87 mile run from Athens to Atlanta For Carter

I AM HAPPY TO SAY I FINISHED THE 89 MILE COURSE FROM ATHENS TO ATLANTA IN 19 HOURS 41 MINUTES AND 9 SECONDS DESPITE BEING SICK THE TWO DAYS PRIOR TO THE RACE.

RACE REPORT

http://getguts.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=races&action=display&thread=1036

We need your support!

Welcome !

The money I raise goes to the Leukemia and Lymphoma society to help find new cures and help treat others stricken with these diseases!

I am running in Honor of Carter!

Carter's Story

Carter was diagnosed with Acute Lymphotic Leukemia in May of 2008.

His birthday is June 8th. Carter is 7 years old and in the first grade. Carter enjoys Falcons football, basketball and reading. Carter’s parents, Eric and Christy and his brothers, Max and Beau, live in Cobb

County Carter and his family look forward to being a part of Team In Training!

Please make a donation to support me and help Carter and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

I hope you will visit my web site often. Be sure to check back frequently to see my progress and join my Facebook group http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=118085447872.

Thanks for your support!

my back ground story:

"Some people create with words or with music or with a brush and paints. I like to make something beautiful when I run. I like to make people stop and say, 'I've never seen anyone run like that before.' It's more than just a race, it's a style. It's doing something better than anyone else. It's being creative." - Steve Prefontaine

I am 23 years old and I love to travel. I can proudly say that I am one of the few native Atlantans. Last summer I ran the Peachtree Road Race and fell in love with the energy of running races. Everyone starts running and runs for a different reason, and mine is because I love to push myself. The simple fact that I am being timed makes me push harder and faster. I thrive off the energy of a race.

After the Peachtree I decided I wanted to try and qualify for the Peachtree in 2009. So for the first time ever I started training. Until this point I had never trained for running, I just played soccer. I ran very informally, once or twice a week for 20 to 30 minutes. I ran the Strong Legs 10k race with a 40 minute time goal in mind. When I finished and I didn't meet that goal I decided that I needed to run the 5k after that. So I ran that and placed. It gave new meaning to my running. Something that I was halfway decent at.

I then ran a couple of more 10k races with the same results. I just couldn't crack 40 minutes on the 10k. That was when I realized that I wanted to go longer instead of faster. I had an up coming trip to New Zealand and so I looked for as many races as I could find. I found a race.

It was a 27km (roughly 17 miles) mountain race in Fjordland New Zealand. So I signed up. I began to run a little bit more but still had no clue what I was doing.

I embarked on my trip to New Zealand with a new found desire to combine travel with running. Race day I found myself thousands of miles from home alone by myself looking at the starting line. I didn't know anyone around me and as far as my standards go I was in the middle of now where. The gun went off and I started running. I passed most of the people over the first 3 miles because it was really flat. Then I looked up at 5 miles of straight vertical climb of 4800ft. I had never faced anything anywhere near this hard. Right when I was ready to give up the trees opened up and a view comparable to heaven emerged. I was above the tree line and on top of a mountain that over looked lakes and mountains as far as the eye could see. It was a bolt of energy sent directly up my entire body and I began pushed harder. I reached the turn around and sprinted back down the mountain. The transition from the hard climb to quick decent left my legs cramping and just like jello. I reached the finish line in 17th place and so cramped I could barely walk. I ran through the finish line as they announced "Sean Blanton coming in 17th place. Sean is an international runner all the way here from Atlanta Georgia in the United States!." This hit me deep and made me cry. Not only had I finished but I had done pretty good my my standards and the guy just called me an International runner. I thought that was the coolest thing. After the race I went back to the place I was staying. As I didnt have anyone there after the race to take me home or give me a big hug. I was all alone but full of pride they no one could ever have known but me.

The reason I tell you this story is because it was the event that got me hooked on distance running. In fact the day after the race I got online and signed up for the Callaway Gardens marathon January 25 2009. It was a felling that I try and duplicate every race but few races will ever come close to that for me. I do think this run from Athens to Atlanta will do just that for me.

Athens to Atlanta Epiphany

I was running some months back, after I had just read Dean Karnazes' Ultra Marathon Man book, and I was thinking how I wanted to run for someone else's life. I am just a part time worker and I dont make a whole lot of money, so what can I do for someone who is sick. It came to me later when I was looking at endurance events online. I found an inline skating event where they skate from Athens to Atlanta. I then thought to myself that would be awesome to run it. So I decided to email the race directors thinking it can never hurt to ask. Within 24 hours of emailing them I received an email back saying that they thought that it was an amazing idea. Since then I have taken the idea and run with it, literally. It fuels my runs and gives my every step a reason to take another one. I can't stop Im not running for my life but for someone else's life.

I run alot of races and since my first marathon ever at Callaway Gardens January 25th I have run the following races.

Thrills in the hills half marathon

Atlanta Ing Marathon

Diez Vista 50k (first ultra 12,000 ft elevation change)

Buncombe trail 34 mile trail race 14th place

Scenic City trail marathon

Sweet h20 50k 15th place

Chatooga 50k 6th place

Moonlight Boogie 50 mile 5th place

Chattanooga 3 day stage race days 1 and 3

Knee Knacker 30 mile trail (17,000 ft elevation change)

PCT Mt. Hood 50 mile 8 hrs 49 mins

Hot to Trot 8 hr race 5th 45.76 miles 7hrs 49 mis

Lynch's woods 50k 4th place

North Face endurance 50 mile PR for 50 mile 8 hours 19 mins

FATS 50K 1st place MY FIRST WIN!!!!!!! and my new 50k pr. 4 hours 34 mins and course record!

plus a bunch of 5ks and 10ks mixed in there

Future races this year

Mountian Masochist 50 mile

OBX Marathon

Dizzy 50s 50 mile

Atlanta Thanksgiving marathon

Derby 50k

Lookout Mountian 100k

pine mountian 40 mile

I tell you this to show you that I am extremely dedicated to this event and to Ultra Running.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME AND SUPPORT

SEAN BLANTON

>26.2

PLEASE HELP 8 YR OLD CARTER AND THE LEUKEMIA AND LYMPHOMA SOCIETY!

please email me if you have any questions or comments, but please hold the concerns to yourself :)

Big thanks to my sponsors

Big Peach Running Co. and Square One Fish Co. !!!!!

THANK YOU

Mom and Dad without you guys none of this would be possible

Big Peach for your donation of gear! thank you Mike Consentino and GUTS for really putting ultra running on the map! You guys are meaking our sport better every day thank you

all my friends and family

especially the following who made me who I am and encouraged me instead of brushing me off for a loonie!

AMBER SCHREINER and Shae Rossetti! David Ray, Wayne Downey, Dan Hartley, Matt Kahrs, Colt, Tom Wilson, Vikena Yutz, Beth Mcurdy and Beth Preston, Kim Pike, Mike Vaughn, Ryan Mclaughlin, Javier De Jesus, Kate Brun, all the big peach employees and any one else I missed!

You guys have truely changed my life so now I hope to change someone else's life!