It's about CANCER

A couple days ago, Ulman Cancer Fund and Rev 3 made the announcement that Lance Armstrong would be   participating in the HalfFull triathlon in Columbia MD on 10/7/12.

By now we are sure that you have heard that Lance Armstrong will be participating as a survivor in the Half Full Triathlon on October 7th. It's important to know that 100% of the entry fees go directly to The Ulman Cancer Fund. Our goal in being involved with this event has been and will continue to be, to raise funds and awareness for young adults battling cancer! It is our feeling that adding Lance to the field only helps to accomplish that goal.

To say that this has created a bit of controversy is an understatement and the things that have been posted on Twitter and Slowtwitch are pretty intense--on both sides of the fence.



The thing that people are not seeing here is that this is not about Lance Armstrong. This is not about racing. This is about raising money for a charity that helps young people with cancer. I hope that you never have to use the services of Ulman Cancer Fund or Livestrong but if you do, know that they are there to help you. And at the end of the day this is what it is all about. HELPING PEOPLE.

But here are some facts to ponder:
-Rev3 makes NO money from the HalfFull Tri. UCF is the charity that Rev3 supports. This year, much of the Rev3 staff and team ran across America in an effort to raise money for UCF.
-Lance is a participant in a charity event, he is not racing. He will be a part of the cancer survivor wave. He is not there as a profession athlete. He is there to lend support to Ulman Cancer Fund.
-Lance is not accepting any kind of "appearance fee"





“This race is a great example of what cancer survivorship is all about – not just surviving this disease, but truly living life on your own terms. My Foundation is proud to support the Ulman Cancer Fund and the great work they’re doing on behalf of young adult cancer survivors.” ~ Lance Armstrong


“Half Full has always been about raising awareness and resources to support our programs in the young adult cancer fight,” said Ulman Cancer Fund COO and Half Full Race Director Brian Satola. “We thank Lance and the rest of our athletes for supporting an event that will enable us to change countless lives.”


I love what my team mate Alexander had to say about this:

I couldn't be prouder to say I am a Team Rev3 Triathlon Member ...especially after the announcement today about allowing Lance to race...
My feelings about Lance Armstrong don't matter. What matters are the kids in this world who battle cancer. Everyone, pick your BATTLES (pun intended) wisely. 
Thank you REVOLUTION3 Triathlon (REV3TRI) for making a decision, although controversial, to help people beyond the sport of triathlon. At the end of the day, who really cares if Lance raced or didn't race; ultimately so much more funds will be raised and publicity gained for such an amazing cause, the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults.

And I will close this post with a quote directly from Charlie, the man behind Rev3:

Take sport out of this.  This is about young adults fighting cancer.  The PR generated today has brought Ulman a level of exposure that is significant.  If this is able to help just one more person fighting cancer, then i'm for it.  Sometimes my business, Rev3 is about people and not about triathlon. 

Lovely

Lovely.
So I spent a lot of time on Friday finally writing up this blog post and then poof! it was gone into Blogger heaven so here is attempt #2. 





The lovely Jen at Running with the Girls nominated me for the ONE LOVELY BLOG AWARD and I was just pleased as punch about it. Jen is really awesome because well, her name is Jen (duh!) and she is also a Mainer (double awesome). 

The One Lovely Blog Award is a "pay it forward" kind of way to recognize your favorite blogs. 

Here are the rules:

1. Post the award logo and and picture on your blog and link back to the person who nominated you.

2. Tell seven things about yourself.

3. Nominate up to 15 additional bloggers who you think deserve the award.

4. Post a comment on the blog of each nominee to tell them him/her they have been nominated.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1- A bit of delay on my part cost me a spot in the Peaks to Portland 2.4 mile open ocean swim race in July. I literally missed a spot by hours and I'm pissed. 

BUT 

I got into THE Maine road race this year, Beach to Beacon 10k. Hey! Jen will be running B2B this summer. Maybe we could meet up there. What do you think Jen?? Call me ;)

My 28:03 finish last year.
Whaaat? That's not me???
Sure it is...

2- Lance Armstrong. Oh boy...what do I say on this one? I really don't know WHAT to think!! 

What I do know is that while I was never on the whole "Lance Is Doing Triathlon" train, what I do know is that the guy stepped up to Mary's challenge DUEL IN THE POOL and they raised a crapload of money for Teens Living with Cancer. 

3- I've been day dreaming about getting an RV, packing up all my stuff and just heading out to see the country a little bit at a time. Oh, and cram as many races as I can into the travels. 

Now, to only figure out a way to get that RV to Hawaii to visit Bree and hang out with her. That would freaking RULE and I know Lola would just love Kainoa. 

photo from BreeWeeHawaii.blogspot.com

4- I just LOVE Humpty Dumpty Salt & Vinegar chips (it's a local brand). I could (and have) eat them until I have chemical burn on my tongue. No wonder I do not buy them very often...

5- When I was in my 20's there were a few things I SWORE I would NEVER do.

• move back to Maine
• get married
• have children

Yeah, I did great on those things huh?? No regrets...

6- My long workout was cool today. Literally...I met up with a bunch of my KBTC friends for an EARLY morning ride and it started out all sunshine and smiles. But 2 hours into it with another 2 to go, I was making a pit stop at home on the way by for my winter gear-gloves and a wind stopper jacket. It got COLD and WINDY!! But that certainly made for good running weather off the bike. Lemonade folks, lemonade. 

7- Have I mentioned lately how much I love my bike? 

Yeah, my beautiful Quintana Roo cd0.1

very much in love...

Here is who I am tagging and a little bit about them!

AMC at Strength Odysessy:

AMC is a pretty new blogger and her fitness focus is weight training and running. She makes amazing baklava and makes my hair look pretty. 

When I was heavy, AMC worked out at the same gym I went to and I used to stalk admire her - you know, her dedication, work ethic and figure. I never got the guts to tell her she inspired me. Funny now years later, we work together and I finally worked up the courage to tell her I used to stalk her. 

Audra at Relentless:

Audra is just badass and cool. I had the pleasure of meeting her finally at Quassy (where she won our age group! woot). I knew she was my kind of girl when she dropped trau right at the finish line to change (of course, covered w/a towel at the side of the FL).

Go read about her badassery and make sure you check out her IMStG report where she saved a man's life...epic. 

Dawn at Trying for Everything: 

My bestie and I am forcing her to return to blogging. She is a brilliant writer and wonderful person. Dawn would never drop her pants in public but I love her anyway. We are ying-yang and balance each other quite well. Sometimes I wonder how she tolerates my constant yammering and propensity to drop trau in public.