A lot More Than a Race

I certainly haven’t counted them all; but based on the numerous t-shirts, given to road race participants I see worn around in my travels, there must be thousands of such events every year.  So why, you ask, am I highlighting one of them?  Well, as many of these races are memorials and/or fundraisers for worthy causes, one in particular, the Runner’s Cisco Brewers Memorial 5k, is one with which I have a personal connection!

Portsmouth, NH’s Krempels Center (KC) benefits from 100% of the proceeds of this annual race which completed its’ 21st edition Memorial Day weekend of 2018.  While the course is great for fast running and many impressive times are earned each year, I have to believe that’s only a small part of this community favorites’ appeal.  Many area businesses attend and sample their products with the post-race festivities becoming more of a party resembling a large family reunion:  In fact, race participants receive a sample of one of Cisco’s fine brews in a commemorative glass!  The day’s festivities even kick off with a kids’ fun run for children; and while I don’t have any kids of my own, I hope to see my niece and nephews out there soon!

So besides the incredible amount of fun had by all who participate each Spring, and of course, the tremendous financial support for Krempels Center generated by the race since its’ inception: What makes my experience with the Cisco Brewer’s Memorial 5k post worthy?   Well…

Being a member of Krempels Center means a lot of things: First off, I benefit greatly from the tireless work of an organization carrying out David Krempels’, a TBI survivor himself and KC founder, vision and KC’s beautiful mission of “improving the lives of people living with brain injury”.  Of course, being a KC member also means that I myself am a brain injury survivor.  Serving those living with acquired brain injury from trauma, tumor, or stroke; KC runs a community-based model rather than the traditional medical service providing facility.  In fact, I like to think of the incredibly valuable rehab services like physical, occupational, and speech therapy as where you learn how to function while KC provides a supportive community where you can begin to actually live a new life!

The Cisco Brewer’s Memorial 5k is one of KC’s main fundraising events with KC benefiting from 100% of the days’ proceeds!  As part of the Seacoast Race Series, it is one of 8 annual races that are supported by the enthusiastic running community of Seacoast NH.  The Series is a really cool synergy of people combining self-improvement with events benefiting great non-profits improving the community!  Fundraising is vital to Krempels’ operation:  Although anyone, anytime can acquire a brain injury in one of the many ways in which this devastating injury can occur, Acquired Brain Injury is not one of the well-known conditions at the forefront of people’s minds.  In fact, and I would suspect many of KC’s supporters would fall into this category; both my immediate and extended family had no awareness of the Krempels Center prior to my early stages of recovery.  It truly is amazing that such a beautiful organization dedicated to improving the lives of acquired brain injury survivors is such a hidden gem.  Although, with so many worthy causes, tragedies, and natural disasters in the 24-hour news cycle grabbing share of minds, I shouldn’t be too surprised.

While I could go on and on expressing my gratitude for David Krempels’ generosity to survivors in establishing the organization now supported by private donations and fundraisers, I’d really like to explain why this topic intrigued me.  While it’s not much of a leap to connect running for self-improvement to a road race fundraising for a non-profit dedicated to improving lives; it’s the similarity between running (any ambulation really) and brain injury recovery that I find amazing!  Let me start off by telling you a bit about my own involvement in running.  One look and you can see that I don’t have the prototypical runner’s body, tall and lanky; rather the exact opposite, short and stocky.  In fact, I would describe my relationship with running prior to acquiring a TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) July 4th, 2006, as “I guess, if I have to”.  I only ran when required to by an athletic coach or at the gym in an attempt to become more appealing to the opposite gender.  I know, hardly inspiring.  However, I really believe running has been vital to my physical recovery!

Recovering from a brain injury is something that you never actually finish.  At times progress seems to happen in leaps and bounds, while other times the pace seems glacial.  Funny, now that I think about it, sounds like brain injury recovery has a lot in common with many forms of self-improvement, particularly running!  I’m the first to admit how incredibly fortunate that I’ve been in my recovery: In all areas, physical/cognitive rehabilitation, social, support networks (both family and otherwise), and perhaps mostly for being a KC member!  Even with all these factors helping, life isn’t always perfect, and doing the daily work to improve my ability to participate in life becomes daunting at times.  Sometimes I wake up and my muscles are especially tight, with a clenched left-hand making tying my shoes impossible, or despite having slept a full night, awaken in nothing short of an exhausted state.  On these days I think to myself, “You’ve got to be kidding me.  All these years of hard work and I’m not done struggling yet.”

While not quite the exact same sentiment; I often find myself sulking and having a one-person pity party over having to lace up my sneakers for what feels like the millionth day in a row to get a workout in.  It would be a lie for me to say I leap out of bed rearing to go for a run and never feel that all the previous jogs should make me automatically fit and athletic, permanently…like forever!  So what keeps me going?

It isn’t one specific thing, or certainly public adulation coupled with fame and fortune resulting from my running speed, but I can identify one powerful motivator: Every year at the Memorial 5k I’ve managed to set a new personal best 5k time!  While not breaking the tape at the finish line, or even finishing in the top half for that matter, each year’s finish serves as confirmation that I’m doing something right.  I wish I could say that my perspective on life is always great now or that I never find myself overcome with self-pity, but I’m only human.  As, Ted, a fellow KC member who I’ve become close with over the years replies when I inquire “how are you?”, “A little better each day,” says Ted.   I guess if I can take the liberty of amending Ted’s response to, “a little faster each Memorial 5k”, this statement means that I’m moving in the right direction!