Marathon mom one of the few, the proud
Dorene Schneider, 56, with her running coach Jules Winkler, 79, heads out from the driveway of her Fort Salonga home. She was preparing for the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., which she completed. (Oct. 18, 2011) Credit: Thomas A. Ferrara
Mission accomplished. Dorene Schneider, the Marine captain's mother who was featured in an Act 2 cover story Oct. 29, completed the Oct. 30 Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., with a time of 6:32:28.
Schneider, 56, who has had two hip replacements, trained with veteran marathoner Jules Winkler, 79, of Medford, for two years to run the event in honor of her son Josh's three tours of duty overseas. She also raised $1,500 for Hope for the Warriors, one of the marathon's charity beneficiaries.
After the race, Schneider wrote in an email: "Had a pretty good pace and took advantage of the down hills bringing me ahead and making it to the bridge (Mile 20) in 4:13. I had a chance to finish the race in 5:50 but blew my hamstring and had to walk the remainder of the race at a 19:00-20:00 pace.
"Though I was disappointed, I quickly got over it and knew I had accomplished my goal (of course I mustered a kick to run that last two-tenths of a mile to cross the finish line) . . . I am now a marathoner."
