You Can Do That

As a coach I often work with athletes who need a little extra motivation or encouragement. People look to their coach for some confidence to counter their self doubts. It is hard to know however when people need some kind words of encouragement and when they need a kick in the shorts.
I have to admit that sometimes it can be hard listening to people complain about their lack of motivation. I have had the privilege to know and work with several wheelchair athletes over the years and those experiences have made me a big admirer of people who decide to put their disabilities behind them and simply make the most of what they have. It's inspiring because that is exactly what we all do as we pursue our athletic goals. The fact that I may not be as tall as the swimmers I compete against should not be an excuse for me to be satisfied with last place, rather it is a motivation for me to work just a little bit harder so that I can beat them with my endurance or technique.

We all have limitations. Sometimes it is our busy schedule. Sometimes it's an old recurring injury. If I ever start to feel sorry for myself and my inability to meet my own expectations I remember those athletes I've met with a real excuse and who face every challenge with a smile. The one thing you will never hear at a wheelchair track meet is complaining. It simply doesn't exist.

There have always been people with disabilities in the public sphere that inspire us. The two icons everyone will recognize are Helen Keller and Franklin D. Roosevelt. These remarkable people were however the exceptions that proved the rule. For most of history disabled people in our society have lived in the shadows and behind closed doors, cut off from our world by stairs, gravel, curbs, and other mundane obstacles.

Federal legislation (the American Disabilities Act), improvements in prosthetic designs, and funding for diverse organizations like the Paralympics, Disabled Sports USA, and the Special Olympics, all of which got going in the US in the 1960's, did not bring disabled people and disabled athletes into the public consciousness as much as a single twenty-one year old Canadian man in 1980.

2010 is the thirty year anniversary of Terry Fox's incredible run across Canada, his "Marathon of Hope".

If you were over 12 years old in 1980 then you know Terry Fox's story. For the rest of you, Terry Fox was a young athlete from Vancouver B.C. who lost his leg to Osteosarcoma in 1977 and while still in the hospital recovering, decided to run across Canada to raise awareness and money to fight cancer.

Terry Fox was not just about overcoming a disability. He was not just an incredibly determined athlete who ran a marathon every day for 143 days. He was a humanitarian, an advocate, and a hopeful idealist. His courage and optimism in the face of a malignant, crippling, and ultimately fatal disease, set a standard of courage that will not likely be matched by any able or less able athlete ever again.

In recent years the Lance Armstrong Foundation with the help of Nike and and army of PR professionals has raised more than $200 million for cancer research and patient services. These days the LAF is leading the way in Cancer awareness and fundraising.

Or is it?

29 years after his death, the Terry Fox Foundation has raised over $400 million through hundreds of annual "Terry Fox Runs" all over the world. The Marathon of Hope continues thirty years after Terry's marathon ended nine miles outside of Thunder Bay Ontario. In keeping with Terry's policy during his run, the Terry Fox Foundation has no corporate sponsors. Terry felt it would be improper for anyone but cancer patients to benefit from his name or his story.

Terry Fox has become a transcendent figure in sports and culture. Everyone who has participated in or benefited from the work of groups like Team in Training, Joints in Motion, Team Transplant, or Team Challenge, owe a nod and a bow to Terry Fox. All of these groups started well after Terry made is remarkable run into the worlds consciousness.

The second annual Can Do 5 and 10K is unique in that it puts all the able bodied walkers and racers like you and me in the same event with special needs athletes and their families. Obviously once the gun fires things string out pretty quickly but that doesn't detract from the unique quality of inclusion and community that race director Betsy Grieb has worked to create.

"As the name of the race suggests," says Greib, "the goal of our event is to bring into focus what individuals with physical and intellectual disabilities can do". She adds that "many runners struggling to finish the 5K last year were inspired by these remarkable individuals."

The Can Do 5 and 10k benefits "Northshore Special Families", a parent-led program of the Center for Human Services that aims to increase opportunities for social inclusion for children with special needs and their families. But the event serves a second purpose perhaps just as important. As one mother of a special child said at the event last year, “It was great to see the whole community come together and for us to feel supported. The smile on my daughterʼs face as we crossed the finish line together said it all.”

There are plenty of things you "can't" do in your life. Maybe you can't date a movie star, or afford a three month vacation in Europe this summer. But you think you can't ride your bike 100 miles or run a Half Marathon? Bull S!*t.

The silliest words in the world are, "I can't do that". Terry Fox proved that.


The 2010 Can Do 5K/10K is on Saturday, March 27 at the Seattle Times North Creek Facility in Bothell. For information on this event, go to www.CanDo5K.org.