| John Mitty Thursday, January 10, 2013 |
Two Long Island Ultrarunners Make Like Hamsters during 125 Mile Treadmill Run to Raise Funds for Friends of Karen
St. James resident Dan Turturro and Stony Brook resident Byron Lane recently attempted to run 125 miles on treadmills at Energy Fitness in St. James to raise money for Friends of Karen, a tri-state non-profit organization that helps children and their families cope with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses to help keep them stable, functioning and able to cope.
They beat the 125 mile goal and ran for 127.55 miles.
Lane completed 70.55 miles and Turturro completed 57 miles to reach the 127.55 miles in their 12 hours of running. The gentlemen also raised more than $1,200 for the charity.
While most people—even seasoned marathoners—could not conceive of running for more than one hour on a “dreadmill,” the pair met the challenge. “Think of the way your life is going right now.” Lane offers. “Pretend that tomorrow, you found out that your 5 or 10 or 15 year old child was diagnosed with some terrible life-threatening disease. Your life would change drastically and forever. Friends of Karen picks up the slack so that families in this situation don’t have to worry about the Rat Race—all of the little things that can drain precious time and energy—so they can focus solely on their child and their family. Running on treadmills symbolizes their race to try to get everything done all at once. During our fundraiser, we focused on running around for these families, just like Friends of Karen does for their families.”
Lane, one of the most decorated ultrarunners in the country, started his running career 37 years ago. Sponsored by The Runners' Edge (Farmingdale) and Hammer Nutrition, he has won 47 ultramarathon races of 50 km or longer, is a three-time Age Group National Champion, and, in 2008, was the National Champion in the 24-hour run.
Turturro started running longer than marathon distances this past year, having done a 31-miler and a 50-miler, and regularly runs five times per week. This was Dan’s longest run ever.
The two men met at Energy Interactive Fitness last year and Byron has served as a very encouraging mentor to Dan. The two brainstormed a fundraising idea to bring some attention to a deserving charity and were directed to Friends of Karen by Energy Fitness manager Michael Fox.
“We are pleased to be able to help support this important organization,” said 55 year-old Turturro. “No one is prepared for a life-threatening illness to strike their child,” added Lane. “People going through this type of family crisis have enough to worry about. Friends of Karen provides the support that lets parents focus on what's most important: their child.”
Friends of Karen provides emotional, financial and advocacy support for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families in order to keep them stable, functioning and able to cope. Since 1978, Friends of Karen has helped more than 11,800 children in the New York tri-state region.
To more information on Friends of Karen, please visit: www.friendsofkaren.org.
jmitty@longislandyellowpages.com Appears In: Press Releases
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