I am no longer a first-timer; I am a half-marathoner!

FINALLY! After 5 months, I don’t know how many miles; I have accomplished the goals I set for myself when I started this journey: 1) complete the entire 13.1 miles, 2) have an official time, and 3) enjoy the experience.

I’ve thanked my training group, coaches and pacers numerous times for all of their help because I know that without them I would have stepped off the course at mile 10 when my body said, “I’m done. I’m not going to take another step and you can’t make me.” My mind had all kinds of reasons lined up to agree, “it’s too hot”; “you’re starting to get a hot spot on your left foot”; “you’re peripheral vision is starting to get fuzzy”. But I knew that it was time to call out the reserves. Yes it was warmer than what I had trained in; no that wasn’t a hot spot, my feet just hurt; no that was sweat on my glasses; so time to press on.

And then IT happened. Probably the greatest sight a runner can ever see, outside of the finish line, family cheering you on. I knew they would be there, we had planned that, but I had lost track of where I was on the route. It was just the shot of adrenaline that I needed. Forget GU or ShotBlocks, this was the kick I needed to keep me going. My wife of almost 39 years and my long-distance running daughter had a sign that said, “It could be worse, It could be snowing”. While the sign and their cow bell ringing were appreciated the simple act of their being there and cheering was more important.

I’ve learned a lot about myself over the last 5 months, what I can and can’t do. I’ve learned a lot about other people, particularly runners, both good and bad. I’ve come to appreciate the simple beauty of birds singing in the morning and yes, even in freshly fallen snow. Like most people I am angry over the bombing at the 2013 Boston Marathon but feel a special anger because the attack was against the spectators not the runners.

It’s been a long 5 months. I am no longer a first-timer; I am a half-marathoner. I’ve thanked my running group and coaches. But for putting up with early mornings, messed up eating schedules, smelly clothes in the laundry and my obsessive nature, there is only one person to mention, my wife Shirley, without whose support none of this would ever have been possible.

— Run if you can. Walk if you will. Crawl if you must. Tim Riley

We all have stuff we are passionate about

We all have stuff we are passionate about. For me, those things include family, friends, running, and helping fight cancer through awareness and fundraising. For those who have read my previous blogs, you know I raise money to fight cancer for various organizations. I also run in Honor or Memory of Honored Heroes, typically children.

Six months ago, my daughter Carolan, niece Jen and good friend Casey decided to commit to their first half-marathon: the Cellcom Green Bay Half Marathon. My running buddy Carla and I have completed four halves together (Cellcom twice!!!) and knew we wanted to be part of their special journey. Besides all being family and friends, all of us had lost loved ones to cancer, changed forever by that horrible disease.

I wondered if having someone and something else to focus on might help make their journey easier, so I sought out some special Cancer Warriors to be our honored heroes for race day. I had heard of a young man named Bo who had lost his battle with leukemia last fall, and contacted his mother about running in his memory. She said, “But there are so many children. Can you run for them, too?” And she choose four more children for us to honor, all battling that horrible disease at such a young age. And so we trained for six long months, thinking about and praying for Chris, Mitch, Lulu & Carl, and talking to our special angel Bo, asking him to give us strength when we needed it.

Yesterday, the five of us set off on our running journey with love in our hearts and spring in our step, excited to be on the road together, running and honoring these children. Our coral shirts had the image of our heroes on the front and on the back read, “Whoever said winning isn’t everything obviously wasn’t fighting cancer.” Strangers commented on our shirts, asked about our heroes, and told us their own stories of love, loss, and cancer. We met survivors and people touched by cancer other ways. And they all touched us.

When people have asked me today, “How was the race?” I have said the same thing over and over. “Incredible.”

“Oh, did you PR?!” Is the next excited question.

Nope…not even close. But I ran 13.1 miles with my daughter, niece, and two of my best friends, and I honored five amazing children, and met people whose words changed me forever. There will be other races, that’s for certain, but I will never forget this one.

-Pam Berg

Left to right Pam, Casey, Carolan, Jen, Carla

Race recap

The Green Bay Packers say that they have the best fans in the world. I think Green Bay marathoners can claim the same thing.
The number of fans, volunteers and enthusiastic spectators who lined the marathon course Sunday was absolutely incredible. I speak for all the race participants when I shout out a huge “thank you” to everyone who came out to cheer us on. Your support keeps us going – literally and figuratively. You all rock!
One of my favorite parts of the day was checking out all of the race signs. Best ones this year include:
“Black toes are sexy.”
“I trained for months to hold this sign.”
“I’m just trying to cross the street.”
Another big “thank you” goes out to race organizers, officials and volunteers. I’m sure everyone was relieved that this year’s races – despite the late-onset heat – went very smoothly.
Truly I feel exceptionally blessed to live in an area that has so many excellent running venues. (Only a couple weeks until the Bellin!) Family members who came from out of town to run the half for the first time were so impressed by the Cellcom Green Bay Marathon that they want to make it an annual event. We are already looking forward to next year – thanks again, everyone, for an awesome race weekend!

~ Laura Broullire

Prevea On the Move: Marathon Medical Support

Marathon weekend is finally here! We hope you had an injury-free training season, but you may be wondering what happens if you need medical attention along the course on race day? In this week’s Prevea On the Move Tom Krahn, Medical Coordinator for Cellcom Green Bay Marathon, discusses the course, medical support and other race day details to help you be more prepared for race day.

[http://youtu.be/BkVCLdQ3C4s]

Along the route: There will be 20 medical stations along the route coupled with the water stations that will be highlighted by large red medical flags with a white cross. The medical stations are staffed by licensed athletic trainers, physical therapists, nurses and physician assistants to take care of general first aid needs. If a medical emergency arises, the local 911 system is activated.

Finish line medical tent: The main medical tent at the finish line is fully staffed with physicians, registered nurses, physician assistants and emergency medical technicians with the capability to handle any general first aid needs or medical emergencies. Paramedics from the Green Bay Fire Department are also onsite with an ambulance to handle emergency transportation if needed.

Best of luck to all runners this race weekend!

End o’The Road…

Well, I was able to make the money to get the entrance fee without tapping a credit card.  Thank you for all the kind thoughts on our debt journey while I was training.  The wind-down portion of training has been hard for me.  I thought that running less would be easier, but as the miles get shorter I felt as if I hadn’t trained enough.  The first timers newsletters really helped with that… otherwise I might have put in some miles just to feel like I was prepared.  So, now I’m ready as I’ll ever be.  My family has appointments back home, so they will not be able to see me cross the finish line.  I have promised my wife a call before I cross.  She has made it possible for me to pursue this adventure.

Hope you all enjoy the run!

Thanks,

Dan

I can say, “I’m a runner”

I’m sitting here looking at my training calendar.  All of the scribbles showing miles run, foods eaten, weather, times, all of the things I wanted to keep track of as I got ready for the Cellcom Green Bay Half-Marathon.  I think back to the cold and snow and how I thought it would never end.  I can’t believe it’s only 10 days away, it once seemed like so far in the future.  I know what I have to do be able to complete the race; what time to get up on Sunday morning to eat something then go back to bed; how far I can go before I need to use a Gel and in which order; when to start my final sprint; I feel like I have everything planned AND plans made when my original plans don’t work out.

The only thing that I haven’t been able to plan is this almost giddy feeling of accomplishment, it’s something very foreign to me.  My first race ever was just less than 10 months ago; a 4-mile fun night race for which I was not prepared.  Now I’m running 13.1 miles, for which I am totally prepared.  And, I feel good about the preparation.  I’ve learned a lot, not just about running, but about myself.  I learned what I am capable of doing.  I learned that when the body says, “You’re an idiot for punishing me like this and I’m not going to put up with it”, the mind can still squeeze out another few miles or hills.

While shopping for a gift for my wife I was wearing the shirt from a race when the sales person mentioned that she had just started running.  She smiled and asked, “Are you a runner?”  No one had ever asked me that question.  I proudly answered, “Yes. “

RUN if you can; WALK if you will; CRAWL if you must

—     Tim Riley

From the Race Director’s Desk: Thank You, Volunteers!

The value of our volunteers can’t be overstated.

Try to imagine a large road race without volunteers…Runners would show up at packet pick up and find themselves forced to dig through large cardboard boxes, hoping to find their bib number and timing tag like a needle in a haystack. Their next challenge would involve fighting over event t-shirts strewn across tables like Black Friday bargains. On race morning, they’d have to leave their “gear bags” in their own cars or hide them behind planters or other fixtures near the start/finish area. The start line area would be confusing since there would be nobody to direct you on where to stand. Once the race got underway, the real chaos would ensue. Only some of the intersections would be staffed with police. The other intersections would be completely unmonitored, allowing random motorists to go around barricades and drive onto the course route. Serious injuries could occur and some runners would inevitably make wrong turns and get lost. The first water station would be an apocalyptic scene with people pushing and shoving in survival mode as they tried to get fluids and continue their journey. If the runners somehow made it safely to the finish line, they would grab a finisher’s medal laying on a table and place it around their own neck with no one to smile and say “Congratulations!” By the time they arrived, the food and beer tents–with nobody to manage them–would have already been looted, leaving little or nothing to consume. The post race meal would consist of a half-eaten bagel and a brat bun with some ketchup on it. Some runners would figure out how to tap another barrel in one of the beer wagons but it would be gone in minutes and those left waiting in line would decide to just go home feeling sad and dejected.

This is a pretty dark picture but probably a realistic one if we really had no volunteers. We’re fortunate then, to have over 2,000 volunteers that help in all of these areas each year. The majority of interactions runners have during race weekend are not with me as the race director, or with my staff, or with public safety officials, but with our volunteers. They are our front line. I urge all the runners to pause for just a moment during any of those myriad interactions with volunteers this weekend and say “thank you” for what they do. Other than the colorful t-shirt they’re wearing, your gratitude is the only payment they get. THANK YOU VOLUNTEERS!