Another Run Down!!!

Well last weekend we ran some crazy hills, but today we got a little break and ran some flatter terrain at Hillcrest Park in Concord, CA. I got another 10 miles done in preparation for the U.S. Half in San Francisco on Easter Sunday. Travis will also be running that race along with some of our other friends.

We beat the rain for today's run and a pleasant surprise awaited us at the end, as we were greeted by one of our team honorees, David and his little daughter Gabby (photo below). A cloudy and cold day doesn't put a damper on our team, especially when we are greeted by someone like David who always has a smile on his face and a hug waiting for you. David is one of the most amazing athletes and inspiring individuals that I know. He is still on the mend from his surgery, but is already waiting for the day that the doctor said he can get back to training again. Boy, does he have quite the list of races planned, from running to bicycling to yes, even an Ironman! AMAZING! Please enjoy the photos below and thanks for reading!

Team Honoree David & His Daughter Gabby

Some Of Our Team Sporting Our iRun shirts. "I Run Because I Can. I Run For Those Who Can Not."

We All Run To Help Find Cures For Blood Cancers.

We've Got Grit!

Ah, we conquered 10 miles at Lake Chabot on St. Patty's Day!!! It was 40 some degrees, wet, damp and muddy, but no rain. Crazy enough, we along with others on the team, were hoping for it! Just think "slip and slide!" :) Lake Chabot is a very scenic and challenging, hilly trail run. As always, we think of all our team and personal honorees while we run to get us through it and not going to lie, a couple curse words help too.

This upcoming week, our team is shooting to win a TNT "Show Your Grit" contest. I may be bias, but our team has the best spirit, friendly-fun individuals and the most awesome personalities to pull off some of the best photos for this contest! Whoever shows their grit off the most in the social media challenge will win a team pancake breakfast and will be featured in the SF Bay Area's marketing for the upcoming seasons! We're excited. Below is a photo of myself along with Travis and our buddy "E-dog"- We are the GLEEK SQUAD running to help stomp out cancer one step at a time!

(As with all photos posted- click them to enlarge.)

BONUS PHOTO: I wore some St. Patty's inspired gloves to keep me warm during my run, so naturally afterwards I had to fulfill my glove's destiny- LOL.

Mud, Sweat & Rain!

Well over the past week, both Travis and I came down with a terrible bug that left us fully congested. I'll spare you all those icky details we all deal with when we're sick. Anyways, as soon as I could move again, we sucked it up and joined some of our teammates for HILL REPEATS on Tuesday, March 13th. It's exactly what it sounds like. Run up a hill, come back down and run up it again and again and again. 7 times to be exact. The trail our coach was going to have us run on was too muddy (think ski slope) so we improvised and got it done. Did I think I was going to hack up a lung because I was still sick? SURE, but I was glad I did it and it was just what I needed to get back some confidence after not feeling so stellar just a day before. We have a motto on our team: "NO WIMPS."

Team Honoree Picnic - "Harmony" with Team Josh

On Saturday, March 3rd, after my 9 mile run with some fellow teammates, "Team Josh" had a very inspirational Team Honoree Picnic. This photo features some of our wonderful honorees (from left to right): Bill T., David B., Rina (representing her husband Josh Knoblock, for whom our team name is for and in memory of) Josh B. and Justin E.

Each of our honorees shared their personal stories of their battles with blood cancers, and helped us really appreciate what we have. They also emphasized the important role of our efforts with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training.  TNT has such a great impact in the fight against blood cancers, funding research for new drug treatments, patient support and more. You'll notice in the photo that Rina is holding up an album in her hand. It is a special CD that had a very meaningful song on it called "Harmony," that she played for us all. Harmony was a special song written for her by her husband Josh Knoblock. He plays the drums (was signed by ACM Records) on the soundtrack and the song features singer Tony Lindsay who has "11 Grammys on his mantle after spending 20 years as Santana's frontman." To get an understanding of what a great individual Josh was, the strength of his wife Rina and how they got involved with TNT, please CLICK HERE and take a couple minutes to view the video.
Help the memory of Josh and his love for Rina live on, while helping to find cures for blood cancers. For a minimum $1 donation, I will send you the link to download the song "Harmony." Please include in the comment section, "Harmony for Team Josh." Rina has graciously shared this song with our team so we request that you do not post the link to the general public, as that would defeat fundraising efforts. This song is solely for the purpose of Team Josh's fundraising efforts and cannot be used for any other purposes, as it is copywrited. CLICK HERE to donate. Thank you.