Everybody Rock n Roll the place (RNR AZ photoblog)

Everybody Rock n Roll the place (RNR AZ photoblog)

Current mood:knighted

(Originally posted on MySpace on 1/18/2008)

I walk... fast, far and, for the most part, without complaining.

This was our first time at Rock N Roll Phoenix and the first event of the Winter season.  Between Bayside and Diablo Valley, we only had on fundraising walker, but two coaches, three mentors and one staff member.  She was well taken care of. 

This year is special.  2008 marks the 20th Anniversary of TNT and our goal is to pass the $1 billion dollar fundraising mark. To date, TNT has trained over 340,000 athletes and raised over $840 million in the fight against blood related cancers.



What's happened in 20 years?  The survival rate for chronic myelogenous leukemia has risen from 15% to an astonishing 95%, due to the discovery of Gleevec, a drug administered in pill form instead of side-effect ridden chemo or radiation therapies.  Grants to fund the research on Gleevec came in large part from LLS from funds raised by Team in Training. 

This is Rodney Brown, the honored patient speaker for the Pasta Party (apologies for the quality - they dimmed the lights for the video screen).  He has chronic lymphocytic leukemia.  His white cell count will keep increasing until his body starts to fail.  There's no cure for CLL, no treatment to prolong his life. Rodney is only 53. He would walk his first half-marathon with us the next day accompanied by a dozen friends and relatives. Even though his white cell count was over 69000 (vs a normal 3 - 7000), he said he never felt better in his life.



The party was great.  Last week, I decided I needed to change my diet so I could lose a few pounds for speed and I ended up loading up on more veggies - broccoli, cauliflower especially.  Those of you who are veteran marathoners are probably snickering at this point.  If you're not, you'll see why later.

Race morning is always nervous.  Even veterans tend to wake up every hour, on the hour, to look at the alarm clock dreading the possibility that they'd sleep through the alarm.  This was a later start time than most. We had to be at the starting area by 6:45 am.



The marathon started at 7:30 and our half-marathon started at 8:30. Getting there so early before the race means you're usually freezing since you don't want to dress too warmly and have to lug extra layers of clothing for 13.1 miles.  Fortunately, the marathoners had a lot of disposable layers they shed at the start line for us to bundle up in.  Here's Susan making her fashion statement:



There are always some great shirts and signs at the races.  We figure if you're out there for 2 - 4 hours, you might as well be entertained.  This one's for Candy Heiress (who probably would have beaten me when she was 8 months pregnant).



This lady's not the ONLY one thinking this, I'm sure:



Susan and I decided to go for a decent time - 3 hours flat or about a 13:40 walking mile. This wasn't a REALLY big deal since we'd hit 2:51 before.  I usually need a couple miles at a 14 minute pace for my shins to warm up before I can really get going in the 12:30 - 13:10 pace.  Susan usually starts at a 13:20 and holds it the whole way through.  We decided to walk this one together like we did in Maui. Here's our "this is SO MySpace" picture before the gun.



The starting line for the half-marathon was across from a cemetery.  I figured that was a lot better than having the cemetery close to the finish line. Heh.  The weird sign here was the one on the right.  This was the "No Camping Section" of the cemetery. (wtf?).



This is Coach Al, head coach of the East Bay Run Team.  Anyone who's ever been to a national event with TNT should recognize him.  He's trained over 3,500 runners in 10 years and has probably trained more Boston Qualifiers than any other TNT chapter in the country.  Seeing him is just what you need to keep you going when you're 3/4ths of the way through the race and in a ton of pain.  He's the originator of the "No Wimps!" cheer.  It's mind over matter - if you don't mind, it doesn't matter!



The Rock n Roll race circuit is famous for the cheer support along the course.  We had some excellent bands (and some so-so ones) every two miles and even had a dozen cheerleader squads who spent over 4 hours in the sun to cheer us on:



The best thing about doing a race with a team is knowing that there'll be someone looking out for you every 5 miles.  The TNT cheering station at mile 7.5:



After the halfway mark, we were in good shape time-wise - 1:31:30. Doing a negative split (race-lingo for a faster second half) and we had 3 hours without a problem.  We cranked down to about a 12:30 - 13:00 mile and started passing a lot of the slower runners.

Yeah.  Seriously.

These balloons were at about mile 9.  I remember that distinctly because at this point, I started feeling the effects of all the broccoli fiber from dinner the night before.  Race wisdom tells us "nothing new" the weekend of the race.  (stomach grumbling).



At mile 10, we passed a line of porta-potties.  I actually haven't had to stop for a bathroom during a race for three years (including 5 full marathons), but the gurgling in my stomach was getting louder, but I looked down to see that we were only 3 minutes ahead of the 3 hour mark if we kept up our pace.  We passed them by. 

I hear ?Debs? was at mile 11 with her daughter, cheering everyone on.  Sadly, my three-year streak came to an end in a lonely group of porta-potties by the side of the road at mile 11.6.  With a mile and a half left in 13 minutes, there was no way I'd get there without running. I don't run, partly because of bad knees, but mostly because I'm a purist.

I DID crank down to about a 10 minute mile for good part of mile 12, but then I realized, I'm going to get the same finisher's medal if I break 3 hours or not.

Walkers may be slower, but spending more time on the course means more value for your marathon dollar.

3:02ish later, I crossed the finish line.  Susan went on ahead and finished at 2:58ish which is great because I was going to deduct the time I spent in the porta-potty anyway.   Here's us at the finish tent - two coaches and one proud participant.  This year was the first time she'd ever walked more than 4 miles at once.



As always there are a couple of pictures I wish I had taken.  From mile 6 - 8 we were passed by a runner from one of the east coast chapters that had a small banner pinned to the back of her jersey.  There was a list of names on the bottom of her donors and on top it read

13.1 for you Mom. 
I miss you.

Rodney Brown, our honoree, finished right around 3:15 (chip time), but instead of going to the TNT finishers tent, he stayed at the finish line to cheer in TNT'ers from all across the country.  He and his friends spent an extra hour on the course, thanking the people who were racing for his life.

Some people think that marathon runners and walkers get dehydrated because they sweat so much.

TNT'ers need a little extra hydration for the tears they shed during the race.



The numbers:
1,200 Team in Training participants
$3.5 million raised, bringing the 5 year total for the PF Chang's Rock N Roll Marathon to $19 million.
The top fundraiser was Brett Wilson.  He raised $50,299 and was running for his daughter who has leukemia.

Resources:
Team in Training home page - remodeled for the 20th Anniversary.  Get fit, make friends, change lives with every mile.
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.  Patient services, support group information and tons of information on blood related cancers.

Finally, we're raising money for the last event of the winter season - the full marathon in Rome, Italy.  If you're so inclined, please consider a donation.  Here's the link to our fundraising site. The transactions are secure. Any amount helps. If you have any questions, feel free to email me privately.

If sometime during the year, you decide to take up a fundraising campaign of your own, be sure to blog about it.  You'll probably find a donation from me sitting in your box without even asking. 

I walk... fast, far and for the most part without complaining.

I walk because I can't run.  Sports injuries and knee problems robbed me of speed when I was 20.

I don't regret it. Walking gives me purpose.

I walk because others can't.

This was the 11th time I was honored to wear the Purple jersey of Team in Training, and I hope to do so for years to come.