Marcy Ritsick celebrates her 40th birthday this December in Negril while on vacation with her husband.  And she’s doing it in style running in Reggae Marathon.  We can’t think of a better way to turn 40!

Marcy is from West Hartford, Connecticut and has been running since age 30.  She was always an active kid and was enrolled in some type of organized sport her entire life…soccer, tennis, downhill skiing, and swim team:

At first I started participating in triathlons, with goals of weight loss and fitness.  Especially since I was a high school swimmer I thought tri’s would be cool!  Plus, who doesn’t love to ride bikes!  The running was pretty challenging for me, so I had to focus a lot on that.  I ended up loving it (running) so much, that I just started signing up for stand-alone 5k’s and I was hooked.  Then, I started increasing the distance and loved how FAR my legs could carry me.  I’m especially interested in the idea of endurance. I also LOVE long-distance hiking, especially in northern New England (and have a goal of thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail).

Marcy learned about Reggae Marathon while searching ‘Negril’ on the Internet.  She noted, “What are the chances that the Marathon, Half Marathon and 10k scheduled for the SAME exact weekend I’ll be in town…I’m pretty sure I’m doing the half”.  Reggae is her favourite music and since she’s on vacation, “It’s a no brainer…I love running in new places, as it’s the best way to see a new landscape and meet new friends”.

I’ve already done the full marathon in my home town…the Hartford Marathon…so feel like I’ve already “proven” to myself that I can do anything.  I really just do it for fun now.

I had spinal surgery in January, 2015, and am just grateful that I am ABLE to run (even though it was “just” a disc replacement and fusion in my neck).  I’ve raised a lot of money for various charities, through Team MAD (which stands for “Making a Difference” – we raise money for a different Connecticut charity each year) and I am extremely proud of my service with that organization over the past several years. I’m in it for the FUN, for CHARITY, and to see new places.See you at the starting (and finish) line!  ONE LOVE.

Nice to meet you Marcy.  Glad you’ve chosen Reggae Marathon for your 40th! Yes we’ll see you at the start and finish and at on the beach at the post-race Reggae Marathon celebrations!

Until next time…

Reggae Marathon RunninGuy (aka Sugar ‘Tuff Gong’ Bong)

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