Why We Run

It's been 2 weeks since my last post so there's a lot to cover.  At the same time I'll try to be on point with few tangents so it doesn't take all day to read :)  I already wrote about the Patient Partner Match Party 2 weeks ago but didn't post a picture of the whole group.  With over 700 runners on the team this year, the Patient Parter Program is even bigger than ever and a good looking bunch. 

Runners and Patients Kicking Off Another Great Season

In addition to the Patient Partner Program and what it means to me & many of us runners, we had a team meeting and heard from Ron, a teammate who briefly spoke about his wife who is battling lung cancer.  As a result of the innovative research at Dana-Farber, Ron's wife is responding well in an ongoing clinical trial.  An example of such a novel approach includes Cancer Immunotherapy, which was named breakthrough of the year in 2013 by Science magazine.

After the team meeting, Amy and I headed out to CA to run the Surf City 1/2 Marathon in Huntington Beach.  Like past years, we got to see family and this year got to see my niece as well!  Thinking of her future and all the benefits that will come from the current resarch activities at DFCI and elsewhere made us both smile.

The morning of the race, we were up at 5.30 and at the start by 7am.  Though Amy and I were happy to be running the 1/2, we were a bit shocked that it was actually warmer by a few degrees in Boston than in CA!  Luckily, as the sun came out and the race got under way, the temps rose and we had a great time running.

Starting the 1/2 at 8AM

Gotta love the surf board medal!

Upon returning to Boston, we knew we were back in New England as the plane landed in falling snow.  Two days later Boston got a wet and heavy 8" of snow.  This resulted in DFMC team coordinators canceling our group run this weekend; too many people had not shoveled their sidewalks and it was too dangerous for all of us to run in the road.  Luckily, we had some awesome volunteers at both ends of the Newton Hills braving the single digit wind chills and we ended up running back and forth a few times.  It was a bit repetitive, but great to see so many DFMC teammates and other marathoners doing the same repeats as us.  At one end of the hills is the Newton firehouse (mile 17 of the marathon course) and a good place for a photo op...

With only 10 weeks to go to the marathon, there's still more work to do and miles to cover.  So why do we run through the winter and snow storms for a chance to run another 26.2 miles in April?  To support our patient partners, to support Ron's wife by raising funds for innovative cancer research, to develop better treatments for the future and to return after last year.  As we started running yesterday, a BC student was walking toward us and noted me wearing last year's BAA marathon jacket.  As we passed, he said "I hope you're running again this year." Of course, and then we had 16miles to reflect on why we were running.