Kimberly and Jen To Take Me 26.2 Distance

Saturday night. In a few hours, I will wake up to Sunday morning. The day of the 2011 Chicago Marathon. I have been taking in plenty of fluids, fruit, and pasta today. My back issues should not present a problem tomorrow. I hope to stay comfortable, relaxed, and fluid throughout the my run. After registration closed early this year, I was disappointed I would not get a chance to run the marathon for the second straight year, but a woman named Adriana on Twitter asked if I would run it and do so for a chairy. Of course. Charity slots! After tweeting my interest in finding a non profit, Jessica Hiltner reached out to me also via Twitter and suggested Imerman Angels. A group which provides one-on-one support for cancer fighters and their loved ones. I have family members and friends who have survived cancer. I have a dear friend from college who lost her life in April. I felt this was my chance to run 26.2 in her memory. I jumped at the opportunity. Within days Kat and Jemma of Imerman Angels were in touch with me. Shortly afterwards, I was officially signed up and ready to train. The summer brought other races in various cities. Finally, I had the chance to meet with a Saturday morning run group. Thanks to IA, I was put in touch with Kimberly Shah of Njoy Racing. She offered to be my guide for a ten mile training run. This run was the very first time she had ever guided and our initial meeting. Midway through the run, Kimberly stated she would like to guide me for the marathon. As luck would have it, I was in need of a guide. My friend, Jen Pfaff had just volunteered to guide me for half of the race, but I needed someone for the other half. There it was. Two amazing spectacular athletes offering to guide me on October 9. It has been quite a ride. I admit, I am not the best at fundraising. In fact, it is a struggle for me. Family and friends are supportive and willing to give, but I have a difficult time with it. Knowing my goal was $1,000 stressed me out. Like I just wrote, family and friends are always there. As of today, I did reach my goal! Thank you to all who donated. I am nervous about tomorrow. The distance scares me. I have run it before, but it is still tough. Luckily, I have Kimberly and Jen, two amazing women who are amongst the best athletes in the world to get me through the run. I know they will push me. I know they will motivate me to dig deep and push my own limits. Above all, I look forward to the experience of running with these women.

I wish to take this time to wish best of luck to some of the individuals who will be running tomorrow. Ruben, Mark, Randy Egge, Abby Reese, Kate Zimmer, Molly Conway, Heather K. Williams, and Adriana without whom I would not have made it to the start line. If I missed others, I am sorry. Time for bed. Thank you for reading this week and for helping me reach my fundraising goal.