Going all the way
Submitted | Marian Lee Yazzie, 52, will compete in the 2015 TCS New York City Marathon on Nov. 1. She was an avid runner as a child and young adult and started back up two years ago. She moved her way up from 5K races to half marathons and now her second-ever marathon.
Rookie marathon runner to race in the Big Apple
FRUITLAND, N.M.
No headphones. No music. No running buddy. That’s the only way Marian Lee Yazzie likes to run.
The Sweetwater, Ariz., native typically likes quiet runs on dirt trails and wide open spaces, but next week, the 52-year-old rookie marathon runner will tryout her hand at the 2015 TCS New York City Marathon to be held Nov. 1.
Yazzie said it will be her first time in the Big Apple and she couldn’t be more elated about her second-ever marathon race.
“I kind of had this goal about a year ago, where I wanted to be and what I wanted to accomplish,” she said. “The time has come where I’m actually going to be going to New York City.”
Yazzie was selected to join New York City Marathon’s team Community Access. According to the organization’s web site, Community Access is a participating charity in the marathon that sets out to help those living in New York City access to affordable housing, food, job training and more. The members of the team help raise money for the charity and in exchange, the participant’s entry fees are paid for.
Yazzie said a friend told her about the cause and she decided to give it a try. She was only able to raise $250 after receiving contribution from Navajo Nation Gaming Enterprise.
She said though she didn’t reach the goal of raising $3,000 she is still able to run.
“I’ve tried out local companies like NTUA (Navajo Tribal Utility Authority), NHA (Navajo Housing Authority), the only one that actually donated was Navajo Gaming out of Window Rock,” she said. “I was hoping more would…”
The marathon is Yazzie’s second marathon but her first official marathon, the 2015 Shiprock Marathon, was an accident.
Yazzie said she meant to run the half marathon in Shiprock earlier this year but her sister dropped her off at the wrong starting line. By the time she realized she was running the full marathon she decided to keep going.
“I had no choice,” she said. “I just kept running and running and running. I thought ‘I’ve gone this far, I might as well just go all the way.’”
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