Marathon veteran gathers inspiration to repeat Honolulu run

By AJ Cloud



Quincy Garvin remembers being on the first marathon team organized by Erwin Begay when she was 13. Now, she has begun to set her sights to repeat the run. The run is a rigorous 26.2 mile marathon held annually in Honolulu.
Quincy began cross-training workouts this January and will continue them for the next two months.
Her current training includes cycling, swimming, weight lifting, and walking with conditioning and strengthening her body as her main priority.
At the end of March, Quincy hopes to be finishing 6 to 10 mile runs and by late fall extending her test runs to 16 to 22 miles.
 “It’s good because she wants to do it, because of someone she loves,” said former marathon Coach Begay.
Seventeen years ago the late Louella Blackdeer asked Quincy two questions: If she wanted to run a marathon and if she wanted to go to Hawaii. Quincy could not resist Hawaii and later realized she had also agreed to run a marathon.
Quincy’s decision to repeat the marathon is not only a personal goal but also an honoring of her friend Louella Blackdeer, who died as a result of an accident caused by a drunk driver in May 2000.
 “Coach Begay told us in the beginning that we would hit a wall and want to stop. This one night I hit that wall and I wanted to stop,” said Quincy.
Blackdeer encouraged Quincy not to quit and said that they would run together.
“It felt good she believed in me and ran with me,” said Quincy.
Quincy finished the 1999 Honolulu Marathon in a time of 8 hours 40 minutes and 16 seconds.
“I always wanted to do it again after Louella passed away. It has taken me this long, mentally, to commit to my training, dieting, and being ready to cross that finish line again,” said Quincy.
Heading into the marathon in 1999, Quincy had a support system comprised of her family as well as her marathon team members.
“Parents had to sign a sponsor contract to ensure motivation support, transportation to test runs, and to make sure we were following our diet,” said Quincy.
Although Quincy is not running with a team, other marathon veterans from Runners Against Drunk Driving (RADD) that have finished the marathon in subsequent years have come forward in support and few of them have expressed their willingness to repeat with her.
“The support has to be there, if it isn’t there then you quit,” said Begay.
The annual Honolulu Marathon is set for December 11, 2016.
Quincy expressed one hesitation about completing the upcoming marathon.
“Yes, I’m scared to hit that wall again, but my heart is in it and I have the mentality along with the support,” said Quincy.
Along with completing the marathon in December, Quincy also plans to conduct a small memorial on Oahu’s North Shore for departed teammates Louella Blackdeer and Cody Murphy.


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