Hot Food - Cold Beer - and a Cash Purse to Kick Cancer's Ass - What are you doing on Super Sunday?

Hey Boston! What are you doing to kick off your Super Sunday on February 1st? RACE Cancer Foundation is putting on a kickass race to kick cancer's ass.

Gronk has other plans


but he would love for all of you to warm up on Super Sunday with the 8th Annual Super Sunday 5K/5M race with live band, beer & food at a super post-race party!

J. Alain Ferry is the founder & chief energy officer at RaceMenu and Founder & President at RACE Cancer Foundation.

We run for beer & kicking cancer’s ass.

RACE Cancer Foundation produces kick-ass events to raise funds and awareness for charitable projects and organizations dedicated to kicking cancer’s ass. We also manage Team RaceMenu, a grassroots racing program comprised of endurance athletes competing at all levels, from recreational to professional. Based in Boston, RACE (dba RACE Cancer Foundation) is a Massachusetts non-profit organization and federally recognized as 501(c)(3) tax exempt public charity.

His passion, his sense of purpose and great taste in beer, food and music rival none and are a winning combination when it comes to putting on events.

"100% of Super Sunday proceeds go to charity. For 2015, our beneficiaries are TargetCancer Foundation, Joe Andruzzi Foundation, and Cancer Resource Foundation."

Here's Alain presenting a check for $10,000 to TargetCancer Foundation after last year's Super Sunday race:

Cancer survivors race free.

Not running? Not a problem! You can volunteer (like me) and get all the benefits of running complete with a special edition t-shirt and entry into the post race party. Plus you get to hang with Alain and his crew working together at this premier event.

You can register at RaceMenu.

Oh and speaking of the Joe Andruzzi Foundation, Alain is running the 2015 Boston Marathon to raise money for the Joe Andruzzi Foundation...but that's a blog post for another day!

Journey well and kick off Super Sunday to kick cancer's ass!

The Finisher's Clock - Transformation at the Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women

As I came down Charles Street toward the finish I was running on fumes. The tank was empty. I left it all on the roads. The finisher's clock no longer mattered to me. I knew, given my splits, that I had run a fantastic race. I ran from the inside out with strength and fierce determination. Running this race was a victory lap for me after having run 5 previous races since June and training on hills, doing fartleks and tempo runs and cross training with Aquatics Therapy at Spaulding Rehab Hospital. In my weekly mind/body treatments at Sollievo Massage and Bodywork, I healed physical, emotional and Spiritual pain from the past that weighed me down. The most challenging part of training was the 5 days leading up to race day. Taper madness set in and I just wanted to get out there and run my race. I knew how important those days of rest were for me and yesterday, they paid off in dividends. On Sunday, it was Tom's turn to run the third leg of his Distance Medley. I felt frustrated and sad that I couldn't physically be there with him. If I would have been his support crew in person on Sunday, I would not have had enough energy to run my race on Monday. The power of Spirit can be far greater than being physically present with someone as I would learn on Sunday and during my race.

Our bibs side by side:


and my Tufts T Shirt:


Tom had his eye on a PR. As I tracked him and followed the Boston Athletic Association Page on Facebook, I felt as though I were with him at the race. I could feel we had a powerful connection. I knew he was running the race for me and for us. He had a spectacular PR taking 6 minutes and 15 seconds off of his BAA Half Marathon from last year. He finished in the top ten of his age group overall for the Distance Medley. I was his support crew and social media maven on Sunday and then on Monday it was his turn to be my support crew.

Monday morning gave a whole new meaning to pre-race jitters. I felt nauseous and dizzy. It's called taper madness for a reason. Thoughts of I don't have to run this race, I have nothing to prove, I can't do this went head to head with incredible excitement and seeing myself cross that finish line with a PR. Tom was with me, listening to my ramblings and reminding me that I had this. Getting to the starting line was a victory for me and the race was my victory lap. They changed the place of the start of the race and we had to line up at 11:30 seeding ourselves based on our estimated finishing times. Fortunately I was blessed to hear my name called out and there was Ilene Fabisch, a friend of my dear friend Gail Martin who introduced us on Facebook. We met in person at the Spectacle Island Run. We hugged tightly; laughed how today's weather was so much better for running that two weeks ago and grabbed a photo op:


We wished each other a wonderful race. I felt how excited she was for me for this race and the goal I set. Although Gail was not physically present, I could feel her presence with us. Gail had sent me a message on Facebook, "You've got this PR in your pocket." I carried that message with me.

Tom was my rock in the days and moments leading up to gun time. We worked together and as individuals in our meditation time to prepare us for the races we were about to undertake. He could see my nerves kicking in with this new race start and said he wanted to take some photos of me. I decided to leave all those beliefs and let go and enjoy myself. It was time to feel my strength and get some attitude.



The air horn went off. As I turned the corner to the start on Beacon Street I started running. I thought wait don't run until you cross the starting line but the adrenaline had already kicked in. By the time Tom caught up with me as we were getting ready to go over the Mass Ave Bridge, he told me that I was crushing it. I heard this voice in my head that said, "Find your race pace. Find your race pace. And just stay with it."

I wasn't planning to look at the mile split times but something inside of me told me to. I felt Gail pacing me and echoes of "You've got this PR in your pocket" called to me.

Mile 1: 18:21. I knew that was gun time and it must have taken me at least three minutes to cross the starting line. I was on pace for a PR but there were 5.2 miles to go. Tom ran with me over the Mass Ave Bridge and waited on the corner for me to return cheering on other runners with his cowbell. It took 3 1/2 minutes for me to cross the starting line so I was at a sub-15 minute mile for the first mile.

I walked through each water stop but never stopped. I made sure to hydrate with a few sips of each water at each stop and I also had my own hydration as a supplement which served me well when I needed to have a piece of Luna bar during the race.

Mile 2: 33:00 Another sub 15-minute mile. I continued to run from the inside out. I realized that I was no longer running behind the pack but I was running with the pack. The words, "Journey well" that Joseph spoke to me before Boston Marathon Weekend echoed in my ears. I felt the imprints of all the work we have done together and the love from Rose and Laura, owners of Sollievo. We had set the intention for today's race last week and used the imagery of Seabiscuit. Whenever I felt my mind begin to wander, I reminded myself to keep my blinders on. Don't look ahead and don't look back. Don't worry about anyone else's race. Run your own race.

From my poem, 'Running the Race' that I wrote in February of 2007

The chains are gone and possibilities abound
I'm a tree with my roots planted firmly in ground.
I'm now off the sidelines, no need to sit and whine
So much gratitude fills my heart and love and beauty shine.
After all these years I can join the loving human race
I exceed all expectations and now I set the pace.

Mile 3: 48:10 Okay Mary, almost to the halfway mark and you're on pace. I checked in with myself to see how I was feeling. I felt great. Alain Ferry from RaceMenu told me that he would be cheering me on from Memorial Drive. Although I did not see him, his presence was palpable. I drew from all the love and support he has given to me since I first met him at the Heartbreak Hill Half Marathon Expo. I could feel his hug at the Spectacle Island run and him willing me to a PR during the final stretch of the Bill Rodgers 5K Race to Benefit Prostate Cancer. Dr. Moskowitz and Miss Holly, my physiatrist and physical therapist who helped me to learn how to walk after contracting paralytic polio were with me as I began the uphill climb on Memorial Drive before the turnaround point.

Mile 4: 1:05 I didn't calculate the split time because quite frankly I couldn't do the math in my head. Instead I thought ahead to feeling the PR within my grasp with 2.2 miles to go. I wasn't going to change a thing regardless of the time. I was running as fast I could, pacing myself with water stops each mile, until I crossed the finish line.

Seeing Tom cheer on all of the runners in the distance as I approached the Mass Ave Bridge made me smile. He ran back over the bridge with me. I told him that I thought a PR was in my grasp but I was going to continue running from the inside out. I told him I didn't see Alain but I felt his presence especially during that uphill climb after the Hyatt Regency Hotel. I was focused not only on my PR but on the magnificent scene of the Charles River and the skyline of Boston. Fortunately the sun had not come out so there was no sun glistening on the Charles River as I had visualized. The cooler weather made it a perfect day to run. No traffic going over the bridge. The road was mine. This race was mine. This life is mine. Gratitude filled my heart with the opportunity to experience the moment.

As we approached Mile 5, I told Tom my last split was 1:05. He said, "Oh my God Mary. The clock says 1:20. You just ran a 15 minute mile after being out here for 5 miles. How are you doing? Are you okay?" We walked through the famous just after mile 5 water stop with men from the Most Informal Running Club Ever wearing tuxedoes and suits. I could feel my energy beginning to wane and had the second half of my Luna Bar. "Maybe you should take it down a notch until we get to the next corner," Tom lovingly said to me. I slowed down long enough to chew my Luna Bar and wash it down with water and then...

Something happened inside of me and I felt this sense of fierce determination surge through me. We passed a woman who was struggling. I told her she had this. She said she was going to drop out at mile 4 but the song, "Dream On" came on. "I'm a survivor of paralytic polio and I'm going for a PR from my time in 2010," I told her. "God bless you," she said. "So if I can do this...so can you." "You were just the inspiration I needed at this moment. Thank you. And good luck," I heard her say as I surged in front of her.

The volunteers cheered me on letting me know that the finish was on sight. "Just turn the corner and you'll see the finish!."

I was all alone now to finish this race. Tom had taken a shortcut to meet me at the finish.

There was no doubt in my mind that I was going to finish but there was nothing left in the tank - or so I thought.

"Mary!"

Jess Lanzoni was about 100 feet in front of the first finisher's mat. Even though I wasn't wearing my glasses, I knew it was her. She snapped this photo of me and posted it to Facebook Mary McManus, Bringing it home strong with a heart.


Another one of my friend's commented on the photo, "Go Mary!"

I felt a little pick up in my energy. Part of me was saying, "You're going to finish Mary and don't worry about the finisher's clock." Another part of me wanted to dig deep and get it done but my legs were really tired. At that moment I hear two screams, "L Streeet!". I looked over and one of the women picked up her pullover and revealed her L Street shirt pointing to it with enthusiasm. The L Street shirt I was wearing had a "We One as Run" and "Boston Strong" ribbon on the back. We sure do and we sure are. I didn't know who they were at the time but thanks to Facebook, the mystery was quickly solved.

Between Jess's loving presence and my L Street ladies screaming at me, I found more in the tank and sprinted to the finish. When I hit the finisher's mat the finisher's clock said 1:39:08. My last 1.2 mile split was a 15:40 pace! I knew I must have PR'ed it and thought I would have to wait to see the results but I received this text shortly after crossing the finish line (my goal time was 1:35:35):



I threw my arms up in triumph, in jubilation


and as a woman transformed after March 4, 2011 and all that followed in the wake of my nephew's suicide. It feels wonderful to be back in my body, to be running - to be racing again and pushing myself to the edge. I transcended all of the pre-race chatter that comes with taper madness, and the challenge to move beyond, having the courage to transform. I may have been alone as I ran the final stretch to the finish line but I had helpers seen and unseen to accompany me on that final leg of my running comeback. It's great to be back and to be able to journey well.



The first 7 years of my healing odyssey are chronicled in Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility available on Amazon. I donate 50% of royalty payments to The One Fund Boston to help survivors and their families who were affected by the tragic events of 4/15/13.



I'm working on my 2nd book, "Journey Well," due out later this year:

With Gratitude to J Alain Ferry - I Leave My Doubts at the Starting Line

I'm nervous. I'm excited. I just want Monday to arrive yet I want to savor every moment leading up to race day. Friday is t-shirt and bib pick up at City Sports for the Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women. I'll have a lunch date after bib pick up with Tom. I just want to cross the starting line. I just want to cross the finish line hearing the cheers from Tom and my running family. I want to experience every foot strike of the 6.2 miles on the Tufts 10K course. I want to run smart from the inside out and I would like to see my finish time better than 1:36:09 which was my finish time the last time I ran Tufts in 2010, "body and conditions willing" as my friend Gail Martin likes to say.

As I countdown to Tufts feeling all of the emotions that one feels leading up to a big race day, I have to express my heartfelt gratitude to J Alain Ferry of RaceMenu. I put in training runs, raced, put the time in the pool with Aquatics Therapy at Spaulding Rehab and continue now with mental and Spiritual preparation for Monday, but thanks to the overwhelming support, unconditional love and encouragement of Alain and his races, in addition to feeling nervous, excited and all the rest, I feel strong and confident going into Monday's race.

"Are you J Alain Ferry?" I asked Alain well into our volunteer shift together at the Heartbreak Hill Half Marathon Weekend and Festival.

"Yes. That would be me," he replied.

Alain was the driving force behind the #onerun on May 25, 2013 which marked the beginning of my running comeback:



We talked about what the #onerun meant to me, to Alain and to the city of Boston. He reminded me that he was the one who pulled out his bib from his pocket and said that we have a race to finish during the pre-race ceremony on that chilly, rainy morning in May where the weather could not dampen the spirits of everyone present.

As I ran the #onerun, I remembered why I ran the 2009 Boston Marathon and why I run. I knew in every fiber of my being I had to get back to running and the running community. I reached out and added my running friends on Facebook who were eager to reconnect and I weeded out the people I had brought into my circle who were not living Truth.

Alain handed me postcards to share with my running groups for the inaugural Bill Rodgers 5K Race to benefit Prostate Cancer.

"All ages and all abilities?" I inquired. "Absolutely," was Alain's reply.

"Oh and I'm also the race director for the Spectacle Island Run," Alain told me.

"My friend Elizabeth told me about that but she left Boston.com and I wasn't planning on running it. It's all ages and all abilities, right?"

"Absolutely. She is going to try to come back for race day so you definitely have to do it."

I registered that evening for the Bill Rodgers 5K and Spectacle Island races.

I was planning to run one race in June, my Corrib Pub 5K that was my very first 5K road race ever in 2008 and then train alone for Tufts. I was going to find women at my pace who I could run with at Tufts. But life has a way of redirecting us to where we need to be. Instead, I decided to run Tufts alone and ended up running 5 races between June and today. Each one has treasured memories and a special place in my heart but Alain's races took me to new places in my running comeback.

As a race director he has thousands and thousands of details to attend to before a race. I didn't even know I was on his radar before the Bill Rodgers 5K but he was reading my blogs and was there to cheer me on to a strong finish nailing my PR for the day. He told me it was a very special moment for him as a race director to see me with tears in my eyes digging so deep for that final stretch to the finish. When I crossed that finish line I reclaimed the runner within me. What a blessing to have the love and support of WCVB's Phil Lipof in a special post race ceremony surprise after Alain shared my inspirational story with him:



I panicked before the Spectacle Island Run after seeing the course maps. Alain responded to my Facebook posts and took the time to respond to my emails. I was almost ready to bail on the race but he told me I was ready and I was going to crush it. And crush it I did by persevering through hills and heat!





I'll be carrying Alain's love and support with me as I run the Tufts 10K on Monday. My body now knows how it feels to race again and to nail a PR. And while I feel nervous and excited, I feel strong and confident. With deepest gratitude to J Alain Ferry, I leave my doubts at the starting line.






The first 7 years of my healing odyssey are chronicled in Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility available on Amazon. I donate 50% of royalty payments to The One Fund Boston to help survivors and their families who were affected by the tragic events of 4/15/13.



I'm working on my 2nd book, "Journey Well," due out later this year:

The Time Between

This week is a time of rest, reflection and mental and Spiritual preparation for the Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women. I've done hills, fartleks, done 7 miles, ran races on the beach and on trails. I've run several times on the course and in every kind of weather. I began building my base last November running up to 5 miles. In June, I began training in earnest. My plan was to run the Corrib Pub Run 5K in June and then train on my own but a funny thing happened when I volunteered at the Heartbreak Hill Half Marathon Festival Weekend with J. Alain Ferry of RaceMenu and then got swept up by my running friends' feeds on facebook. My friend Gail Martin invited me to run the Father Bullock Charity Road Race. There was so much buzz for the Ogunquit Lobster Dash that I knew I had to get off the sidelines and run the race. Before I knew it, I had a full schedule of races that included the Corrib Pub Run, Father Bullock Charity Road Race, Bill Rodgers 5K Run and Walk for Prostate Cancer, Ogunquit Lobster Dash and the Spectacle Island Run. In between races I was support crew, learning how to ride a bike and went canoeing for the first time with AccesSportAmerica. I've been very busy since last November's Feaster Five Road Race.

I remember seeing the posts this time last year as plans were being made for meet ups at the Tufts 10K. I wanted to go as a spectator but my heart was still heavy that I wasn't ready to run. I made a promise to myself that I would train and get myself ready to run it this year.

So here I am in this sacred time between. I am allowing myself time to Be. I have the race course open on one of my tabs on my laptop. I am listening to my PR playlist which I used during my training runs.

I am editing "Journey Well" which begins before this year's Boston Marathon and includes excerpts from my memoir, "Coming Home:A Memoir of Healing Hope and Possibility" and will conclude after I cross the finish line of the Tufts 10K next Monday.



I'll enjoy the luxury of 3.1 mile walks as we experience the time between Summer and Winter enjoying the splendor of a New England autumn:




the healing waters of one more therapy session tomorrow at Spaulding Aquatics Therapy Center and Thursday's treatment at Sollievo Massage and Bodywork.

Tom has the BAA Half, the third leg of his BAA Distance Medley on Sunday. We'll be enjoying nourishing meals and peaceful times in the evening during this taper time.

I'll take a look back at this summer's wonderful racing moments:

Raceiversary at the Corrib Pub Run


Receiving 2nd Place in my Age Group at the Father Bullock Charity Road Race:


A PR at the Bill Rodgers 5K Walk/Run to Benefit Prostate Cancer: Sports psychologists recommend that you focus on your success as you prepare for your next race. This race was a success in every imaginable way...


The Ogunquit Beach Lobster Dash:


Spectacular Spectacle Island Run:


It feels wonderful to take a look back, sit back and celebrate all I have accomplished. I'm excited about one week from today but for right now, I'm planning on savoring these moments of the time between.

Transformation Tuesday - Spectacle Island and Me

No man or woman is an island but my story of transformation certainly resembles that of an island's story of transformation.

Spectacle Island's original form was two mounds connected by a sandbar thus its shape resembled a pair of spectacles. I thought Spectacle Island was named for the spectacular view of Boston and Boston Harbor that you see when you go there.

{Source for quotes taken from: New York Times Archive
Spectacle Island Journal; Stinking Heap in Boston Harbor Is Well on Its Way to Revival
By CAREY GOLDBERG
Published: June 27, 1999}

An island just cannot get any more down and out than Spectacle Island did.

Think of the exact opposite of St. Tropez, or the anti-St. Lucia. Imagine a hideous, stinking, toxin-leaking dump right in the middle of Boston Harbor, which itself used to be compared to a toilet, what with sewage and all. A 100-acre hellhole just three miles out from Boston that no one was allowed to land on, and who in the world would want to, anyway?

For some in this sorry life, though, there is redemption. For people, for islands, even for whole harbors, given a great deal of work and the right historical juncture.

Eight years ago, I could not have been more down and out experiencing a crisis of mind, body and Spirit.

''There used to be 200 years of trash piled here,'' said Sheila Lynch, chairwoman of the Spectacle Island Park Advisory Committee and director of the consortium overseeing the zero-emission grant, as she trod a new road past saplings and rose bushes. ''To see it, in 12 years, go from a very bad landfill to a zero-emission park is like seeing a phoenix rising from the ashes.''

I was buried under years of the emotional toxic waste of generations of my family rife with drug and alcohol abuse and violence. I didn't know what was happening to me at the time but I knew that I had to find a healing path. I was blessed to find Spaulding Rehab's International Rehab Center for Polio. They surveyed my landscape and helped me to begin my healing journey.

Now, here is the serendipitous twist that turned Spectacle Island's tale from woe to winning: none of this could have happened without the $12 billion highway project known hereabouts as The Big Dig.

That big digging involves sinking the city's Central Artery underground, along with adding a third tunnel to Logan Airport. All that tunneling produced a lot of dirt, much of it contaminated. Without a place to put all that dirty dirt, the project could not have gone forward. Meanwhile, the dumps on Spectacle Island needed to be capped so they would stop leaking into the harbor.

To make a long story short -- a story of more than a decade of legal battles, politics, permitting, public pressure and assorted city-state-Federal struggles -- Spectacle Island ended up getting about a third of the Big Dig dirt, more than 3 million cubic yards of it. In return, the Big Dig builders were obligated to provide ''mitigation'' services, from containing the old waste to building a visitors' center, trails, beach and mussel habitat area.

All that piled and compacted dirt made the island grow about 60 feet upward to become the tallest point in the harbor.

Serendipity has greeted me at every turn of my journey of transformation from a frightened woman who did not know how to fully inhabit her body to the woman I am today. There were battles along the way as I fell into less than ideal circumstances to support me on my healing journey. Once I left that path behind me, incredible people came into my life who believe in me. Most recently, it was Alain Ferry who had a vision for me to race Spectacle Island last Sunday.

When a gaggle of officials and advocates boated over to check on Spectacle Island's progress today -- and invited the first reporter to land there since the island's transformation, they said -- they surveyed a newly terraformed world still in the making, but already easy to imagine as a park inviting enough to attract tourists as planned, in 2002.

I used visualization through writing poetry beginning in February of 2007. I imagined myself as healthy, as whole, no longer needing a leg brace and also in my mind's eye, winning a 10K race as I wrote in, 'Running the Race," the first poem I penned during that cold, dark and rather bleak winter of 2007.

Here are "our" before photos:


The fate of Spectacle Island, said Brian MacDonald of the New England Aquarium, ''is like the greatest story you can tell about recovery.''

From my memoir, "Coming Home:A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility":
The buzzing hum from the fluorescent lights echoed the buzzing in my nervous system. I sat waiting for my first appointment at the post polio clinic at the IRCP. My complexion was as white as the paper that covered the exam table. I felt as fragile and vulnerable as that piece of paper that gets ripped off and tossed away after the exam. Every inch of my body hurt. I was exhausted. I was sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. I hadn’t really cared whether or not I woke up in the morning but I had a husband and twins that needed me. Ironically enough I was at the peak of my career as a VA social worker. I couldn’t sleep. I felt depressed. My award-winning career as a social worker at the Department of Veterans Affairs no longer fueled my soul. Somewhere deep inside of me there was a feeling that there had to be a way out of the hell I was living in.

Spectacle Island and I would not be banished to the trash heap. Instead, with the help of wonderful visionaries and people of passion and compassion, we experienced a wonderful journey of transformation.



Today Spectacle Island, just 15 minutes from downtown Boston, is ideal for hiking, swimming, boating, and learning. Stop in at a “green” visitor center with exhibits about the history and evolution of the island. Go swimming on a sandy beach (one of the few on the islands) supervised by trained lifeguards in the summer. Take in panoramic views of the harbor and city from the tallest hill on the Boston Harbor Islands. The marina makes it a popular destination for boaters. Spectacle Island opens upon arrival of the first ferry in May and closes on Columbus Day each year. {Source:Boston Harbor Islands}

Today I am a runner, a blogger, the author of 5 books of inspirational poetry, my memoir and am writing my 2nd book about my journey of transformation, "Journey Well."


No man is an island but Spectacle Island and me share an inspiring story of redemption and transformation!




The first 7 years of my healing odyssey are chronicled in Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility available on Amazon. I donate 50% of royalty payments to The One Fund Boston to help survivors and their families who were affected by the tragic events of 4/15/13.

Life is either a daring adventure...

Last night J. Alain Ferry, race director for Sunday's Spectacle Island Run posted the course map.

Um why are there caution zones I asked.

Sharp turns, 2-way sections and runners from both races getting to a split Alain replied.

Okay - thank you. Is there elevation? Regardless I'm planning to bring my A game and rock the race!

Yes, Mary - there's significant elevation which you're going to flatten like a pancake. If it were easy, everybody would be doing it, right?

That's right Alain and I eat hills for breakfast only since it's an 11:27 start time, I will eat the hills for brunch. I'm going in with 3 days rest and really really glad I'd been doing hills in my training runs. It's going to be yet another grand adventure in my life. Thank you for all of your encouragement and support Alain. You are a race director extraordinaire. This will be a great warm up for my Tufts 10K. I'm psyched!

And I had to ask one more question --
The trails are paved correct? I seem to remember reading that somewhere. #preracejitters

Nope. Hard packed dirt and grass.

And with that I went into full on panic mode. I emailed Alain asking him if maybe I need an early start or should start with the 5 milers. I hadn't trained on trails but I did run the Ogunquit Beach Lobster Dash. I call him a race director extraordinaire for a reason. He messaged me right back and said, "You'll be fine. Easier than sand. You'll crush it!"

And in reality, hard packed dirt and grass are actually easier on the body than pavement.

My sigh of relief lasted for about a minute and my nay sayers kicked into high gear. What if I get injured? Tufts is only two weeks away. Maybe I should just do a training run out on the course for Tufts ... play it safe ...

And the words of Eleanor Roosevelt echoed in my ears:


I reflected and remembered how I've felt these past few months during races and training runs and in my Adaptive Sports sessions with AccesSportAmerica taking on new challenges and pushing myself to go outside of my comfort zone.

Last night as I was wrestling with Sunday's race, I felt the presence of my physiatrist, Dr. Eugene Moskowitz. He was considered a rehabilitation expert in treating polio during the epidemics in the 50's and 60's. He also did not believe in the diagnosis of post polio syndrome as it was being framed by the medical community and wrote an editorial for the New York Times in March of 1985:

Caution and Hope On Polio 'Signs'
Published: March 3, 1985

I read with interest the article entitled ''A Group for Polio Survivors Who Have New Symptoms'' (Feb. 10).

Having supervised the rehabilitation of poliomyelitis patients at Grasslands Hospital during the epidemics of the 50's and 60's, probably including the ''then'' infants mentioned in the article, I would like to add a word of caution and even hope as an afterthought.

Firstly, there is no reason to suspect deterioration in the nerve cells in the spinal cord. After 30 years, one must accept some loss of endurance, increased fatigue and even some discomfort induced by other unrelated medical problems. This is true in the athlete with repeated injuries, in the obese person with back problems and even in the jogger with foot ailments.

Any individual with paralytic disability in an extremity will experience the normal process of ''wear and tear'' except that it may be more difficult to adjust to it. Just as one learned to compensate for the initial impairment so must one adjust to the later, more subtle changes rather than develop an emotional hangup of being a ''polio victim.''

EUGENE MOSKOWITZ, M.D. Mount Vernon

I realized that, while on the one hand I was being practical checking in with Alain as the race director about my concerns, I was allowing fear to take hold. It wasn't just the polio that got me when I was 5; it was carrying the burden of the secret of incest beginning at age 8 followed by 9 years of violence, that had weighed me down and prevented me from making a full recovery from polio. I became hard wired for fear; I was at odds with my body and experiencing my own power. But now I move beyond all of that thanks to so many amazing people in my life who remind me that I can transform can'ts into cans.

I slept well and this morning, my Facebook feed was filled with inspiration and timely quotes.



I remembered this recent post from Reno Stirrat:



Perhaps the most compelling sign was on my friend Kathleen's page. She is running her first half marathon this weekend. Kathleen took photos of Tom and me out on the course and crossing the finish line when I PR'ed the Bill Rodgers 5K Run/Walk to Benefit Prostate Cancer.



And then I saw Alain's photo that he posted late last night of the view from Spectacle Island:



Every time I challenge myself, I leave my past experiences and beliefs in the dust to live a full, vibrant life in the present. I transform fear into excitement of new adventures. Because as Helen Keller so poignantly said, "Life is either a daring adventure...or nothing at all."




The first 7 years of my healing odyssey are chronicled in Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility available on Amazon. I donate 50% of royalty payments to The One Fund Boston to help survivors and their families who were affected by the tragic events of 4/15/13.



I'm working on my 2nd book, "Journey Well," due out later this year:

Race Preview: Blue Cross Blue Shield Island Run

I have another race coming up on Sunday with my dear friend and race director J. Alain Ferry of RaceMenu. I don't feel quite the same fire in my belly to PR this race as I did with the Bill Rodgers 5K Race/Walk to Benefit Prostate Cancer. There were many factors that fueled that fire which you can read about in "It's More Than a Race..." However, I do have a time in my mind's eye, 46:50 which would be 3 seconds off of my PR at the Bill Rodgers 5K.

I definitely have a fire in my belly to PR the Tufts 10K on October 13th visualizing a time of 1:35:35. Sunday's race is a wonderful prep race for Tufts.

I trained hard last Saturday really pushing myself to the edge and came within a minute or so of my PR during that run in which I incorporated hills. I don't know what the course will be like and the weather prediction is for temps in the 80's with sun. We will be in the Harbor so there might be a sea breeze. We will have to evaluate conditions on race day to see how far I want to push given that Tufts is two weeks after the Island Run.

I do notice that I am seeing glimmers of my 2010 running self when I was at the top of my running game. Back in 2010, I ran at least 5 races in 5 months and crushed PR after PR culminating with the Somerville Jingle Bell Run 5K in December. I am 4 years older so my times will be slower. I also had a strong base from training for and running the 2009 Boston Marathon. It's been a long, at times arduous road back after leaving running and the running community in September of 2011. In June, I ran the Corrib Pub 5K and the following week ran the Father Bullock Charity Road Race taking 2nd in my Age Group. Okay there were only two people in my age group but that doesn't matter. In August I ran the Inaugural Bill Rodgers 5K to Benefit Prostate Cancer and nailed a PR. On 9/13, I ran the Ogunquit Lobster Dash 5 Miler and this Sunday the Spectacle Island Run 5K. Two weeks later it's game on for Tufts. After Tufts, we begin training for the Feaster Five 5K. That will be a total of 7 races in 6 months.

It's an exciting time for me in my return to running. I know that when I go out there and race, I want to give it my all and leave nothing on the roads. Each race is an adventure. Ogunguit Beach Lobster Dash had strong headwinds, the sound of the surf, and huge puddles and rivets of rippled sand to run over. I know that Spectacle Island will hold its own sense of wonder and adventure. How awesome to take a ferry to the starting line.

Since Aquatics Therapy at Spaulding was cancelled for today, I went on a 5K walk to stay loose for Sunday's race. I'm going to have my weekly massage treatment tomorrow at Sollievo Massage and Bodywork and then rest up for Sunday's race.

I'm feeling really good about Sunday's race and I am going to take the advice of my friend and a wonderful coach, Reno Stirrat:



Alain commented on my Nike+ post from last Saturday's training run, "I can't wait to see you rock Spectacle Island." Me too!




The first 7 years of my healing odyssey are chronicled in Coming Home: A Memoir of Healing, Hope and Possibility available on Amazon. I donate 50% of royalty payments to The One Fund Boston to help survivors and their families who were affected by the tragic events of 4/15/13.



I'm working on my 2nd book, "Journey Well," due out later this year: