my parents, a night out with my friends, a walk on the beach, sitting on a park bench and reading the newspaper. What I appreciate the most, however, is good health. My ankle is fully healed, I’m running again and training for a marathon, and I have no major health issues whatsoever. I’m fortunate, I’m lucky, and I know it.
Unfortunately, there are others in life who aren’t so lucky, people like Kate. The other day I was reading her blog and listening to the audio interview she gave to the New York Times. She is fighting her heroic battle against cancer not only by going through medical treatments, but also through her determination to keep doing the little things --- working, going to the grocery store, the activities we all take for granted as the normal part of life. She does this with great wit and humor, as evidenced by her inspiring blog.
Ankle injuries don’t come close to cancer, not by a long shot. However, having gone through my own little health struggle has given me a better perspective and appreciation of just how important our little routines are in life. In fact, I would argue it's the little things that are the essence of life, though we may not always realize it until we have them taken away from us.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
California Dreaming? Try California Nightmare!
When I started this blog, it was intended among other things to chronicle my training for the Los Angeles Marathon, scheduled for March 1, 2009. I’ve registered for the race, bought a plane ticket, booked a hotel room, and made plans to visit friends while out in sunny Cali.
However, in the immortal words of ESPN football analyst Lee Corso, NOT SO FAST MY FRIEND! Today, I went to the Los Angeles Marathon website to check out the race course, and there was an announcement that the date of the race has been changed from March 1st to President’s Day, February 16th.
A few thoughts…..
The organizers of the marathon did not notify those who had already registered of the date change nor did they provide an explanation. Simple courtesy and business ethics dictates such minimal steps. Although a two week change might not seem like a big deal, the fact is that training for a marathon requires months of planning. I won’t bore you with the details, but I specifically chose the Los Angeles Marathon because I knew it would allow me enough time to properly train for the race. Even a two week change totally screws up my training schedule, not to mention my travel arrangements.
What to do?
I have one of three options: (1) re-arrange all my travel and training and run the Los Angeles Marathon in February; (2) find a different marathon to run that will fit my training schedule; or (3) not run a marathon at all.
Options one and three are not options at all. I will not re-arrange my travel and training, moreover my work schedule makes it nearly impossible for me to run on 2/16. As for not running a marathon at all, ABSOLUTELY NOT. I am running to support my friend Kate in her battle with cancer, and I’m running to prove to myself that I’m finally over my ankle injury. There's no turning back.
Believe it or not, there is hope --- the National Marathon, right here in good old Washington, DC. As it turns out, the National Marathon is scheduled for March 21st, a little bit later than March 1st, but it's never a bad thing to have more time to prepare. Disaster averted, training schedule in tact, all is well with the world. And a big bonus, those of you who live in the DC area can now come out and watch me run. I guess there really is a silver lining in every situation.
However, in the immortal words of ESPN football analyst Lee Corso, NOT SO FAST MY FRIEND! Today, I went to the Los Angeles Marathon website to check out the race course, and there was an announcement that the date of the race has been changed from March 1st to President’s Day, February 16th.
A few thoughts…..
The organizers of the marathon did not notify those who had already registered of the date change nor did they provide an explanation. Simple courtesy and business ethics dictates such minimal steps. Although a two week change might not seem like a big deal, the fact is that training for a marathon requires months of planning. I won’t bore you with the details, but I specifically chose the Los Angeles Marathon because I knew it would allow me enough time to properly train for the race. Even a two week change totally screws up my training schedule, not to mention my travel arrangements.
What to do?
I have one of three options: (1) re-arrange all my travel and training and run the Los Angeles Marathon in February; (2) find a different marathon to run that will fit my training schedule; or (3) not run a marathon at all.
Options one and three are not options at all. I will not re-arrange my travel and training, moreover my work schedule makes it nearly impossible for me to run on 2/16. As for not running a marathon at all, ABSOLUTELY NOT. I am running to support my friend Kate in her battle with cancer, and I’m running to prove to myself that I’m finally over my ankle injury. There's no turning back.
Believe it or not, there is hope --- the National Marathon, right here in good old Washington, DC. As it turns out, the National Marathon is scheduled for March 21st, a little bit later than March 1st, but it's never a bad thing to have more time to prepare. Disaster averted, training schedule in tact, all is well with the world. And a big bonus, those of you who live in the DC area can now come out and watch me run. I guess there really is a silver lining in every situation.
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