Training Group for 26.2 with Donna

Training Group For The "26.2 With Donna"
Comes To Fernandina Beach
Oct. 27, 2007
Photos and Account by Ed Hardee

It's common to see a handful of runners out for a Saturday morning training jaunt along the roadways of Fernandina Beach, but nothing like this!

More than a hundred marathoners-in-training converged on Main Beach in the predawn darkness Oct. 27, as the weekly group training run for next February's "26.2 With Donna" marathon came to Fernandina Beach.

The marathon's namesake, First Coast News anchor Donna Deegan, was on hand to run, along with husband Tim Deegan, who received a "Happy Birthday" rendition from the crowd. Leading the 16-mile, Galloway-style training run were program directors Chris Twiggs of Fernandina Beach and Amanda Napolitano of Neptune Beach.

(Photo on Left - Above) Donna Deegan, center, with program directors Amanda Napolitano and Chris Twiggs.
The 16-mile distance is an important one, Amanda told the group -- "It means you're going to finish the marathon!"
The morning route took runners through Fort Clinch State Park and other sections of the community.

(Photo on Right - Above) Dawn Hagel, a pace group leader (and Amelia Island Runner), signed in group members before the run.

(Photo on Left - Above) State Representative Aaron Bean (who joined in with the group for their run),
with Donna and husband Tim Deegan.

The runners sang a fast-paced rendition of "Happy Birthday" to Tim, one day after his actual birthday.

(Photo on Right - Above) Chris Twiggs asked for a show of hands before the 16-mile training run:
"For how many of you is this the longest run of your life?"

Gliders
(Photo on Left - Above) The runners were divided into groups and they chose colorful names for themselves. This one was called "Gliders" to describe their smooth running style.

(Photo on Right - Above) This group adopted the name, "Sea Turtles." When they got near the beach some of them instinctively headed for the water and had to be restrained by their fellow turtles.

The visors were presented to Donna and Tim by Amelia Island Runners as a memento of their run in Fernandina.

Donna Deegan said the group "started with a handful of people," but now numbers in the hundreds. "It's great to see how it's grown."

In past years the group's goal has been running the Jacksonville Marathon, but this time they have their own race to shoot for, coming up Feb. 17, 2008.

The runners and walkers were treated to a cool, overcast day perfect for a distance run. "Excellent," said meteorologist Tim Deegan when his pace group finished back at Main Beach. "This is where running in the summer pays off -- suddenly running makes sense." And, he added, "it's always good to be back here in mellow Fernandina."

And what has it been like so far to plan for a brand-new, national marathon and half-marathon? "It's been a lot more work than I even imagined, but so worthwhile," Donna said. The goal for the first year is 5,000 runners, and participants have already signed up from almost every state and several foreign countries, she said. "This is the first national marathon ever to concentrate solely on breast cancer," she noted -- and "people love to run marathons."

Donna, herself a breast cancer survivor, was sidelined in September by a successful operation to remove a cancerous lesion from a lung. She recently wrote in her online journal that the surgery required removal of part of a rib, and after 10 days she still felt as if someone had "taken a hammer to my side."

But she was cleared to run in the Race for the Cure 5K against breast cancer on Oct. 20, and one week later, put in six miles with her training group in Fernandina Beach. It was, she said, "a lot of fun." Told that she's an inspiration to countless people with cancer, their families and friends, she said she was thankful for all the support she has received. "People," she said, "have been good to me."

The training-group runners are not only preparing themselves for the National Marathon to Fight Breast Cancer, they've pledged to raise money to help, with a goal of $1,000 per person. And they have other motivations as well.

"My mother-in-law is a breast cancer survivor, I'm doing it for her. I also have two little girls, and I don't want them to go through it," said Carolyn Graham of Jacksonville. She's never done a marathon before, but plans to try the Jacksonville Marathon in December as a trainer for the 26.2 With Donna. "I never thought I would do a marathon," she said. "The fight against breast cancer really was the incentive."

For more information about the marathon, please visit www.breastcancermarathon.com/
For more about the Donna Hicken Foundation, please visit www.donnahickenfoundation.org/

Running the Good Race and Fighting the Good Fight!