This year, Diego is "running" with Dad and friends the Full Marathon at the Flying Pig on May 1st.
Please join us to celebrate the Team and o
Update: We didi it!!
Could love, passion, teamwork and training be enough for running 26.2 miles with Diego?
The idea was suggested during the Fall of 2010, what if we run the next Flying Pig with Diego? Sounded somehow crazy as Diego is my 6 years old son, diagnosed with DMD almost 4 years ago but looked as a great opportunity to create awareness about UPA! www.upaduchenne.org and Cure Duchenne www.cureduchenne.org
I am heavily involved in many activities around my 3 sons. Both Mateo (4) and Pablo (2) attend to sports activities where they enjoy time with family and friends. For Diego is a little more complicated although we do our best to find the activities where he can participate as well as to integrate him in his brothers activities. After a few days of bouncing the idea, we committed to do our best for making it happen. A plan was established: gather a group of 5-6 friends with running experience that will help me to push Diego on a stroller through the Flying Pig. I shared the idea with Diego and he got so excited that scared me. There was no way back now. I was not going to disappoint him although I was scared as I have never ran before a full marathon.
We started the training in November 2010. The priority was to build the right strength to enjoy every minute of the long run. It was not easy as it required a lot of discipline; no excuse for missing one day of training. The weather, business trips, vacations and other factors make it more challenging but we were making progress every day. Each month we were feeling more confident of achieving our goal. The second phase was kicked off the last week of February 2011. We started to integrate Diego and the stroller in our training. I will never forget the smile of Diego while getting ready for our first run. We ran for 30 minutes around the neighborhood. I remember it as a life experience. Diego acted as a true runner, asking all kind of questions about the distance, the people, the race and the weather, including “Dad, are we going to win the Flying Pig”?. The last 8 weeks have been divided in small runs with Diego during the weekdays and long runs during the weekend pushing the stroller with tool boxes representing the 40 pounds of Diego’s weight. The last achieved mile stone was last week when we ran 21 miles.
We are 4 in the running team: Diego (6), Marco (34), Roberto (36) and I (36) and we are surrounded for a great supporting team that will join us during the race. Our strategy has been set: Have fun as a team, switching the push of Diego’s stroller every 0.5 miles with shared support during key hills through the course. All this while we increase the awareness of UPA!, engaging the world to help us in providing a better quality of life for our DMD boys and the investigations to End Duchenne!. We expect the weather to be part of Diego’s team and help us in maximizing the fun.
It is important to highlight the amazing support that we have received from our families, friends and specially from the Flying Pig team, who is providing us with their trust for making it happen. Thanks!
The initial question will be answered in a couple of weeks but you can become part of the team, how? It is very simple, just join us in one or various of the following activities:
1. Attend to the Flying Pig marathon and cheer for the UPA! Team during the race, including Diego.
2. Run with an UPA! t-shirt if you are planning to participate in any of the Flying Pig events. If you don’t have it and want one, please contact me at ramirez.aj@pg.com.
3. Share this story with others.
4. Join us in our CELEBRATION at ALL ABOUT KIDS, our Proud Sponsor for this event @ 11210 Montgomery Road, 45242. We will have a free Party to CELEBRATE the TEAM and our ACOMPLISHMENT AND GET TOGETHER.
5. Support our cause with a donation
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