How Asia Got to the Marathon

Aaron started it. Aaron was Asia's running partner for the Martian half-marathon last year when she got a PR. Last fall, after the Detroit Free Press half-marathon, he started talking about the feasibility of Asia running a full marathon. We could tell from his email that he had put a lot of thought into the logistics of making it possible. And he was willing to run it with her. Jerry, Asia and I met him for lunch one day to talk some more. We decided that we would approach her coach with the idea and get a training schedule. Then we'd see how Asia did on the longer practice runs on Saturdays. Up to that time, the longest she had run was a 14-mile practice run with Katie in September. She might get to the 20-mile practice run and decide she just didn't like those long runs. It would totally be her decision if she wanted to continue or not. We decided on the Martian Marathon because it's not as large as some (yet), it's fairly flat, compared with the practice courses Coach lays out, it's an "out and back" uncomplicated course that is fairly spectator friendly. The only problem is that the Martian is only a couple of weeks before the Boston Marathon and Aaron had qualified to run Boston. He couldn't run the whole Martian marathon just 2 weeks before. So we enlisted Katie, Asia's running partner from the Detroit half last fall. Katie had also qualified for Boston, but if they each ran 1/2 with Asia, it would be like a training run. Katie was willing, so we had our team.

Practice for the Winter 2009 session of Marathoning 501 started in January. Coach Gina developed a training schedule that allowed Asia to continue to run her 5 miles a day with gradually longer runs on Saturdays. Mid-way in the season she added back-to-back 10 mile runs on Saturday and Sunday for a couple of weekends, and an additional mid-week long run of 8 miles. The goal was to get Asia's weekly mileage up to 50 or more miles. Most Saturdays unless it snowed, Asia ran with Katie. Katie had to work on the snowy Saturdays, so Asia ran with other members of her team. On the weekends of the back-to-back 10-milers, Aaron met us in Ann Arbor on Sunday to run with Asia. She didn't miss a single Saturday long run or Tuesday workout with her team. They ran in brutally cold, face-freezing weather, calf-deep snow, ice, freezing rain and sleet. We put sheet metal screws in the bottoms of her running shoes to provide traction on ice. No weather was too bad to warrant calling off practice.

Most of Asia's teammates used some type of "fuel" during the longer runs. We knew in a marathon that Asia would need something but she didn't really like the textures of any she had tried. Coach Gina suggested mixing Gu with water to make "chocolate water." We tried on the 18-mile long run and it worked perfectly. Since I was at all the water stops anyway, it was no problem to bring her special water.

On the Saturday of Asia's first ever 20-mile long run, Coach planned a route that would bring the runners back to the store starting point several times so she could check with Katie to see how Asia was doing. After dealing with  a blister, then getting a hat for running into the sun, she sailed through the rest of the 20-mile run and wasn't even winded when she finished. She kept asking everyone else how they were doing.

Time for the taper. Reducing Asia's daily mileage was always a challenge. She has a built in timer that lets her know when she's run her 5 miles each day, and getting her to run less than that isn't easy. The easiest way is to have her run on the treadmill when Jerry or I are at home and can set a timer. We got her down to 3 miles a day for the last 3 days before the marathon.

As part of planning for the actual marathon, we needed to figure out how to ger Asia's "chocolate water" to her along the course. She has never worn a fuel belt and just before her marathon wasn't the time to try to get her used to one. Our first thought was to be at the water stops, but that wasn't possible without a bike. Aaron and Katie volunteered to wear fuel belts with bottles of Asia's special brew. What a team!

We could tell she was getting excited when she packed her bag a week before the race. The day before the marathon was Asia's 28th birthday. We drove to Dearborn to pick up her race packet with her bib number and timing chip and met Claudio, who had run the Martian half-marathon with Asia in 2007. The course is practically in his back yard, so he volunteered to drive the distance with us to identify and mark with the GPS the best locations for seeing Asia, Aaron, and Katie. Thanks to Claudio, we were able to see them 8 times along the course, plus at the start and finish. After dinner at Mongolian Barbecue (so Asia could carb-load on rice) we went back to the hotel to rest. Asia never gets nervous and never has sleep problems before a race. I, on the other hand................

Sunday morning dawned clear and fairly calm. We set alarms (2 Blackberries, the hotel clock and a desk call) for 4:15 A.M. I had brought Asia's preferred race day breakfast of scrambled eggs and sausage (yes, that's right....no bagels and peanut butter for her!) which I warmed up in the toaster oven we brought from home. By 6 A.M. we were all dressed (bib pinned in place, blister pads on feet, timing chip on shoe) and ready when Aaron arrived to ride to the start with us. He had decided to run the first half with Asia and Katie would join them at the turn-around at mile 13. Aaron said he may or may not run a little more with them. We met Katie and her husband John near the start, found Coach Gina for pictures, and got Asia and Aaron in the corral. And as the sun was rising, they were off!! Katie and John, Jerry and I raced to the car to get to our first viewing spot.....the 5 mile point. We saw, photographed, and cheered for many of her teammates who were running the half-marathon that day, saw Asia and Aaron, and took off for the next spot, then the next. At mile 13 Katie jumped in, and then there were 3.

John stayed with us as we backtracked along the course. At each stop we expected Aaron to leave the course..........we had told Asia that he would.......but he didn't. At mile 20 Asia smiled and waved as "Team Asia" passed by. We reported to Coach that she looked fine  as we raced to the finish. Mandi, who was runnng with Michael, and trying to qualify for the 2010 Boston Marathon, crossed the finish line with time to spare. And then, there they were! Michael Mester, another temmate, had gone out to run in with them. All along the way he shouted, "First time marathoner!" And the crowd cheered. As she approached the end, Aaron, Katie and Michael split off to let her cross the finish line alone. She crossed with a big grin on her face to the cheers of at least a dozen of her teammates who had stayed to watch her complete her first marathon. Her time was 3:57:09 and she was 10th in her age group. 5 or more of those minutes were spent between mile 20 and 26, with Katie tending to a bleeding blister on Asia's foot.

We were very concerned about Aaron. He never should have run the whole marathon when his Boston marathon is just 2 weeks away. When we asked why, he replied, "This race was more important." He said he was afraid if he quit Asia would think she should too, so he kept running. He did it for her. He planted the seed months before and wanted to be there for the harvest. Her first words to her coach were, "How many miles can I run tomorrow?"

Finishing a marathon is no small accomplishment, even for the neuro-typical population, but for someone with Asia's challenges, (see  http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-238475  and http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-238946  ) it becomes remarkable. It is a testament to the strength of the training program Coach Gina has in place, and the team spirit she has engendered in the 501 runners. They see Asia as not a person with autism, but as a dedicated runner, like themselves. And they will each go to great lengths to help another team member reach his/her goals.

After many hugs, high-fives, congratulations, and finish line pictures, we gathered up Asia and Aaron for the ride back to the hotel. We iced Asia's legs while Aaron showered and then left to meet Katie and John for a post-race - post-birthday feast at an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet, and to hear Katie and Aaron's race stories. And then it was over - the birthday, the race, the lunch -- but the memories of Asia's first marathon will last a lifetime. As Coach Gina said, "Thanks for another one of the best days of my life."

For more information about Asia, go to:

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