Hurricane Sandy

A couple of days ago I said I was pleased that my cousin had gone with my mother on her trip to Washington, DC for the Marine Corps Marathon.  It is always more fun to travel with a good companion, but it turned out to be especially nice for my mother since Frankenstorm was bearing down on the eastern seaboard while they were there.

I've spoken with my mom and exchanged texts with my cousin.  In spite of the very heavy rains and high wind they are safe and well provided for.  Would I prefer that they be cozy and warm in their own homes?  Of course!  Am I grateful that they are safe where they are?  Unbelievably so!

This has been quite an adventure for Mom, with or without the hurricane!  She signed up for last years' event almost as a fluke.  It is VERY difficult to get in because it sells out so quickly.  And in spite of the fact that she was encountering problems with her very slow Internet connection, she got her entry and started training.

And then one morning while walking my brother's dog, she stepped off a curb and broke her ankle.  She's a tough old gal, though, so she walked on it for two weeks before seeing a doctor.  I swear nurses and doctors make the worst patients!  The ankle took too long to heal so she had to defer her race entry until this year.

So she's been training like a champ...while working...while helping my sister while my niece had her brain tumor removed...while anxiously awaiting the arrival of my handsome new nephew.

The thing about the MCM is that they have strict time limits.  For the safety of the runners and volunteers they have to cut people off who aren't making it to specific checkpoints in a certain amount of time.  She made it to the 17 mile marker and was cut off.  She is, of course, very disappointed that she was unable to finish because she felt great.  (So great, in fact, that my cousin sent me a picture the following day of Mom on the treadmill.)

Mom is funny.  She said this was going to be her last marathon.  Her last "hoo rah" as it were.  But a few short hours after she was cut off she tells me it is a must do event.  She says it just so inspirational that the organizers and volunteers are all Marines and they cheer you on the entire time.  In one breath she is saying that it is her last marathon...in her next she is saying how she will do it differently next time.  At 72 Hurricane Sandy and a 26.2 mile run can't keep her down.  I guess at 46 I have no reason not to run another marathon.

Any reader recommendations for which one I should run?!

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