Blazing the Trail

I hope everybody is having a great summer and enjoying the weather that has been bestowed upon us. A lot of exciting stuff is happening right now with the Kyle Pease Foundation as we continue to grow as an organization and spread the message of inclusion. The highlight of the summer and one of the best moments of my life (so far) happened on July 4^th when Brent and I combined to become the first assisted team to ever compete in the Peachtree Road Race.

Makes us look fast :)

The Peachtree Road Race is a tradition in Atlanta every Independence Day and is the largest 10k in the country. It was incredible to be out there with 60,000 runners and 61 wheelchair participants. We blazed the trail though as the only assisted team to participate in the race. The race, which began in 1970, has never had a team like Brent and me, and we can only hope that this is the start of something big.

The weather was a bit rainy as we took off by ourselves shortly after the wheelchair athletes and before the sea of 60,000 runners. The reaction of the fans and the people of Atlanta were amazing throughout the entire 6.2 mile course. There were times that I was so into the cheers of the crowd that I felt like I was dreaming.  

I am proud of what the Kyle Pease Foundation does but never imagined that we would re-write history. By competing in this race we suddenly became recognized in the same circle as Dick and Rick Hoyt. I’ve said this since the day we started running, that I have nothing but respect for what the Hoyts do. They are the trailblazers and paved the way for us. They are the leaders and always will be the leaders and inspire me to be more, but to be mentioned in the same breath as them is really an honor to Brent and me. Running in the Peachtree was really a surreal moment to be recognized as local heroes by the people of Atlanta. It was just phenomenal. My dream is that next year and for many years to follow there will be more and more Kpeasey athletes competing in this race which is such a part of our city.

So many people have come up to me since and told me what an inspiration we are. I had no idea that it was going to be so awesome. Even as I write this, I’ll be honest, I get goose bumps. It helped the Pease Brothers reach a new level and kind of get over the top. Many of our friends know that we will be competing in the Iron Man in Wisconsin this September but hopefully with the exposure that we got racing in the Peachtree there will be many more fans keeping an eye on the results as we compete in our first 140.6 at the end of the summer.

Being congratulated by race organizers just past the line

I really want to thank the Shepherd Center and the Atlanta track club for the opportunity granted to Brent and I to participate in this historic day. Following our historic achievement we were invited to appear on Good Day Atlanta to be interviewed live in studio. That was an incredible feeling as well to see our faces broadcast all over Atlanta but was still pale in comparison to crossing the finish line with Brent behind me and the sounds of thousands of screaming fans filling the air.

Kyle

All together now

The stage was perfect...well almost.  A rainy sky had us a little nervous as we unloaded the car early on the 4th of July.  When we were 7 & 9 years old, I remember standing in Piedmont Park watching the wheelchairs come flying down the hill...years later I never thought we would be there together.  But here we were at the start line of our first Peachtree.  Rain or shine we were running!

 



Off to the races!

 We've done a lot of racing since we started down this path, but this one ranks pretty high up.  60,000 individuals run this race every year and here we were charging down Peachtree.  Even the rain couldn't damper the crowds spirits and we certainly got a lot of encouragement along the way...especially up Cardiac Hill right past Shepherd Spinal Center, the wheelchair race organizers, who played such a big role in our entry this year!



Finishing up the last of the hills!

It's hard to describe how special it is to allow so many others to see the thrill of accomplishment but I know that as we work for more assisted runners next year the effort will have all been worth it.  Even charging down 10th street to the finish of our first Peachtree together, I did not fully appreciate how big the moment was.  As we stood talking with race organizers, reporters, family & friends, we realized that it was truly a special day and one we will not soon forget.  I know that you can expect to see us every year out there, celebrating the 4th, laughing and crossing that finish line for so long as we can!

Pretending we are famous (THANKS TACOMA)

Of course a special thanks to Shepherd Spinal Center,  & The Atlanta Track Club, for making this day possible.  We look forward to the continued hard work to help grow the assisted athlete category in The Peachtree.  Thanks as well to Fox 5 ATL, for sharing our story  and letting others see just how special this can be. 
Thank you all for sharing in our journey! Together We Wheel!

Brent

Racing!!!

Over the past few weeks, KPF has had many positive highlights, including two of our athletes doing their first triathlon in the Tri The Parks series that is held all around the state.  Justin Knight and Corbin McKenzie were rockstars.  They raced all day with big ole' smiles and it was just so awesome to see more athletes competing together.  Marin Smith completed her second duathlon on the same day..

Multiple boats on the water...SIMPLY AWESOME

 Racing with all of these incredible athletes is a true pleasure for me but possibly even more so for our AMAZING volunteers.  Curtis Henry who helped build our Freedom Concepts came out as our first bike volunteer and along with his wife Jen on the swim were a big part of Justin Knight completing his frist Triathlon ever!  It truly takes a village as we have said countless times and having people help make this all possible is a great source of pride!

J Dude rolling in with Curtis with a fist bump from Greg Smith! #togetherwewheel

Andrew Shanks and Taylor Pike pulling J Dude out of the water with Jen Henry in tow from an AWESOME swim

The very next wee,k the joy continued as Lauren Smith, older sister to KPF athlete Marin, donated money from her girl scout troop.! Lauren and her friends from troop 11591 were gracious enough to share $1200 from cookie sales to help KPF continue it's mission.  But it didn't stop there.  Lauren then entered her first aquathon at 11Global and won!!

Lauren crossing the finish line!

Speaking of 11Global... it was our second triathlon in three weeks and we took our same team of Corbin and J Dude  who went out for another race.  It was quite a day and everybody did a fantastic job, including Justin's mother, Teresa, who set a personal record during her run!! Andrew Shanks and Karl Otts started off the day with J Dude and Karl stayed out on the run for a fun day with J Dude who came in third for the day!

Corbin and Steve headed out on the bike!

Karl and J Dude after a great bike!

And coming in for a STRONG finish

11 Global was a fantastic day with so many people making the day so wonderful.  We cannot wait until we have 10 boats on the water and even more smiles as we all find the joy of competition and the joy of sport.  If you saw Steve, Corbin, Justin or Teresa after you would know what I mean.  Those ATHLETES worked hard out there and earned those medals!

Podium Shot

Again, I would like to give a big shout-out to all of the volunteers who have made the past couple of weeks possible.  Curtis, Erica, Amy, Jen, Andrew, Eric, Taylor, Karl, Richard, Chuck, JD and all of the race volunteers we cannot say it enough but THANK YOU.   Without you guys, none of this is possible and we cannot wait to join you again!!  #togetherwewheel

KPeasey

Get ready for a HOTlanta Summer

Hello all!

Every now and then it's good take a deep breath and sit with the people you care about deeply.  So today Brent and I decided to sit down together to discuss several topics.  Including a great win by our Atlanta Braves :)
I think it is very important to do something like this every once in awhile, to let those close to us know how much they mean to us.  In today's fast paced world that isn't always the case.  But no matter the amount of time it's important that we share our love for one another.
So many of you mean so much to us and it is because of all of you that we can continue the growth of the foundation and all those we hope to motivate!  So in case you missed it we have a big announcement concerning a race that we hope will inspire many to join us in breaking down many more obstacles.  TOGETHER WE WHEEL!

-Kyle

Publix with my bro!

 Wanted to share with you all, some thoughts from one of our other all star pushers Liz who together with Justin took on the Georgia Publix Half Marathon:

Justin was a perfect partner in crime. This race was a first for me. I struggled on some of the hills, but Justin never gave up on me and never asked me to trade out with someone else. He was very supportive! We had a lot of people cheering us along the way. It was wonderful to hear from all of our supporters and to cheer for them as well. Justin and I hooted and hollered most of the race. This experience will definitely be a memory I will keep!

-Liz Miller

Volunteer, Athlete, Supporter

Justin and Liz showing off some hardware

Seeing Justin and Liz together out there helped me to better appreciate what our foundation is all about.  When you have 10 friends together in a race, the same race that all 18,000 participants took on it brings a smile to my face.  I cannot wait for more races and even more athletes to realize that TOGETHER WE WHEEL!!

5k Athletes crossing the finish.  TOGETHER

Happiest Hour

So like I said... these posts coming about the Publix 13.1 may be a bit out of order, but it was so great to hear from one of our athletes last week that we had to get that out there.  We should have some news from Curtis up later this week along with some notes from the 5k!!

Again, I cannot thank everyone enough for playing such a big part in an exciting weekend.  When we set out to start the Kyle Pease Foundation, we had no idea that in two short years we would have 10 athletes participating in a weekend of events!! What a true honor to be a part of it all.
The happy hour was a great kick off to our weekend and it was awesome to hear JDude speak!

Friends, athletes and good times!

 But the bigger joy was having more than a chair to show people but athletes.  Athletes like Rich and Kevin Enners, who are trying to qualify for the Boston Marathon!

And I thought I look determined on the course!!

Or Greg & Marin Smith in their first 13.1...

The photo we didn't post was her getting a mid race apple sauce :)

What a fantastic weekend and we have all of you to thank!  Finally I want to close out with some thoughts from one of our first volunteers.  It takes more than just athletes and our first round of volunteers came through at Publix in a big way.
Thanks everyone!!
Kyle

A Volunteers Story:

The opportunity came through my company, LocumTenens.com, a supporter of the Kyle Pease Foundation, to assist one of their athletes through his first half marathon. I jumped at the chance and grabbed my awesome coworker and running partner, Liz to take part as well. On race day morning I finally got to meet the great Curtis Ward and was so excited to run with him through 13.1 miles of Atlanta streets. We got Curtis into his jogger and made our way to the start line. I was told I’d have another KPeasey volunteer, David Gaynoe, running alongside me as well as two cyclists to help clear the way of other runners. 

Curtis after his first race!

The gun went off for us at 6:55 to give us a 5 minute head start on the other thousands of runners. It was tough getting warmed up and within minutes of the first hill David offered to help me push Curtis which was awesome! David helped the whole way (thank you, David!) and together we got Curtis reaching some pretty high speeds on the down hills as the three of us shouted in unison, “Look out – coming through, we WILL take you out!” I was amazed at how many runners told us good job and to keep it up, many of them slowing down their pace to pat Curtis on the shoulder. I think we said, “thank you!” at least five thousand times that morning. No joke. Truly amazing. There were plenty of water stations, and Curtis never wanted any. But it was a different story when we got to the stations offering Jelly Belly’s and M&Ms! We fueled up and kept pushing through and before we knew it we were on our last mile. The crowds were incredible, cheering and clapping and pushing us through the last of the countless Atlanta hills. As we neared the finish line I was yelling at Curtis to wave to the crowds and enjoy this moment he had earned. Crossing the finish line was so exciting, a combination of relief and exhilaration. And watching them put that beautiful green medal around Curtis’s neck was THE BEST! We stopped for a few pictures and then enjoyed what we all agreed was the best chocolate milk ever created. I was so proud of Curtis for doing his first half marathon! I heard some people saying what a nice thing we did for him, but it was truly Curtis who gave me the gift that day. Thanks KPeasey crew – you are all inspiring and congrats to the amazing athletes who achieved new milestones on March 17, 2013. I will never forget it and can’t wait for the next one!
-Tara Freiberger 
Volunteer, Athlete

Tara & Curtis post race with medals.  (not pictured: chocolate milk)