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|  52 Marathons in 52 Weekends By Dane Rauschenberg March/April 2007 For the Washington Running Report Below Dane races in the Richmond Marathon.
The story I have to share is the running of 52 consecutive
weekly marathons in one calendar year. A quest I
dubbed "Fiddy2." The focus of my running was to benefit the
Mobile, Alabama chapter of L'Arche, an international
organization that works with mentally and physically challenged
individuals. I am getting ahead of myself slightly by mentioning what was
the driving force behind more than a year's worth of efforts.
But the fact remains, L'Arche Mobile is indeed an integral part
of the long answer to the question I am most often asked when
others learn about Fiddy2: Why? The most succinct and truthful answer I can give is "why not?"
Indeed, the motivation behind many of the things I have done in
my life is often simply nothing more than a desire to push
myself to do something I have never attempted before.
Sometimes, that same driving force also happens to be a desire
to push myself to do something no one has ever attempted
before. But the real genesis behind the idea to do something
many would call "crazy" is more complex than the succinct "why
not?" To begin, I have always aspired to maintain an extremely high
level of physical fitness. In addition, having traveled very
little in my life before college, the thought of seeing new
places and faces not only across the United States, but also
around the world makes my pulse race. So it is no surprise to those who know me that the idea of
running so many marathons in such a short span of time came to
me so suddenly. That said, by completing this adventure, I have
gathered together a collection of facts, trivia, and
experiences that only a few ever have. And it is my desire to
impart upon others tales of all of the wonderful (and not-so-
wonderful) people and events which crossed my path in 2006
while I raced 1,362.4 miles. Two separate and very special
marathons illustrate the highs and lows like few others can.
When Fiddy2 began the first weekend in January at the Walt
Disney Marathon, I had no idea it would almost come to a
screeching halt in the first weekend of July. But this is
exactly what happened when my shuttle to the airport was late,
which made me miss my flight to Denver. Instead of being in
midair, I spent the vast majority of the last day in June
sitting nearly 2,000 miles and less than 24 hours away from the
start of the Leadville Marathon, frantically trying to find a
last minute ticket to Denver over the Fourth of July weekend. Ticket prices were well over one thousand dollars, if I could
find them at all. Eschewing credit cards, I had very limited
cash resources to purchase a ticket, so I had to find something
that would not overdraw my bank account. As the night wore on,
I would nap for a little bit, wake up, hop on the Internet, and
pray the prices had gone down. Finally, two hours before the self-imposed deadline wherein my
best friend and I had decided we would drive straight to
Leadville from my house in Arlington, Virginia (in alternating
six-hour shifts with me sleeping the last six before we ended
up in Leadville), I found a reasonably priced ticket.
Unfortunately, this ticket only got me into Denver, and
therefore subsequently Leadville, home of one of the world's
most difficult marathons, just a few hours before the start of
the race. But with no other choice, I climbed aboard, rested as
much as I could, and tried my best to not think of the race
that topped 13,000 feet at its highest point. Before I could think, the race was upon me. The gun fired and I
was off. Fifty minutes in, I was covered in sweat and
exhausted. I then realized I had only gone 3.8 miles (where the
first aid station was located). With my leg having been injured
the week before, it was all I could do to press forward as the
miles crept by at a snail's pace. I would stop to rub my calf,
run with a straight leg to minimize its usage, and do about
everything I could think of to alleviate the pain. But this was
pain that would only cease when I would stop running. So I
pressed on. Mile upon mile, all I could think about was how much pain I was
in but how happy I was to be in that pain. I could have still
been stuck on the East Coast with the dream of Fiddy2
shattered. Instead, I was running. And for that I was happy. Hours later, I stood at the last aid station refilling for my
final sprint to the end. I could see the city of Leadville in
the distance. Soon thereafter, I crossed the finish line in
5:17:31, nearly two hours slower than I averaged for the entire
year; good enough for a top 50 finish, however. I was halfway
done with Fiddy2 and had overcome the greatest obstacle to date
in a year of obstacles. Perseverance had paid off. However,
while many more obstacles would need to be overcome, one in
particular loomed: there was no marathon in the penultimate
weekend of the year. Drake Well Marathon
At the end of July an uncomfortable truth became a reality. Any
chance of a marathon being run on the weekend before Christmas
had officially moved from slim to none. For whatever reason,
even the so-called Christmas Marathon in Washington was run on
the week before Christmas. My search and subsequent wishes for
a resolution ended without fruit as no marathon appeared in
that open slot. By way of background, in 2006 I received a crash course not
only in the running of marathons, but also in the history and
traditions of marathons. Because of this, I came to the
realization that I simply had to run a marathon on Christmas
weekend and that marathon had to be a "real" marathon.
Arguments can be made either way as to what makes a
marathon "real." But I determined that one of the major things
setting me apart from others this year was the fact that I was
running a certified marathon, every single weekend in 2006,
with no exceptions. This meant I could not run a double on one weekend to make up
for time where I may have wished to rest or where I would have
enjoyed putting a few marathons in the bank, so to speak, for
later. Therefore, my original idea of finding a 26.2-mile
course or a 5K course and looping it around fell by the
wayside. I either had to find a marathon or make one. With none
available, I chose the latter course. But how and where? Like a thunderclap, the Drake Well Marathon
was born. I cannot pinpoint when it hit me but it seemed so
simple. I only needed to: put together a race in my hometown
where the course layout would be simple, and run around a track
until the marathon distance was covered. But I knew that simply
running laps for 26.2 miles (or more) would not satisfy all the
other requirements. So, I decided to get the course certified,
have an open registration, have it chip-timed and solve
problems the best way I know how: by doing things myself. In case you do not want to do the math, running a marathon on a
track is approximately 105.5 times around. So, I got in touch
with my old high school track coach and enlisted his help.
Soon, the track was secured. I then contacted someone to do
both the chip timing as well as the official certification.
Done. The biggest hurdles were now out of the way. However, the Drake Well Marathon could never have been
completed without its runners (or honestly, my family, who were
invaluable in their assistance before, during, and after the
race). I never would have thought that my limit of 25 runners
would be reached so quickly. However, even on the day before
the race I was still turning runners away. (Doing so was
especially hard as the registration fee was a $100 donation to
L'Arche Mobile. Yet, I knew logistically I could not handle
more than the first 25 runners on my own, so it was a sacrifice
I had to make.) And six hours after it started on December 23rd, the last of
the finishers crossed the line. With four runners setting
personal bests and a few qualifying for Boston, I could only
beam with pride. I had solved the second of the largest
obstacles of Fiddy2. One week later, I would successfully race
my 52nd consecutive weekly marathon and Fiddy2 would be
complete. I had flown 125 flights over 85,000 miles. I had run 2,000 plus
miles throughout the year with nearly 75 percent of those
being "race miles." I had run a race in 25 different states,
two Canadian provinces, Washington, DC, and the Cayman Islands.
I had run a sub-3 hour marathon. But most importantly, when I
crossed the finish line third overall in Springfield, Missouri,
I had done exactly what I said I would way back in the spring
of 2005: I had run a single marathon, every single weekend in
2006, without fail. Luckily for me, along the way, I was
touched by and learned so much from hundreds of people. While I
received praise from them for my accomplishments, I can only
hope to someday let all of them know how much they have meant
to me. While I still strive to reach the goal of $52,000 raised for
L'Arche Mobile (I am presently about $15,000 short), I know
that I have done more than I could have possibly hoped just a
few short months ago. The year itself, even with all of its
awful travel experiences and hardships, gave back to me much
more than I could ever have given to it. And for that, all the trouble was worth it.
Where Did He Run?
January Walt Disney World Marathon 3:48:18 Legg Mason Funds First Light Marathon 3:28:29 Gold's Gym Orlando Xtreme Marathon 3:40:06 ING Miami Tropical Marathon 3:31:30 While the running of Fiddy2 is complete, Dane continues to raise money to reach his goal of $52,000. If you wish to donate, go to Dane's Web site: www.fiddy2.org and click on "Donate Now!"
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