Two Trials

• We have some images from the marathon posted in the gallery. There will be more coming shortly.
• Runner’s World has an article called Emily LeVan: One Trials Down, One to Go that is definitely worth reading.
• The piece that aired last week on NBC Nightly News is available on YouTube. If you didn’t get a chance to see it when it aired, it’s really worth watching.
• We should have some new fundraising totals soon. Thanks to everyone who has made donations recently. If you haven’t yet donated to support the important work done by the Maine Children’s Cancer Program there is still some time left.

After enduring weather on marathon weekend in Boston, like searing heat and a nor’easter, I think the weather gods were smiling on the BAA yesterday for the Olympic Trials.  The day dawned crisp and cool, and the temperatures remained nearly ideal for marathoners throughout the entire race.  The headwind on Memorial Drive in Cambridge was about the only bit of weather with which we had to contend.

Going into the race, I was unsure of my fitness level.  I knew I wouldn’t be setting a PR yesterday; my primary goal was to feel good and enjoy the experience.  I started in the back of the pack and was happy by how I fell into a nice rhythm early on, despite a fall at mile 2 which left me with “road rash” on my shoulder and knee.  I ran mostly 6:15 pace for the first half of the race, and slowed a bit during the second half, although I’m not sure by how much, as I decided to quit checking my splits around mile 15.  My finishing time was in many ways insignificant; I wanted to enjoy “the ride”, for the journey to get to this point had been a long one.  My final finishing time of 2:45.45 was the slowest marathon I have run since well before Maddie was born, but this race was probably the sweetest victory of any race I have ever run, trumping a then-PR performance at the World Championships in Helsinki in 2005 and PR performance at Boston in 2006.

I was completely overwhelmed by the outpouring of support for me, Maddie, and Two Trials, as I ran along the loop course.  I loved getting to recognize many of these people in the crowd, as they have truly helped to bolster me and my family not just on this day but throughout the last several months.  Family, friends, and people who I didn’t personally know, but have followed our journey, deserve a big thanks for helping us reach one of our goals.  I enjoyed getting to celebrate this accomplishment with all of you.

One of my post-marathon rituals is a cheeseburger, fries, and either a chocolate milkshake or a beer, but, after getting back to the hotel and chatting with friends and family for a while, I started to feel nauseated.  Yuck!  It was especially a bummer because David had bought 6 tickets to the Red Sox game which started at 1:35pm.  I had to rally!  After a brief collapse on the bed in my room (no puking was involved), I choked down a banana and some water and started to feel like a new person.  Brad and I were able to meet the gang at the game by the 3rd inning only to find that the Sox were down 2-0 and Manny had just been tossed from the game.  It turned out to be a great game; the Sox slowly worked their way back and took the lead in the bottom of the 8th inning.

Jeff, my coach, said,”The race will come a go before you know it.”   Even though getting to the starting line seemed to take a Herculean effort, the 2 hours and 45 minutes did pass by quickly.  I will keep, however, snapshots of the experience in my mind - the groups of friends and supporters scattered along the course, my family stationed near the start/finish line, and Maddie on Brad’s shoulders shaking a little red cow bell and cheering furiously.  Having her here and able to enjoy the experience was bigger and more important than any PR.

While my Trial is over, hers continues as furiously as ever.  She didn’t make her counts on Thursday, so this morning I’ll draw her blood again and run it to a hospital here in Boston, hoping that she will now make counts and be able to have treatment on Tuesday involving a lumbar puncture, two new IV chemo medications and one new oral chemo medication.  Surprising to me, too, is that her hair has started to fall out in chunks; she is now nearly bald on top and in the back.  I suppose the fact that it is falling out is not surprising; it is something that we had prepared ourselves for early on.  When it didn’t happen initially, we thought it wouldn’t happen at all.  I’ve had a hard time with it, as it is yet another physical manifestation and reminder of her disease.  Maddie, however, isn’t phased by it; she just chuckles and hands me chunks of her hair.  So, I try to follow the lead of “Little Miss No Big Deal” (as her Aunt Kelly likes to call her); it will always grow back…

And if you’re wondering, I did finally get my cheeseburger, fries, and beer.

Update: We have confirmed that the segment on Emily and Maddie will air tonight, April 17th, on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams. Look here to find out when it airs in your area. If you prefer, you will be able to watch the show streamed over the internet after 10pm ET.

Wow! We just added the proceeds from a number of different events into the total and came up with a whopping $64,185. We can’t believe it! Thank you to everyone who has contributed to TwoTrials. Your contributions go directly to the MCCP to help children like Maddie. By the way, if you want to know more about what the MCCP does, check out their video, which is now on our page about them.

The other big news is that NBC Nightly News is going to run a profile on us tonight or tomorrow night. They were here last weekend filming a segment to air on the national news before the Trials. We don’t yet know when it will run, but we will let you know as soon as we know. In the meantime, check here to find out when NBC Nightly News runs in your area.

I did not run one mile this week, and I did not have to endure any chemo either.  As husband and father, my role over the past weeks has been largely behind the scenes.  This week, as the Trials draw near and Maddie finished her 21-day course of steroids, I decided it was time to log in and add some thoughts from my perspective.

These steroid treatments are perhaps the hardest portion if the treatment to bear as a parent, because they make your child so very uncomfortable, tired, and generally miserable.  I suppose it was easier this time around because Emily and I could anticipate the symptoms and knew that they would pass after Maddie finished with the dexamethasone.  Still, it was agonizing to watch, particularly as we doled out the medicine morning and night that made her feel awful.  Maddie was a trooper, demonstrating a level of tenacity and grit that still amazes me.  Clearly, she got that from her mother!  I just don’t understand where she put all that food…

We are close now to the end of this part of the treatment journey, with maintenance around the corner (hopefully).  Someone asked me recently if this effort for the Trials and the fundraiser was worth it.  That question got me thinking hard about the past several months, and I am happy to say that I feel like the answer is a definite yes.  Certainly it was challenging in many ways, but I have been and continue to be so impressed with Maddie and Emily.  They have both tackled these challenges with grace, humor, humility, and tremendous determination, and I feel very fortunate to be in the same family with these two wonderful women.

I also feel fortunate to have witnessed first-hand the caring and compassion of friends, family, and even total strangers who have rolled up their collective sleeves and jumped in to help us in so many ways.  There is an Irish proverb which reads, “In the shelter of each other, the people live.” Our family has benefited enormously from what you all have provided; we have lived in your shelter.  I am hopeful that the money raised in this effort will help other families in this situation to make their journey a bit more manageable.  Thanks to one and all for your efforts!

One other note - there will be a short piece on Two Trials on the NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams. It will air this week, hopefully.  We will let you know the details when we have them.