Survivor in Seattle!

When people you do not even know and will never meet took actions 20, 30, 40, or even 50 or more years ago that ended up saving your life in 2002, how do you thank them? How is that even possible?

That is the question I started asking myself eight years ago when I survived Hodgkin lymphoma. Of course, I could thank the doctors and nurses who dealt with me in the oncology room 16 out of every 20 business days for six months. But how could I thank the medical researchers? How could I thank those that donated money to fund research? How about patients who came before me, suffering incredible illness and pain, and often dying, but not until medical science learned a little more for the next time? What about the doctors and nurses who treated them? And how about the companies that turned hard-core research into the delivery of life saving products? For without all the pieces of this puzzle coming together, one very stark fact emergences: I would have died a slow and miserable death in 2002.

But I didn’t die, and so I had this dilemma – how do I say “thank you?” Well, when I was so ill that summer and fall, I swore that when I was healthy again, I would find a way to do just that. And the way I have come up with is to pay it forward – to try to do something positive so that my good fortune results in good things for others.
Starting in 2005, and continuing every year since, I have been involved with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society by raising money for their mission with my participation in Team in Training. 2010 was no different: I signed up for the summer team and after a lot of thought, picked the Seattle Rock ‘n’ Roll Half-Marathon. After months of fund raising in every way I could come up with, and training in weather from snow and cold to summer heat and everything in between, I headed to Seattle in late June, along with Richmond coach and teammate Chuck Smith.
It was my first time in Seattle, and I made the most of it in the time available, seeing several parts of the area from land and water. But the most important aspect of the trip was being there with Team in Training to finish what I committed to in all my fundraising emails: to do my part and run the race. So there I was, running and walking13.1 miles on June 26, racing for a cure as a cancer survivor for the fifth time for TNT. It was an incredible feeling. I thought of all the names on my shirt and what each of those names represented - the collective suffering from cancer just by those people is colossal! I thought about how ill I was eight years ago, and here I was running another long distance race - something I had never done before having cancer. And I had met and exceeded my fundraising goal, so I dyed my hair purple for the race - or at least a semblance of purple. It all felt amazing!
After hearing our inspiration party speaker talking the night before about the horrific time her infant daughter and family had dealing with leukemia as a baby, it reminded me that the toughest foot race is not as difficult as these diseases. I thought of this little girl several times during the race when a hill seemed tough, or my muscles felt tired, and a few times, my eyes filled with tears as I ran while thinking of the things her mother had told us and the photos she shared with us.

When you have had a serious illness like cancer and survived to come back to do a half-marathon or marathon or something similar, it is difficult to express the emotions one feels coming down that home stretch towards the finish line. It is an unforgettable experience and an amazing feeling. On June 26, in my purple TNT shirt and sporting my semi-purple hair, I ran as a Survivor in Seattle! When I crossed the finish line, I couldn’t help think that we are just a little bit closer to the ultimate finish line: a cure! And I couldn’t help think that I had made one more little step towards something I can never completely do: say thank you!

Virginia Heroes Land in San Diego by Kristin Koch

Our little Charlottesville Team flew to San Diego this past weekend to truly rock the Rock ‘n Roll 1⁄2 Marathon and Full Marathon.  In training, you never really get to see the full scope of an organization like TNT.  The local races and events give you an idea, but in San Diego, the mission came into full view for us.

We traveled to San Diego on Friday with the excitement brewing.   After many months of training, the realization was sinking in…we’re going to run 26.2 miles on Sunday!  Yikes!  We arrived at our hotel to discover TNT had our weekend completely set.  No worrying about transportation, race morning, or logistics.  Team In Training had everything taken care of for us.  We were “heroes” this weekend, so they said.

Saturday began with a quick run to loosen up.  This didn’t seem like work because we ran along the boardwalk and saw marinas full of yachts, including one with a helicopter on the back!  The expo was only steps away from the hotel (thanks, TNT!), so we browsed the expo and picked up our race packets. 

Our inspiration event was so large, TNT needed 3 seatings!  San Diego welcomed 4,000 TNT participants and together we raised $12 million dollars for cancer research!  It was amazing to learn those figures at the Inspiration Lunch.  Things were really starting to sink in learning about the families who are dealing with these cancers and the survivors who were in the audience (some participating the next day!).

Sunday morning we were up bright and early at 3 AM.  The routine began and we rode the elevator to the lobby at 3:45.  My husband and I started to get emotional because our hard work was going to pay off and it was about so much more than us.  I pinned on my “In Memory of” bib because I got started in all of this because we lost our greyhound to lymphoma in February of 2009.

The race was amazing but kind of a blur.  I remember so many people and coaches screaming my name and Go Team!  We ran through downtown San Diego, the famous Balboa Park, on a major freeway, and through the Padres stadium!   Pretty neat.  For me, the race was wonderful, without stomach trouble, and right at my goal to finish a marathon.
 

Our San Diego trip was full of amazing memories, but the biggest memories will be of all of the people.  All of the people affected by these blood cancers.  The many people who are trying to find a cure…the many people fighting.  We are all part of a bigger picture in the TNT family and in life.  Working hard to do what we can on a small scale to make a huge difference on a grand scale.  We work hard and sometimes ask why.  Team In Training teaches us the why.  Finishing a marathon was just icing on the cake!

Thank you again, TNT!  Go Team!

TNT Coach Mike Arrington featured in the paper!

Here's an article about TNT Va's very own coach Mike Arrington, written by Ryan Arnold for the Collegiate Times:

Mike Arrington recommends chocolate milk after intense exercise, but on Tuesday he drank an Arizona peach iced tea following his 50-mile, three-hour bicycle ride.

Executive sous chef for the Inn at Virginia Tech, Arrington chomped on a sandwich at the Blacksburg Public Library for nutrients the sweet beverage lacked.

The quick meal preceded an information meeting about Team In Training, the world's largest charity endurance sports training program. When his kitchen apron comes off, Arrington is the coach for local TNT participants.

Started in 1988, TNT is part of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. The two decades of individual fundraising for marathons, half marathons, triathlons and 100-mile bicicyle rides has yielded more than $1 billion for cancer research.

Arrington assumed the coaching role in 2005, several years after joining TNT in honor of a friend who died of Leukemia.

The regimen for the fall season beings next monthm, and the six runners - a roster Arrington hopes to see grow - will ultimately compete in either a marathon or half marathon.

The three event locations are distant. Athletes can stay close in Virginia Beach and Washington, D.C., or make the trek to San Francisco.

Having completed 16 marathons - he wore a 2007 Boston Marathon hat - Arrington aims to compete in a more challenging half Ironman, which is a 70.3 mile triathlon. He'll t ravel to Augusta, Ga., in late September after raising his $3,000.

Arrington sat with the Collegiate Times to discuss his running origins and the motivatiosn that TNT provides.

Read the rest of this article, including Arrington's interview, here: http://bit.ly/coachmikearrington

Tornadoes Can't Rain on a TNT Parade! - By Elizabeth Merce

The trip started with a belly full of butterflies and a carry-on full of running gear. Arriving in Nashville, my hopes were high for a beautiful weekend. The first night in Nashville included a dinner at the Big River Grill, $5 cowboy hats, and drinks at Tootsies. The weather was perfect! Blue skies and the temperature was just right.



The second day in Nashville started with my favorite activity- running! My group had the chance to take a short run with the group from the National Capital team. We ran through Honky Tonk row to the river and back to the hotel. While we only went a couple of miles I was relieved to find the hills were not the challenge I originally thought. My husband and I spent the rest of the day exploring the city on foot. We were pleased to find how pedestrian friendly Nashville is.


Friday night we attended the Inspiration Dinner. I ate so much amazing food I even had to take pictures of it so I could believe it later! The dinner was so emotional. We heard stories of amazing fundraisers and even more amazing fighters. Hearing about how my little acts of fundraising have made a difference in someone’s life moved me to tears. Those little efforts I put in really help find treatments! To top off such a great dinner I got to take a picture with the MC of the night- the PENGUIN!!!


Saturday morning started off with clear skies and warm temperatures. The forecast was for strong thunderstorms including the chance of tornadoes. I was nervous about the weather, especially since I’m terrified of lightning. Aside from the weather I felt more prepared than I had for anything I had done in my life. Coach Bob transformed me from a hesitant runner into a marathoner!


The support on the course was phenomenal! Everywhere I looked there were Team in Training supporters. Even those in their yards were shouting “Go Team!” The hills seemed to disappear as I heard the cheers of the supporters and remembered just how many people rely on what Team in Training does.


By mile 9 I was feeling great, the sun was still shining and I felt as though I might be able to beat the impending storms. As I approached mile 10 the clouds really started to roll in. Mile 11 met me with course marshals telling me that the full course was closed because of the weather and I would only be allowed to complete the half course. I began to feel moisture on my face. It wasn’t rain, but tears. I worked so hard for so many months only to be told that I wouldn’t be allowed to even try to reach my goal.


I understood what they did was best for the runners, supporters, and staff on the course. I was torn between knowing that I reached the more important fundraising goal while feeling disappointed that I own a marathon medal for completing a half marathon.


Partying at the Wildhorse Saloon with my fellow Team in Training participants helped alleviate some of my unhappiness. By the time I landed on the ground at home I was much happier about the entire trip knowing that I had accomplished my main task- raising money for an amazing organization.

Country Music Marathon: The Best Marathon Story Ever By Coach Michelle Browning

Where to begin...let me start by saying we had great time and we enjoyed each others company with everything we did together.


The Virginia Team which included some really amazing Marathon friends; Misha Anthony, Tracie Beacham, Lisa Furguson, David and Debbe Harless, Elizabeth Merce, Jessie Orozco and Jayme Reed. All of whom finished their own kind of  Marathon in a fascinating and exciting way.  And I cannot forget the special spouses Scott Merce and Vernon Tally, whom I happen to know did some running along side of the course themselves. I said it before, they are two great guys!


The story begins with the news, the National Weather Service in Nashville had issued a hazardous weather out look for Saturday.


"It's not just going to rain," warned meteorologist Mark Rose. "There will be storms, some of them severe" bringing with them a chance of lightning, hail and tornadoes.


Everyone had a plan, the city, the race directors, Team In Training, and the coaches. The race would go on with perhaps, a few changes made along the way. One plan was to divert the full to the half if the storm progresses, that was not good news as you can imagine.


On race morning, no rain, it was a little overcast with some light sprinkles. I noticed some lightning in the air but it seemed miles away. The race started and all was well, in fact by 8:15 the sun was shinning and it looked so promising. Everything appeared to be similar to many other great marathon days. Like running with your participants, this is a highlight for any coach so I am thankful to have run along side of almost everyone, except Misha and Jessie, sorry I missed you. Now I am thinking that everything would be fine.


Okay, it is now 9:45 and the clouds are moving fast and the cool air is starting to blow, the optimist in me was thinking, maybe this will pass! As I started to see more of our running friends for the second time, the warnings from Team in Training  began to come in. The coaches and our  staff coordinator Cate Summers were all communicating with  each other, things were changing constantly with each minute. Then another call, it was official the full marathoners would be diverted to the half marathon if they did not reach 11.2 at a certain time.


At 10:15 it was raining harder and the wind is blowing the rain in every direction. With every minute passing it looked impossibly worse than the minute before. Within another 5 minutes  more official news, the full marathon course was closing, all runners who made it past the cut off were now being stopped at 20.5 and diverted to the finish line. For the half marathoners staying ahead of the sweepers became the biggest concern, with the threat of the storm hanging over their head, literally. I found our Virginia Chapter friends from Richmond David and Debbe just before the finish and we ran together for a while almost to the finish line. David you ran and you kept yourself moving as if it was not raining, I  was impressed with your focus. I believe part of this motivation came, because of the story you shared with me about your beautiful wife and the Teams new friend Debbe. This special person we now call our friend is a “Survivor”! How amazing is that!


This race, on a spring day in April turned out to be a unusually surprising event. An event everyone will remember with a story, a funny moment, a bite me moment or perhaps two and a little disappointment. But one thing I am certain about,  you will never regret what you gave to the cause and the people you helped before this day and many days to come.


Thank you!
Now, let the great fish stories begin!
Coach Michelle

A beautiful shiny ShamROCK of a surprise - By Tina Elam

When I joined TNT I could barely run a mile.  Seriously, I struggled with a mile which was incredibly embarrassing for me.  Here we are several months later and I have just finished my first half marathon.  It was definitely not an easy journey for me but it was absolutely worth it. 

A few weeks ago my boyfriend and I traveled down to Virginia Beach so I could run the Yuengling Shamrock Half Marathon.  Since this was my first endurance event, I didn’t know what to expect.  The day and night before my half is kind of a blur.  I was so nervous and excited that it all passed fairly quickly.  I do know that I went to the Inspiration dinner which was as promised, inspirational.  I ate dinner with the people that have become so dear to me and we heard a survivor’s story.  His story was amazing.  It was funny, moving, sad and uplifting all at once.  I feel grateful that I was able to hear him speak and am so impressed that he was able to tell it so eloquently. 

After the dinner there was much pacing and fretting before I finally fell asleep.  Then, at 5:30 a.m. I got my wake up call (even though I was already wide awake in bed just waiting for it).  I quickly threw on clothes, slathered on Body Glide, wrapped my toes and ran down to the lobby.  There we were in all our purple glory.  As a group, we began the walk to the start line.  We dropped off our gear, used the port-o-potties and found our corrals.  At this point I was just freaking out and laughing hysterically at everything, including when Barb started dancing to Britney Spears' "Womanizer."  Finally, it was time to run.  After about 50 feet I completely calmed down.  It just felt like a normal Saturday morning run and I thanked my lucky stars.  I realized that I could absolutely do this and just needed to enjoy myself.

And I did enjoy myself.  I was able to run the entire race with my mentor, Ann-Marie.  She took my mind off the fact that I was in the middle of running 13 miles which was so helpful.  Along the way we had various TNT coaches jump in to see how we felt.  I had one coach jump in around mile 3 to see how I was hanging.  At that time I was still in great shape but jokingly told him to come back at mile 10.  Much to my surprise right around mile 10 that same coach fell into a run beside me.  It’s things like that which make me so happy my first endurance event was with an organization so committed to getting people across the finish line.  With coaches like him and the other TNT Teammates that stand along and cheer you on, it would be pretty difficult to not make it.
 

Miles 10-12 were tough.  I was ready to be done and just wanted to cross that finish line.  With help from my mentor and spectators yelling my name (thanks to duct tape and a sharpie) I just dug deep and kept going.  Finally we hit the last mile.  We were being cheered on, music was blaring and soon we rounded the corner to the boardwalk.  The finish line was in my sights.  Slowly but surely we gained ground and the finish was getting closer.  I did remark at one point that it didn’t appear to be getting any closer, however Ann-Marie assured me it was.  Just before finishing I saw my boyfriend, Nathan, and a large group of friends standing to the side screaming my name and cheering for me.  Right after waving at them I crossed the finish line.  I was absolutely exhausted but had a gigantic smile and was ecstatic.  We walked along grabbing bananas, granola, shirts and anything else being shoved our way.  After checking in at the TNT tent I made my way to Nathan  and friends.
 

This is where I got the most incredible surprise.  As I walked up to my “posse” I saw that they were all facing opposite me.  All at the same time they turned around to face me and each had on a green shirt saying a different word.  Together, the words spelled out “Tina will you marry me?” and Nathan got down on one knee.  I made an audible gasp and burst into tears.  Finally I squeaked out a yes and there was clapping/smiling from surrounding people.  After much hugging and photo taking we started walking back to the hotel.  I loved this part because my friends left on the shirts and people kept yelling out “What did she say?!?!” 
 

Looking back, this was the best weekend I’ve ever had.  I was able to accomplish a goal  for myself and had the most romantic and creative proposal.  Nathan was so supportive of me during my training and fundraising and I’m happy the weekend ended up being about both of us.  I can’t wait for my next race, I’m looking forward to how he’ll top the proposal!

Warning! Joyful Experiences Ahead! by Art Ritter

Warning - do not get involved with Team in Training if you don’t enjoy joyful experiences, for there are many of these to be had.  These include, but are not limited to, having a great time training with friends, having amazing memories at your events, kicking butt with your fund raising goals, and the glow you get from making a positive difference in the world as you become a part of the enormous battle against cancers.

A week ago, I had another kind of joyful TNT experience when I joined friends Nicki, Jenn, and Faith to cheer at the Shamrock Marathon in Virginia Beach.  Had I never gotten involved in Team in Training, I would not know so many long distance runners and walkers, and it would not have occurred to me to be there.  But I did and I do, so it did!

There is a tremendous joy, sometimes tempered by exhaustion, of being in a race and seeing the other participants running along, and the crowds of people cheering for everyone.  It is hard to describe if you have never experienced it, but it is pretty amazing.  But one thing I learned a few years ago (when I missed a half-marathon after catching my heel in a storm door) is that cheering for people you know, and even strangers, is quite joyful as well.  And being open to that led to last week’s fun experience along the Shamrock Course.

The four of us got to the half-marathon six mile point just a little after 7AM.  Nicki, Faith, and I are blood cancer survivors, so we made a sign – OK, Nicki made a sign – thanking Team Richmond from us.  Then she wrote all the Richmond participants’ names on the sign.  And then, we cheered lustily for everyone that went by, whether we knew them or not.  But our cheers were louder and lustier for anyone wearing the TNT purple, and when people we knew went by, we could barely restrain ourselves.  These included first time half marathoners Tina, Claire, Mike, Mindy, and Barbara – the latter two recent multiple myeloma survivors.  We also saw veterans Ann Marie, Kathy, and Suzanne, the latter two of whom set new personal records.  Later in the day, we about went nuts when first time marathoner Karen was coming down the stretch at 25.9, her smile bright enough to provide electric power to a small city.

After that point, I walked up to about the 25 mile point to cheer for the last people coming in, and specifically to say hi to Cheryl, the course sweep as a walk coach.  Cheryl and I did our first marathons together for Team in Training in 2005 in Anchorage, Alaska, and I have seen her only once or twice since.  So it was well worth hanging around out there for a little while to see her, and to see my Richmond teammates and coaches Vicki and Kristi as they escorted the last participants in. 

 

The final few dozen participants kept thanking us for waiting to cheer for them after everyone else had long finished.  And that felt good – by giving a couple extra hours of my time, maybe I could help give someone who was exhausted, wondering if they can finish 26.2 miles, a little extra lift coming down the stretch.  Maybe the people bringing up the rear need cheering and encouragement even more than the ones who are in the front and the middle of the pack.

So if you are thinking about getting involved in Team in Training, I encourage you to do so.  But be forewarned: you will have a lot of amazing memories, meet incredible people, and undergo joyful experiences, so be prepared for these.  They will enrich your life!