Pam's Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Fundraising Page

Racing to Save Lives

Welcome to my Team In Training (TNT) home page.

Thursday, June 10th.

America's Most Beautiful Bike Ride (AMBBR) is over, and I rode my bike across the finish line! You can see the finish line BEHIND me in the picture.

It was an amazing event, where some 35 Seattle area people raised over $100,000 from wonderful people like YOU to help fight blood cancers. TNT riders made up over a third of the riders on this Lake Tahoe ride, with 1,200 TNT members raising in excess of $6 million for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Wow.

It was a wonderful experience, and now I see why riders come back year after year. First, there is the beautiful scenery. It is Lake Tahoe, and it is gorgeous. And this year, there was beautiful weather, warm and sunny. But, more importantly, the most amazing thing is the people. A lot of really wonderful people. There are the donors, you guys, who contribute money to help fight blood cancers and provide help and information to cancer victims and thier families. There are the coaches who donated time to teach us how to do group rides and to build us up for a 100 mile bike ride; and the mentors who bolstered us up during this 6 month challenge; and the LLS staff (Erik) who coordinated the whole thing. And, the amazing other riders who were along with me on this journey. An example of their wonderfullness and support, as I neared the finish line - as the very last Seattle TNT member to make it, a whole group of Seattle teammates fell in behind me, and crossed the finish line a second time, this time with me. Many of them waited an hour or more to be there to cheer on the slower finishers. It was a team -- and that made it amazing. Wow.

Riding on other teams were an 81 year old guy, and a lady who was just a week out of chemo. Really amazing.

So, come early 2011, I'll be back, working to raise another $4,000 or so for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. If you want to see pictures of the ride, and of the team, you can find them on my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2065505&id=1425231534&l=3d4af4bd01

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Another $225 was donated to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society after our "Create A Card" fundraiser. Special thanks to Mandy Bledsoe who gave freely of her time and knowledge -- as well as providing the card crafting materials, for this fun afternoon that was enjoyed by 15 +/- people.

Recently we've received donations from Gene Shlatz, Catherine Futtrup/George Moore, Emerald Renovation & Restoration (Ken Colson), and Cheryl Ooka. Thanks for your contributions to this worthy effort.

We raised $245.25 by writing 276 reviews. Thank you for your participation and help in getting these funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Insider Pages made the donation -- but it was your work that made it happen.

Fund raising continues through June, and then it is over. So, I'll continue asking to try to raise another $1,000 to $1,500. And more is even better.

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5/26/2010

Here it is, over a month since my last update. In that time I have been practicing. Not as much as I should, but getting some miles in. The longest ride has been 55 miles with my sister Rachel. We drove to Centralia and did a big loop that was in the Mountaineer bike ride book. Last week we did the Chilly Hilly, but cut it short at 20+ miles when it started raining. Rachel and I have noticed a pattern. If it is Wednesday and we are riding, it is raining. So far we are 3 for 3. (It is raining today, also a Wednesday.)

In less than two weeks, I'll be off doing "America's Most Beautiful Bike Ride", a trip around Tahoe. It is a one day ride, and I expect it will be a challenge. I'm anxiously looking forward to it.

4/11/2010

I got a cold/flu coming back from Phoenix, so haven't been on a long practice ride for over a week. I did do 23 miles on my bike from Sky Harbor airport in Phoenix to the RV park after returning our rental car. It was great riding in the sun. Vicki and I are planning at least on long ride if we can affordably rent decent bikes for a day while in Austin next week.

3/15/2010

I survived a 40 mile ride from Kent, through Auburn, to the Black Diamond Bakery in a big loop. I'm glad for the loop, we did miles of slow climb up, and a fast and exhilerating 5 minutes down. The 5 minutes was at speeds ranging from 25 to 30 mph - on a bike, it was a little scary too. If we had the steep climb instead of the steep descent, I would have walked it. Last week after the ride my pinky and ring fingers were numb from grabbing the handlebars so tightly. I got new grips that relieved some of the pressure on my palms. My fingers are much better this week.

3/8/2010

For Team In Training I rode 32 miles this last weekend. By the end of it my bottom was sore and my fingers were numb. The bottom will recover, now I know why bike shorts were invented. Numb fingers aren't rare. Online I found a number of folks that developed the problem after a long bike ride. It occurs from grabbing the bike handle too tightly, too long, and in awkward position. Next ride I'll try a looser grip and I'm looking at raising my handlebars slightly and finding more places I can put my hands while riding.

3/5/2010

We are almost at $,1000 raised to fight blood cancers. With $76 raised by writing reviews and the rest through donations. Thanks very much for your help. -- This weekend I'm getting back on a bike. I fell two weeks ago, I was starting from a stop and didn't move forward. As I started to tip over I couldn't get my foot out of the darned foot baskets, so I went over on my side. I landed on my elbow and arm, and it caused me a lot of pain, though nothing was broken. Now that it doesn't pain me, I'm getting back on the bike.

2/26/2010

Between checks and online contributions we're at $785! Thank you very much. That puts us over 20% of the way there.

The next event is the "Raise Funds for LLS By Writing Reviews" during the first three weeks of March, and a card making party on April 11th. Your help is greatly appreciated in writing reviews on local businesses.

2/13/2010

I survived the second training ride. This time we went around Mercer Island, with the option to go around twice or to go over to the Seattle side and do a loop around Seward Park and back. I did not take either option - once around Mercer Island let me try all the gears on the bicycle. The hills aren't miles long, but they do last several blocks and gave me an opportunity to be challenged. When I try this loop later in this week, I expect I'll even do better.

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February 2010

Dear Friends and Family,

This year I've signed up to do something I've wanted to do for years. Ride in the Seattle To Portland (STP) bike ride. However, I'm not in shape to ride 203 miles over two days. In fact, I'm not in shape to ride 20 miles over two days. The question was, "How do I train to ride 100 miles a day by July?" And the answer, "Raise funds to fight blood cancers."

Yes, I've signed up for Team In Training (TNT) and I'm asking for your help. Team In Training is a fundraising program for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. As a member of TNT I have a coach, a training program, a mentor, and over 30 teammates to work with and to support me. I've committed to train almost every day, and there is team training on the weekends. I've also promised to raise over $3,500 in donations to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS).

LLS is the world's largest voluntary health organization dedicated to funding blood cancer research, education and patient services. Last year alone, LLS made 4.9 million contacts with patients, caregivers and healthcare professionals.

What do I want from you? I'll be happy to take your money or your time, or both.

• To give money, donate online here.

-Pam

I AM MOTIVATED! I AM COMMITTED! I WILL DO THIS!