I am not a Reston Runner, but felt compelled to also share our story. For a month prior to the 2002 JFK 50 race, my team had consulted the Reston Runner links on many occasions. We found the information provided in the links and articles to be very practical and invaluable. After just finishing Anna Bradford's article, "The Reason", I felt compelled to offer, "The Reason" Part 2.

I am the principal of Earle B. Wood MS in Rockville, Maryland. We have a population of over 1,000 students in grades 6-8 and 100 professional/support staff. I began my career as history teacher and cross-country coach, running and completing the JFK 50 back in 1973 and again in 1977. The second time I ran it alone in 10 hours and viewed it as a "life-changing event" for me. I have never forgotten the sense of physical accomplishment (or the pain - couldn't walk for a week afterward ).

The second week of school this year, both of my assistant principals, Sue Shotel and Harry Williams were suddenly facing twin diagnoses of cancer. Sue's daughter, Dani had been diagnosed with Leukemia (AML the bad one) and Harry, a non-smoker had developed throat cancer without any warning signs. We had been the administrative team at Wood MS for the past 5 years and their sudden onset medical issues were devastating to all. As we lived through the horrible month of October and the sniper attacks, our school community needed a rallying point. In the end of October, I decided to form Team Wood to raise money to help defray Sue & Harry's medical bills as well as to target a positive goal for all of us to focus on.

I recruited 3 teachers and 1 former secretary to form Team Wood with me. Jason, age 32, was a history teacher and had completed 3 marathons and knew what to expect. Steve, a 27 year old English teacher was an experienced long distance cyclist. My son, Matt age 21, the former Wood MS secretary, is also a college student and avid runner/cyclist. Jeremy, age 32, a basketball player and history dept. chairperson with the least running experience rounded out the group. Though all of us were athletic and in good physical condition, we did not have the "miles under our belt" that were necessary to truly prepare for this event. Because of my past experience with the JFK, I did know what to expect and had great respect for the potential for physical injury, but also knew that a small, committed team could pull each other along, and persevere to the finish line as one unit.

We would much rather have run a 10-k road race or even the Marine Corps Marathon, but it was all about timing and symbolism. President John F. Kennedy had been the author of, "Profiles in Courage" and it seemed that the JFK 50 and Team Wood personified just that. In addition, middle schools are made up of interdisciplinary instructional teams and working together as a team is second nature for middle school staff. We had a local printer donate his services and 5,000 Team Wood pledge flyers were developed as Team Wood did what they could to raise their daily level of mileage preparation while trying desperately to not get injured.

It quickly became a community effort as we raised over $7000 before race day. One of our families contributed rooms for the night before at the Hillside Motel near Weverton Cliffs. The morning of the race, a student and her father drove all the way to Boonsboro just to see us off at the 5:00 am start, which was very inauspicious as we were late getting out of the motel and were 200 yards from the starting line when the gun sounded. Trailing the crowd up route 40, we were greeted by jack 'o lanterns glowing in the dark as we turned off onto the Appalachian Trail. By then we had worked our way into the middle of a human snake line and had settled in for the long haul. Jason gave us a bit of excitement when he dropped his penlight into the deep leaves, never to be seen again. As we got to the top of Lamb's Knoll, the groups had spaced out a bit, the sun came up, and we were able to do some jogging on downhills and flats, ever mindful of the precarious footing. For the rest of the trail section, many participants near us would trip and fall as a reminder to us to be careful. I chuckled as I remembered a line from one of your older website articles, "It's not a trail run unless someone falls down !" Less than a ½ mile from the top of Weverton Cliffs the 7:00am leaders caught up to us. Lots of advance warnings from other "early birds" ensured that we all moved over to support and cheer on the speedsters without impeding their progress.

We felt the same sense of relief that everyone feels upon reaching the bottom of the cliffs. The cheering crowds and aid station were a bonus for us. Still together, the 5 members of Team Wood began the "marathon within a marathon" on the C&O Canal in very high spirits. Unlike other runners, our plan was to run for 5 minutes at each mile marker, then walk the rest of the way to the next. This strategy worked well for us as we found a rhythm averaging 13 minute miles for quite a while. Two interpreters from our school's Deaf/Hard of Hearing program cheered us on at Harper's Ferry and my wife Judy and daughter Caitlin, were there at Dargen Bend for our first real "support stop". We quaffed Gatorade, took ibuprophen, and I changed socks and stuck on some athletic tape after feeling the beginning of a nasty blister caused by the constant "hopping" on the AT. Things went smoothly from there until our big stop at Antietam Aqueduct.

Sue & Harry, Wood MS' assistant principals were there at Antietam along with girlfriends, wives, and other family members for the mile 27 reunion. More Gatorade, clif bars, and about 100 pictures were taken in 10 minutes. It was the highlight of the day for us. Harry & Dani were there, fresh from their respective chemotherapy sessions only days earlier. Only a few miles down the towpath we ran into 5 of our teachers who had come out to run several miles with us. We enjoyed their company down past the bridge to Shepherdstown.

Near mile 34, Jeremy had had it and told the team he was dropping out. Jason, his best friend, convinced him to stay with us a little longer. Jeremy had the least preparation, was sweating badly, not drinking/eating enough, and was the only one who had not seen his wife so far that day. If you have ever been in this race, you understand the effect the presence/absence of your family members can have on your morale. As we made it to the "38 Special" aid station, Jeremy said he was through. I walked over to remind him of the cliché, "Pain is temporary, Pride is forever" and to "request" that he continue with us. I was his boss, how could he look at me and tell me "No"?

Rob, one of our Physical Education instructors showed up out of nowhere and told Jeremy that he would "pace" him. We left "38 Special" behind with the knowledge that "anyone can do 12 miles". It was at about that time that a RR bike rider came by with "Ride of the Valkyries" blasting from his portable boombox. How prophetic. We walked more of the next 4 miles than we ran, reaching that beautiful sight, Dam #4 minutes before the deadline. The "climb" up the hill signaled our last 8 miles and we had only 2 hours left to go. Jeremy was hurting badly and all of our encouragement was falling on deaf ears, but still he plodded on. We had vowed that Team Wood would compete and finish as one.

The next several miles were just plain painful for everyone. Still sticking together, we considered each mile marker a victory in itself. At mile 48, Jeremy's wife yelled out to him from a nearby car. He sprouted wings and we all began jogging the last few miles into the town of Williamsport. A quarter mile before the finish line we shed our running jackets so that we could run onto the middle school grounds sporting our Wood Middle School PE uniform shirts. We ran those last yards and crossed the finish line only 15 minutes under the 14 hour time limit, 5 abreast, smiling from ear to ear. Team Wood had triumphed. Everyone had finished, no one had quit.

As of today (2/17/03) Team Wood has raised over $13,000 to support Harry & Dani's medical bills. In a special ceremony back at school in December, Sue and Harry were presented with JFK medals as a tribute to the courage and perseverance necessary for the much longer race that they were in. Harry has just finished his last radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Sue is out in Seattle, Washington with her daughter, Dani who has just undergone a difficult bone marrow transplant. The matching donor had been found in Germany. We are cautiously optimistic and both are in our daily prayers. On that long day in November we all learned that a team is stronger than an individual.

Look for me next November in my Wood PE uniform shirt. It will be two weeks before my 50th birthday and my goal for 2003 is " JFK 50 by 50".