 Strider member Mike Brooks of Benton, Maine, is celebrating his 70th birthday this year by attempting to run seven marathons in seven days in seven states—all to raise funds for Camp Sunshine.
Camp Sunshine, located on Maine's Sebago Lake, is a place of retreat for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. The program is free of charge to families and includes on-site medical and psychosocial support. Mike will take on his "Riverboat Challenge" April 17 through April 23 starting with a marathon in Louisiana, followed by ones in Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, and Illinois. Those seven marathons also will bring him closer to completing his 500th marathon. An Auburn, Maine, firefighter for 33 years, Mike's transition from an overweight, two-pack a day smoker to an ultrarunning man is incredibly inspiring! He's completed the 135-mile Badwater Ultramarathon (and kept on going another 22 miles to the summit of Mt. Whitney), 24-hour races, the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence Six Day Race (320 miles completed), and the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence Ten Day Race (491 miles completed). And he's raised thousands of dollars for Camp Sunshine along the way. Mike is currently just over halfway to his goal of raising $15,000 for this worthy cause. You can read more about Mike, his marathon challenge, and donate to the fundraiser at: https://www.crowdrise.com/mikebrooks70thcelebration/fundraiser/campsunshineatsebago Good luck, Mike! We're rooting for you. Longtime Striders member Jerry Allanach of Naperville, Illinois, sent in the following race report after running the Catalina Island Marathon in California this March. Striders like Gene Roy and Ron Paquette that ran with me back in the '80s will likely recall how much I have always loved this California trail run. While starting and finishing at sea level, in between the roller-coaster run through mountains adds an estimated 4,310 vertical feet of climbing, and of course that means you also have to experience a much more muscle punishing 4,310 feet of running downhill. Since I’m getting near the end of my marathon days I decided to run it for the first time in seven years on March 19, 2016. It was my 13th Catalina Marathon and as usual it was a great experience. As we age we have to get somewhat creative when claiming victory, so here is my self-proclaimed marathon triple crown.
Thanks for sharing, Jerry!
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