“We were married for 48 years,” recounted widower, Michael Swaney, when asked to describe his bride of nearly five decades.  “We eloped during our freshman year in college.  My mom said it wouldn’t last.”

At the time, Michael’s mother did not know her new daughter-in-law very well. A kind woman, humble, motivated. A woman for whom as Michael recalled, “the word ‘no’ did not exist.”

Small in stature, superior in strength, Carol Swaney, 4’11” and 47 Kg sopping wet at best, was a force to be reckoned with – on the roads, on the trails, in everyday endeavors.

Carol stormed onto the running scene in her native home of Kansas in 1976 as a means to better her tennis game.  Good from the start and immediately competitive, Carol, 34 at the time, decided to run for Emporia State University’s cross country team when she went back to school to work on completing her degree.

“She joined to get faster at marathons,” Michael conveyed.  “She was one of the fastest women on the team and won the University of Kansas Marathon!”

“No one ran like she did,” maintained Steven Swaney, the younger of Carol and Michael’s two children.  “She was a fierce competitor while doing it but never boastful.”

The Swaneys moved to Belleville, Michigan in accordance with Michael’s work in 1981 and relocated again to Ann Arbor two years later in pursue of academically excellent schools for their boys, Patrick and Steven.

“It was then that Carol joined the Ann Arbor Track Club,” Michael explained, which soon became merely one of the numerous groups with which Carol was associated as a member and more often than not, as a mentor.  “She just couldn’t get enough running.  I think that she appreciated her running groups more than the events.” Though she did enjoy her races.

“Every weekend we would go to a race with Mom,” Patrick and Steven concurred.  “We were supportive whether we wanted to be or not!”

In 1990, Carol completed the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run in 29:43:19.

“She didn’t like that she couldn’t run for several weeks,” Steven recalled.  “She stuck with 50 mile races afterwards because she could rebound and run the next day.  Not running wasn’t an option.”

Carol loved running on trails most, especially Pinckney’s Potawatomi Trail.  Steven described how she fell while out on a run shortly before they were due to leave for his cousin’s wedding, which was being held in Springfield, Missouri.

“She broke her arm, but there wasn’t time for the doctors to set it, so they left it in a sling.  Mom went out for a run while we were away, got lost and ran for four hours!”

Professionally, Carol worked as an occupational therapist for more than a decade and retired in 2005.  As a therapist, she “always took extra courses to advance her knowledge,” and retirement for Carol meant anything but rest.  She “loved her animals” and volunteered at the Huron Valley Humane Society and welcomed other people’s pets into her home when they needed to travel.  Crossword puzzles, romance novels, family life and of course – running, kept Carol ‘on her toes.’

In December 2009, Carol began to experience some ‘mysterious’ health issues.  The problems began with a temporary loss of vision in her left eye and progressed to balance problems.  Carol continued to run – just with her friends on either side to keep her upright.

Through it all, doctors remained dumbfounded as tests failed to provide any conclusive answers, but Carol continuously applied the same diligence to beat whatever “disease” had taken hold as she devoted to her running and professional career.  She worked tirelessly with doctors and physical therapists and was determined to be victorious.

Tragically, Carol suffered a major stroke on July 9, 2010 and endured a second while still in the hospital.  Bereft of any answers from medical professionals, Carol was taken home and cared for by her devoted family including Rudy, her four-legged, two-year-old running companion, who stayed by her side until the very end.

As did her friends in the running community, who are many.

“I never knew all the people she mentored and from so many different groups,” Patrick revealed.  “Mom was very humble and never realized the impact she had on others.”

From visits in the hospital to homemade meals brought to the house during the final month that Carol spent in her home, there was nothing that Carol’s friends and protégées would not do for their beloved ally and mentor and her family.

Carol “crossed the finish line” with her family by her side at 12:10 A.M. on Monday August 9, 2010. Gone but not forgotten, Carol will always be remembered as “the ultimate marathoner” and for her “spirit, support and crazy antics.”  Most notably were her trips by train to Jackson, the sole purpose being to run back to her home in Ann Arbor, and just as noteworthy was her infamous jibe, “I know a shortcut!” her ruse to recruit her running chums, willingly or not, to run further than they might otherwise have ventured.

“Carol’s family is wonderful and a beautiful reflection of her and her giving spirit,” professed Nancy Yvanauskas, Carol’s friend and compatriot of ‘Dawn Patrol,’ one of the many groups that Carol enhanced by her very presence.

May we all live, love and be as loved as Carol A. Swaney, September 21, 1943 – August 9, 2010, wife, mother, grandmother, friend, mentor, scholar, runner extraordinaire.