Iron Girl 2010! The entire Iron Girl weekend was a blast! Saturday was a fun filled day of racking the bikes and volunteering at the expo. One of the biggest perks of helping at the expo besides meeting so many fabulous Iron Girls is multiple passes through the expo itself. Lots of great purchases for the Team Inspiration Iron Girls and I have to say we were styling before, during, and after the race!
Although it did end up raining during the race, it didn’t dampen anyone’s spirits in the least. Our team was amped up with the energy of carrying our cancer warriors in our hearts and on our Livestrong bracelets. Each team member had at least one honored teammate they were racing for and carried that person’s name on their bracelet. It was a very rewarding but emotional event for each of us. The day was filled with wonderful smiles and moments of tears, but the tears were mostly an expression of gratitude and love for having this moment to share, and remember or honor our beloved cancer warriors.
I received this lovely email from one of our teammates after the race:
Dear Roseann, Thank you for giving me the opportunity to join team inspiration in the irongirl triathlon. I have participated in all 5 of the Columbia irongirl events. This year's was a far different experience and more rewarding than one could imagine. You certainly run harder and faster when you are running so others can have a chance to one day do the same. I dedicated my race to three special people in my life. Each of whom had an uphill battle with cancer. I wore three livestrong bracelets with their names. One for the swim, the bike, and the run. When I would get tired or cramp, I would picture the people on my bands, shed a few tears, and go harder and faster. When I felt exhausted, I would remember the words on the back of our team inspiration shirts, "Cancer Warrior". Again, I would shed a few tears and surge. Finally, a mile to go and I passed a race participant that just a few years back won her battlle with breast cancer. (at least for now) I ran by her yelling, "WOO HOO, We're going to beat this cancer." Again, an emotional rush that pushed me to the finish.
Team inspiration not only provided me the training support to get me to the start and finish line, but gave me an opportunity to meet so many wonderful caring individuals. The support for each other from team members was rewarding and inspirational. I will never just "do" irongirl again. I plan to join team inspiration every year. It fills my heart and soul with emotion and purpose.
Looking forward to next year,
Sincerely,
Patty Myers
Dear Roseann, Thank you for giving me the opportunity to join team inspiration in the irongirl triathlon. I have participated in all 5 of the Columbia irongirl events. This year's was a far different experience and more rewarding than one could imagine. You certainly run harder and faster when you are running so others can have a chance to one day do the same. I dedicated my race to three special people in my life. Each of whom had an uphill battle with cancer. I wore three livestrong bracelets with their names. One for the swim, the bike, and the run. When I would get tired or cramp, I would picture the people on my bands, shed a few tears, and go harder and faster. When I felt exhausted, I would remember the words on the back of our team inspiration shirts, "Cancer Warrior". Again, I would shed a few tears and surge. Finally, a mile to go and I passed a race participant that just a few years back won her battlle with breast cancer. (at least for now) I ran by her yelling, "WOO HOO, We're going to beat this cancer." Again, an emotional rush that pushed me to the finish.
Team inspiration not only provided me the training support to get me to the start and finish line, but gave me an opportunity to meet so many wonderful caring individuals. The support for each other from team members was rewarding and inspirational. I will never just "do" irongirl again. I plan to join team inspiration every year. It fills my heart and soul with emotion and purpose.
Looking forward to next year,
Sincerely,
Patty Myers
