Great News!!!

I wanted to let you all know that today I was offered a job as Campaign Coordinator with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society!  I accepted without any hesitation!  Starting on September 6th, I will be a campaign coordinator partnering with LLS and Team in Training- yes, this is the organization that I ran the triathlon through!  I am so excited to start working for them and very excited to get others motivated to raise money for such a great cause!

GO TEAM!!!

It's official....

Well, I hate to break it to you, but I am officially a resident of the state of New York.

So now, along with this driver's license, I will fit right in with my lack of patience, annoyance of tourists, and new found love for a good bagel!  Don't mess with a New Yorker... I will say this, ALWAYS a Red Sox fan!

Fire Island... A Day at the Beach

If you drive about an hour out of the city to Long Island, hop on a 15 minute ferry to a place called Fire Island, you will find yourself in every beach goer's paradise.  Beach town, no cars only bicycles, sandy feet, sunny weather and some pretty good local bars.  This is exactly what I did on Saturday.  I went with a bunch of friends to Fire Island to spend the day at the beach and then go out for my birthday that night!  It was so peaceful and relaxing and absolutely gorgeous!

We went to Ocean Beach!

Here are some pictures of our day!

Town of Ocean Beach

The walk to the beach!

church on the island

it's beautiful!

exactly where I should be!

loved the colors

me, Gabby and Roma!!!

buzz buzz

the sand bar!

so pretty

i love bikes!

me, kevin and gabby

beach

boats

We had the best time relaxing on the beach, playing card games, and swimming!  We grabbed sandwiches for lunch, got ice cream, and did a little shopping! We then walked around town for a while and then went to The Sandbar to grab drinks after a long day at the beach!  I can't wait to go back- nothing beats getting out of the city on a hot day and spending it at the beach!

2011 New York City Triathlon

I have three words for you when talking about the NYC Triahlon- I did it!  I did it in every single way.  I raised over $3000 and I swam, biked and ran 36 miles to cross that finish line.  I DID IT!!

Honestly, I couldn't have done it without the help of my parents, my family and my friends.  To all of those people who donated knowing that the money was going to something bigger than them.  To those who gave without hesitation and helped me reach my goal- I thank you.  I couldn't have done it all without you. My organization- Team in Training- raised over $1.5 million dollars- and all of that is going directly towards research for Leukemia and Lymphoma.  I ran and trained for those who simply couldn't- for those affected that we know and love, for those we have met along the way, and for all my friends I trained with who had been affected by cancer in some way- I ran for them as well. This truly was such an amazing experience to know that we have aided those in need and that I ran for something so much bigger than me. I have overcome obstacles both mentally and physically and I am proud to say that I ran and finished the NYC Triathlon on August 7th, 2011.

So let's start with that weekend.  Saturday, my parents came to town and we went to the expo! I love expos, not only because you get free things and free food, but because you're surrounded by tons of people who have done all of this before.  To me, it was totally new.  I tried on helmets, I got my sore muscle in my calf taped, I ate energy bars that were simply disgusting and envied every single person who rolled an Orbea bike through the lobby of the Sheraton Hotel.  I had to attend a briefing during the expo, get checked in with my numbers, get body marked (probably my favorite thing of the weekend), and of course, buy tons of NYC triathlon gear, so that everyone in the city will know that I did it.

We then proceeded to have lunch at this amazing little pizza joint downtown near the West Village.  I later found out that their oven was imported from Italy.  It was sooo delicous- I ate an entire pizza.. yes, that's what training for a triathlon will do to you.  I'm no longer the kid who can't finish her meal- I'm the one who finished everyone else's. Thank you high metabolism!

That afternoon after our pizza lunch- we dropped off my bike at transition.  Once again, in awe of every single bike that rolled through.  You have to understand that I got my mom's bike from the 1980's souped up... and all of these people who showed up with their bikes were brand new, thousand dollar bikes and they were GORGEOUS!

Bringing my bike to transition

transition!!! so many bikes!!!

getting my timing chip.. this went on my left ankle and timed my progress

it was raining so we covered our bikes!

That night, we hung out.. I prepped myself for the triathlon.  To be completely honest with you, I was terrified, nervous, excited, anxious... I packed my bag- yes this was my kind of event (you have to change your outfit at least twice!).  I was doing my swim stroke in my head, going over transitions and trying to calm myself down.  Needless to say when the alarm went off at 3:15 am, I had maybe gotten 1 hour of sleep!! I made it down to transition at 4am, set up my stuff, and walked the one mile to the swim start with my parents.  I can't even explain to you what was going on in my head... but I honestly couldn't believe that after all that training, here I was, ready to jump in the Hudson!

getting ready the night before!  #2466!!!

4am at Transition

my roomie and my mom!!! my biggest fans!!

So we sat and we waited at transition.  Start was delayed due to a car accident on the Henry Hudson Parkway so they had to clean that up before we biked through it.  And then, before I could even say triathlon three times as fast as I could, I was sitting on the start barge, ready to jump into the Hudson.

the pros are off!

where's waldo! can you see me?

there i am on the start barge.. fourth one from the left in the sleeveless wetsuit

just keep swimming!

get me outttt

running to go get my bike!

So let me tell you- the Hudson is NASTY.  It's slimy, gritty, it was all over my face, in my mouth.  It was soooo gross!  I had to run about a quarter of a mile to transition, and then it was change quickly, and hop on my bike to ride 25 miles up the Henry Hudson parkway and back!

getting up hot corner

waving to Dad!

Finally we were off on the 6 mile run... across 72nd St., which was completely shut down and into Central Park.  The run was fun- NYC fans are great!  People were out and about on their sunday morning strolls, runs, dog walks and they cheered for every person that passed them.  It was amazing!  People were thanking me for raising money for Team in Training- I was trying not to cry!  It was just such a remarkable feeling- I have goose bumps writing about it right now.

coming out of transition onto 72nd st!

almost there!

running by Dad to the finish!

i did it!!!! went right for the bagels and bananas!

my fans!

me and my dad!!!

my family!!! thank you so much for coming!!!

So I did it.  I finished in a little over 4 hours- not my best performance but I was working with a pulled calf muscle.  But would I do it again? Absolutely.  Would I jump in the Hudson again? um, more than likely yes- I would keep my fingers crossed it wasn't so choppy the next time.  Would I raise all that money again- ABSOLUTELY!  I can't even explain the feeling of crossing that finish line, knowing why I did it and what I accomplished.  It was an amazing feeling.

I couldn't have done it all without you, your help, your support, your donations- and I know that when I crossed that finish line I was crossing something  a lot bigger than me!  To all those we have lost, to those who are battling cancer or leukemia right now, and for all those who have overcome it, I did this for you.  And would I do that again? Absolutely.

GO TEAM!

NJ Balloon Festival

I know I haven't updated in a while- I was busy with all that training to jump in the Hudson, but I promise, now that everything is back to normal, I will be updating this more.  One of the highlights this summer, was the NJ Balloon Festival.  I went with my second family and my roommate to Jersey and spent the day walking around this huge fair, followed by a lift off of over 125 balloons in all colors, shapes and sizes!  It was breathtaking- easily one of the most amazing sights I have ever seen!  Here are a few photos from the festival- hope you enjoy them!

As you can see, it was pretty amazing!  I would definitely love to go to something like this again- I've added riding in a hot air balloon to my bucket list, so hopefully that can happen in the future!  I was just so amazed at the amount of balloons that went up and just how amazing it is to see them floating in the sky!  The balloons cost anywhere from $50,000 and up- and you have to go take classes to learn how to work them!  Truly amazing- if you have never been to something like this, go as soon as you get the chance.  It will take your breath away!