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Racing to Save Lives

10.15

We did it! Fundraising is complete! Thank you to everyone for your love and support. I couldn't have done it without you! Today I am packing for my trip which starts tomorrow. I am so excited to accomplish the marathon and see this journey come full circle. I feel ready for the race and can't wait to cross the finish line! This journey has helped me to believe in myself and in others. I have truly learned a lot from those around me. Stay tuned for a blog post following the marathon!

I'm training to participate in an endurance event as a member of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) Team In Training. All of us on Team In Training are raising funds to help stop leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma from taking more lives. I am completing this event in honor of Ursula, Evelyn and all individuals who are battling blood cancers. These people are the real heroes on our team, and we need your support to cross the ultimate finish line - a cure!

Please make a donation to support my participation in Team In Training and help advance LLS's mission.

I hope you will visit my web site often. Be sure to check back frequently to see my progress. Thanks for your support!

7.5.09

Friends make life easier. I have two friends who are participating in Team in Training with me and I am so glad they are there to keep me going! We have created a team name:Team 52.4 Dash. Cynthia and Amanda are running the 1/2 marathon and I am running the full (26.2 miles) so the 52.4 is the number of miles we will complete on October 18th.

7.6.09

My training is going really well. I have been running 3-4 times a week and surviving the heat so far! I am up to 7 miles and this week will be 8. This is a busy week for fund raising. We are working at the Durham Bulls game on Tuesday night as a fund raiser . Friday night my friend Julia, is hosting a Pampered Chef party in which donations will be made. This Satrurday we are having a yard sale. Thanks to all who have given us donations! Without those, this wouldn't be possible!

7.8.09

Today I can't help but feel that there are angels among us. I knew I was running this race for a great cause and I have wonderful people I am running for. Now I am adding one more person for whom I am grateful for.

Yesterday we found out that my husbands grandmother, Evelyn, is diagnosed with multiple myeloma, cancer of the plasma cells. This cancer is leaching the calcium out of her bones. She has been having chronic back pain for a while now and the cancer may be the cause for this happening. The timing for all that I am doing is amazing and I am thankful for this opportunity to hopefully make difference for Grandma, Ursula and Gabe.

7.9.09

I had a nice 4 mile run this morning. It rained last night and so the weather was cool which makes for better running on my part! Thank you Julia for joining me this morning!

7.11

We had a great fundraiser today! Thank you to all of you who supported us with donations and for those of you who bought items. The yard sale went really well and thank you to Patti for donating your time. Cynthia and I felt that it was well worth the time and effort to put everything together.

7.13

This morning I had a great run with a couple of guys , one of whom is a friend that I play volleyball with. Thanks Rich and Yang for setting the pace for me! I finished with 6 miles and they went off to do one more. Throughout part of the run there was a hill that wouldn't end! I had a tough time getting to the top, but finally made it. It was good I didn't know where I was going otherwise I would have been slower. Either way, it was a good challenge and I appreciate the boost of knowing my pain is nothing compared to what my honorees have and will go through.

7.14

In addition to training for the marathon, I have accepted the challenge to complete an ironman triathalon over the course of the next 4 weeks. Today I cross trained by riding the spin cycle for 30 minutes. I realize that I need to stay on the bike a little longer in order to ride the required 112 miles. However it was a nice change in pace and I look forward to a run with some women I just met tomorrow morning.

7.15

I had a fabulous run this morning. The weather was cool and I had a nice group of women to run with. I met some ladies at my husband's work who were nice enough to let me join them today. We ran 5.6 miles, a lot of which was uphill! It was good to have some motivation from other runners to just keep running!

7.16

Hooray for running partners! Thanks Julia for giving me motivation to get out of bed this morning! We had a nice 4 mile run around Lake Pine. Maggie, Julia's dog, joined us and she and I had a bonding mile run together. I am looking forward to my 8 mile run on Saturday with the other Team in Training participants!

7.17

Today I had a nice 11 mile bike ride through our state park to count towards my ironman miles. It was beautiful through the park and I really enjoyed the ride.

7.18

8 miles today! We had group training with TNT today and I ran with some other ladies, Kerry, Brooklyn and Allie. It was a great run at Shelley lake as the whole path was shaded (although the sun wasn't out this morning). It kept me cool and I really enjoyed myself. Amanda and Cynthia also made their 6 miles which I am very proud of them for doing. Great job ladies!

7.20

This morning I had a great run again with a couple of guys. I was able to keep up with them for 6 miles today. YAY! This also counted towards my 4 week triathalon. I am enjoying the longer mileage and find myself eager to get out and run! It feels great.

7.21

Today I did some cross training-swimming. Now I am not the worlds best swimmer, but I feel I did pretty good. I swam 1 mile with some breaks interspersed:)

7.22

It was a tough run for me today. Hard to get out of bed and then difficult to stay motivated. But, I made it! 6 miles, with hills, I might add and under 59 minutes!

7.25

10 MILER! YeeHaw! We did our long run today and it felt great. Grandma, Ursula and Gabe, we'll keep pressing forward!

7.28

Found out today Ursula's medication is not working for her. She will be taking a 3 month hiatus and then try another medication. Grandma just finished her first round of chemo and doesn't feel on top of the world. A recent full x-ray revealed that the myeloma has affected many of her bones, including her spine which she has been having serious pain issues with. We love you Grandma and Ursula and are keeping you in our prayers and in our thoughts on the trail.

7.29

6 miles. It helps to have a running partner to run with. I wouldn't have run as far as I did today if I had been by myself. Thanks Fonda and Ellen for a great run!

8.1

12 miles. Talk about humid! I felt like I had just stepped out of the pool when I was done training today. But, I made it. I have found that when going up hills, it takes some mind tricks to get me to the top. Thinking about Grandma and Ursula definitely helps me to get up those hills. Grandma received a packet from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society the other week with information about myeloma and resources and she also received a call from a volunteer who has experienced the same cancer Grandma has. She had some comforting words for Grandma. What a blessing to be part of such a great organization that is doing wonderful things.

8.8

Today we had a car wash and raised $308. Thank you to everyone who helped and donated their time. We really appreciated it and had a fun time as well!

8.19

I have been on vacation and not updating my little journal here, but that doesn't mean I have stopped running! We went to Ohio where I enjoyed the cooler morning runs. I ran a 12 miler on Saturday and really enjoyed it. Running along roads with fields of corn is very relaxing.

8.20

Today I walked out of the house into this sweat bath of humidity. It was a difficult run for me and I barely finished. This Alaska girl does NOT do well in this weather. I am running 14 miles in 2 days and I am wondering how I am going to accomplish that. I am looking forward to San Fransisco weather in October!

8.21

I am learning that part of the journey through Team In Training is about the connections we create with people. Through the training I get to meet wonderful people and spend time with them when we are out for our long runs and we talk and talk. Then there is another side of the connections and that is all of our honorees for whom we are especially grateful for and excited to be participating in the events for. I have a great uncle, Fay, whom I haven't seen in 10+ years. My memories of Uncle Fay are that he always has a smile on his face and he can strike up a conversation with anyone. Uncle Fay and I have had some great talks. So when I learned that he has been living with leukemia for the past 9 years I was eager to make a connection with him again. I contacted him and was excited to learn that Uncle Fay is/was a runner too! He has won all kinds of events which are too numerous to list and continues to stay active in many ways. Uncle Fay lives close to San Fransisco and I am hoping to see him when I am out west for the race. Here is what he had to say about his cancer: "About my leukemia: it is called chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) – the “chronic†means it will never go away. First signs of it was in 2000. Oncologist treated with chemo. The 1st two did not work.. The 3rd worked – in dramatic fashion. Have been clean for almost 3 years and feel fine. Get a good deal of exercise doing chores around this property (like gathering downed trees on this 19 acre piece and operating a chain saw and log splitter) and frequent walks of approx 2 miles. Not bad for an 84 year old, eh? Have a pacemaker and clogged arteries, so cannot run. Anyway, my oncologist and I congratulate each other and knock on wood. Only see him every 6 months or year now – to review my lab results and schedule another appointment." I love you Uncle Fay and I am excited to be running in your honor! Thank you for giving me this opportunity, I am excited to reconnect with you.

8.22

WOOOHOOOO! 14 miles ran today. That is the farthest I have ever run in one day. It was so humid here that my sweat was dripping off of me like water in the shower...gross. Yet, I felt pretty good when I was finished. I also had a bake sale fund raiser today and raised a good amount of money and met some fun people too!

9.1

16.5 miles ...that was last Saturday. Since then, my middle toe on my right foot has had blisters all around it. Today (which is Tuesday) it is still tender, red and puffy. From what I have read, I think I will be loosing this toenail eventually. Sounds fun, right? I figure, if this is the worst of my pain and suffering, then I am doing alright compared to what all the cancer patients are going through. Loosing a toenail is cake.

9.3

The humidity has left for a few days and I went for a 9 mile run tonight. Can I just say "Heaven"! I felt like a whole new person and felt like I could have run 20 miles. It is amazing what a difference the weather makes. I am glad it is going to be cooler out in San Fran when we run the marathon.

9.5

Our team had a fabulous run this morning through Umstead State park. It was a nice 10 mile run (with hills) and a good break from the long miles we have been doing. To top it off, it was cool this morning which made for a really good run.

9.6

I got news of a generous donation coming my way today. Whew! I am getting close to my goal and am excited to have it accomplished so that I can focus on my training. Thank you Mom and Dad!

9.7

We went together as a family today to what we call 2 mile lake. S and M rode their bikes while big D sat in the stroller. He was eager to get out before we were done. I ended up running home so that I could get in a few extra miles. It was more humid today and I hope it goes away again before our 18 miles this Saturday!

9.12

This week I had a couple of nice runs, especially with the weather cooling off. D and I went out for a run on Thursday morning and enjoyed being out. Today I ran 18.2 miles! This is by far the farthest I have ever run at once and I felt really good at the end. The weather definitely helped and it was just a great day. I am recovering now by not using my legs much. I need a massage. Maybe I can convince Chris to give me one?!

9.22

I have been sick with a cough this weekend...one of those in your lungs type. It didn't hinder me from getting out as we had our vacation at Myrtle Beach. On Sat I ran 6 miles around town. It was difficult to find places to go and I didn't want to push my body too much as that is when I started getting sick. This morning I ran on the beach! Oh it was so nice. I ran 8 miles and loved every minute of it. The sun was rising, the birds out, people were combing the beach looking for shells. I wish I could have ran longer, but it was too hot for me. We enjoyed the pool and ocean afterwards!

I had 2 fundraisers last week which were very successful. One was an al-you-can-eat pancake dinner at McDonald's. We had over 200 people show up for that and It was a lot of fun. We raised $550! The other was a bread fundraiser with the support of Great Harvest Bread Co. and The Produce Box. I think I made around $400 with that one too!. I hope that gets me really close to accomplishing my goal! I think I am almost there!

This next Saturday we are running 20 miles! I need to start getting pumped up for it. It will be a tough one for me.