WWJPD: What Would Jason Pisano Do?

Team Pisano Member Scott Dresden wrote the following:

Next time you are too tired to get out of bed and exercise in the morning, do yourself a favor and read the following.

WWJPD?
What Would Jason Pisano Do?

In 1994 you decide to enter your first marathon. You have never walked a step in your life. You were born with a severe case of Cerebral Palsy and 90% of your body is constantly in spasm. You have controlled coordination of only your left foot. Your best friend and training partner says he doesn’t think you can make it 26.2 miles since you will have to push yourself backwards the whole way and you have never run more than 8 miles. The race organizer of the Ocean State Marathon tells you they don’t allow mobility impaired athletes in their race and you will not be recognized or supported on the route.
WWJPD? He’d start the race at 4AM, bring his own support team, take a wrong turn and go an extra mile and a half and finish the route from Narragansett to Warwick, RI in 12 and one-half hours.

In 1995 you set your sights on the granddaddy of all marathons, The Boston Marathon. The Race Organizer refuses to give you an answer about your eligibility, as it has never been run “backwards”.
WWJPD? Jason would “unofficially” run one of the hilliest courses in America with his own support team. The stir created by his accomplishment would lead to the creation of one of the most popular race classes in the Boston Marathon.

In 1997, the Ocean State Marathon finally decides to recognize your accomplishments by making you an official participant in their race. Tragically, Rachel, the 12 year-old with Leukemia that inspired you to join Team In Training and raise $1000 for her cause, dies the day before the big race. Do you pull out of the race and feel sad? Do you hold a grudge against the race official and refuse to run in the race?
WWJPD? Jason would run the race again, only this time 5 hours faster than his first, and then give his official medal to Rachel’s mother.

In 1999, Bob Teschek, the Race Organizer of the Mount Washington Road Race tells you: “This race isn’t made for wheelchairs.” Apparently a “good” wheelchair racer with the use of both of his arms had attempted the race a few years back. It turned out to be too steep and rocky for him since it is an off-road event 7.6 miles straight up from the base of the mountain to the summit.
WWJPD? Arms, arms, he don’t need no stinkin’ arms. It’s all about the toe. It’s about the heart. Jason would run up the mountain anyway. At times, the mountain was so steep; Jason would push his left foot off the anchor of his guide Randy’s foot since the loose ground wouldn’t hold him. Three hours and 59 minutes later he would unofficially finish one of the most grueling road races in America.

Move to the enlightened age of 2005. The Race Organizer of the Mystic Places Marathon in Mystic Connecticut says he will not allow you on his course as he feels you are a liability to the other participants. (Even though you safely finished 33 other races over the past 11 years!)
WWJPD? Jason would send over his friend the state trooper to explain to the director how unsafe things really could be. The race ends up being held during a torrential downpour, causing many to drop out. Jason finishes frozen to the core. A week later he ran his 12th consecutive Boston Marathon.

It is now 2006, and after training for 4 months, you come down with a mouth full of ulcers and a virus two days before the Boston Marathon. Your family and doctor tell you not to take any chances and to drop out of the competition.
WWJPD? Jason would run it anyway. He would tear out the first 10K like a bat out of hell, get fried in the heat, but fight through it to finish his 35th consecutive marathon.

Would you feel sorry for yourself if you had Cerebral Palsy? WWJPD? He’d move away from home after graduating in the top 20% of his high school class. He’d move into the dormitory at college and party with the rest of his classmates. He’d get a degree in Journalism from the University of Connecticut and succeed as a freelance journalist. He’d become an international athlete and win two gold medals at the Cerebral Palsy World Games. He’s set a goal to do not 1 marathon, but 50. “A lot of people think Jason Pisano should feel bad for himself, but he's too busy doing other things.”