Glen Ellyn woman close to completing cross-country run

Katie Visco has taken her sport of choice a bit more literally than most. The former Glenbard West High School cross-country runner is about to do just that: finish a run across the country.

As her 3,132-mile journey approaches the finish line in San Diego, the 24-year-old Glen Ellyn native said she does not know what to expect. But her battle across some mountainous southwest terrain symbolizes her message, she said.

"All I want to do is inspire people to think about their own mountains and dreams and goals and, gosh darn it, go for them," she said Monday, the second-to-last day of a trip that began March 29 in Boston.

After eight months of her trip, which has gone through 15 states and included a stop in Glen Ellyn in late June, Visco's body finally started telling her she might have to ease off her pace. On Dec. 6, she started to feel pain that she said felt like tendinitis in her knee. She announced on her blog at paveyourlane.com that the injury had forced her to walk her 18 miles per day. Instead of using that as an excuse to quit, however, Visco said, she is trying to use it as a second way to inspire.

"I'm not going to complain about it because it's a challenge," she said. "I'm telling people, 'You might have your wall at the beginning or middle of the dream but it doesn't matter.' If you want something bad enough, you'll keep pushing through it."

Throughout her journey, Visco said she has stayed at the homes of people who have offered them up merely out of kindness.

"They wanted to see me accomplish this, and I don't even know them," she said. "There are just so many helping hands out there if you give people the opportunity to help."

Visco has raised about $11,000 to support Girls on the Run, an organization devoted to promoting the health and overall well being of young girls. The total has fallen well short of her initial goal of $32,000. However, just meeting with about 15 chapters throughout the country has been fulfilling, she said.

Friends say the charitable portion of her trip stays within a giving nature Visco has had since she was young.

"It's no surprise at all if you know her," said longtime family friend Kay Kendall, whose daughter ran on the same high school cross country team as Visco. "We always knew she was someone special."

When Visco first mentioned her trip, Kendall said she couldn't believe it.

"Honestly, I thought she was crazy," Kendall said. "Yet here she is. It's just amazing. As a neighborhood, we are just very proud of her."

Running is nothing new to Visco. In high school, she did the 3,200-meter and the mile runs for the track team. Despite not being the fastest or most accomplished runner on the team, Visco was named cross country captain during her senior year. Head coach Sue Pariseau, who retired following a 29-year career that ended after Visco's senior year in 2003, said Visco wasn't always the fastest runner but her enthusiasm carried her forward.

"She was a tremendous leader." Pariseau said. "She was an average runner with above average enthusiasm, leadership skills and commitment."

When Visco stopped in Glen Ellyn, Pariseau and Visco's track coach, Paul Hass, helped welcome her home.

"You always hope that you give something to your athletes to carry them into adult life, no matter what it is," Pariseau said. "To see her turn it into such a positive thing for young girls and use it as a tool to give young women hope, that's just the ultimate compliment."

Visco said her entire trip has been one big continuous surprise. Near the end of her journey, she has started wondering after each hill and mountain whether the vision she sees is the ocean.

She expects many people she has met to help her celebrate the end of the road. As she spoke on the phone with a reporter, a man she met in Pennsylvania pulled up and offered encouraging words. Despite her injury, she said she will run the last mile.

When she reaches the end, she said her reaction and emotions will probably be yet another surprise.

"I feel like there's this huge empty space in my body," she said, "and I'm waiting for the levees to break and all of these emotions to fall and seep into that big empty space."

<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Related links</h2> <ul class="moreWeb"> <li><a href="http://www.paveyourlane.com/">Katie Visco's Web page </a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>