Two days Until the Big Race!!!

Had an action packed filled morning, starting with getting up at 4 am to make the NBC morning news. They had a segment on the Rock n Roll marathon and wanted to include some Team in Training members to illustrate their story. I was told to get there by 5:45, not realizing the segment started AT 5:45- lesson learned, I need to show up a half hour early for television spots! I got there at 5:46 so just stood along the sidelines as they did their segment outside the NBC studios with John "The Penguin" Bingham, TNTers and running Elvises. The link is here . More then anything I really wanted to meet The Penguin, whose running column I've always loved in Runner's World- about being a back of the pack runner (ah, HELLO!) and doing races for the enjoyment of them and not to win/ break any time records. I was pleasantly surprised to find how friendly and down to earth he was, and he was absolutely delighted when I gave him a Penguin stuffed animal from my company, Ganz. We took group pictures and he had that penguin front and center, and asked for my photo with him so he could put it up on his facebook page.

Since I was late and the PR person for the Rock n' Roll marathon took pity on me (or so I think), he told us of another press opportunity with the local news KUSI Channel 9 at the finish line for the race a half hour later. So my Team in Training teammates hopped in our cars and did a caravan over to the Seaworld parking lot. It was nice to meet the news anchor Bridget Naso, who was very funny and easy to talk to. I also found it interesting that when they are speaking on the news they have someone talking in their ear telling them what to say- it's got to be very confusing! The news was a lot of hurry up and wait- they did a segment at 6:30 am and again at 7 am, basically talking about the course, how they added a half marathon, and their new finish line. One of our Team in Training teammates also talked briefly about how the San Diego chapter raised $700,000 for this race (!!!).

While we were waiting to go on camera I got to know the other TNTers who were on the different teams of the San Diego chapter. One was doing TNT because a friend died of leukemia, another, Erik, was a consultant for medical research and pharmaceuticals, and the third, George, has had leukemia for the past ten years. George has been going through chemotherapy again, and just had a treatment two weeks ago, and a blood transfusion two (?) days ago AND is doing the marathon on Sunday. Okay, I'm done bitching about how hard it is!

After we were done with the news segment George and Erik and I headed to the Hilton Resort on Fiesta Island (wow, what a place!) to cheer on another Team in Training teammate, Mike Sheehy, who is trying to break a Guinness World Record for most miles run in 7 consecutive days, ending by doing the Rock n' Roll Marathon on Sunday. Basically doing two marathon distances plus 12 miles for good measure a day. WOW! You can see his blog here. He wanted to raise $30K for the Leukemia Society by doing the run and is now up to $42K on his fifth day so his new goal is $50K. He's such an inspiration! I got a chance to see him run as he was finishing up mile 14 this morning (and 304 miles in five days) and he looked completely refreshed and was as if he was running on air- like, la la la, so fun! Let me just tell you, I have NEVER looked so good running as he did after running 304 miles! He is also on the front page of the sports section of the Union Tribune too : ). I was especially touched by this blog post by the woman who inspired Mike to do marathons for Team in Training because of her bout with leukemia.

So excited, scared, nervous and thrilled to be doing the race on Sunday, I can barely concentrate on anything else! I'm looking forward to the expo tomorrow to pick up my race number!!! : )

Practicing my finish line photo at the ACTUAL finish line!

Team in Training Teammates, the anchorwoman for KUSI Bridget Naso, George, and Erik- ready for our closeup!

Spread the Word for Charity!

I am always looking for ways to raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and was just contacted by Hotels Combined looking to contribute. Word up! They are currently working on spreading the word about their company, the world's leading hotel price comparison engine, by donating money to the charity of your choice when you mention them on your blog, twitter update, or become a fan of theirs on Facebook. Sign me up! What a terrific way to advertise- charities get much needed funds, and they get the word out! You can do the same as explained here.

I just went on Hotels Combined and found it very easy to use- I typed in New York, NY (typically the highest priced city to travel to) and it gave me a list of hotels and their prices. When I clicked again on a hotel image it gave a further price comparison between various hotel sites (ie hotels.com) as well as an overview, map, photos and reviews. A very handy tool, especially for someone who loves to travel as much as I do!

Thank you for your help in the fight to cure cancer, Hotels Combined! You rock!

My first race with Team in Training

My first race with Team in Training was the Bermuda half marathon in January of 1998. Here I am, after the race, cold and wet after going through two huge rain storms (it REALLY rains in Bermuda, crazy monsoon rains- then it's bright and sunny right afterward like it never began) and absolutely thrilled that I was able to complete the race!

Let me backtrack to how I had started with Team in Training. I had begun volunteering with the Leukemia Society in 1995 when I graduated college, putting on special events to fundraise in memory of my dad. Team in Training was a relatively new program and the people that had done the marathon through them were VERY enthusiastic and their pride in doing the event was infectious. They kept asking me to do it, and my answer was pretty much what you would expect- absolutely not, there's noooo wayyyy I could ever do a marathon, what are you crazy??? I had run as a teenager, actually as a way to cope with my father's dying, but hadn't since and was very out of shape.

Fast forward two years later to 1997. I was living in Hoboken and working in New York City and started working out regularly. While I was on the stairmaster I read an article in Health Magazine about Team in Training and thought, that's it, that's my calling. So I RAN home four blocks. listening to Prince on my walkman, and thought, hey, I can run again! I called the Leukemia Society the next day and signed up over the phone for the next marathon they were fundraising for, the Dublin marathon, even though it was in 3 months. Okay, I hear you laughing. It was very impulsive and I can tell you I had NO IDEA what I was in for. If I really did have a clue just HOW much work was in front of me I might not have done it, but at the same time it was also one of the best things that have ever happened to me.

I wrote a letter to my friends and family and posted my letter to my then publishing company's intranet server. To say the support I had was overwhelming is an enormous understatement. I heard stories from so many people telling me how cancer and leukemia had personally affected them. I met many people I might not have met, and realized that fundraising and training for a cause was really bigger then myself. I no longer felt like it was just "me", but felt like I was a vehicle for spreading the word about the Leukemia society.

Training was long and repetitive and rigorous. I trained with the running club in Hoboken, the Hoboken Harriers, and would get up at 5:30 am to run along the Hudson river before work. Unfortunately before the Dublin race I got a hairline fracture in my foot, and wasn't able to train for a month while it healed. So I was able to transfer to the next marathon, which was Bermuda. And then I sprained my left ankle three weeks before that race, running on a sidewalk but after training for 6 months I decided to do the race anyway, albeit as a half marathon instead of a full marathon. And then I broke my toe on a piece of exercise equipment a week before the event (!!!). So I figured I would go to the event and just do how ever long I could do and then stop when my toe and ankle started acting up.

The night before the race Team in Training had a huge spaghetti party and told us the story of how the marathon came to being...that there was a runner, Phidippedes, that ran 26 miles to Athens to tell them that the war was over (and then died of exhaustion). He compared us as marathoners to messengers- that we are spreading the word that someday there WILL be a cure to Leukemia.

The day of the race, January 18, 1998, was BEAUTIFUL. I think it was 70 degrees and sunny and the water looked like someone dropped turquoise food dye in there. It was quite the change from training during the winter in New York! I started walking...and walking...more like hobbling, expecting to only do a mile. People were cheering me on, asking me if I was alright, laughing with me because I was limping in the first mile. Since I knew I really wasn't competing, I decided to just enjoy the scenery as I walked and thought of my dad and the girl with leukemia that I was limping in honor of, Chelsea, and thought, well, this pain I'm having in my ankle and toe is nothing compared to chemotherapy. And what a way to see the island! I walked along the breathtaking coastline and manicured lawns and proper people (who said, hey, are you okay, come inside and have some tea) and then the not-so-rich area with the Rastifarians (who said hey, sweetheart, come in the house, forget this marathon, we'll give you a backrub). After a while my toe went completely numb and miraculously I went around the whole island and completed 13.1 miles! I came in 310 and finished in 3:49:07- I didn't come in dead last!