Free to Breath Lung Cancer Mile Walk Report

Okay, so this isn't a race report. But, I took part in the mile-walk portion of a race event. So, this account is running related, I think. Besides, it's my blog. And, I'll post whatever I like.

The family and I participated in the Free to Breathe Lung Cancer 5k/Mile Run Walk this past Saturday, November 6, in Raleigh. Since both my wife and I lost our mothers to lung cancer in the past six years, this event held particular significance to us.

We elected to walk the mile in lieu of the 5k, mostly because dragging along three little boys for this family event would have been disasterous over the course of 3.1 miles. And, since my darling wife had other plans that morning, I didn't have time to run the race immediately following the mile walk. This was for the best, though, since I'm still in reverse-taper mode after October's marathon.

It was a chilly Saturday morning with overcast skies and a slight, intermittent drizzle. I was cold in my three layers—tech-tee, long-sleeve event tee, and cotton hoodie—and we had the three boys bundled in winter coats.

The event was well organized in the registration area. There was something of a rally before the walk commenced. And, it was touching to see the handful of lung cancer survivors leading the walk. The chill put a damper on things, since it was hard to want to listen to the speakers while we were all freezing.

There were several teams there, wearing team shirts and carrying signs in honor of the people for whom they were participating. My wife and I wore stickers that indicated we were walking in memory of our moms.

In spite of the trademark fussiness of our children, which is pretty much a given at anything we try to do as a family, walking with a group of people who'd suffered a loss to lung cancer was every bit of a memorial of sorts as I'd hoped. There we were, hundreds of people walking quietly on a cold morning in honor of people we loved.

We'll be back again next year. Maybe one of us will even run.