GILBERT, AZ — Uplifting Arizona one marathon at a time. A Gilbert woman is on her way to completing 102 of them in 102 days, and she’s doing it all on a carbon-fiber blade! ABC15 caught up with this inspirational runner, now back home after tackling an iconic race in stride.
"Boston was, like, absolutely insane," said Jacky Hunt-Broersma after running the Boston Marathon. “My bib had my name on it. So, everyone was shouting my name as you made your way down. It just got you motivated so much more."
Jacky Hunt-Broersma continues putting one foot and carbon-fiber blade in front of the other.
"It just gets you fired up and you kind of just keep pushing and going,” added Hunt-Broersma.
She's getting closer to running 102 marathons in 102 days with Monday's Boston Marathon marking her 92nd.
"So, I did my marathon before the flight. Got on a flight, flew to Boston, and ran the next morning straight as I got there,” added Hunt-Broersma. “Got that done. Then, coming back, I flew in the afternoon. So, I ran in the morning. Got on another flight and here we are."
Back in 2001, doctors diagnosed Hunt-Broersma with Ewing Sarcoma.
The rare cancer, which claimed her leg, often impacts children. The Gilbert woman was in her 20s.
"So, you forget to be grateful surviving and being alive because you are so focused on, I’m not going to look like everyone else,” added Hunt-Broersma.
She took up running six years ago.
"It was kind of my mission to show people I could be normal. I could do things that everyone else can do,” she added.
Even though Hunt-Broersma is so committed to running, and she did her 94th marathon Wednesday morning, she says running wasn't always her thing.
"I was the kid, in school, that would hide in the bathroom when we did track workouts. I thought runners were crazy and why would you want to do that,” said Hunt-Broersma. “I am a strong believer in you're capable of more than what you think. So, I wanted to show that to people."
Hunt-Broersma told ABC15 she’s running all of those marathons to break a world record, raise money for blade runners, and to inspire.