Racing to Save Lives

09/12/11

I think I'm still in recovery mode! What a great race day--I wish I had not been sick and could have enjoyed it a little more. We started out meeting in the lobby of the Cavalier at 4:30am! At that point, it was "what was I thinking?"

Finally my coral 17 came up, we jumped in and off we went. I walked my hardest--I never thought 13.1 would every end. But, along the way, I had the coaches cheering me on and other teammates and spectators hollering "Go Team". It was indeed a great day.

My time was 3 hours and 10 minutes. Now on to training for the spring session in Nashville. I guess I'm hooked. I've made many new great friends and felt an incredible bond through the training and listening to their stories.

Thanks to everyone! Until Nashville....

Susan

8/31/11

Only 4 days to Race Day. This has been a wonderful experience--I just hope I'm ready for the big day. And, as an added bonus on Friday, I'll be a part of the "live audience" on the Fox Hampton Roads Show with some other teammates. Should be fun!

Thanks to everyone for all of your support. Next update will be after race!

08/21/11

On Saturday, I did 11 miles! That was the most I have done yet. Now we are starting to taper down because believe or not, we are 2 weeks away from the race! I'm getting excited and nervous.

Thanks to all of you for your support!

07/31/11

Saturday was an incredibly hot and humid day, but I managed to walk the 9 miles in the Dismal Swamp in 2 hous & 5 minutes. What a great place to walk--pretty shady, flat, quarter mile markers, and straight. All of that is great for the directionally challenged. I am so grateful for Coaches Bob, Michelle, and Diane--one was with me almost every step!

I think I've finally arrived--got me a big old fat blister on the bottom of my right foot. A minor inconvience. Can't let that stop me now. A little over a month for the race--wow!

Thanks to everyone for your support and encouragement. If you haven't stop to make a donation, please do so now! I have a ways to go to get to my goal!

07/27/11

Last night I met a newly diagnosed NHL patient. She was feeling overwhelmed and unsure about all of the things that was/is happening. So overwhelmed that she wanted to tell her doctor that she just wanted to stop treatment for a while, so she could get herself together--not a really good idea. That conversation helped me remember why I'm doing this--so hopefully one day people won't have to be so overwhelmed; the treatments not so toxic. They won't have to lose their hair which is a constant reminder to the patient and the world that something is wrong.

Well, I'll keep on training. Please feel free to make a donation. I still have a ways to go to get to my goal. Won't be long until race day!

Susan

07/17/11

Well, I haven’t updated this page for a while, so I’ll try to be short and sweet. I’m back to training again. Saturday I walked 8 miles with my Richmond teammates. It was a special weekend with teams from Richmond, Charlottesville, and Fredericksburg joining to walk, run, and cycle. After hearing stories and comments by teammates and honored heroes, we walked, ran, or cycled for the first mile in silence. It gave us a chance to remember and reflect on why we are doing this—to help fulfill the mission of LLS--Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families.

To date I’ve logged 131.45 miles on my walking shoes! We have been training for 11 weeks and have only 7 weeks to go!

And, today, Margaret, Tim, and I hosted a fundraiser with Thirty One, Silpada, Pampered Chef, and Calming Touch. It was a great afternoon. And, we want to thank Kristen Grubb, Sonya Reynolds, Desiree Rose, Jane Bridgeforth, Ashley Fary, and Karen Headley and EVERYONE who came out to support us!

Now back to more training and more fundraising—still have some time for both!

06/26/11 Updates

Well, I'm grounded for a couple of weeks with labyrinthitis (which I didn't even know anything about until Thursday), but bottom line--I'm dizzy. With everything else going on, I decided to focus on something positive. I can't think of anything better than to focus on Emma's story. I met Emma 5 years ago when she was an adorable 7 year old and now look at her! I'm glad for the research and researchers that make this a happy story!

Emma in Remission!

On October 30, 1999, Emma was diagnosed with infant acute lymphblastic leukemia (ALL). She is now off treatment and has been in remission since February 14, 2001!

Emma is eleven years old and is entering the 6th grade. She loves collecting coins and seashells. Emma is very active and enjoys swimming, ice skating, bike riding, gymnastics and fishing. When she isn’t doing all those other things, she likes to train her dog, Kelso.

Emma’s mom, Holly, has done multiple Team In Training events. Emma is following in her mom’s footsteps and is an aspiring TNT athlete. She recently ran in the Shamrock 8K and the Powerkids Triatlon in Richmond.

Emma’s message to TNT Participants: Good luck with your fundraising and training! I hope you win. You are very good at running, walking, swimming and riding bikes.

Thank you!

Consider making a donation to keep the stories happy ones! Thanks!

6/8/11

Planning continuing for the Open House the afternoon of July 17th! I hope you will all come and hang out and see what Silpada, Thirty One, and Pampered Chef have to offer while supporting LLS at the same time.

To date, I've logged 69.60 miles 980 minutes! Go Team!

06/07/11

Flea Market

Yup, I skipped training on Saturday to have a booth at the Portsmouth Flea Market. What a great day! People were generous with their $'s and their stories. Folks told me about their fathers, uncles, mothers--some who didn't win their battle, some who are battling now, and some who are enjoying a remission.

Had to make up my miles so last night I did my 6 miles in 88 minutes. I'm getting better!

Now to juggle the fundraising--will get together with teammate Margaret to plan for the July open house with Silpada, Thirty One, and Pampered Chef in Richmond. Stay tuned.

Thanks for your continued support.

06/01/11

Catching up!

Over the holiday weekend, I didn't wimp out--3 miles every day in the heat in the hills of West Virginia. I swear we walked up hill both ways! It was about a 16:30 minute mile.

Last night U of R track I walked 3 miles in the heat again in about 50 minutes. Coach Chuck walked every step with me! He is a great motivator and very dedicated. I really appreciated him being there. I enjoyed the stories as well. Those stories will keep me motivated. They reminded me that not everyone wins this battle.

Tonight, however, I did my personal best. I did 3 miles in 41 minutes. I was really pushing it. The walk was over an hour ago and I think I'm still sweating. Gosh, could it just get a little cooler!

This weekend Portsmouth Flea Market to do some fundraising! Come out and look for me there!

5/25/11

Tonight I walked 6 miles in 1 hour and 38 minutes! With each step I think of the blood cancer patients I have met along the way and the struggles they have had or they are having. Please consider making a donation to help encourage me in this walk journey and to show my friends there is hope!

Thanks--check back to see how I'm doing!

Susan

Believe it or not, 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. The event I am training for is the Rock and Roll Half Marathon in Virginia Beach in September. I 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!