Republican sportswriter Bill Wells ran the Seth's Fat Ass 50K Saturday in Forest Park as a fund-raiser for Celia LaBarbera, a 7-year-old from Wilbraham who has a rare type of cancer which has no known cure.
Republican sportswriter Bill Wells ran Seth's Fat Ass 50K race at Forest Park Saturday as a fund-raiser for Wilbraham's Celia LaBarbera, who has a rare type of cancer which has no known cure. We made it.
I’m not quite sure how, but we made it.
Saturday morning at Forest Park, I entered a 50K race as a $50,000 fund-raiser in honor of Celia LaBarbera, a 7-year-old girl from Wilbraham who has Neurofibromatosis 2, which is a rare type of cancer which has no known cure.
A year of training came down to one day. I was a little nicked up but my legs were fresh, and I told myself prior to the race that I was going to keep moving forward as long as I could stand.
The 58 runners entered in Seth’s Fat Ass 50K left the starting line at 8:30 a.m. I knew if I was going to make all 31 miles I was going to have to run for about five hours. I was certain at some point I was going to get injured, and the severity of that injury was going to ultimately determine whether I would be able to finish the race or not.
But that injury never came.
I felt great through the halfway point. My thighs started to get tight at mile 19, and around mile 22 the one uphill on the course threw a pretty good punch at me. I considered walking, just to change the pace and to give myself a mental break. But I kept plugging along, soon gained a second wind, and maintained a decent stride the rest of the way. I even pushed it the last mile.
Celia rode on the back of her dad’s bike for part of the race, including the final 3 miles. She ran with me for the final 50 meters toward the finish line. She took a detour toward her mom right before we finished. One of her big brothers scooped her up and we ran across the finish line together.
I finished in four hours, 58 minutes, and 18 seconds. I never walked.
In the days following the race, I’ve been asking myself one question over and over again: why was I able to stay so strong for all 31 miles? Please don’t misinterpret what I’m saying: I’m not bragging. There’s nothing fast about a 50K time of 4:58:18.
My time aside, however, I felt fine just about the whole way. I never got to that dreaded “oh no” feeling. I easily could have kept running.
Based on my training, I did train to finish a 31-mile race. However, I didn’t put in the training to stay strong for 31 miles. I just didn’t, and that’s a fact.
So why was I able to stay strong the whole way?
I did run with my ipod, which usually keeps my motor running on high. And I did enter that race with my motivation level sky-high, especially since Celia and her family was there. I was also smart with my fueling during the race, drinking my Gatorade and taking my gel packs regularly.
So is that it? Did a year of dedicated training, my ipod, a high level of motivation and proper fueling allow me to stay strong for 31 miles? I don’t know the answer to that.
I do know a few things, though. First, if asked, people will chip in to help someone in need. Hundreds upon hundreds of people have made donations for this Running for Celia fund-raiser. We’ve collected more than $40,000 and I know there’s still more on the way.
And I know another thing: I’ve loved every minute of this entire experience. The LaBarbera family has thanked me 100 times over, but I feel like I should be thanking them. It’s hard to explain. I guess rewarding is a good word, or fulfilling.
Two weeks ago in this column I asked for a favor: I pleaded with friends and readers to make a donation and help give the LaBarbera family some hope this Christmas. Kind friends and noble strangers unselfishly answered a call for help.
Thanks to so many people, the LaBarberas have been given hope, and a chance to enjoy a very Merry Christmas.