Multiple sclerosis is a debilitating disease known for its attacks on the central nervous system. The autoimmune disease causes various impairments in the host, including difficulty walking, or even standing. However, that didn’t stop Patrick Finney, and 48-year old man from the Dallas suburb of Grapevine.
In 1998, Patrick was diagnosed with MS. His doctor told him to take it easy and just take his medicine. Mr. Finney did not take this advice, and he returned to his regimen of moderate, daily running, which he had started in order to lose some weight. Patrick continued his running up until 2004, at which point the disease had left him unable to walk. However, with the help of new medicines and therapy, Mr. Finney was able to stand once more, walk, and eventually run.
Patrick was quoted as saying, “The first year was a real struggle for me,” referring to his return to running. “I was going through a pair of running shoes every two weeks, because I was scraping them up as I dragged my feet.” In 2005, Mr. Finney ran a half-marathon in Dallas, Texas, with only one goal on his mind – to finish. While most of the runners took approximately two hours, Finney took double that. The next year, however, he ran a full marathon, or 26.2 miles, and hasn’t stopped running since.
In 2010, Patrick Finney’s friend challenged him to run one marathon in each of the 50 United States, by his fiftieth birthday. Finney accepted instantaneously. He put together a spreadsheet, and told himself that he could beat the challenge in three a half years. Two weeks ago, and two years before his goal, Patrick Finney crossed the finish line of his fiftieth marathon, greatly exceeding his own expectations. Patrick was quoted as saying, “I have gotten to travel to a lot of new places and meet a lot of great people. It’s been a wonderful experience.”
Having completed a total of 71 marathons since 2006, Mr. Finney plans to run seven more by the year’s end. A friend of Finney said this of a hot, humid September day in Dallas. “Everyone was moaning and groaning about the weather except Patrick. He was smiling. When someone asked why he wasn’t bothered by the weather, he replied, ‘I’m just so happy to be able to run.’”
