Being Smart...

Saturday morning was our first DFMC run of the 2015! We had a good group at the Boston Sports Club in Waltham on a cold morning.

Happy teammates before starting the team run

I knew going into the run that my outing may be short.  My right foot has bothered me a bit since our 10 mile run on Dec 28th.  The smart thing would have been to not run at all, but I wanted to test it and see how it responded.  The first 2.5 miles were fine, some pain but no increase or shooting sensations.  After our first water stop, we had a short path that was not even and covered in snow.  After this, the pain level got worse and I decided to call it a day.  On the 3 mile return journey, the pain didn't get better, but it didn't get worse either.  In the end, I completed 6 total miles and reminded myself that the goal is in April.  Hopefully some ice, ibuprofen and rest this week will remedy the situation!

With 2015 starting, I'm also fully into writing donation requests for raffle prizes.  The fundraiser will be March 25 this year and as additional donations are made, I'll announce those details.  Thanks again to JP Licks and Coolidge Corner Theatre for their generous donations thus far!

The Cold Won't Stop Us...

I thought Amy and I might be the only runners crazy enough to be out tonight: 20F, 20-30mph winds making it feel like 5F!  Brr, it was cold and we nearly got blown over a few times, but we survived.  On top of that, 4 other runners were out around Somerville - others are just as crazy!  With temps dropping through the week, I guess winter is upon us and we'll have plenty more cold weekend and weekday runs as DFMC training continues.

After writing several e-mails this weekend for donations for our DFMC fundraiser, I received some great news from J.P. Licks and the Coolidge Corner Theatre, both are donating again this year!!  Both organizations have supported my fundraisers in the past and I can't thank them enough for their support and donations!  Hopefully other companies will follow and we'll raise even more money than last year's $1,500!

Beating Cancer, Little by Little

I was not aware that ESPN analyst Stuart Scott had battled recurring bouts of cancer since November 2007.  You can imagine my surprise today when I read of his passing and 'losing' his battle against cancer.  What struck me most was his message, one that I had not heard before:

"When you die, it does not mean that you lose to cancer. You beat cancer by how you live, why you live, and in the manner in which you live."

As DFMC 2015 training begins in earnest, I don't know if I'll ever battle a cancer diagnosis, but I know that I'm helping beat it.  While my efforts are small, they will contribute to reaching the goal of DFMC: a world without cancer.  This may be in the near or distant future, but every little bit that we do will help that day arrive.

DFMC Training Kicks Off

Saturday was the first group training run with this year's DFMC team.  After being sick and not running at all during the week, it was good to get out with both veterans and newcomers to the team. We had a great turnout of about 100 teammates and had great weather to start the training season, a clear and crisp 28F day.  I took it easy running only 8 miles for the morning, but still not feeling 100%, I wanted to make sure that I didn't get worse before the big guy in a red suit visits later in the week :)

It has also been a great start to this year's DFMC fundraising!  As of this morning, we've raised $1870 towards our goal of $11,000 for 2015!  This is fantastic considering we have 119 days to go until the marathon!  We also learned that the team has surpassed the $700,000 mark and we're well on our way to hitting our $5.3M goal for 2015.  What a great way to transition from 2014 into 2015!

As 2014 wraps up, thank you to everyone who has supported me and DFMC over the past 3 years.  When I first joined the team in 2011, I really didn't expect to run Boston so many years. The impact that I've seen from the fundraising and importantly, the great support from family, friends and in some cases people I've never met has been a huge motivator to continue the efforts.  Of course, running in honor of RJ and having developed such a great relationship with him and his family is a motivating factor that can't be put into words.  Thank you to everyone for past, current and future support!