January 21, 2011
The time has come. Training starts again tomorrow. “What are you training for?” you may ask. And I will tell you. I am training with Team In Training (TNT) for a century ride (100-mile bike ride) and raising funds along the way. The funds go towards research to find a cure for blood cancers. Why did I choose to raise funds for Leukemia/Lymphoma Society (LLS)? I have had several people in my life who have been affected by several different cancers, including different types of Leukemia and Lymphoma cancers. Because of friends and family being affected, that affects me. I have seen two friends go through the training that TNT offers and they have both had nothing but good things to say about the program. Having gone through one season with TNT already, I am amazed at what I was able to accomplish in such a short time (13 miles was our first long ride, to 102 for my century ride 3 and a half months later).
You may already know that my event last year (Sawtooth Cycle Challenge (SCC)) was cancelled due to low signups (11 participants 3 weeks before the event was to take place), so I opted to do America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride in Tahoe (AMBBR) as my new event. That’s not to say that we didn’t do a century ride last year. We did! All around the valley and, 7 days later, we went to Stanley to do the SCC regardless of whether the event was taking place or not. I made it to the top of Galena summit and down the other side when I decided I was finished (still recovering from the century 7 days earlier). The fund raising goal for SCC was $2,250, and I am $315 away from that goal. While AMBBR fundraising goal is $3,200, my minimum is still $2,250. I would love to bypass the AMBBR fundraising goal, and with your help, I can do just that. Remember-ALL funds from when I first hit $570 last year-on go towards finding a cure for blood cancers.
This is the part that maybe you were dreading, but yes, I am asking for donations. For those of you who donated last year, thank you, THANK you, THANK YOU!!! Your donations will be applied towards my new event, AMBBR. For those of you who haven’t, please consider donating. Any amount helps. You can either donate securely on line at this link: http://pages.teamintraining.org/oswim/ambbr11/jkdowner
Or, if you prefer, you may write a check to LLS (Leukemia/Lymphoma Society) and send it to me. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me through email, jkdowner@yahoo.com.
I’ve been quiet on my blog site over these last couple of months, just trying to maintain what I gained over the summer and fall by attending spin classes throughout each week. Each instructor is different, has music that they prefer, and has a different routines, but all of the classes have been great and challenging-and I always come away dripping with sweat and feeling fabulous! I will be starting to include new entries on my blog site, which will allow you to read about the training for the week and my progress. My blogsite is: www.pedalchik.blogspot.com.
Below is the link to a video that TNT put together from last year’s season. Look closely for the pink dragonfly, and you’ll see me in one of the pictures.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyfRkqtxt54
Throughout this last season, and due to how cancer has affected me and my loved ones, I have realized that cancer is cancer. If we can find a cure for one type of cancer, we are that much closer to finding a cure for all cancers. CANCER MAKES IT PERSONAL.
Thank you for your consideration in donating to LLS for research and finding a cure for blood cancers.
Sincerely,
Julie
