Welcome SunTrust National Marathon Runners

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