Legally blind runner gets help from friends to accomplish ‘raceless marathon’ in State College

Devin Adams of State College is always up for a new challenge. So when the chance to run the grueling New York City Marathon presented itself, she jumped at the opportunity. But Adams faced an obstacle that would make the race even tougher: she is legally blind.

She was born with leber congenital amaurosis, a genetic retinal condition that greatly limits her sight. However, the Penn State junior doesn’t let her diagnosis stop her from pursuing her passions.

“I realized how much I missed having a team and competing,” Adams said. “So I started running and joined (Penn State club) cross-country. It was the best decision I ever made.”

With the support of her cross-country friends, Adams began training for the New York City Marathon. The race, however, was canceled due to COVID-19. Instead of throwing in the towel, Adams decided to plan and run her own marathon in State College on Nov. 1.

“When I first decided to do this, I didn’t realize how complicated it was going to be,” Adams said. “When you run a race, there’s water stations and everything is planned out for you. So, we mapped a route around State College, we went through campus, and out to Boalsburg, and ended back through campus.”

The event, which she named the “raceless marathon,” was designed to raise money for one of Adams’ favorite nonprofits, Camp Abilities. It’s an organization that provides opportunities for children with visual impairments to compete in athletics.

“People with visual impairments don’t always have the same access in their communities to have opportunities to be physically active,” Adams said. “Camp Abilities aims to change that and give them opportunities to try to do sports and be physically active and make healthy choices.”

The raceless marathon was a community effort. Adams’ family helped her set up water stations along the route, friends from all over donated to the cause, and her cross-country friends physically helped her run the race. They acted as guides, allowing her to finish all 26.2 miles.

“My friends are awesome,” Adams said. “They were all super excited and that was really incredible. It’s so nice to have family close and such a support system here. Having my family meet my cross-country friends, it was like all my worlds collided, which was really cool.”

Though the tremendous task of planning, fundraising, and then running the marathon was overwhelming at times, Adams says the feeling of crossing the finish line made it all worth it.

“Definitely exhaustion,” said Adams with a laugh. “Also, it felt surreal. I was like ‘Whoa did I just run 26.2 miles? That can’t be real.’ A lot of excitement and relief.”

But Adams isn’t done yet. She is planning on hitting the ground running in 2021.

“Since the New York City Marathon didn’t happen this year, I have my entry for whenever that can happen again, so I know I want to do that for sure,” she said.