We have some very sad news to start off. Jamie's cousin, Matt McGraw, passed away in late October in LA. Matt was a very accomplished musician and finishing up his first solo album when he died. Here is a link to his myspace page with samples of his music. He will be greatly missed.

MySpace.com - Matthew McGraw

Lynn and Jamie have completed their first racing season with the racing chair built for them by A Step Ahead Prosthetics and Orthotics on Long Island, New York. It took a little getting used to the different arm position for Jamie (maybe a foot higher than the old chair). It held up great though. We did 12 races this year, starting off with the Boston Marathon in April and ending with the Red Eye 8K in Joliet on 11/16. In that race, we finished 13th Overall in 32:01 and 2nd in our 45-49 age group, despite a wind chill of around 20 degrees. Finishing that race gave us a total of over 1000 miles this year on the new chair. We did one marathon, one duathlon, two 5-mile races and eight 5K (3.1 mile) races. The last three 5Ks we did this year were the fastest we've run in over two years. It HAD to be the chair because Jamie isn't getting any younger. Better looking maybe, but not younger. We caught age group awards in 6 races.  Thanks A Step Ahead!

Lynn's Grandma turns 98 later this month. Happy Birthday, Grandma Kennebeck!

Annalyn has finished her first season of racing by herself. She ran a total of six 5K races, a one-mile race and ran 2 miles and biked 8.2 in the Ride & Tie she did with her Dad. She improved her 5K time from 33:45 in her first race back in May to 30:55 at the Tinley Turkey Trot in November. WAY TO GO ANNALYN!

The three of us ran the Tinley Turkey Trot on 11/9. It was cold. 34 and cloudy. Annalyn was on her own because Lynn and Jamie were racing themselves and not pacing her. The race is a two lap course with a hill about halfway around that you have to do twice. Annalyn's best races this year have been when running with her parents so we weren't sure how well she would do, especially with the cold weather. We told her that after we finished, we would continue on the course for a 3rd lap to look for her. Then we would pace her in to the finish. Jamie jokingly told her to just try and keep us from catching her. We figured, according to the way she had been training lately, that we'd probably catch her around the 2-mile mark. Lynn and Jamie finished in 19:09, their best 5K this year. Jamie's brother, Jason, had come with to videotape and said that Annalyn had gone by about 3:00 earlier. It took a minute or so for Jamie to catch his breath and tear the tag off his race number. We took off after Annalyn, fully expecting to see her within a few minutes. We got to the 2-mile mark and didn't see her. We kept going and got to the hill but still no Annalyn. When we topped the hill and looked down the other side and STILL didn't see her, we started thinking that we somehow passed her in the crowd of runners (342 finished) because there was no way Annalyn would be running this fast. We looked behind us but she wasn't there so we kept going. The course does a right-left-right zig zag about 1/4 mile from the finish and just before the last turn, we finally saw her about 100 yards ahead. She was flying! Jamie yelled to her that we were catching her and she glanced back and then put the hammer down. We didn't catch her. She hit the finish in a new best 5K time of 30:55.97. Amazing! 43 seconds better than her previous best and with no pacing or encouragement from Mom and Dad. Both of her Grandmas were there to congratulate her. The only bad thing was that she was in the girls 14 & under age group so she ran against mostly middle school and freshman girls. She still came in 5th and 78th of 171 female finishers, despite being the youngest girl in the race. 120 runners overall finished behind her. Lynn and Jamie were 4th in the 40-49 age group for the 3rd straight year and 16th overall.

Lynn and Jamie have one more race before the season is over. It's on 11/16 in Joliet. It's one we've never done before, the Red Eye 8K. We hear it's a flat course. We just hope it's a little warmer.

Annalyn and Jamie teamed up on 10/19 to do the Orland Park Ride & Tie race. It was a 10.2 mile race where teams of two race with one bike. Teammates can switch off as many times as they want after the first two miles but MUST switch at the 3 and 6-mile points. It was cool and breezy and about 53 degrees at the start. Annalyn started off on the bike and Jamie did the first running part. Jamie's brother Jason and his Mom came to videotape Annalyn while Lynn's Mom came with to hang out with Lynn during the race. Annalyn dropped the bike at Mile 2 and started running. Jamie got to the bike and rode it to the first mandatory  switch point at Mile 3. Jamie got more than a few odd looks while riding the bike. It was a bit small for him AND a girls bike with pink flowers on it. Jamie passed Annalyn while on the bike and she looked OK. He dropped the bike at Mile 3 and took off running. This part of the course has a turnaround after about 1/2 mile and then doubles back against itself all the way back to where it started at the train station. Jamie figured that Annalyn would catch him before he got to the switch point at 6 miles but she didn't. There were some nasty hills that she had to ride up on the bike and that took a lot out of her. Jamie waited about 4:00 before Annalyn got there with the bike. He told her to take some water there at the water station before she started her next run. Jamie rode the bike another mile and laid it down at Mile 7. Then he ran into Centennial Park and onto the bike path. Annalyn ran to the bike but when she got on, the handlebars shifted. Jason happened to see it and was able to fix the problem enough for her to get to the finish. The rules state that both teammates must finish together so Jamie ended up having to wait again for Annalyn. He stopped about 20 yards before the finish and hung out for about 8:00 or so before Annalyn got there. Then they crossed the line together in a time of 1:23:34. Annalyn was easily the youngest competitor there but still finished the entire course. Jason and Jamie's Mom were with her most of the way and said that she never stopped once during the race. Not bad for a 9-year-old. We are all so proud of her.

We did 2 races in a week and did pretty well. The first was on 9/28 in Plainfield. It was the Harvest Fest 5K. We love this course because it's very flat and doesn't have a lot of turns. Just a few days before the race, Jamie decided to get the tires on the racing chair checked because they felt a little spongy. He inflated them to where they should be and our training times dropped right away. We ran 19:13 for the 5K (a best time for the year by 46 seconds). We came in 24th out of 755 finishers and 4th in the 45-49 age group.

We raced 6 days later on 10/4 at the Cougar 5K at St. Xavier University in Evergreen Park. We didn't decided to do the race until a couple of days before. It wasn't far away and we wanted to see if we could do another good run on another flat course. Well, we did. We finished in 19:10 and got 8th Overall out of 738 finishers. This time we were 3rd in the 45-49 group and got a medal.

On 9/7, Annalyn set a new best time at the Monee In Motion 5K in Monee, IL. She ran it in 31:38, beating her previous best time by over 2:00. She finished first in the female 14 & under age group. Way to go, Annalyn!

Lynn turned 46 on September 29. Happy birthday, Lynn!!

On 9/1, Lynn and Jamie did the new Park Forest Scenic 5-Miler. In previous years, there was a Park Forest Scenic 10-Miler and a 5K. A lack of sponsor dollars forced them to combine them into one race. We ran it in 32:56, finishing 53rd of 451 Overall and 7th in our 45-49 age group.

On 9/15, Annalyn set a new best time for one mile of 8:06. Not bad for a 9-year-old.

Lynn's Grandpa, John Kennebeck turned 99 on 7/28. Happy Birthday, Grandpa K!

From 8/2-8/9, the three of us joined with the rest of Jamie's family and went to Wisconsin Dells. Jamie's sister, Jodi, and her family flew in from California. This was the first trip that we all took together since any of us can remember. There were 17 of us. Two families were at a cabin at Christmas Mountain Village and the rest were at a hotel nearby. Surprisingly, we all didn't hate each other after a week together.

DAY 1:

 We dropped off Lulu, our Lab, at Jamie's Aunt Pat's house. She's watching her and Dude and Lisa's Lab-Chow mix, Sammy, while we're gone. We got together with everyone at Jamie's Mom's house. Jamie's sister, Jodi, has been on Weight Watchers for some time now and has lost o LOT of weight. She looks great! We took 4 vehicles and left. We caravanned up there without incident (apart from a truck nearly running Lisa's convertible off the road ). The non-cottage people stayed at a Best Western about 5 miles from there cottage at Christmas Mountain Village. Dude, Lisa, their son, Joey and Jamie's Dad, Charlie all stayed with Lynn and Jamie in the cottage (Annalyn stayed at the hotel with the rest of her cousins). Nice place. Big kitchen, fireplace, two bathrooms, two bedrooms and two TVs. We all hooked up later for dinner at Applebee's.

DAY 2:

Dude had put the thermostat at 62 overnight so Lynn and Jamie froze. Jodi and Aaron dropped off Annalyn so we could all run and keep our streaks alive. We ran an out-and-back course. It was 1/2 mile out and back the same way. One huge hill at the beginning (and the end coming back).  We ran and Lynn walked behind her chair (we used the old racing chair all week because the new one took up too much space). We met everyone for breakfast at IHOP and then went to Chula Vista, an indoor/outdoor waterpark.  We reserved a couple of private changing tents that had TVs in them. The kids had a ball and Jamie and Aaron cheated death by going down a near vertical waterslide with a 50-foot drop from the top. Annalyn was offered $250 by three of the adults to try it and chickened out. After drying off, we went to a buffet inside and Lynn and Jamie picked up the tab. $447! Yowza!  Back to the cottage for a friendly(?) game of cards.

DAY 3:

We went to an indoor amusement park/arcade/bowling alley/go-cart track called "Knuckleheads." It was pouring rain when we got there and we all got soaked running in from the cars. After a quick lunch, we headed for the bowling alley. As we walked in, up walked a friend of ours from our church, Diane Filipiak, and two of her daughters! What are the odds? They were in the Dells for a few days visiting Diane's sister who lives nearby. We bowled for an hour. We had 15 bowlers and only one strike was thrown. By Lynn! They had a ramp that she could put the ball on and aim. Then just push it and watch it roll. After bowling, we went to the arcade and Annalyn beat Jamie 7-4 in Air Hockey. And will remind him of this FOREVER. We were there for about 3 hours and then went back to the hotel for fast food and outdoor swimming for the kids. Later, while back in the cottage, we saw that some wicked storms had hit the Chicago area. There were several tornado warnings (one near Wrigley Field where the Cubs game had a near 3-hour rain delay). After everyone went to bed, Jamie turned on the Cubs game just as they resumed play. They played two innings and then lightning hit the scoreboard out in center field. They cancelled the rest of the game.

DAY 4:

After our early morning run with Annalyn, we all met for breakfast at Country Kitchen. Next stop was Pirate's Cove for mini-golf. It was a (mostly) accessible course (17 of the 19 holes). Jamie helped Lynn to stand and balance but she did all of the aiming and actually beat him. And will remind him of this FOREVER. Cold Stone Creamery was the next stop (excellent shakes). The kids went swimming  (after the mandatory 30-minute wait) at the indoor pool at Christmas Mountain Village. Lynn and Jamie and a few others took this chance to catch a quick nap. Later on, Jamie's Dad grilled burgers, dogs and chicken and we all ate at the cottage. Jamie's Mom stayed at the cottage with the kids and the rest of us went to Ho-Chunk Casino about 15 minutes away. We were there for a couple of hours and Lynn lost a whopping $7.25 playing the Wheel Of Fortune game. The others did OK.

DAY 5:

We started the day with the usual run with our daughter and Lynn's behind the wheelchair walking. We had breakfast in the cottage and met the rest at the hotel. Then we went to Noah's Ark, another waterpark. Most of the adults sat this one out and just let the kids go nuts (and they did). They had a lazy river, a jillion waterslides and a HUGE wave pool. Later on, some of the adults had to make a laundry stop. The ones who brought enough clothes for the whole week (Lynn and Jamie) got to rest. Dinner that evening was at Pizza Pub.

DAY 6 (White Sox 0):

We ran/walked. Jamie and his Dad and two brothers went golfing. Lynn and Jamie's Mom came with to watch and mock them (they had their own cart). The course was right there at Christmas Mountain Village. It was the hardest course any of us has ever played. Very narrow fairways, tons of trees, lots of water and other hazards. We had a lot of fun despite Lynn and Jamie's Mom getting a flat tire on their golf cart, Jason nearly getting beaned on consecutive shots by Jamie's Dad and Dude and the course ranger yelling at us MANY times for playing so slowly. We had a good reason for that. We spent a lot of time looking for our golf balls. Between the four of us, we lost FORTY-ONE balls! Jamie got the only par of the day (a 3) and Jason won $25 from Dude by sinking a twisting up and down 25-foot putt on the 9th Hole. While we golfed, the rest of the group went souvenir shopping. Later on, we went on the Jet Boat Tour. That was a blast! All 17 of us (and a few others) took a tour of the Upper Dells on the Wisconsin River. Those who sat in the front row got soaked. Lynn and Jamie were smart enough to sit in row six (still got a little wet). Dinner was at Culver's.

DAY 7:

Run/walk. Breakfast at Mr. Pancake. Voting was taken for what to do for our last day in the Dells. We ended up going to the main strip of attractions/stores/souvenir shops. Everyone but Jamie, Lynn and Jamie's folks went into Wizard Quest, a puzzle-solving role-playing adventure place. Lynn and Jamie wandered up and down the "strip" and also went to the Riverwalk, a scenic overlook by the Wisconsin River. Most of the kids (and some of the adults) were in the Dino 4-D movie while we did this. Back to the hotel to figure out our next move. It was horseback riding/petting zoo. That was fun. Jamie's Mom stayed at the hotel and Lynn, Jamie, Dude and Jamie's Dad didn't go on the horses. The petting zoo was fun. They had cows, goats, donkeys and horses. We got to feed them. A cow stepped on Dude's foot. The horses and goats liked Lynn but not the cows. It looked like they were afraid of the wheelchair. Annalyn was horseback riding with the rest of the group. At one point, they were near a farm and one of the horses (Jodi's) got spooked by a tractor. This caused some of the other horses (including Annalyn's) to react. Her horse (ironically named "Horse"), started trotting and Annalyn was holding on for dear life. Things calmed down and they all made it back alive. The kids stopped in at the petting zoo and two of the goats tried to eat Annalyn's pants. Really. There are nibble marks on them. Back to the cottage for pizza and poker. Of course, the one who we had to teach how to play Texas Hold 'Em (Jamie's Mom) had the most chips at the end.

DAY 8:

No run/walk (we waited until we got home). We packed and left about 8. Breakfast was on the road at a McD's in Janesville. Back to Jamie's Mom's in New Lenox by about 1:00. Jodi and Aaron were flying out later in the day and Dude and Jason each had music gigs they had to get to. We stayed until around 4 and then drove through a torrential rain back to Aunt Pat's to pick up Lulu. She was very happy to see us and the feeling was mutual. Aunt Pat said she is a nut. That much we knew. Back to our humble abode by 5:00.

THE END 

JULY RACING REPORT

On the 4th of July, Lynn and Jamie did the Stars & Stripes 5K in our home town, Tinley Park. This is the one race every year that we can walk to the start from our house. It's only 4 blocks away. Every year the same thing happens at this race. We start out fast the first 2 1/2 miles and then die on the hills at the end. Every year Jamie says, "I'm gonna try and save a little for the end" but the hills still get him.  Well, we stuck to the script again. We went out in 6:10 and 6:14 the first two miles and fell apart at the end. We barely beat 20:00, coming in with a time of 19:59.29. One thing happened just as we were coming to the hills that disrupted Jamie's rhythm a bit. The hills are around a reservoir and there is a bike path that follows the perimeter. Just as we turned onto the bike path, there was a sharp drop that we don't remember being there. Since we were carrying some good speed going onto the path, when we hit the drop and came back up right away, Jamie nearly lost his grip on the chair (which would have sent Lynn into a bunch of trees). This was right at the foot of the first and biggest hill and we lost any momentum we had right there. Oh well. We ended up 39th of 505 finishers overall and 6th in our age group.

July 10th was the Sundowner 5K in Joliet. It's another Thursday night race. We weren't sure if it would even be held because of some big storms that were in and around the area near race time. We were already signed up so we didn't want to waste our money and stay home. Fortunately, the first batch of storms cleared out about an hour before the start and then next ones didn't come in until maybe an hour after we finished. Thank you, God.  This course is run entirely on bike paths at Joliet's Pilcher Park. We started out fast again (6:06 & 6:17 for the first two miles) and fell apart again at the end. It sucks getting old. We finished in 20:06. That put us 23rd Overall and we got 2nd in our age group. This race has long been knwon for having nice awards. Last year, we were also 2nd in our group and the trophy was fairly large and pewter-looking. It still sits on to of our trophy case in the living room. Well, we're guessing that there were substantial budget cuts at the Joliet Park District because for 2nd Place in our age group, we got ............a pair of SOCKS! First place finishers got a hat and third place got a drawstring bag. The race shorts were very nice but we have a jillion race shirts. The second storm hit as Jamie was taking apart the racing chair to put it in the car. He was soaked.

Jamie got a race entry a few weeks back for a race that we did last year in New Lenox. It's the Proud American Days 5K and is part of a weekend festival they have every year in New Lenox. Last year's race had the smallest field of any race that we have ever done. 22 runners. Jamie also didn't have a great run, finishing in 20:42. When we saw the race entry and noticed that they had an age category of 7-10 year olds, we asked Annalyn if she'd like to try it. All of the other races that she's done have had a 14 & under category so she has to run with girls nearly twice her age. She wanted to do this one so we asked if she wanted us to run with her like we did at Romeoville and Frankfort or to race ourselves like we did at the Joliet Speedway. She told us to race. Then we asked if she wanted us to double back after we finish and run in with her and she said no. She wanted to do this one all on her own. So we did. The turnout was better but still very small (37 runners). This was an out-and-back course with a turnaround on a bike path at the halfway point. No mile markers or water stations. Good thing the weather was nice. After fighting some major traffic trying to get to the race, we were at the start with about 10 minutes to spare. Good thing because they started the race about 4 minutes early. We started next to Annalyn and our friend Mitch Alvarez. The first 100 yards or so are uphill before the course levels out on the Old Plank Road Trail bike path. Lynn and Jamie were 7th up the hill and onto the path. We found out later that Annalyn kept up with Mitch for the first part of the race. Once we were on the path, we picked off two runners right away to move into 5th and then passed one more about a mile into the race to take 4th. We were looking forward to the turnaround because then we could see how far behind the next runner was and also where Annalyn and Mitch were. We had a pretty good gap on the 5th place guy and were not gaining any ground on 3rd place, so we knew that 4th was where we'd end up overall. We saw Mitch in 14th as we came back and then Annalyn in 35th. There were two runners behind her and she was about to pass one guy who stopped to walk. She was still going at a pretty good pace. We kept our 4th place position to the end and finished in 20:12. Jamie's Dad and nephew, Jacob, were there to cheer us on. We turned and waited for Mitch and Annalyn. Mitch came in with a time of 24:31 and got 12th Place. Then we waited for Annalyn. She told us later that she had to stop at one point and walk for a minute or two just to catch her breath. We resisted the urge to go and find her when it became apparent that she wouldn't beat her best time of 33:45. Then Jacob saw her as she started down the hill to the finish. She finished strong with a time of 36:47 and got 34th Place. We all congratulated her. There was a results board nearby where you could find out right away how you did in your age group. With only 37 finishers, the chances of getting an award were pretty good. Well, all of us WON our respective age groups. Annalyn won the 7-10 year-old girls, Lynn and Jamie won the 45-49 year-old men and Mitch won the 55-59 year-old men.  We all got blue ribbons. 

JUNE RACING REPORT

 On 6/8, Lynn and Jamie did the annual Band On The Run 5K in Orland Park. It was very hot and humid and we were very slow. Maybe the slowest 5K we've ever done. Our time was 21:38. Consequently, we didn't stick around for awards. Of course, that meant that we would win one and we did. We got 3rd in the 45-49 group. They mailed us the medal and it was the Female 45-49 one. We have to get it exchanged. Our friend Mitch Alvarez got 2nd in the 55-59 group. Way to go, Mitch!

We decided to try and Veterans Tollway 5K on 6/15 on the night before the race. We usually don't do a race without signing up beforehand because it takes so much time on the day of the race. The lure of this race was that they actually close down Interstate 355 to let the runners race on the highway. The forecast called for a chance of showers so Jamie checked the Doppler radar on his computer before we left. The was rain to the west but it was WAY to the west (like Iowa). So we headed to Lemont (about a 25 minute drive) where the race started. The skies were getting darker the farther west we drove. As we got into town, we saw the first flash of lightning. Not a good sign. We were looking for a particular school where we were supposed to park. So we asked one of Lemont's finest and he pointed the way but he added, "No need to go in there. The race is cancelled."  There was a Severe Thunderstorm Warning for the immediate area. We saw hundreds of runners with their numbers on heading to their cars. The skies were REALLY looking ugly so we headed back home.

6/19 was Annalyn's 3rd race. It was the Short Run On A Long Day 5K in Frankfort. After the Steelmen 5K problems, we decided to run with Annalyn again. She did a great race again, finishing in 33:53. Unfortunately, she was in the Girls 14 & Under group again so she ran against High School girls. She ended up 5th of 14 in the Age Group and 192nd of 264 Overall. The top 4 in the group were 14 years old, 13, 13 & 12 respectively. She still beat over 1/4 of all of the racers.

6/22 was the MetLife Duathlon in Tinley Park. In this race, there is a 2-mile run, followed by an 11-mile bike section and another 2-mile run. We do the running sections together but Jamie does the bike by himself. Annalyn came with to cheer on her parents during the runs and hang with Lynn while Jamie did the bike. Our runs were good (both under 13:00) but Jamie's bike ride was slow (mainly because he never trains on the bike). Our total time of 1:00:23 put us 42nd Overall out of around 350 and we were 7th in the 45-49 age group.

 ANNALYN'S FIRST SOLO 5K AND LYNN AND JAMIE'S FIRST 5K OF 2008

On 6/1, we did the Steelmen 5K at the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet. The thing that attracted us to the race was the fact that it was two laps around the race track. All three of us were ready for the race but one thing you can't always plan for is the weather. This time it was the heat. It was only 75 degrees outside but there wasn't a cloud in the sky so the sun was beating down and the track reflected the heat back up on the runners. It was probably 95 on the track. We tried to stay hydrated as best we could. The race itself left a lot to be desired. This was the second year for this race so you would think all of the kinks would be ironed out. Not so. The start line was behind the garages on the other side of pit row. There were over 300 runners and nearly as many walkers in the race and you have to do a half circle around the garage to get to pit row. Way too tight a space to deal with. We clipped one girl on her leg because she got in front of us and then had to slow down on the curve. Annalyn was tripped up but managed to stay on her feet. We ran down pit row and onto the track. This took us about 3 minutes or so. It was then that my watch chimed 12:00. They started the race 3 minutes early! I hope there weren't any latecomers who missed the start because of that. Seeing as it was our first 5K of this year, we had no idea of how we would do here. We were looking for the mile marks to get our splits and see what kind of pace we were doing. No mile marks. This really stunk because Annalyn was running this race solo and we told her to try and stay around 11:00 per mile if she could. Then to top it off, there was only one water station. It was on the backstretch and consisted of two high school girls handing out cups that had mostly ICE in them. I think they ran out because we didn't see them on the second lap. The organizers are very lucky that no one had any severe problems with the heat.  Jamie could tell that the heat was slowing him down so he just tried to maintain an even pace. After you come through Turn 4 on the second lap, you go back down pit row to the finish line. As we neared Turn 4, Jamie had a little left in the tank and passed about 7 or 8 runners just before we got onto pit row. He held his position to the finish and we hit the line in 20:38. Ooh. That was slow. We ended up 23rd Overall of 325 finishers. After we hit the finish, a reporter from the Joliet Herald-News came up to ask our names and where we were from. He had taken some pictures and said one would be in the next day's paper. Lynn's Dad had come into town just to see this race (he lives in North Carolina). Well, he got lost on the way to the race and didn't get there until Annalyn had crossed the finish line. Speaking of which, after we finished, we discussed whether or not to keep going around the track to find Annalyn and pace her in. We decided that she would probably rather do it herself so we didn't. We waited a few minutes and then started walking the opposite way around the track. That way we could meet up with Annalyn as she neared the finish. So we walked. And walked. And walked. We ran a little ways and finally saw Annalyn in the distance. She was walking. We got to her and gave her some water that we got at the finish. She said that the heat just sapped her strength and she had to stop and walk. She probably started out too fast in trying to impress everyone who came to see her race and it caught up with her. She was upset and thought she would be last. She wasn't. After the water, she was able to jog in to the finish. She ended up with a time of 43:34, nearly 10:00 slower than her other 5K in Romeoville a few weeks ago. She finished 301st of 325 overall. She went over to talk to Lynn's Dad afterwards. He was pretty steamed that he missed everything after flying all the way here to see it. He misread his directions (he wasn't wearing his glasses) and ended up taking 2 hours to make the 25 minute trip. We hung out for the raffle and awards. Annalyn didn't get an age group award (she was 13th of 15 in the 14 & under female category). Lynn and Jamie DID win 2nd in the 45-49 group and got a medal.

VIDEO FROM BOSTON MARATHON

There are several videos that we appear in. The first one is here http://wbztv.com/video/?id=61686@wbz.dayport.com. It shows us crossing the finish line. We appear on there about 30 seconds after it starts. Keep watching to see how close Lance Armstrong came to catching us. Next, go to www.youtube.com and find the "search" box. There are 5 YouTube videos that we appear in. For the first one, type in Boston Marathon 08 Elite Runners Technique. We pass through the shot at 46 seconds into the video. For the second one, type in Boston Marathon 2008-Natick. Starting at 13 seconds, there is an interview with one of the camera guys who shot for the documentary. They show us on screen as he is interviewed for 30 seconds. For the next one, type in Boston Marathon 2008 Get Boston. This video shows us for just 6 seconds starting at 1:15. For the fourth video, type in Vectrix at Boston Marathon. This will bring up two videos. The top one shows us from :15 to :39 and the bottom one (titled "Vectrix at Marathon Weekend") is the best one. It shows the three of us as we came up Hereford Street and turning onto Boylston for the run to the finish line. We're on from the 8:40 mark for a full minute.

 ANNALYN'S FIRST 5K RACE

Annalyn ran her first 5K race on 5/4. It was in Romeoville. She has trained for 4 months and done up to 3 miles in practice but she was still worried that she would finish last. Well, that didn't happen. On a sunny, somewhat chilly Sunday morning (40 degrees when we left the house), she had an outstanding race. Lynn and Jamie ran with her the whole way and were able to videotape her entire race (we had an HD camera rigged to Lynn's wheelchair). She paced herself well considering that this was her first race. Her first mile was in 10:57 on the only slightly uphill section of the course. Mile two went by in a brisk 10:42 (what goes up must come down). Towards the end of mile 2, she started to get a side stitch and some pain in her left shoulder. This can be frustrating for any runner knowing that you still have nearly half the race to go and now you have this pain to deal with. Jamie has run many races so he knows that a side stitch, while annoying, can't do any physical harm to a runner. Annalyn's frustration was showing because she started to get a bit whiny. After praise and encouragement didn't work, he had to resort to a little "tough love" to help her through. Mom was being "good cop" the whole time which helped. Since Mom and Dad had run this race several times before, they knew how many turns were left and how close to the finish she was getting. As you get near the finish, the course makes a left turn away from the finish line and the runners go about 50 yards, do a u-turn and head down a straightaway to the finish. At the left turn, Jamie handed off the camcorder to his friend Mitch Alvarez who ran it to the finish so Jamie's brother, Jason, could put it on a tripod and get the three of them as they came to the finish. It worked perfectly. Once Annalyn knew she was near the finish, the whining stopped and she started smiling. Mile 3 was done in 11:07 and she covered the last 1/10th of a mile in 58 seconds.

 She crossed the finish line in 33:45 to a roar of cheers from the crowd. She got flowers and a stuffed animal from Grandma and got to pick where she wanted to go for lunch from Mom and Dad.

 Her best prize came shortly after the finish when it was announced that she came in 3rd place in her age group.

She got a medal on a ribbon and wouldn't take it off for two days. And as far as her worry about finishing last? She was 112th of 132 Overall.

A NOT-SO-WELCOME CHALLENGE

After we got back from Boston, we were home for three days before making an overnight trip to St. Louis to visit Lynn's Grandparents. Grandpa is going to be 99 in July and Grandma will be 98 in November. Grandpa took a fall a little while back and is rehabbing. We visited him on Sunday, 4/27. Lynn's Mom took Amtrak down there when we went to Boston so we were giving her a ride home.  When we got back, while bringing in luggage, Jamie tripped going down some stairs into his laundry room and landed hard on the tile. The stuff he was carrying broke most of his fall but there was some pain in his left arm. He tried to shake it off but it persisted. The next day, he went to a local Urgent Care facility and got x-rays. Broken elbow. It's a hairline fracture and doesn't require a cast but he has to keep it in a sling for 4 weeks. To make matters worse, it's his left elbow and he's left-handed. UPDATE: It's healed.

THE BOSTON MARATHON STORY

What a way to run your last marathon. And what a place. We ran the pinnacle of all the marathons, the Boston Marathon, on April 21st. The weekend didn't start out too great when on Friday, the 18th, Lynn and Jamie got some bad news. Jamie's brother, Jason, was in the hospital with some unexplained internal bleeding and might not be able to make the trip with us. Jason did a boatload of work on this project and deserved to be there. His doctor asked if he could wait a day and fly out Sunday so they could do some tests. He would miss our course recon that we planned for Saturday and early Sunday but his health is more important so we said OK. In his place, at least initially, would be Ruth Rivin, the Executive Producer of the documentary for LMNO Productions. Ruth called Jamie Friday afternoon and said, "Can I crash on your couch tonight?" Not exactly the accommodations she's used to I'm sure. Jamie said, "Sure." Ruth got there about 11 PM.

Saturday 4/19

We had to get up at 4 AM because we had an early flight and we had to deal with getting the new chair on the plane. Jamie's sister-in-law, Jen (Jason's wife) had spent 1 1/2 hours bubble-wrapping the chair the night before to make sure it wouldn't be damaged on the trip. Southwest Airlines didn't like that. They needed to inspect it to make sure there was no damage. Jamie finally signed off on the fact that it was new and undamaged. Our flight was uneventful and after we landed, we took a shuttle to the Holiday Inn in Manchester, New Hampshire (where we landed). We got our 12-passenger van that we rented and drove to the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Natick, Massachusetts. It was about 17 miles from Boston and very near to the marathon course. We checked in and then went to downtown Boston to meet up with the rest of our documentary crew. We knew Kathy Williamson, the director, because we had worked with her years ago on the "Miracle Babies" show that featured Annalyn when she was born. We only knew Melissa Tallerine through dozens of e-mails that we had sent back and forth trying to get things set up ahead of time. I think Jason's wife thought he had a girlfriend with all of the Melissa e-mails he was getting every day (just kidding-she's married too). We also met the Director of the Boston Marathon TV Production. He was very nice as was Adam, our liaison to the BAA (Boston Athletic Association). Boylston Street (where the finish line is) was closed down so we decided to do our run for the day right there. Annalyn ran with us and we did a mile and then walked over to the place where we were planning on sneaking our daughter onto the course on Sunday. We want her to finish the race with us as a family. The documentary crew thought it was a great idea. I doubt that the BAA would agree but since it's our last marathon, we want to go out on a high note. The place we picked was on Commonwealth Avenue, about 30 feet before you get to the turn onto Hereford Street. It's about 1/2 mile from the finish but we knew that Annalyn could make it. 1/2 mile is nothing to her anymore since she had already done 3 miles in training for her first 5K that she did on 5/4 in Romeoville. After a nice meal with Ruth and Kathy, we were done for the night. Earlier in the day, we got the official word that Jason would not be out of the hospital in time to join us in Boston. We were bummed.

Sunday 4/20

This was our sleep in day. We got up at 8:15 and had room service breakfast. Then we went down to the hotel fitness center and Lynn walked on their treadmill and did some stationary bike work too.

Top left to right: Jamie's Dad Charlie, Kathy Williamson,

Jamie, Annalyn, Melissa Tallerine. Bottom: Ruth Rivin and Lynn.

We met the crew in the lobby and drove to Hopkinton. That's where the race starts 26 miles west of Boston. We parked at a church and walked to the start area. A very nice police officer actually stopped traffic both ways on Route 135 so LMNO could get some video footage of us looking at the start line. We did pictures and video and went back to the cars by the church. We hadn't run yet so we decided to just do it right there. We did a mile and Kathy shot footage of us running. We met more of the crew there, including Dan Franks, our Boston go-to guy. He has run Boston before and worked in the TV production of the race too so he was invaluable to us in this project. There was an idea to use a lipstick camera to get a point-of-view shot from the chair as we came in to Boston at the end of the race. The camera was very small but the battery pack and monitor weighed too much. So that idea was out the window. It was decided that an HD camcorder would be taped to the left handle of the chair and Jamie was instructed to turn it on with a mile to go in the race. We left and went back downtown so Jamie could get his race number and packet. Then expo was at the Hynes Convention Center. David Willey, the Editor-In-Chief at Runner's World Magazine (and a great guy), was giving a seminar on "Real Runners" at the expo and Lynn and Jamie were invited weeks earlier to drop by and be introduced.  We found the room where he was and went in. There were 6 athletes on the stage, each with a fascinating  story about survival or perseverance. We were about 10 minutes late so we hung out in the back. David saw us and asked all three of us to come up. He introduced us and mentioned some of our running accomplishments. He asked us a few questions and then a few questions from the audience were taken. One person asked the panel who their favorite running partner was and most everyone said their dog, a relative, a friend or their music. Jamie said that it's great having Lynn and Annalyn as running partners but as much as he prays during runs, his favorite partner is Jesus Christ. After the seminar, we went to pick up our race number. It was temporarily misplaced but eventually found by Barb Mancuso, the head of registration for the marathon. She got us our race shirts and then we went and met Dick and Rick Hoyt.

Dick and Rick are the guys who we got the idea from about Jamie pushing Lynn in her wheelchair in races. They've done nearly 1000 races together since 1977 and this will be their 26th Boston Marathon. Dick said that he thought they'd finish somewhere around 4 hours because he has been so busy lately that his training has suffered. We took pictures and video and met their "people," Kathy Boyer. Jamie and Kathy had been e-mailing each other over the last few months since we knew that we'd be doing Boston and were getting a new racing chair. They were all very nice. Jamie got Dick to sign a poster and one of their books. Dick didn't want Jamie to pay for either but Jamie insisted and we settled on $20 for both. After that, we met up with the crew again and did a little souvenir shopping for us and Annalyn. We went back out and walked to the spot where Annalyn would enter the course. The barriers were up but not very high. That would make it much easier to pick her up and over them. Back to the hotel and just as we were about to leave to go to Olive Garden for Jamie's carbo-loading dinner, we realized that the keys to the van were locked inside. Ruth called AAA and the guy was across the street at a local mall. He was there in about 5 minutes. He got the lock open with a coat hanger. We stopped at Dunkin' Donuts for Jamie's pre-race breakfast (2 bagels). We had a great dinner with the folks (Mom and Dad flew with us).  After we got back to the hotel, Melissa gave Jamie an index card that showed where the cameras would be along the course and which side of the road to be on at certain points.

Monday 4/21

It's Boston Marathon Day!!!

We had to be at the start area at 5:30 AM to meet up with the camera people and assistants who would be working with us at the race. That meant we had to get up by 4:00 (3:00 Chicago time). Jamie had his pre-race breakfast of 2 bagels and Gatorade. We drove out to Hopkinton and met the rest of the crew at a different church from yesterday. The crew and the LMNO girls worked out all of their logistics as we waited in the van (mind you, the start wasn't for another 4 hours). It looked like the weather was going to be ideal for the race. It was overcast and about 45 with no wind and no rain. After everything was coordinated with the crew, we drove back to the church we were at yesterday (sensing a theme here?). The crew wanted to film us getting ready before the start so they shot Jamie putting the racing chair together, Lynn getting out of the van and into the chair, Jamie preparing his energy gels and water bottles and Annalyn joining them for the walk towards the start. We did that in one take. There was a little pre-race interview and then a near disaster happened. In the bigger races, runners wear a little black plastic timing chip that they tie to their shoelace. It's like a little homing device that triggers a sensor when you go past various points along the course. This sends the information to a computer so they know that you completed the course and didn't cut it like Rosie Ruiz did a few years ago. Jamie thought he had put his in a bag with all of the things he would need for race day. It wasn't in the bag, it wasn't in the van, it wasn't at the hotel and no one had it. This was bad. No timing chip means no official time or place in the marathon. Jamie asked Kathy, the Director, to send someone to the start line area to see if there was a way to replace it. After a tense 15 minutes of waiting while we drew closer to the race start, we were told they could replace it. Jamie was given the new chip and in the process of putting it on, he stripped down to his racing shorts. As he took off his sweatpants, he could see something tucked into the top of his sock. You guessed it. The missing timing chip. He said that he had absolutely no recollection of putting it there. So he put it on and double-knotted his shoelace so it wouldn't come off. He kissed his Mom and we headed to the start. Many people came up to us to wish us good luck. We saw Dave McGillivray, the Race Director, and thanked him for helping to make this happen. We hugged and kissed Annalyn and Jamie's Dad and they went up to a spot in the bleachers where they could see us off. We lined up behind the wheelchair racers along with Dick and Rick Hoyt and Mark and Amanda Collis (the other pusher teams). For some unknown reason, Jamie was visibly shaking as we waited for the gun. It wasn't nerves or weather. John Kerry was there and made the rounds wishing the athletes good luck. He fired the starter's pistol and we were off.  The first few miles of the race are mostly downhill so it's important not to go out too hard or you'll pay for it later on when you hit the Newton Hills. We ran the first 1 1/2 miles with the Hoyts and Collis' but before we knew it, we were way ahead. The spectators along the sides of the road were amazing. They really can carry you through some tough spots. It was hard to concentrate on running with all of the waving and smiling that we were doing. It was really fun, though. It was like we were in a 26.2-mile parade. After we ran in Toronto and qualified for Boston, we agreed that we weren't going to worry about our finishing time in Boston. We were going to have a good time and enjoy ourselves. We had a cameraperson filming us from the back of a motorcycle for the first 6 miles for the documentary. Jamie was doing well physically but it was hard to get a good idea of just how well we were doing with our pace. With all of the rolling terrain, you just had to try and maintain a good rhythm. Jamie's goal was to try and hold a 7:30/mile pace until we got to the Newton Hills at 16 miles. Miles 2-4 we did in 7:12, 7:05 and 7:04. The motorcycle pulled off at the 6-mile mark to go back to the start. The cameraperson had to be back to film that. Just about this time, the elite women passed us. Apart from the start, this was the only other time that we were shown on the TV coverage. As the women passed us, Jamie applauded them. Jamie was taking his energy gels every 5 miles and staying hydrated with water and Gatorade. Lynn was enjoying the scenery and the chair was rolling perfectly. At around the 8-mile mark, the motorcycle guy pulled up alongside us. He had nothing left to do after he dropped off the cameraperson at the start. So he decided to come back to us and ride alongside us. That was cool. Jamie told him that we had people ahead filming for the documentary who would be running along with us while filming for as long as they could. He suggested that the motorcycle guy ask one of them if they wanted to ride and film from the bike. By this point, we were nearing the 10-mile mark. That was where Jamie's first instruction was on his index card. He was supposed to stay on the left side of the street because there was someone positioned on the right in a building to film us for the show. Not long after that, we went past our first running cameraperson. He stayed with us for maybe 50 yards or so before peeling off. The course took a dip down a hill here and you could see an uphill section ahead around a curve. What you REALLY couldn't miss was this huge wall of sound. We were probably 1/2 mile away but we knew it had to be Wellesley College. Wellesley is an all-women's school and they have a reputation of being very loud and enthusiastic as the marathon runners pass by. As we neared Wellesley, we saw Melissa, our other running cameraperson. Melissa is a Lead Producer of the documentary but also a marathon runner and triathlete. She ran with us and filmed as we went past Wellesley. Jamie moved over to the right side of Lynn's chair and held on with his left hand so he could slap hands with everyone lined up behind the barriers. That was fun. One of those pictures is on the Runner's World website in their Boston Marathon coverage section. Just after we passed Wellesley, the motorcycle caught up with us and there was Melissa on the back grinning from ear to ear. Not only was she getting a ride to the finish but she was going to tape us while doing it. That wasn't planned at all. We were just past halfway and the Newton Hills were coming up so Jamie just concentrated on staying within himself and conserving energy. The gels and liquids were working perfectly so far but the worst was yet to come. The first hill you hit when you get into Newton is a long, gradual incline that's not too steep. It goes over Route 128 and leads you to the first turn on the course. Yes, I said the FIRST turn. In fact, in the entire 26.2 miles, there were only three turns and the last two are in the last 1/2 mile of the race. You make a right turn onto Commonwealth Avenue right by the Newton Fire Station.  At Mile 18, you hit a nasty hill that is fairly long and steep and makes you wonder just how bad Heartbreak Hill is. That was still 2 miles ahead. Jamie had a hard time keeping the chair going forward on one section that was really steep but we got over it. He was just trying to keep an even effort and not overcook himself. We got a respite of maybe a mile before we saw the 20-mile mark sign. Heartbreak Hill dead ahead. There aren't a lot of hills in the Chicago area so we don't get to train or race on many. There is one on Western Avenue in Joliet that we've raced on that is actually worse than Heartbreak Hill. It's very steep and just when you think you've topped it, it kicks up again even steeper. But that is in a 5-mile race. Heartbreak Hill is 20.5 miles into a marathon, right at the point where the majority of runners  "hit the wall." Jamie has played that game a time or two so that's why it was so important to stay hydrated and keep using the energy gels even in the early part of the race when he felt good. For lack of a better word, Heartbreak Hill sucked. Jamie has a habit of praying during his training and racing and the prayers were a huge part of making this whole thing happen. Well, the prayers were flowing fast and furious on Heartbreak Hill. He kept looking at his feet and praying to just keep them moving forward. He wanted to do this race without stopping but it was very close to happening here. It seemed like the top would never come. The spectators REALLY pull you through here and the cheering lifts you up.  It felt like it took 10 minutes to get over it when it was probably 3 or 4 but we made it. Before you get to celebrate too much, you're going downhill and holding back on the chair is murder on the triceps. We knew we had 6 miles to go and no more huge hills so now it was time to make sure we finished. Jamie was taking water from the aide stations along the course and pouring it on his head to stay cool even though it was only in the mid-50s. The crowds grew even thicker as we neared Boston. We had a camcorder duct-taped to the left side of the chair and Jamie was supposed to turn it on and hit "record" as they went past the Citgo sign with one mile to go. This would give the viewer the perspective that we had as we neared the finish. The 25-mile mark was at the top of a small rise on an overpass. Jamie thought this would be a good time to start the camera so he could concentrate on his next project, sneaking our daughter onto the course. We went underneath Massachusetts Avenue and we knew that Annalyn was not far away. We came up from under the viaduct, went around a small curve and saw a bunch of orange hats waving along the barriers. These were the Discovery Health Channel hats that our crew was wearing. We knew that Annalyn was with them and Jamie's Dad. We pulled up to the curb and Jamie lifted Annalyn over the barriers and said, "Let's go to the finish!" This was about 20 feet before the second turn on the course, from Commonwealth onto Hereford Street.  We don't know if Annalyn got caught up in all the excitement or if Jamie was just slowing down but it seemed like she was flying that last 1/2 mile to the finish line. She held onto the left side of the chair while Jamie held the right. The cheers were so loud it almost hurt your ears. We made the last turn onto Boylston Street and you could see the finish line 4 blocks away. Our 26.2-mile parade was nearly over but we were going to enjoy every last moment. And we did. This was one of those moments in life that you want to freeze and last forever. We were briefly misidentified by the race announcer as the Hoyts but he corrected himself before we finished. We knew that Lance Armstrong was not far behind us because his name was called out too.  With about 100 yards to go, we all raised our arms for the finish line photos.

The three of us crossed the finish line in a moment that we'll never forget. Jamie stopped his watch and it said 3:25:45. Not bad considering how much we were enjoying ourselves. WE DID IT!!!! We ran the Granddaddy of them all, the Boston Marathon and finished as a family, as the Parks Family Racing Team. Oh, and we beat Lance Armstrong by 13 seconds. After we crossed the line, we got our finisher medals and headed to our pre-planned meeting point, the Jury Hotel. It was 5 blocks from the finish but we were so stoked that it didn't feel like it. Jamie realized that he actually didn't feel sore.  This has never happened in any of our other marathons. Thanks NuBound! Dozens of people congratulated us as we made our way through the crowds including Dave McGillivray, the Race Director. Melissa found us and taped us walking to the hotel. After freshening up a bit and making a few cellphone calls, we found Jamie's Mom and Dad and did much hugging, sweat and all. There was a big group from the Discovery Health Channel that came out to cheer us on and we saw many of them there at the hotel. The crew wanted to do one more interview to get our post-race reaction and thoughts. The very last question we were asked was, "So now that you've run and finished the Boston Marathon, is this truly going to be your LAST one?" Jamie said, "The ONLY way we'll ever do another one is if we run it with Annalyn."

We would like to dedicate this achievement to Jesus Christ. Special thanks go out to Jason Parks, Ruth Rivin, Kathy Williamson, Melissa Tallerine, Dan Franks, Jerry Davis, Marty Ozinga and the guys at A Step Ahead Prosthetics. Without all of their efforts this never would have happened. Jamie would like to thank his Mom and Dad too for making the trip to Boston and shlepping around town with us even though it was physically demanding on them. And an EXTRA special thanks to our awesome daughter, Annalyn. YOU ROCK!!!!

We retired the old racing wheelchair on Sunday, March 2nd. We finally got a day with temps in the low 50s and decided to go out and do Annalyn's long run for the week outside. It was 2 1/3 miles.  It took her 25:05  Jason was there to capture it on tape to possibly be used in the documentary. The Lord was really watching out for us because it started raining right after we finished. We ended up doing nearly 8600 miles with that chair. Later that day, we put the new racing chair together. It looks sweet.

A very nice article about us was written in the 2/24 SouthtownStar newspaper by Sue Hainey. It's under the heading of "Citizen Journalist." Sue is the Mom of one of Annalyn's classmates, Drew. It mentions most of the same things that have been written elsewhere but also includes the info about the upcoming documentary and the acquisition of the new racing wheelchair.

On 2/12, Lynn, Jamie and his brother Jason flew out to Long Island to A Step Ahead Prosthetics where they were presented with Lynn's new racing wheelchair. Wow! The seat looks like something out of a Formula One race car and has a 5-point safety harness. It has an adjustable height in back for Jamie to find a comfortable level to push the chair. All Jamie has to do is add the water bottle holders in the back and a place for his energy gels. We took it out on a test run with Amy Palmiero-Winters (world-class marathoner now training for the Olympic Trials). Very smooth ride. Lynn loved it.  Jason was along to shoot all of this for the documentary (see next paragraph). LMNO shipped an HD Broadcast-ready camera for him to use to shoot some extra things for the show. He has also taped us on the treadmill (Annalyn too) and singing with the church choir. We had a heck of a time trying to bring the new chair back home. Even after taking wheels and the front fork off of it, it was still bigger than is normally allowed for a checked bag. After pleading our case with the ticket agent at Southwest Airlines, we were allowed to bring it home with us. Now we have to figure out how to get it to Boston and back in April.

A very cool thing happened on 2/7 when we got the official word from Ruth Rivin at LMNO Productions that they will be shooting a documentary about us (tentatively titled "Marathon Love") for the Discovery Health Channel. It will show us training for and eventually running in this year's Boston Marathon on April 21st. It will also include footage of us receiving, tweaking, modifying, training and ultimately racing with Lynn's new racing wheelchair that was put together by A Step Ahead Prosthetics in New York. We went there on February 12 to see the chair for the first time. Jamie's brother, Jason, went with us to get it all on tape. LMNO had him shoot this with a broadcast-ready HD camera that they sent to him. Apart from that, there will probably be stuff about the "Lynn and Jamie Story" along with Annalyn training for her first 5K this May.

The totals are in for 2007. Jamie ran 1581.33 miles of which 1258 were with Lynn and 101.49 were with Annalyn. Annalyn did a total of 133.57 miles of running and 50 on her bike.

Our Runner's World issue turned out great. It was the December issue of last year and there was a great picture of us running with Annalyn and a wonderful story written by Gail Kislevitz of Runner's World. There is a picture of us in the current (February 2008) issue. It's a small one from the Heroes Awards Banquet at the bottom of David Willey's column. There's a short blurb about us in the Heroes Awards wrapup on Page 75. There's also a brief mention of us in the March '08 issue explaining how A Step Ahead Prosthetics is making Lynn's new racing chair for free.

Well, we did it! We needed to break 3:30:00 at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon on 9/30 to qualify for the Boston Marathon. Our training said we should finish somewhere around 3:15:00 and we came in with a time of 3:15:24. Not without a few anxious moments, though. Then again, we ALWAYS have anxious moments when we're doing a big race.

New video/slide show presentation of the Toronto Waterfront Marathon put together by Jamie's brother, Jason. Check it out here.

Toronto Marathon 3.wmv (may take a couple of minutes to load).

We did an interview with the Globe and Mail (Canada's equivalent to USA Today). It turned out surprisingly well. Usually, when we do a phone interview, the reporter gets a few things mixed up. Not this time. Check it out on the "Articles" link.

THE TORONTO STORY

The story starts on Friday, 9/28/07, when the three of us drove along with Jamie's brother, Jason, and his family 10 hours to Toronto. We actually checked in to our hotel after midnight so technically it was Saturday when we got there. On Saturday we picked up Jamie's Dad from the airport (can't imagine why he didn't want to drive with us). Then we all went to the Marathon Expo at the Convention Center so we could get our race number (602) and timing chip for the race. We went back to the hotel so we could do our workouts. Lynn and I did a 1.8 mile tuneup running around the block 4 times. A guy pulled up next to us during this and said that he saw the article that was in Friday's Globe and Mail. It was very well written. One of the best articles ever done about us.

We met up with Lynn's brother, Mike and his wife, Rosalee and went to the CN Tower. That was awesome. Up until a few weeks earlier, it was the tallest free-standing structure in the world. On one level, you can stand on a plexiglass floor and see all the way to the ground. Kind of freaky. Not for Annalyn, though. She was walking on it, lying down on it for pictures and even jumping on it. Weird kid. We went out for a nice dinner afterwards and then went back to the hotel to get a good night's sleep before the marathon on Sunday. Here's where the mistake was made that led to anxious moment number one. Jamie has a habit of not setting his watch forward or backward if we travel to a different time zone. He just figures out what time it is by adding or subtracting from his watch or alarm clock. He brought the clock from home because he didn't want to risk something happening like the hotel alarm not going off or the front desk forgetting to do the wakeup call. The plan was to get up at 5:00 A.M. Toronto time and meet up with Jason and his family at 5:40 so we could be down at the start area by 6:00. That would give us an hour to take care of anything else that might come up before the race started at 7:00. So instead of setting the alarm for 4:00 (5:00 Toronto time), Jamie set it for 5:00 and went to sleep. Everyone was still asleep when Jason knocked on the door at 5:40. Much freaking out ensued but we all managed to get ready in record time and we got to the start area about 6:25.

Jason and his family dropped us off along with Jamie's Dad and Annalyn. Jamie's Dad, Jason and his wife, Jen were all going to videotape Lynn and Jamie at several points during the race. Jason had it all planned out ahead of time with maps and directions for everyone.  After we were dropped off, Charlie (Jamie's Dad) and Annalyn had to go and find a good place to tape the start from because they weren't allowed in the start area. Lynn and Jamie found the start corral where they would begin from (the organizers have runners line up according to their projected finish times so we went in the 3:10-3:20 section). It was 6:35 and Jamie still needed to find a port-a-john to "take care of business" before the race. Lynn stayed at the start and Jamie searched for one with a short line. This is where anxious moment number two comes in. The lines were snaking around all over the place so Jamie just picked what looked like the shortest. He kept checking his watch and at 6:55 there were still maybe 15 people in line in front of him so he had to bail out and head back to Lynn (who was freaking out herself wondering why Jamie wasn't back yet). Jamie was convinced that he would have to find a port-a-john at some point on the course and stop to go. There wasn't even time to stretch before the gun went off.

Weather was absolutely perfect for a race. It was 58 degrees and overcast with no wind, humidity or any chance of rain. The temperature did climb as the race went along which became a factor closer to the end. A marathon is 26.2 miles long but in Canada, they use the metric system so the course was marked every kilometer (42.2 of them). This actually worked in our favor because it made it easier to deal with mentally when your next split is coming just over a half mile away. The plan was to try and hold a pace of 4:30 per kilometer for as long as possible. This would have us finish around 3:10:00 but we knew we would probably slow a bit towards the end so it would give us enough of a cushion to get our goal of 3:15:00. Our training went so well that we knew that barring something unforseen, we should easily break the 3:30:00 that we needed to qualify for the Boston Marathon. A few unforseen things did come up. Of course they did. They always do. The course is advertised as flat and fast and a great Boston qualifier. I would amend that to say that it's MOSTLY flat. There were a couple of good-sized hills that we had to deal with. Nothing huge but just long and gradual. Then there were the train and trolley tracks. They don't mix very well with wheelchair wheels. I'm guessing that we went over at least 50 sets of these. Last, but not least, were the speed bumps. Out on the Leslie Spit (a landfill at the east end of the course), there were probably 15-20 speed bumps that we had to go over on the way out and then again on the way back.

The start corral that we were in was maybe 50 yards from the start line so it took us about 20 seconds from the time the gun went off until we got to the line. There were over 2000 runners so it took us some time to weave our way through and find some open space. Several runners told us during the race that they had seen the Globe and Mail story. We held our 4:30/kilometer pace pretty well until we got out to the speed bumps. Jamie was alternating drinking water and Gatorade while taking an energy gel every 5 kilometers (3 miles). That system worked well until the temperature started to rise and the water and Gatorade bottles started to empty. Starting at around 35K (21 miles), Jamie started taking Gatorade from the volunteers at the aid stations and then dumping water over his head (a few times dousing Lynn). It was around here that our pace started to slow slightly. We started doing kilometers closer to the 4:40-4:50 range. Then with about 3 miles (5K) to go, Jamie's left calf started to cramp up. ANOTHER anxious moment. We were well inside our Boston qualifying time so unless he stopped and walked the rest of the way, we would make it. He told himself that he wanted to run the whole way so he just put his head down and kept pushing. The spectators along the course were wonderful, cheering us and our fellows runners along. There were a few sections where there weren't very many spectators and from 37-40K was one of them. The cheering can really help you through a rough spot physically so with no one there to cheer, it made it all the more difficult to deal with the leg cramps. There was a very rough patch of road on this section also. It was like asphalt with gravel mixed in. We went over the same stretch near the beginning of the race and got through it OK, but when we hit it near the end, it felt like we were going through sand. Jamie was praying a lot during the race but it was more focused at this point. It started to seem like the kilometer flags were farther and farther apart as we got closer to the finish. We saw Jamie's family videotaping at I think 9 points along the course. From 40K to the finish (the last 1 1/2 miles) was back downtown so there were many more people cheering on the sides of the road. That helped a lot. At about 200 yards to the finish, there was a small rise in the road. Nothing major but as we went up, it felt like someone had reached down and grabbed Jamie's left calf muscle and twisted it as hard as they could. It nearly brought Jamie to a walk momentarily but just then he saw Charlie and Annalyn cheering. That was all he needed. They crossed the line in 3:15:24. Lynn's brother, Mike and Jamie's brother, Jason were there to congratulate us.

We hooked up with everyone else within a few minutes and high fives were all around. Lynn and Jamie each called their moms and Jamie called his brother, Mike to let them know we made it. We needed to get back to the hotel because, even with them granting us a late checkout because of the marathon, after 1:00 we would be charged for an extra day. We still had to shower and Annalyn had to do her run (she did 1/2 mile Saturday and Sunday on the street behind the hotel). Traffic was pretty congested as we headed back and then about 2 blocks from the hotel, police were turning cars around because the street ahead was blocked off for a Walk For The Cure fundraising walk for breast cancer. Jason dropped off the three of us and we walked (Jamie limped) back to the hotel. Annalyn did her run and we had just enough time to shower and load up the van before 1:00 rolled around. We met up with Lynn's brother, Mike one more time at a nearby McDonald's for lunch and then hit the road back. Charlie had taken a shuttle back to the airport for his flight back to Chicago. 10 hours later, we were back at home sweet home. 

THE END

We got some very cool news on 8/20 of last year. It started with an e-mail I received on 8/14 from Runner's World Magazine. It was from Katie Neitz, their Senior Editor. It said, "We are amazed by your athletic achievements and think your story would be inspiring for our readers to hear. We'd like to cover you in an upcoming issue of Runner's World." She went on to say that a writer would be contacting us in the near future for an interview. Well that's pretty cool. It gets better. We didn't hear anything for nearly a week but then one morning, I got a phone call from Debbie Maish,  the Church Secretary at our church, Eagle Rock Community. She said that there was a message in her voice mail from a woman at Runner's World who was trying to contact me (if you scroll down a bit, you'll see a link to the Eagle Rock website. She must have gotten the phone number from that and called Debbie). She said in the voice mail message that she had been trying to e-mail us and they kept getting returned to her. It turns out she had been adding an "s" to our e-mail address and it kept getting sent back to her as "unknown."  Later on in the day, I was able to contact Katie and she said that we would be getting a call from David Willey. She didn't go into much detail though. David Willey is Editor-In-Chief of Runner's World. Maybe an hour later, he called and said that Lynn and I are going to be honored (along with a few others) in their December issue as "Heroes Of The Year."  WOW!! They sent a photographer out on 9/13. We did a 20-minute interview with the writer, Gail Kislevitz. It gets even better. On top of that, they will be flying us out to New York City to be honored at their Heroes Banquet on November 3rd.  We've received a few honors over the years (Olympic Torchbearers, TV appearances, magazine and newspaper articles), and it's always very humbling. I'm not always sure why these things happen but I think it may have to do with what happened to Lynn 20 years ago. Maybe this is the Lord's way of giving Lynn a little pleasure to offset the struggles that she goes through every day.

Annalyn did her first ever one mile run on 7/19. It was on our neighborhood course and she did it in 10:32. She still runs every day and on 2/3, HER streak hit ONE YEAR! Wow! She's lowered her mile PR to 8:06 now.

She took swimming lessons over the past two summers at the Park District.She also likes to ride her bike along with Mom and Dad on their neighborhood training runs. We did most of our long training on the Old Plank Trail and she actually rode 14 miles while we ran one time. At this rate, she'll be doing triathlons by the time she's 9.

After last year's Cinco De Mayo 5K, we visited a local church where a friend of mine, Mitch Alvarez, is the Worship Leader (Music Leader). He told me that we were going to freak when we saw the Youth Pastor's message. Mind you, no one else knew that we were coming to visit this church. It was only because it's near my Mom's new house and she and my youngest brother and his family want to see if it's a place that they would enjoy going. The last part of the sermon was about togetherness and perserverance through tough times in a relationship. Then they showed a video of Dick and Rick Hoyt. They are the father/son team that race together the same way we do with Dick pushing Rick because he has Cerebral Palsy. They've done many Boston Marathons, the Ironman Triathlon and have even ridden across the country on a specially made bike. They were our inspiration for starting to run together back in 1991. Amazing that this video ran on the Sunday that we visited because as far as I know, Lynn and I are the only other couple in the US (and maybe the WORLD) to race this way and finish a marathon. We've since found out that there is a man in Canada who pushes his daughter in her wheelchair and also does marathons. IN fact, they ALSO did the Waterfront Marathon in Toronto last year.

We were planning on doing the Chicago Marathon last year and trying to finish in under 3:30 so that we could qualify for and run this year's Boston Marathon. After initially missing the registration deadline due to it hitting the limit of 45,000 runners by mid-April, we were able to snag a spot in exchange for raising funds for a charity that we know well, Restoration Ministries in Harvey, IL. Our church has had a longstanding relationship with them and their Director, Ray Banks, has visited our church and spoken on many occasions.  We thought we would have no problem because we only needed to raise $500 for them by October. Then I got an e-mail a couple of weeks later from my contact at Restoration Ministries. After sending in our race application, she got a call telling her that we would not be allowed to do the race with me pushing Lynn. We have done it twice previously so I don't see what the problem would be. After a few calls back and forth with Carey Pinkowski, the Race Director, he told us that because the size of the race has grown from 12,000 to 45,000 since we last did the race, their new Insurance Liability policy does not allow for wheelchair pushers or anything like that. Crud. Well, so much for that idea.

Annalyn has an "official" running streak going now. She had been running every day since 2/4/07 but started out slow and short. Most days she would only do once or twice around the 1/3 mile block that we live on. Starting on 8/1/08, she began doing at least one mile every day. That's the minimum you need to run to have an official streak. She is stoked about having her own "streak" going, just like Dad. We don't force her to do it because then it would feel like a chore and she would probably lose interest quickly. Childhood obesity is a growing problem in this country in this iPod/Nintendo age and we're thrilled that she wants to keep herself fit. As of 10/31/08 she had done 92 consecutive "official" days. She has run a total of 429.42 miles since she started running on 2/4/07.

Jamie had hernia surgery in January 2007 and it went well. AND the running streak continued (thank God and Vicodin). It is now coming up to the 17-year mark. For his 15th "anniversary" his family surprised him with a dinner in his honor and gave him a very nice shadow box with an engraving commemorating the achievement (all while we were watching the Bears lose the Super Bowl). He had to cut way back on his running. Only a mile a day the first week after the surgery (and at around 10:00 miles). Up to two miles a day for the second week,  three for the third, four for the fourth, etc.  He was off work for about a month.

Annalyn is in Fourth Grade at Bannes Elementary. Her teacher is Mrs. Lucca and Annalyn says she's great. Mrs. Lucca returns the compliment.

Our Yellow Lab, Lulu, turned 3 on 8/26/08. There have been a few times when I wasn't sure she would survive until then (chewing everything in the house, etc.).

We had a Letter To The Editor in the July 2006 issue of Runner's World magazine. They had written an article about the father-son running team of Dick and Rick Hoyt and we dropped them a line saying how that's where we got the idea to start running and racing together (Rick has Cerebral Palsy and is in a wheelchair).

In the fall of 2005, we all had been grieving for the people of the Gulf coast and wondering what we could do to help. Well, the Lord put it on Jamie's heart to try and help out in a big way. We organized a 5K Run/Walk with ALL of the proceeds going to help these fine Americans. Lynn came up with the name, the Katrina Relief 5K. It was held on October 15th of 2005 at the Tweeter Center in Tinley Park. We managed to get everyone involved to donate their time, services, materials, or cash so that everything we took in on race day could go out immediately. We raised over $5100 for the American Red Cross. Not bad for a month's planning. We had a couple hundred of our race t-shirts left over after the event so we donated them to the State Of Hope (where the Hurricane Katrina evacuees are staying at the Tinley Mental Health Center).

The race itself went well. We had good weather and because of that, 75 people signed up the morning of the race. We had a total of 172 people registered and 165 participated and finished.

It's very obvious that the Lord had his hand in this project by the way that things fell into place.

Lynn and Jamie have now entered their 3rd decade together. May 18th, 2005 was 20 years since we met at a party neither of us was planning on going to. July 18th, 2005 was 20 years since we were engaged.

On 11/14/04, at the finish line of the Tinley Turkey Trot 5K, Lynn and Jamie crossed the 10,000 mile mark of running together. We started in the summer of 1991 on a lark after Jamie was inspired by seeing Dick and Rick Hoyt doing the Boston Marathon together with one pushing the other in a wheelchair. We trained for a local 10K and finished and now, over 16 years (and several wheelchairs) later, we've made it to 10,000 (now over 14,000). Over 4000 of those miles came with our daughter, Annalyn, riding on her Mom's lap. She's too big now to do that anymore.

We have some other important people in our lives who need prayer for various issues. If you have the time throw a few out for Mike, Jason, Butch, Marilyn and Jack.

Jamie's obsessive running streak reached the 16-year mark on 1/28. To keep the streak alive, he has to run at least a mile every day (although he still does 30 miles a week). There have been several times when the streak nearly ended due to the flu or nagging minor injuries (plantar fasciitis, ITB syndrome, broken elbow) and hernia surgery. There was one time where it nearly ended because Jamie fell asleep. He was planning on doing his run late at night around 11:00. He fell asleep in the recliner and woke up just in time to get it done before midnight.

ANNALYN is 9 years old now. We want her to stay like this. Forever.

My youngest bro, Jason, helped set up and design our new website. Thanks, J!

Lynn and Jamie were EACH given the honor of carrying the Olympic Torch when the Torch Relay came through Chicago in January, 2002. It was an incredible experience for both of us.

Annalyn made her television debut on 5/1/00 on  Miracle Babies. It ran on the PAX-TV network. Hope you got to see it. It was great. 

Our story was mentioned in the 2/8/00 issue of Variety. 

It's a small world again. The guy that edited  the TV show out in Hollywood is the son of the receptionist at our former dentist's office.

Annalyn turned 9 on August 23rd. WOW! She is 4 feet, 1 inch  tall and  weighs 67 pounds. She is now in 4th Grade. She is very talkative and loves to sing and dance. She has a great sense of humor. She loves High School Musical (and especially Zac Efron), Hannah Montana, Zach and Cody, Drake and Josh,  Mythbusters, Stormchasers, Dancing With The Stars, iCarly, John and Kate plus 8 and Dirty Jobs. Her new favorite shows are on the Food Network and WWE wrestling. She watches them all the time. Weird kid.