Are you aware of the Neenah Summer Fun Run Series, and that the PaceSetters contribute to the event, and that this year marks its 30th year? There are 4 dates this summer at Memorial Park in Neenah where kids aged 14 and under can participate. Three of the dates were in June, there is one more date coming Sunday evening July 13 at 7 pm. Distances are between 1/4 and 1 mile. If you have any young family members or neighbors, please encourage them to participate in this fun activity!

Kenyan Faith Kipyegon ran the fastest mile ever by a woman but fell short of the magical sub-4-minute goal. A 3-time Olympic gold medalist, she needed to beat her personal best by 7.65 seconds. Her PR was bettered but she came up 6.42 seconds short. Her time, however, will not count as an official world record given the extraordinary set of drafting assistance used, including male pacers, during the specialized race organized by Nike. 

You may very well know long time PaceSetters member John Ebel. Perhaps you spoke with him at one of the many local area races he did or maybe in his driveway while enjoying a water stop break during one of our fall/winter/spring Saturday morning group runs. He was also president of the PaceSetters in 2003-04.

After participating in several shorter races, John got the marathon bug in the late 80's. After listening to a former PaceSetters President talking about marathons, and having a buddy recently do one, in 1988 he decided he wanted to run one. Back then there were not too many area marathons to choose from. He decided to attempt the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon. There were also not many marathon runners around to train with. He did many of his training runs on his own, running around Little Lake Butte Des Morts and to/from Kaukauna. Since he never trained past 20 miles, he wasn't sure what those later marathon miles would be like so he started off slowly. With a goal to finish under 4:00, he was very pleased when he completed it in 3:33. That was so unexpectedly quick that he beat his wife Deb to the finish line, even consuming a couple beers by the time she arrived. His legs were sore but otherwise he felt great.

John returned to the Lakefront Marathon again the following 2 years, training under longtime Freedom High School coach Thain Jones, with a goal of qualifying for Boston. In addition to his longer runs, his coach had him running weekly intervals with seven 1-mile speed bursts, reaching a 5:30 per mile pace. Although he missed qualifying by just 84 seconds, he did establish a PR with an impressive 3:17:23.

John recalled getting a palm reading when he was younger. The reader told him he would have 2 children, a boy and a girl, which was correct. She also predicted that he would have a major medical issue while still in his 40's which, unfortunately, would also prove to be correct.

John was there for the first Fox Cities Marathon in 1991. About that time he started feeling depleted of energy when out running. He wasn't sure why that was happening. He was still able to post a 3:31. It wasn't until 1998 that John was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. There was not one simple test for MS, so it took some time to determine what was going on. He started getting a daily injection of Copaxone which did seem to help. He continued running, and completing Fox Cities Marathons every year, albeit slower. 

In 2011, at the age of 59, John began having concentration and decision making challenges, plus was feeling exhausted. He tried taking some time off from his job, but was never able to return. He wanted to continue running but could only complete a mile or less before needing to stop. He wanted to extend his 20 year FCM streak, and still had some time for training, but was unable to get his endurance back. Dean Peterson generously offered to help John by pushing him in a wheelchair. When they realized it would take to long to complete it, they talked with Fleet Feet who connected them with myTEAM TRIUMPH who agreed to pushing him. John said this didn't feel right to him, but helped out by getting out of the chair and running short distances several times to help get himself across the finish line. 

In 2012, John became determined to complete the entire FCM run on foot. His MS symptom flareups were subsiding. During the summer he did the weekly FCM training runs and his confidence grew. That fall, with a wheelchair by his side if needed, he completed the FCM. He was able to finish without needing it.

With his FCM streak still intact, John was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2015. It caused balance issues and impacted his ability to run. However, he was determined to keep running and somehow continued to complete FCM's. In 2017 and 2018 he called upon myTEAM TRIUMPH to help him out. He felt badly for those pushing his wheelchair and would get out and run when going up hills to make it easier on them.

The 2019 FCM was cancelled due to thunderstorms. The 2020 FCM was cancelled due to Covid. In 2021 John looked once more for assistance from myTEAM TRIUMPH. Prior to the race, his ear started bleeding and he found out he had cancer. Doctors did a skin graft behind his ear just a week before the race but he was cleared to go if he stayed in his wheelchair. Several times during the race he wanted to give his pushers a break and get out of his chair but they wouldn't let him. Then with a half mile to go, he insisted and ran/walked to the finish line on his own.

Unfortunately, 30 years after he did his first FCM, that would be John's last FCM, and his consecutive streak was over. It brought tears to his eyes as he explained this to me. He is grateful to all who allowed him to keep participating for so long. This was an incredible run, filled with determination while life was giving him several major medical setbacks. A true story of grit and perseverance.

Although John no longer runs, he continues to stay as active as possible. He golfs 18 holes 3 to 5 times per week, seldom using a cart. He also regularly does a boxing class at the Y, which includes some time on spin bikes. Way to hang in there John, your efforts continue to be admirable!!

Hey all of you PaceSetters newsletter readers, do you have an idea for an upcoming newsletter article? We'd love to hear from you. Tell us about your memorable running experience, or journey along the way, or give us a running topic you'd like to read about to get a better understanding of. We will interview you (or someone you nominate), or research your topic and then present it in an upcoming newsletter. 

You may have noticed we have spotlighted PaceSetters members here over the last few months. Would love to continue doing that, just looking for more ideas from all of you.

Thanks everyone for reading these newsletters, we appreciate any feedback and ideas you have!!