TNT is Dy-No-Mite! by Cate Summers

Being a staff person at a Team In Training (TNT) event can definitely feel similar to an out-of-body experience. You are surrounded by all of these amazing people who just raised thousands of dollars and trained for months on end to complete a challenging race.
There’s nothing simple about it. Granted, some people are natural athletes and excel during training and some have a sixth sense when it comes to fundraising, but both aspects of this program present some level of difficulty.
I’ve heard people tell me, “It’s unnatural to run for 26.2 miles,” or “asking people for money isn’t easy for me,” which is why I have the utmost respect and admiration for the hundreds of people I have met through TNT who have accomplished both of those feats, as well as the people whom they honor or remember in doing so.
I came to work for the TNT program just two days after graduating from Virginia Tech last May. I was already aware of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, having two uncles affected by blood cancer. I became acutely aware of TNT last spring when one of my sorority sisters took on the challenge of fundraising for the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Diego Marathon and asked all of us for support. Erin planned fundraisers like car washes, pizza and Krispy Kreme sales in the heart of campus, and bake sales outside the most popular bars in town. She did it and she crossed the finish line in San Diego a few weeks after I had made my cubicle a home at the LLS office.
I quickly learned that the TNT family is a diverse one. Knowing little about the program other than TNT was the world’s largest endurance training program, I’d imagined everyone involved to be a svelte athlete with an Olympic physique and record-breaking speed. But when I showed up to my first training, I was relieved to see that everyone looked pretty normal, including the coaches. I wasn’t intimidated at all because there was an immediate welcoming spirit. I had only been on the job for 5 days but these people were happy to see me and made me feel like part of their Team.
As I continued to fall in love with my first “Big Girl Job,” I was introduced to more and more Teammates and was privileged to become a part of their chosen extracurricular activity I traveled to Virginia Beach with all of the Richmond staff for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon for my first event weekend experience. I may or may not have shed a tear or two during Honored Teammate Ed Stone’s speech at our Inspiration Dinner. I was way more wide-awake than I ever expected at 4:00 a.m. when I went to the lobby to see the Teammates off to the race start. Watching the sun rise on the beach with my coworkers and our exceptional volunteers wasn’t a bad way to start my Sunday either. But it was sitting at the check-in table, screaming and clapping for each and every participant (from every participating LLS chapter) and handing them their 13.1 mile finisher pin that was my favorite part of the day.
I ran track in high school, but those finish lines were nothing compared to this one. I was just happy to be done with the 1000-meter run; these people were sweaty and exhausted, but on an endorphin high I had never seen before. It was an honor to hand each of them their pins because they had completed something much more meaningful than just a race. They’d raised over $500,000 to support cancer research and patient services.
Just a few weeks later I was preparing to travel with the Team to Augusta, GA for Ironman 70.3 Augusta. Now, they say triathletes are a breed of their own. But these people were just like you and me (maybe with a little more stamina in a wetsuit). The Augusta Team had a bond with each other that I had not seen yet in my short tenure with TNT. They all knew each other so well and had created their own special friendships. About 30 of us successfully crammed into what seemed like Augusta’s tiniest Italian restaurant and I had a great time getting to know more about the people I sat with. One of the best stories I heard all weekend was over my fettuccine alfredo from Amy Williams about the students who tried to blow up her mailbox when she was a teacher in Alabama. Now here she was preparing to blow these 70.3 miles out of the water (pun intended).
But it might have been the sugar cube-crazed little miss Emma McFeely who made me laugh the most that weekend. A survivor of infant acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Emma was there supporting her mom in the triathlon. Emma’s adorable smile is enough to give anyone enough strength for 70.3 miles. Everyone had his or her own motivations for being in Augusta, but having Emma there was the extra tangible push for a lot of the Teammates.
That Sunday morning we got up with the team at 4:30 a.m. and traveled to the transition area. I was in awe as thousands of bikes were lined up in precise detail, individual to each athlete. We waited at the swim exit and photographed each of our Teammates exit the water. Then we made our way to the run course and set up our mission boards, poised to cheer for the next 5 hours or so at every green and purple tri top that strode past us. There Emma and her grandparents joined Amber and I with their homemade mission boards featuring Holly’s face on the Ironman’s superhero body. Emma knew every Virginia Teammate who ran past us and screamed their names as they waved back. She knew why they were running, and even at 10 years old, was thankful for what they had done for LLS and for her.
I watched and blew my horn as Emma’s mom ran over to us on the grass, gave her a big squeeze, and went back on her way down the road. We are reminded every day how unfair it is for a child to have to go through cancer, and it is another reason why all of us are so invested in this cause. But it was truly amazing to see how proud Emma was of her mother, and I can only imagine what a brave child she must have been…and still is.
Every day at work I find new inspiration. Whether it’s a new Teammate who just signed up three weeks ago and has already reached her fundraising minimum, a novice triathlete who can’t wait to get in the water, convincing a friend to join her local chapter, learning of the passing of my first boss from ALL, or another mission moment that reminds us that the fight is not yet over, I never find myself short of motivation. As we begin our summer season, I can’t wait to get to know a new group of Teammates and learn about what motivates them. It is truly an honor to encounter so many people with some of the biggest hearts and selfless intentions. Good luck to our newest Virginia Teammates, may you get the most out of your TNT experience!
As Emma’s sign said, TNT is DY-NO-MITE!