Ten-year-old Keenan Peel is just getting serious about
long-distance running. But, he's already planned an ambitious
project--a solo half-marathon which he's turning into a
cancer fund-raiser.
Keenan
Peel |
Keenan is a 5th grader at North Glendale Elementary School
in Kirkwood. His first lengthy run earlier this year was
an 80-mile relay race in Illinois. He completed three relay
legs for a total of 10.2 miles.
He and his mother are members of the Belleville (Ill.)
Running Club, which competed in the River to River Relay
Race across the southern tip of Illinois April 19.
The race got its name from a route that started near the
Mississippi River in the Shawnee National Forest and ended
at Golconda, Ill., near the Ohio River. The route had varying
terrain with some rather steep hills.
Keenan also has competed in some 5K races. The latest was
at Maryville, Ill.
Keenan
running in the River to River Relay Race |
This month, he'll start 12 weeks of training leading up
to the Lewis and Clark Half-Marathon on Sept. 13 in St.
Charles. That's a total of 13.1 miles all in one stretch.
That half-marathon is also a fund-raiser for St. Jude's
Children's Hospital in Memphis.
Keenan said one of his classmates at North Glendale had
cancer and was treated at St. Jude's. "He's back in school
now and I'm running for him," he said.
In the April relay race, Keenan and his mother, Jen, were
members of one of two teams from the Belleville club. The
usual number of members on the relay team was eight.
But, race officials added Ms. Peel as a ninth, or alternate,
member in case Kennan got tired. Keenan said, "But, she
wasn't needed and I ran faster than she did."
His mother has been running for some time and, last month,
completed the Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Asked about the choice of her first marathon, she said,
"It fit into my training schedule and was close enough."
She trained 15 weeks for the marathon, using the Grant Hiking
Trail which is close to their home.
In training for the marathon, Ms. Peel said she ran four
days a week and then lifted weights the other three.
One of the reasons for interrupting the running was to
make sure she didn't overstrain her feet. "I've broken the
same foot in the same location a couple times," she said.
She also decided the weight training would help build her
body to offer more cushioning while running.
She said she first started running about 10 years ago.
Then, her longest training sessions were about two miles.
She started her training for the half-marathon three years
ago.
When she broke her foot two years ago, she started mixing
lifting with the running. "I thought the lifting might help
keep me whole." She said.
Keenan's training will start in mid-June with two days
of running at the first of the week. His distance will start
at three miles each time and move up to eight miles as the
race nears.
The third day of running will be on Saturday, starting
with four miles and moving up to 12 near the end.
Keenan is already starting to lobby for longer distances.
He'd like to have run the whole 13.1 miles of the half-marathon
before the actual race.
But, his mother said he needs to factor in the other exercise
he gets in sports.
Keenan said he's a goalie for his PeeWee ice hockey team
at the Kirkwood Rink.
He also plays lacrosse and soccer.
But, Keenan also has to set aside some times for fund-raising.
"I'm going to go door to door in our neighborhood and
ask for money. Then, we'll also ask friends and relatives,"
he said.
He's already recruited his grandmother in Carson City,
Nev., to put on a spaghetti dinner fund-raiser this summer.
Keenan will be there for a time in the summer.
"She'll do all the work and I'll get to collect all the
money," he said.
Keenan has set a rather ambitious goal for the fund-raising
efforts. "I want to raise $1,310. That's because the race
is 13.1 miles," he said.
To help fund-raising, St. Jude's has established a St.
Jude Heroes website. Once someone has signed up to run,
the hospital lets them use a part of it to establish a personalized
site. Keenan's is www.stjudeheroes.org/users/keenan.
Ms. Peel said each runner can then develop his or her own
personalized donation pitch to relatives and friends.
When asked what he finds most enjoyable about distance
running, he said, "I like to beat my mother's time and also
pass other runners." He added, "I had six 'road kill' (his
term for runners he passes) on the first leg of the
relay race."
Asked about his chances of completing the half-marathon,
he thought he would be able to do it. "My mother will help
me train and she'll help get me through," he added.
