Marathon runners go the extra mile

ELYSSA MCFADDEN STAFFWRITER EMM722@CABRINI EDU

Thousands of people filled the streets of New York City to support those running in the 26mile marathon on Sunday, Nov. 7. The participants started in Staten Island and ended in Central Park.

There were approximately 35,000 people running in this event, and some were even dressed up to get a laugh out of the crowd. Watching from the 14th mile, the runners looked like they had just started. Their energy was amazing.

One person was dressed in a Scooby-doo costume. It was a hot day to begin with, and wearing this costume and r unning in this event was unimaginable.

Another person was dressed as batman, wearing his shorts, a cape and a batman mask. The costumes were very amusing.

I’m not exactly sure what motivates a person to run in a marathon, and I am very shocked that 35,000 people volunteer to do it. I would have a better understanding if it was for a certain cause, but many of the runners just do it for personal goals. Either way, I have a lot of respect for those who were involved in the marathon.

There is one person in par ticular that is admired by many, including myself. I didn’t see it first hand, but was told by a friend who saw it on the news that mor ning. The stor y was about a woman suffering from multiple sclerosis who took part in the marathon.

This woman started three hours before the rest of the participants and was expected to finish Monday morning. This was an incredible task for anyone to accomplish, but someone with a disorder in which they need to use a walker was just astonishing. Here I am just a bystander in the crowds, watching as thousands strive to reach there goals. At the same time, there is a woman out there with a deadly disorder, succeeding in something that many healthy young people wouldn’t even attempt. This woman has been an inspiration to people everywhere. Being at the marathon was a great experience, and being able to walk in the middle of the city streets without having to wor ry about being r un over by a taxi was even better. If I have the opportunity to go to the marathon again, I will.

Williams said that there are some noticeable differences in her high school swim team compared to the one at Cabrini College. For example, she noted that at Cabrini College the team incorporates the use of fins and paddles, but in her high school they barely used them.

Moreover, in her high school they would mostly work all strokes, but at Cabrini they focus a lot on the free-style stroke.

Also, Williams said that she has “improved a lot since high school.” Her individual goals for the upcoming season include lowering her time in the 50 free from 29 seconds to 27 seconds. Also, she wants to work on lowering her time in the 100 free from 1.06 to 1.03.

She has admitted to getting the pre-competition jitters right before a meet. Williams said, “I can’t sleep the night before because I’m so ner vous.” Although she does get nervous right before a meet, she will overcome the fear and channel that nervousness into positive energy and adrenaline as the meet goes on, and she competes in more events.

Williams described the Cabrini College women’s swim team as very hard working. Although she does not have a set regiment for working out, Williams says that she tries to attend workout sessions in the gym at least three times a week in addition to the mandatory swim team practices.

Williams encourages everyone to come out to their upcoming meets to see her and the other members of the team compete.

Eagles crush Giants; clinch NFC east

Brad Diamond Guestwriter

In a game that saw the NFL’s leading receiver held to only four catches for 61 yards, Terrell Owens’teammates were able to pick up the slack. Brian Westbrook rushed for 74 yards and scored twice as the Eagles clinched a weak NFC East in only 11 games.

The Eagles (10-1) were in a defensive battle with the New York Giants for much of the first half on Sunday. Donovan Mcnabb’s four-yard scamper was the only touchdown in the first half, as the eagles held a 7-6 lead after 30 minutes. Following a pair of field goals that extended the Eagle lead early in the third quarter, the aforementioned Brian Westbrook took over. Westbrook, a Villanova product, scored on a one-yard touchdown run, then on a 34-yard screen pass from Donovan Mcnabb.

The Giants were unable to answer the call as young Eli Manning struggled after showing signs of promise in the first half. The Eagles closed out the game, winning by a convincing score of 27-6. Manning, who was making only his second NFL start, completed only six of his 21 pass attempts for 148 yards and threw two interceptions. The muchcriticized Eagles defense continued to make strides in the right direction, but the road ahead isn’t easy.

They return home next week to face a red-hot Green Bay Packers team, led by legendary quarterback Brett Favre. The Eagles will need more production from Terrell Owens next week if they expect to upend the Packers, who have won six straight after starting 1-4.

MICHELLE MORAN GUESTWRITER MLM724@CABRINI EDU

In a recent released film “Super Size Me,” filmmaker Morgan Spurlock documented his 30 day binge on only McDonald’s foods. Spurlock had to follow the McDonald’s diet, which had three rules; the first rule was that he could only eat food that was available over the counter at McDonalds. The second rule was that he had to super size his meal whenever an employee asked him. The last rule was that he had to eat everything on the menu at least once.

Over the course of the 30 days Spurlock gained 27 pounds while raising his cholesterol and making himself sick. This documentary may have appeared unrealistic to a lot of people since no one in their right mind would eat McDonald’s three times a day. Although Spurlock’s diet was unrealistic, America’s obesity problem is ver y realistic. If America’s obesity problem is left untreated it could surpass smoking as the number one avoidable cause of death.

So are fast food company’s to blame for Americas obesity problems? This question is very complex, I believe that while fast food companies are not the sole problem, I feel that they are playing a major role in helping it along and should be held responsible. Of course no one forces you to go into McDonald’s to eat, or for you to order a double quarter pounder cheeseburger, but little is known about the actual health problems related with eating such things.

Some facts that reveal this obesity problem is that French fries are the most eaten vegetable in America. Or that if you ordered a super sized coke, fries and Big Mac you would have to walk seven straight hours just to burn it off. So, how did fast food places become such a problem?

The reason is that they have influenced almost every aspect of our culture, transforming not only the American diet, but also our landscape, economy, workforce, and popular culture.

We all remember playing on

Do you ever ask yourself these burning questions - the playground at McDonalds or Burger King when we were young and looking forward to our happy meal with a cool little toy. We are brought up on such foods because they are familiar to us, their good, fast, cheap, and sometimes fun. The economy also relies on fast food companies because an estimated one out of every eight workers has at some point been employed by McDonald’s, and the nation’s 3.5 million fast-food workers are the largest group of minimum-wage earners.

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On the other side fast food companies are now starting to add healthier items and options to their menus. For example McDonald’s now offers bottled waters as an option to the sugar packed sodas. Wendy’s also now offers healthy options for their kid’s meals like milk instead of soda or a fresh fruit cup in place of fries. Although these options are steps towards making people think about what they are ordering, it still isn’t enough.

More publicity needs to circulate about this growing problem. The reason why so many people don’t know a lot about the dan- gers of fast food is because many news companies are afraid to air unfavorable information against such companies like McDonalds because they fund a lot of advertising dollars and sponsor a lot of sports events.

The obesity problem is not stopping any time soon unless people take an initiative to really think about what they are eating. With all of the diet products out there America is looking for a quick and easy solution to shed pounds. I feel that although fast food companies are providing some healthier choices on their menus I feel that the need to add more healthier options and to post nutritional facts in restaurants that are easily readable and accessible.

Do I think people should immediately stop eating fast food? No, of course not, I still will be hitting the local Wendy’s late night drive thru or McDonalds for a number two but now I will think about how many times I am eating there a month and think about how much that cheeseburger might cost me in the long run.