Friday, December 19, 2008

Just don't call me athlete

its been a couple of months since i quit my job to pursue running and fundraising and i have been really busy. I have finalized my schedule for next year. I will running 7 ultras in 7 continents, right now I am concentrating on Brazil and Minnesota, I will start running with a sleigh next week once I find a suitable one and thanks to phd kit I will be warm enough in Arrowhead

Next year looks a bit like this

Race name Place Date Distance
Brazil 135 Ultramarathon Brazil Jan 23-25 217K
Arrowhead 135 Ultra USA Feb 2-4 217K
Mind Alpine Ultra Australia March 28- 30 160K
Namibia Race Africa May17-25 250K
Gobi Desert Race China June 14-20 250K
Coastal Challenge UK Sep 18-20 160K
Antarctica Argentina Dec 100K


It has been incredibly rewarding working on the schedule and a lot of fun working with the race directors to find the best possible race on each continent. There are other races that are not part of the schedule that i am looking forward, I still would love to run Badwater and I am running Toronto Half marathon with the Run of Vision team either as a pacer for a blind runner or blindfolded.

Ray who is still in Antarctica is writing my training, I have to say that i was really upset when I first saw the training schedule, I have track workouts and tempo runs, I have never attempted to run both long and fast, in my mind it's to hard on the body, of course I am doing great if ever so tired. I have graduated to a triple Latte in the last month.

So while I have quit working to run it's really difficult to answer the question " What do you do" is not like I am an athlete, I am a runner,the reason why I am able to quit my job and run for a living is why I am doing it, or what I am doing, not who is doing it.

Don't worry I am hardly complaining, N.Murray Edwards asked me Monday at a party the question all ultraruners get asked " Why?" "I understand your son, but besides that why do it?" Murray and his wife Heather are big patrons on cnib. I of course listed all the great things about participating on endurance sports, but I just couldn't convince him. Much later at home, i kept asking myself the same question, if my son where to all of a sudden be cured,would I stop running and the answer was NO. Somewhere, somehow , it became my passion, Murray and successful people like him( just in case you don't know, Murray Edwards is one of Canada's wealthiest individuals)understands passion and hard work his passion however makes him very wealthy, while mine makes me really fit. The amazing thing was that there looking at each other we wouldn't have traded places for anything in the world, but each in our own way had found what drives us to the point where most people think is impossible, and that is what dreams are made off.

“There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other.” Douglas H. Everett

2 comments:

Lisa Kauffmann said...

Hello Norma, As it turns out we have a friend in common,Suzy Szmolyan Morrow. I was telling her about an article I saw in the Herald about 'some crazy woman who runs Ultra marathons' and she siad"Thats Norma!!!" She also mentioned that we have a bit in common(living around the world, modelling, single mom with child with disability, etc). I tracked down your blog and I noticed that you will be running in Brazil!!! I used to live there for 15 years in Rio de Janeiro! if you need any information about Brazil, dont hesitate to contact me! You have inspired me to take up the cause for my son who suffers from cerebral palsy. My thing is triathlon..My son's godmother is Fernanda Keller of Brazil who is a 20+ time finisher in the Kona Ironman.you actually remind me alot of her..Good luck and God bless!!

Norma Bastidas said...

Hi Lisa,

Hos nice to hear from you. I think we must do coffee.

I am off to Brazil and Antarctica soon but let's do it whne I get back

Norma