well-wishes, epsom salts & a big thank you

Hi everyone! Ken here with my first blog post!
Usually i just let Abby handle the writing, but i thought it was important for me to personally address my foot situation. First and foremost i want to send out a HUGE thank you to everyone who has sent me well-wishes, good thoughts and prayers! I can't tell you how much it has meant to me!
Once the doctor told me i had a stress fracture in my foot (although the x-rays did not confirm anything), i was told to stay off my foot and elevate, ice and motrin everyday. So my plans changed from a slow taper leading up to race day to a grinding, painful stop.
After the weekend of our last blog, a new pain started in my foot in a different location and it hurt with every step i took for a week. Somehow, with everyone's postive vibes from all over America focused my way, i have been able to stay positive about running the 13.1 on Sunday and let me make this clear - i can't stand not being able to run. My jealousy of Abby running without me and all those people i saw every day walking without limps just kept growing over the past two weeks. All i want to do is run, feeling my feet just gliding along below me, and sweat. I've never been so jealous of people sweating before.
Last week we had a TEAM meeting to pick up Abby's race shirt and receive some more information on the day-of proceedings. While we were leaving i mentioned to the coach, Mike, about my foot, and he suggested i use epsom salts. Apparently epsom salts are some wonder drug that our current culture forgot about! What a difference after just one epsom salt wrap around my foot! The swelling went right away and after a few days of epsom soaks i was feeling like the swelling had dissipated enough for the rest of my foot to heal properly.
Luckily, the last two days I've been able to walk without too much of a hitch. Today was Abby's last planned short run before the race so we decided that i should take a shot at running to make sure i can at least make it to the start line on Sunday!
We went over to Crow's Woods, where we first started training for triathlons 4 (5?) years ago, which is a short loop around some soccer and softball fields. We stretched well and decided it was time to test it out.
This is how it went...
step. step. (Abby) How does it feel? step. (Me) Jeez, i just took two steps, but so far so good. step. step ... at this point I just try to think about anything else other than the fact that I'm running on a stress fracture that is not even three weeks old.
We made it about a mile and a half and other than some tightness in the rest of my legs, which I expected after a week of limping back and forth to work, it went really well!
Now we are ready to face our challenge on Sunday. We are decorating our shirts tonight, Abby will be donning her short TEAM shirt (not made for tall girls) and I will be proudly wearing my Team Katharine shirt. Don't worry, there will be pictures!
I must write a couple sentences about my wife. Abby has been so amazing through everything, but she's always amazing so I'm sure no one would expect anything less! She has found solace in her running and has been able to stay focused and motivated while i was laying on the couch. She has also kept my spirits up and supported me in any way she can, even when I was just being a cranky ole' poop.
So thank you all again for all of your support, all of your well-wishes, all of your prayers, all of your positive vibes, all of your thoughts ... and thank you to Casey for inspiring both of us.

As promised, this week held many unforgettable moments. Jamie and Trey's beautiful wedding, an incredible 3.2 mile run with my favorite Hokie, and a PR (personal record) in the Clean Air 5k (after a 6 mile run!). But perhaps the most important, and devastating event of the week, was that Ken's foot injury was "classified" as a hairline fracture, an hour after our Run in Remembrance for the hokies on Thursday morning.

During our run, it appeared that Ken's pain was getting sharper with every step, and in the last 1/2 mile, I could really see the grimace on his face. When we arrived back home, he called the doctor and got in for an appointment immediately. She diagnosed him with a foot fracture and sent him for x-rays. The good news, relatively speaking, was that the fracture was so small, that the x-rays did not pick it up, potentially meaning a much quicker recovery time. The bad news, was that Ken could not run in his speedy race on Saturday, or at all, for an undetermined period of time. For Ken, "undetermined period of time" translated to: Long Branch Half Marathon Race Day: May 3rd. After much discussion, we decided that we started this journey together, and our plan is to finish the race the way we started. Together.

Having said that, I still have a good bit of training to complete on my own while Ken takes the next 2 weeks to recuperate. Saturday morning was the first time I have ever run any distance without Ken. He still hopped on his bike though, and met me at my 3 mile turnaround along Kelly Drive with extra fuel and tons of support. On the way back, he rode along side me for a little while, and later told me he felt like Rocky's coach. After the 6 mile run, which I finished faster than ever, we headed (hobbled) to the starting line for the race, and I took off for another 3.1! I learned a lot about myself in those next three miles. I learned that I am so much stronger than I ever imagined I could be. I realized that if I put my mind to it, I really can accomplish anything, and most importantly, I was reminded that your source of inspiration, doesn't need to be right beside you, to keep pushing you along. In the solitude of those last three miles, I ran with Casey and Ken, and 1400 other Philadelphian's who were just out for a run. It was the most empowering run of my life, and I now know that I am ready for 13.1. I am ready to reach my final fundraising goal, and I am ready for whatever comes next.

A huge thank you to everyone for their words of encouragement, incredible spirit, and continued support. We're almost to the finish line, but we'll never stop fighting.

We headed to Hanover, PA for easter weekend and were able to try out a new long run. Per the recommendation of our most recent issue of Runner's World, we decided to head out to the battlefields of Gettysburg to enjoy a crisp easter morning in the park. As our race date approaches, our distances have been ramping up and down to allow our legs a good taper. This week, we were thrilled to ONLY be running 6. (It should be noted that every single time I say "only", I end up having a tough run. Maybe I'll learn someday). It was on this run more than any other, however that I realized how my memory of elevation change is severely impaired. It was comforting to know, on the third major hill we ran up, that Ken also was terribly shocked by these difficult climbs. From my previous experience at the park (which was in a car), I remembered rolling hills and small slopes. My mental recollection of our run yesterday, however, may as well have been a climbing expedition! We took it in stride though (pun intended) and finished our 6 miles with a minor, unclassified injury to Ken's foot, and a lot of great pictures.

The week ahead holds a few important runs. Most notably, on Thursday morning, 4/16, we will be running 3.2 miles for the 32 members of our Hokie community which we lost on 4/16/07. Following this tragedy two years ago, Ken and I met with other Virginia Tech alumni in the Philadelphia Area to determine how we could help and how we could heal. We brainstormed for hours, and felt incredible comfort in the presence of our Hokie Family. It was there that we all decided that a Run in Remembrance of these individuals would be an incredible tribute to their lives, as well as a way to celebrate our incredible Hokie community. Lots of red tape and concerned participants seemed to squash our efforts, but I was so happy to see a few weeks ago that the race will finally be taking place this year on the Virginia Tech campus. Unfortunately, Ken and I will be unable to travel to Blacksburg for the memorial as we did last year, so we will be running on our own. . . but not running alone at all. In an attempt to continue the solidarity that we all felt in those months after the tragedy, we started an email chain, reaching out to any and all runners we could think of, and inviting them to run 3.2 miles with us, no matter where they were. If you are reading this and would like to be a part of our extended Hokie Family, please feel free to join us, by putting on any orange and maroon you have, and hitting the pavement or treadmill. Support is what gets us through the tough times, and helps us to enjoy the good times even more.

Speaking of good times, Jamie and Trey's wedding is Saturday, but before we party hard, we need to run hard too! We have a 9 mile run scheduled for the morning, the first 3 miles of which are the Clean Air Run! Ken has joined the competitive team for his office, which means he will be stretching his Kenyan legs and running nearly twice as fast as we usually do (as I have mentioned before, I am quite slow). I will run at my usual pace, allowing him a chance to recover at the end, before joining me for another 6 miles along the Schuylkill River.

Please keep Kenny's foot in your thoughts. He'll be needing it with this tough week ahead.

Yes I Will

Since we started running outside, I have forgone the Ipod as there are so many more interesting sites and sounds (or cars and potholes) that I could easily miss if too entranced in my tunes. That does not, however, mean that I have left the music behind. The music plays in my head like the soundtrack to my life, and true to form this week, the song which stuck in my head was "Yes I Will" by Michael Franti. It just kept playing over and over again, pushing me mile after mile, and was there with me when we finished our 12 mile run on Saturday.

It was a windy (40 mph gusts) but beautiful sunny day. We headed down to LBI to participate for the second year in the Ship Bottom Sprint for Life 5K to benefit Leukemia and Lymphoma. The only difference between the race this year and the race last year, was that before this years race, we ran 9 miles. Oh, there was one other difference. . . we ran the actual race 1 minute FASTER than last year! We also had the opportunity to do our training run with a great group of girls, and their incredible coach Alanna from the north jersey TEAM. Overall, it was a really fabulous day and has us feeling really confident about our progress, and our ability to complete the Long Branch Half. Yes we will!