Update on miles purchased and the fear of death

I’ve spent the past few weeks focusing a lot on the running aspect of what I’m doing. In the mean time people have been contributing to the “50 Miles to Congo” cause. To date I’ve raised $13,15.00 which is fantastic. Two more people have said that they would pledge $50 each.

Mile 1 – Sally Fridy

Mile 2 – Sally Fridy

Mile 3 – Sally Fridy

Mile 4 – Sally Fridy

Mile 5 – Sally Fridy

Mile 6 – Gustavo Gutierrez

Mile 7 – Kevin Weaver

Mile 8 – Tammy Breitenbach

Mile 9 – Carlos Jimenes

Mile 10 – Krista Vasquez

Mile 11 – Thiago Da Silva, Cate Cannon, Simon O’Neil, Hollie Goldman

Mile 12 – Melissa Ashley

Mile 13 –Tim Nudd (.3 miles) Anne Reel (.5 miles) Amanda Powers (.35 miles)

Mile 14 –Michele Foster (.5 miles)

Raising any money at all has made my effort worth it, even if no one else donates from this point on. I’m thinking of other ways in which I can fund-raise after the race. Last year I was toying with the idea of creating and marketing children’s books that would bring aid to children in Africa. This could be a perfect segue into something like that.

One family member offered a generous donation if I promised not to run any more 50 miles races after this. I really didn’t know how to respond to that. I can’t deny the extreme nature of this kind of training but I will say that my body has risen to the occasion surprisingly well. I feel healthier than I’ve felt in a very long time. I eat much healthier for one because I just can’t take too much junk food with all of the running. And I definitely appreciate people being concerned about me and (I hate to say) concerned about my kids losing their dad. But I have stuck with the training and I pay attention to what my body’s telling me. No serious injuries yet. Plus my heart rate is pretty low and steady when I run. I don’t even get out of breath much. I can tell when it starts getting intense and you just can’t stay at an intense pace without gassing out after a few miles… I will say this. I’m in a better place than I was when I was 50-60 lbs over weight. And I think if you look at the ratio of people who’ve died running against the ratio of people who’ve died from obesity-related diseases you’ll see a dramatic difference. So knock on wood, all is good… for now. I may not run any more of these races but I’m not going to decide that until it’s done.