Some people want to skydive before they die.

Others want to see Stonehenge or the statues at Rapa Nui.

Kristine Wittenborn wanted to get herself into the mental and physical condition needed to complete a marathon and then tackle a 26.2-mile course in the name of a cause that she fully supports.

Last weekend that’s exactly what she did.

After spending several months conditioning with members of “Team in Training” – a group of runners all raising money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society that train together during the lead-up to the event – Wittenborn headed down to San Diego on June 3 for the Rock and Roll Marathon.

She had done all of the legwork – a combination of on-track workouts and distance runs as far as 18 miles – and knew that she wanted to honor the memory of an aunt that lost her battle with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma several years ago.

All she had to do to was put one foot in front of the other and keep herself positive.

“Working out with the people that I did definitely kept me going when I might have wanted to quit or not go on anymore – flag down a car and have them take me back to where I started,” Wittenborn said. “The fact that you’re actually running in memory of somebody provides a little extra motivation too. You’re telling people what it is that you’re doing and you realize that cancer can impact anyone at anytime.

“If these people are going to do what they have to do to survive their struggle, I can get through a little run with a little bit of sweat.”

A pharmaceutical representative by trade, Wittenborn – who says she’s always been athletic – believes that she’s found something she truly enjoys in running and doesn’t plan on throwing the shoes up on the shelf just yet.

And there’s no rest for the weekend.

With just over a week to nurse her sore and tired body back to health, Wittenborn now has her sights set on the Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco in October.

That means training will likely have to kick off sometime near the end of July in order for her to be ready by the time the gun sounds.

But getting that feeling of crossing the finish line once again is something that she’s already looking forward to.

“I had some family members that came down and I saw them at a couple of different places on the track. Our team also wore orange hats in honor of a teammate that had passed away, so you could see where everybody was because they stood out,” she said. “It was such an overwhelming feeling to finish something like that. It was emotional and overwhelming.

“Afterwards I went to a Padres game and they had a big dinner reception and I had a few drinks and danced. That felt really good.”

Anyone looking to track Kristine’s progress or make a donation to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (she raised $2,500 for her first marathon) can do so by visiting www.tinyurl.com/kristineintraining.