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CHAMPAIGN – Marathon runners, by definition, have long-term goals.

It's impossible to start a race which requires running for at least 2 1/2 hours without looking down the road a bit.

Sisters Amanda Pankau and Bridget McLeese have established an even longer long-term goal than most marathoners.

The former Monticello High School athletes – whose names are still prominent in their high school's track record book – are looking well beyond Saturday's inaugural Illinois Marathon. They are looking to run the 26.2-mile event every year until they are 40. Amanda is 26. Bridget is 24.

This is a goal that can't possibly be attained for Bridget until 2025.

The sisters will have today's newspaper as a reminder of their vow.

"If you put that in print, I will just have to do it," Amanda said. "Bridget and I both stick to things we set out to do."

Family matters

Bridget McLeese acknowledges, "this goal will be very difficult. I do think it's possible and would like to try and achieve it."

Roadblocks could add to the degree of difficulty. Though she is not married, McLeese looks forward to the day when she will be raising a family.

And training for a marathon.

"Amanda and I are always up for a challenge," she said.

Amanda Pankau and her husband, Ryan, have discussed the issue, too.

"I'm not saying I'll plan my family around the races, but the races will be on the long list of things to consider before taking that step," she said. "I plan to run while I'm pregnant. I've read that you can run a marathon up until about four months into a pregnancy, but that will obviously be a discussion I have with my doctor."

Many of Saturday's runners will welcome the completion of the race as the end of their journey, at least temporarily.

McLeese and an uncle, 51-year-old Dennis Killian, from Darien, have a challenge of almost unprecedented proportions this month.

Saturday starts what McLeese's boss in Hinsdale, Dan Janowick, calls, "the 10 days of death."

Next weekend, McLeese and Killian – along with Amanda and several other friends and relatives – will participate in the eight-person, 80-mile River-to-River Relay in southern Illinois from the Mississippi to Ohio rivers.

Two days after that annual event, Killian and McLeese will compete in the 113th Boston Marathon.

"I figure if I can make it that far (to Boston), the adrenaline and thrill of having it all be over with will get me to the end," McLeese said.

Following along

At Monticello, the sisters never envisioned the day they would complete a marathon, let alone multiple marathons. Saturday's event in C-U will be Bridget's sixth and Amanda's fourth.

"In high school, running 5 miles seemed like a lot to me," Amanda said.

"I tried running in junior high and was never very good," Bridget McLeese said. "So I had planned on doing volleyball (another fall sport for girls) in high school."

Her mind was changed by none other than her sister. Amanda, who was primarily a sprinter and record-setting hurdler in track, had taken up cross-country as a junior and encouraged her younger sibling to follow her footsteps.

In her varsity debut, that's exactly what Bridget McLeese did.

"The only time I ever beat Bridget was in her very first cross-country race," Amanda said. "After the race, she confided to my dad that she could have 'run faster.'

"She wasn't quite sure of her abilities yet and had been holding back to stay behind me. Dad told her not to hold back and she has beat me ever since."

With two exceptions.

"I can still beat her in anything under 400 meters, and in arm wrestling," Amanda said.

Dynamic duos

Running can be a lonely vigil. Though Amanda works in Murphysboro as an environmental consultant and Bridget lives in Chicago within walking distance of Wrigley Field, they had plenty of companionship during their 18 weeks of six-day-a-week workouts.

Amanda's husband Ryan – who lettered in football and track before graduating from Monticello in 1997 – has been by her side.

"Ryan could run much faster, but we do all of our training together and stick together in the long races, too," Amanda said.

Bridget's boyfriend – Gifford native Kevin Frerichs – has been training for his first marathon. She's not sure how much they will see of each other during the race.

"We will start together and, hopefully, finish together," Bridget said. "We decided that if one of us feels better and wants to pick up the pace, they should go ahead and do so."

They may need to catch up with each other after finishing the race.

"Running a marathon is an individual sporting event," said Frerichs, who will celebrate his 26th birthday six days after the marathon, "so although it's nice to train with a partner, I'm not worried about finishing the race together.

"I look forward to seeing her at the finish line whether it's me cheering her on or, most likely, her cheering me on."

Pacing themselves

The sisters will see plenty of familiar faces during Saturday's marathon. Not all will be spectators placed strategically along the route.

In addition to Killian, two other uncles are competing. Steve McLeese, 55, from Towanda, has entered as has Jim McLeese, 41, from Roanoke, Va.

Two of the girls' cousins, Emily Ketelsen and Colleen Klein – and their husbands – from Lexington have signed up for the 13.1-mile half-marathon.

"My parents have organized a tailgate near Memorial Stadium," Amanda said.

Dad Robert McLeese computed times the sisters could be spotted at different locations, figuring both a 7-minute and 10-minute mile pace.

"Seven minutes," Bridget said. "He thinks a lot of me, I guess."

At a 10-minute pace, runners will be at the intersection of First and Green streets about 9:40 a.m. (after 10 miles) and near the northeast corner of Centennial Park (by the intersection of Crescent and Sangamon streets) about 10:20 a.m. (after 14 miles) and entering Memorial Stadium for the final one-tenth of a mile loop at 12:20 p.m.

The family connections have played a significant role throughout the sisters' months of training.

"Running would not be such a big part of my life if it wasn't for Dennis, Bridget and Ryan," said Amanda, a two-time collegiate rugby All-American at of Illinois. "Obviously, commitment and self-motivation are important, but if I didn't have that support system and example, things would be different."

Dennis Killian is striding toward a goal of his own. He has plans to run marathons in all 50 states.

"He's done 32 (states)," Bridget said, adding that Killian has completed more than 50 marathons as well as two ironman competitions.

The McLeese clan could have even greater representation in 2010. Brother Zach McLeese and his wife, Stefanie, ran a half-marathon last weekend in Dallas.

"Maybe next year they will be joining us," Bridget said.

Timing concerns

Under different circumstances, Bridget McLeese could see herself chasing her personal-best marathon time Saturday, which is 3 hours, 29 minutes and 50 seconds, set at the 2007 Chicago Marathon.

With so many races upcoming, however, that's not her plan.

"It is such a flat course and since I will be familiar with where we'll be running, it would be a great opportunity to PR," she said. "However, given the two weeks after the race, I'm not really shooting for my best time."

She has tapered her training. Her last run as long as 20 miles was on March 21 and this week, she's had runs of 3, 4 and 2 miles.

Amanda's top marathon time is 4.16:07 in 2006 at Nashville.

"My goal is to break 4 hours someday soon, but it won't happen on Saturday," she said.

Since she never runs 26-plus miles, except in the actual marathons, the thought of doing so can be daunting following her long-distance workouts.

"It is very tough to get done with a 20-mile training run and think to yourself, 'Geez, I'll have to run for another hour on Race Day,' " Amanda said.

Training in the Windy City along the Lake Shore paths has more than prepared Bridget for anything she will encounter this weekend.

"It makes you feel tough to know you're out braving the cold when most other people are in the gym or on the couch," she said. "I am a believer in 'what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.' I probably used the treadmill less than 10 times this winter."

Saturday's race is important, she added, but it won't be her only highlight.

"I'm looking forward to seeing everyone and celebrating after the race almost more than the race itself," Bridget said.

And then, there will be the two followup races.

"The challenge of running three races so close together has provided an anticipation, fear and excitement different than what I've experienced before," she said.

Training diet

"Diet, rest and nutrition are just as important as training," Bridget said. "I am known for always carrying a water bottle with me (750ml throughout the work day).

"Neither Amanda or I eat meat, so our diets typically consist of a lot of vegetables and fruits."

Breakfast is an important meal and McLeese's training guide suggests on Race Day "eating and drinking as soon as you wake up because you will need the energy."

She prefers toast with peanut butter along with bananas, nuts and honey as well as a cup of coffee.

When she splurges and enjoys some ice cream or pizza, she has learned not to overindulge.

"I believe in everything in moderation," she said.

Everything?

How can a person who is about to participate in two 26-plus-mile marathons in nine days with an 80-mile team relay race sandwiched in between, make such a statement?

"It seems like running might be the exception," Bridget corrected.

For the record, there's also an exception to that no-meat policy.

"Amanda just started hunting," Bridget said, "and got her first deer last winter, which we both ate."

On Saturday, the only hunting the sisters will be doing is for the finish line at the 50-yard line inside Memorial Stadium.

Amanda Pankau has a thought she repeats to herself during the grueling portions of the races, usually covering some of the final 5 miles.

"The faster I run, the sooner I can stop," she said.

Fred Kroner is The News-Gazette's prep sports coordinator. He writes a weekly high school-related column throughout the school year. He can be reached at 217-351-5232, by fax at 217-373-7401 or by email at fkroner@news-gazette.com.

Best in the long run?
Fred Kroner provides an alphabetical update on five men and five women who could be among the marathon leaders in their respective 26.2-mile races on Saturday.

Men
ANDY DERKS, 28, St. Joseph
Mettler Athletic running coach completed the 2007 Green Bay (Wis.) Marathon in a career-best 2:26.12. As a high school senior at Rochester, was Illinois' Class A 1,600-meter state champion.

EMISAEL FAVELA, 32, Chicago
Juarez High School graduate took up cross-country for the first time as a junior. Placed 43rd out of 13,028 male finishers in the 2008 Boston Marathon with a personal-best 2:28.19.

RICHARD KANDIE, 24, Coon Rapids, Minn.
The native of Kenya, who once ran a 4:09 mile, set the course record in the 2008 Indianapolis Marathon (2:22.27), one month after running half-marathons on consecutive days in different states.

JACOB KENDAGOR, 24, Coon Rapids, Minn.
Last May, ran a course-record time (2:18.06) in winning the Kigali Peace Marathon, in Rwanda. Placed fifth in last year's Moline Marathon. Last month, he was third in the Little Rock (Ark.) Marathon in 2:21.15.

BEN SCHNEIDER, 25, St. Paul, Minn.
Former Rockford resident has won the past three Paavo Nurmi Marathon races, in Hurley, Wis., including a 2:35.27 time in 2008. Also won last year's Rockford Marathon in 2:36.30.

Women
ELIZABETH KING, 24, Villa Park
Potentially could be the state's first female finisher.

RAEL MUREY, 28, Coon Rapids, Minn.
The native of Kenya won last October's Kansas City Marathon in 2:53.04 and 14 days later was third in the Indianapolis Marathon in 3:00.14. Also won last year's Lake City Marathon in 3:04.24.

NANCY SCHUBRING, 48, Novi, Mich.
Had top 16 finishes within a three-week span last year in marathons at Detroit and Akron, with times of 3:09.53 and 3:13.31, respectively. Sixth last month in the Knoxville (Tenn.) Marathon in 3:21.44.

MARY WICZYNSKI, 23, Franklin, Wis.
Finished the Green Bay (Wis.) Half-Marathon in 1:52.14 in 2007. Will be among the 623 entries in the women's division of the inaugural Illinois Marathon.

BETH WOODWARD, 33, Orrville, Ohio
In January, placed seventh in the Disney World Half-Marathon (1:25.56) and seven days later was 20th out of 2,981 female finishers in the Rock n'Roll Arizona Marathon (2:59.41).