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Overcast Lynbrook woman runs NYC marathon
Honors her father who beat cancer
Many bodies dripping sweat while taking heavy breaths and grasps for air as they pound the pavement at full speed is an image that may cross many people’s minds when they think about a marathon. But while many might envision this image, Cathy Pampino Woods had deeper thoughts on her mind preparing and running in the 2010 ING New York City Marathon on Nov. 7 – the sweet victory of honoring her father for his bravery battling and beating cancer.
Woods, a 40-year-old Lynbrook resident said she was ready to make it to the finish line in record time turning “fancy foot” marathon dreams into a reality. With a fundraising goal of $3,000, Woods was set to put her pedal to the metal to make a difference by donating that money to cancer research at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
“There were two reasons why I wanted to do this marathon,” Woods said. “The first is that running a marathon has always been a goal of mine. I sat on my couch for many years and saw the marathon saying that I will do it next year. And second, I wanted to raise funds when my father became sick with cancer.”
Running as a part of Fred’s Team, a group of runners who participate in athletic events to raise funds for cancer research at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Woods wanted to give back and support not just strangers, but her own father. “When my father got sick, he said to me, ‘you don’t understand what I am going through,’” she said. “I wanted to prove my strength and endurance to him … show him how strong I can be. He has been so strong throughout.”
To build up her strength, Woods became very disciplined in following a training schedule. With the help of a training chart from Fred’s Team, Woods ran 20 to 40 miles a week and did cross-training activities such as weightlifting and biking.
“The idea of a marathon has always been in the back of my mind,” she said. “I have been a casual runner for weight loss.”
Woods credits her best friend as the person who helped her get into running, and she is s proud that she could add this latest event to their ten-year history. She feared not earning a spot in marathon’s difficult selection process, and applied a couple of times before getting in.
