PHOENIX (CBS5) -
"I'm not here to break any records or anything. I just want to finish," said marathon runner E.J. Scott.
Scott's goal might sound simple. He wants to complete the P.F. Chang's Rock n Roll Marathon this Sunday.
"It'll be a big accomplishment for me. I mean, I'm an ex-smoker, I'm an ex-fat guy, I'm an ex-couch potato," he said.
But when you hear how he plans to accomplish it, and why, you're sure to change your mind.
"I have to do them blindfolded because of the disease I have. Choroideremia is a degenerative, hereditary eye disease that causes blindness," Scott explained.
Scott has had the disease since birth, but it didn't start affecting his eyesight until about 10 years ago.
"My limitations grow as my eyesight gets worse. I stopped driving a few years ago, I walk with a cane now so I don't bump into people or things as often," he said.
It also means he can't be exposed to direct sunlight.
"I wouldn't be able to run a marathon without a blindfold at all," Scott said.
So Scott has to run with a guide.
"I'll hold onto her forearm, and we'll just go," he said.
And he uses a cane.
"I can't see anything. I'll have my eyes closed underneath the blindfold and so I really won't see anything," Scott said.
Even that isn't the amazing part. This is: "The plan is to do 12 marathons in 12 states in 12 months," Scott said.
This is the first stop on his 12-month journey to raise money to find a cure for the disease that's changed his life.
"I have to do it," he said.
So if you see Scott this weekend, cheer him on and know his journey is just beginning.
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