NOW IT’S BECOME A FEEL-GOOD SPORTS STORY! - MIKE IN DA - NOVEMBER 4, 2010

NOW IT’S BECOME A FEEL-GOOD SPORTS STORY!

Written by: Mike In DA
Date posted: 11/4/2010 

Since the marathon is a topic rarely touched by our local sports talk hosts, you probably won’t hear about the following on any of those shows until after the race, that is - if you're lucky, as it will be be one of the feel-good sports stories of the year.

In the 10/25 Peanut Gallery (http://sheltonmedia.blogspot.com/2010/10/comments-from-peanut-gallery-mike-in-da_25.html), in the section entitled “CHILEANS TO NYC MARATHON: THANKS, BUT NO THANKS”, it was mentioned that the New York City Marathon organizers offered an entry slot to the Chilean miners in the New York City Marathon, which is on this upcoming Sunday, November 7.

At the time, I wrote the following: “These guys just spent more than two months underground and with the NYC Marathon in two weeks, I can’t picture any of them overly excited to participate in a 26.2 mile race.”

Well, unbeknownst to me then, one of the miners, Edison Pena, has prepared for the New York City Marathon like no other competitor: running each morning and afternoon in steel-tipped electrician's boots that he cut down to ankle-high shoes after the miners started to get food sent down to them from their rescuers.

Pena ran back and forth along a 1,000-yard path through the darkness, heat, and humidity inside the collapsed gold and copper mine where he and the 32 other guys were trapped for 69 days before last month's dramatic rescue.

Pena said that he ran to clear his head, to push away his anxiety and because he wanted to be ready to represent the miners in a marathon, where he might be able to spread a message about what he hopes will be the legacies of their ordeal: safer workplaces, closer families, and trust in God.

Pena told AP in an interview, "If I had to run barefoot, I would have done it. Life has given us a new challenge - to care more deeply, to be more present with the people we love."

The 34-year-old Pena has been among the more outspoken of the rescued miners, a guy willing to show his emotions, even tears, as he talks of his intense desire that Chile's mineral riches don't come at the expense of working people ordered into mines known to be unsafe.

NYC Marathon organizers who learned of Pena's underground exercise routine had invited him to come to New York City to watch the race Sunday. They were surprised when he asked to run in it instead, as he will be one of the 43,000 plus runners at the starting line on Sunday morning. Pena ran twice a day, up to 6-7 miles at a time, back and forth along the rocky, muddy floor where the miners were trapped.


Pena has kept running since the rescue, including 6.5 miles (10.5 kilometers) as part of a triathlon team event in Chile two Sundays ago (10/24). While the miners have been reluctant to give away too much of their survival stories while book and movie deals are pending, Pena revealed some of his motivations after that race in a speech that drew applause from other runners and spectators.

Also, when it was learned that Pena was an Elvis Presley fan, Elvis Presley Enterprises in Memphis, TN, sent him various gifts, including a picture, DVDs, CDs, a book and sunglasses. It said Pena has also accepted an invitation to visit Graceland, set for January 6-9, for a private tour of the mansion, grave, and other sites. After that, Pena will be flown to Las Vegas to watch "Viva Elvis," the Cirque du Soleil show based on "the King's" music.

Pena is in the “Big Apple” right now preparing for the race and will be a guest on "Late Show with David Letterman" tonight (11/4).


Judging from how Pena has handled the media so far, he'll probably reject the hero label, insisting that the focus should be on worker safety, faith in God, and the recuperative power of sports.


I’m sure Pena will have a TV camera following him during the entire length of the race. I’ll be watching, as will plenty of others who may have never watched a marathon race before.

Hopefully, Edison won't cramp or injure himself, so that he will be able to go the entire 26 miles and 385 yards not only for himself, but for the other 32 guys, also. 

MIKE IN DA

HMW

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