<p>Yesterday was the <a href=”http://www.braintumorcommunity.org/site/PageServer?pagename=RFH_DC_Homepage”>14th Annual Race for Hope in Washington, D.C</a>. Shortly after Mom was diagnosed with a <a href=”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glioblastoma_multiforme”>Grade IV glioblastoma</a>, the husband of a former coworker of hers signed up for the fundraiser/race to honor my mom and raise funds for research into brain tumor cures and set a goal of [I think] $1000. A few weeks into his effort, I decided to join up and made it a point to post the link to the donation page at least once a week, which resulted in me securing over $1600 for the cause. At the closing of donation-taking, the team had officially raised $6011 and you can unofficially take on at least another hundred for folks who meant to donate to our team, but accidentally sent to the cause as a whole. That is a massive amount of loot and I am happy to know it will play a part in [hopefully] finding a cure for the currently incurable.</p>
<p>The event itself was a very good time. We had around 15 participants from all facets of life; former neighbors, former coworkers, current coworkers, relatives, childhood friends, college friends… Was great to have such support.</p>
<p>Before the race began, Mom and I were lucky enough to meet with <a href=”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Cook_(singer)”>David Cook</a><a href=”http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150169434299396&amp;set=a.432624539395.221328.772254395&amp;type=1&amp;theater”><img alt=”” class=”floatRight” src=”http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/203340_772254395_5027304_n.jpg”/></a>. David’s older brother passed after battling a brain tumor for over a decade in the midst of his time on American Idol. I don’t know the timing exactly, but I’m pretty certain it was also the day before the Race for Hope in 2009. David still attended the event and addressed the crowd with “I lost one today, but gained 9000 others” referring to his new friends in the brain tumor community.</p>
<p>After meeting with David, giving Mom a kiss, and bidding farewell to friends and family, it was time for the race. I did a quick trot around the block and found my way to the front of the pack. In a normal race, I’m well behind the front, but looking at past results, I knew I’d be one of the earlier finished despite being out of running training for over 20 months. I had no idea what I was capable of, but given my 19:47 at the end of November, I figured a sub-20 was possible so I’d set my goal to 6:15/mi pace.</p>
<p>Before the start, all survivors were summoned to the front of the race and given a standing ovation. Mom and Dad happened to be standing right next to me (they were behind a separate metal fence) so I was able to throw a high-five as I made my way from the start. If I ended up getting dehydrated during the race, I’d have the emotions to blame. ;-)</p>
<p>We were then given the “Go!” and were off. It was a bit crowded at the start, but I was able to find my stride after 15 seconds or so. Since I’m so out of training, I brought my GPS watch along to pace for me since I couldn’t find a pace to save my life. I pretty naturally fell into a rhythm at my goal pace, which I suppose means I know my body pretty well these days. The first mile came and went in the blink of an eye in 6:13. I wasn’t feeling superb and did have cause for concern that I couldn’t keep the pace up, but I continued onward at that clip.</p>
<p>As with most races that are “less serious,” I did a lot of passing in the second mile as folks who don’t know how to pace themselves fall off. This builds great confidence for me and happens at pretty much all such races as I consider myself more of a “strong” runner at these distances than a speedster, which is funny, because somewhere between the half marathon and full marathon, I’m far from a “strong” runner, but I digress. The second mile wound through some buildings so I’d imagine my GPS was off by a bit when it said I got through it in 6:03 (I ended up clocking 3.18 for the whole course, which makes sense for Mile 2 registering short on my watch) as I passed the Capitol. One thing to note with these races for a cause is they can seemingly get the absolute best courses out there. There’s no way in hell our club would ever be able to block off a mile of Pennsylvania Avenue next to the White House AND the straight in front of the Capitol for a couple of hours.</p>
<p>With two miles down, I knew the final one wasn’t going to be easy as I was getting close to gassed, but anyone can gut out a mile, especially for a great cause. What’s a bit of leg and breathing pain compared to what the folks this race is held for go through? Not a thing. I’d say I passed more folks than passed me in this final straight away to the finish, but it wasn’t pretty. I was running on empty and had no answer for anyone who put a step in front of me. A lack of training will do that. On this final straight, I received many cheers from friends and family who were on the beginning straightaway. I wasn’t able to recognize anyone other than my Dad and his friend (my godfather) Pat, but it’s always nice and motivational to hear someone shout your name. The final mile was completed in 6:13 again.</p>
<p>As previously mentioned, <a href=”http://connect.garmin.com/activity/82786107″>my watch clocked 3.18 for the race</a> so with three miles down, there was a remaining .18. I don’t know my pace for it, but it had to be about the same as my final time was 19:33, which equates to a 6:17 pace, was good for <a href=”http://results.active.com/pages/displayNonGru.jsp?rsID=109127&amp;orgID=234639&amp;pubID=2″>38th place overall</a> out of ~2000 timed runners and many thousands more untimed runners/joggers/walkers, and is a new post-injury (stupid hamstrings are a bit beat today, but whatever) best. Not bad… Not bad at all.</p>
<p>My good friend, Sean, who had an extra hand in play due to the loss of his aunt to a brain tumor, put in a sub-25 performance, which is stellar considering he’s not much of a runner. He also raised over $800 for the team!</p>
<p>Following the race, I greeted my mom, sister, and a few others at the finish, grabbed my post-race food and drink, and jogged my way back to the Capitol to meet and greet the family and friends who were walking the course and then we proceeded to grab a bite to eat nearby.</p>
<p>Overall, the event was a very special one. I will certainly be doing it again next year with a goal of an 18:30 (at least) finish time assuming no injuries. Eventually, I’d like to win the race to honor Mom. My greatest wish right now is for Mom to be able to experience the event again next year as I know it meant a great deal to her. Here’s to hope!</p>