Running for Charity

Two of my Inspiring Friends

Another Very Inspiring Friend

So, whatever I had left, I think I have lost it.  My mind must be completely gone for me to even think about this.  Today I started looking up the charities that have runners in the Boston Marathon.

I don't know what I'm thinking.  I'm hurt, I can't run 2 miles without re-injuring my foot.  A spring marathon is definitely not in my plans.  I know I need to rest, recover, and heal if I ever want to get back to running the way I did before.  Yet I'm looking into one of the fastest and hardest marathons in the world.  I must be crazy.


There are many charities involved in Boston including hospitals, community resources and programs, sports teams funds, and disease research funds.  All of them have a god reason to raise funds and get a lot of money from the marathon.  Two charities, in particular, caught my eye.  Boston Children's Hospital (I have run the Nationwide Columbus Children's Hospital races 3 times so it seemed a natural connection) and CYCLE kids (an organization that works to get kids active via bikes and eating healthy) both seemed like a good fit to me.  Both charities support their runners with many different perks including training plans and coaches, a singlet to wear, special areas before and after the race, and support on training runs.  While the last doesn't really help me, it shows me that the groups don't just want the money, they want the people running for them to be successful as well.

Here comes the crazy part... I would need to raise $1500 for Boston Children's Hospital or $5000 for CYCLE kids to run with them.  Before I could even start raising that money I would have to apply with the charity and pay a $100 non-refundable application fee.  In a couple months I would also have to find $325 in our budget to sign up for the actual race (why didn't "Run Fatboy Run" cover this?).  If I get injured, and can't run, I still have to raise the money.  If I don't raise the minimum they take it from me using the same card number I gave for the deposit.  While I would love to support such great organizations and be able to run in such a glorious race, I can't seem to rationalize giving them about a month's worth of my income.

While I was talking myself out of this, some friends (non-runners at that) were so excited and supportive I started to come back around to the idea.  One friend offered to help me travel to Boston, give me a place to stay, and give me yet another reason to run it.  Another friend was ready to help me fundraise every last penny I would need to meet the requirements.  One already promised a donation if I do this.  This just makes me want to run (even though my foot disagrees right now).

In this, I will turn to my friends, the ones who have run for charity (Mindy, Greg W, Greg M, and Andrew).  They have the experience and can help me make a good decision.  I'll also turn to my friends who have run Boston.  They can give me perspective on if this is worth it.  If I do this it won't be until 2017 (6 months is not enough time to prepare for something like this) apparently my crazy has a limit.  I'm glad I have friends who can either help me rein the crazy in or help me turn the crazy into reality, whether they are a runner or not.

But really, what am I thinking?