Posted: September 30, 2007

Athletics: Counting Down To The 30th Anniversary Lasalle Bank Chicago Marathon

30 Inspiring Stories in 30 Days A long-time promise to his son is the driving force pushing Casey Westenrieder to the start line of The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon. As an educator, Casey frequently teaches his students the value and importance of living up to commitments and promises. He will do that for his son on October 7. WHO: Casey Westenrieder AGE: 38 OCCUPATION: Freshman English teacher for a Dallas inner-city school HOMETOWN: Duncanville, Texas PREVIOUS MARATHONS: Debut RUNNER STORY: Casey Westenrieder is running in The 2007 LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon for one reason: he promised his son that he would. As a veteran of the US Army’s 82nd Airborne Division, he is no stranger to hard work and is well aware of the benefits of honest exercise. This will mark his first marathon ever; though he had intended to participate in marathons previously, misfortune got in his way. For some time, Casey’s son has been encouraging him to get involved in racing. He initially pushed Casey to prepare for 5K runs. Though he reluctantly agreed, he found that it was not a chore, but actually something he truly enjoyed. When his son started pushing for a marathon, Casey could not help but concede and give it a shot. He began training for the 26.2 mile excursion and on two occasions registered for marathons he thought he would enjoy. Yet both times he was unable to arrive at the start line. In one case it was an obligation to his job and in the other it was due to an untimely injury. Though it seemed that a marathon was not in his future, Casey pressed forward. This year Casey wholeheartedly intends to make good on his long overdue promise to his son. He will race on October 7 with the goal of finishing and hopes to have his son run alongside him. As a teacher he has always been aware of the importance of setting a good example for his students and he knows following through with promises is one of the best ways to execute it. By running in this race he will be doing what he set out to accomplish so long ago and will be ready to take on new challenges. As a Texas resident, Casey is looking forward to making the trip north to visit the Windy City. Chicago has become one of his favorite places to visit whenever he has the opportunity. He looks forward to returning to the city’s friendly community and being part of an event that unifies over 45,000 runners and 1.5 million spectators! He hopes that the energy of the people around him will provide an extra push in the event he has the slightest thought of surrender. RACE INFORMATION: The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon will celebrate its 30th anniversary on Sunday, October 7, 2007 as 45,000 participants advance to the start line, embarking on the culmination of 45,000 personal journeys. Along with the massive field of recreational runners, the 26.2-mile course will welcome a full field of world renowned professional athletes drawn to the flat, fast, urban setting and the potential to break world and national records. The professionals will compete for prize money and points in the World Marathon Majors series which will crown its first male and female champions with $500,000 each at the close of 2007. Since the inception of its charity program in 2002, The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon has generated more than $27.5 million for a variety of charitable causes including $9.5 million in the 2006 event alone. Registration for the race opened on January 1, 2007 and closed when it reached capacity on April 18. Casey’s story and all previously released runner stories are available at ChicagoMarathon.com. Subscribe to the Runner's Web Weekly Digest