See Fox TRI

See Fox Bartend!!!

2010-04-01T12:56:00.000-07:00

I will be at the UGLY MUG in a few hours serving up beers in an attempt to raise money and awareness for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society!

I'll have pictures and updates after the fact!!! Just getting excited! It should be lots of fun!

cfox

See Fox Skip...

2010-03-31T05:10:00.000-07:00

Practice that is. It wasn't intentional... I promise. I have made it to all the swim practices that I've been in town for, however I dont even remember the alarm clock going off yesterday morning...so I missed practice. I'm going to try to hit the trail to ride my bike and then head to a friends happy hour/fundraiser!

Thursday I'm going to be doing a fundraiser at a bar with a lot of friends...it should be fun...just hope I get to see a lot of friends!

if you are in the area come to the ugly mug for my guest bartending tomorrow, Thursday, April 1st.

Go Team!

See Fox Clipped in...

2010-03-30T06:08:00.000-07:00

I've completed 2 triathlons in 1 year and I'm back for my third. In a year and a half I'm sent plenty of money donating to TNT and buying gear. Bike, Helmet, spare tires, CO2 canisters, tire changing tools, socks, swimsuits, new running shoes, running gloves, lobster biking gloves,cold weather booties, more socks, happy hour beers, another swimsuit, sports sunglasses, sunscreen, running visors, running shorts, running pants, replacement ipod, cycling clothes, sports bras, water bottles, gu/gel/enduance fuel, more socks, a tune up for my bike, bike computer, new parts that were wearing out on my bike...you know...the stanadards.

I decided a long time ago that buying clipless pedals wasn't something I would do for my first triathlon simply because of the cost. I had cages on my bike that would losely hold my feet onto my pedals and was fine with that. By the time I started training for Nations Tri last summer my coaches were asking why I didnt have "Clips." On vacation last summer I bought a part of Pearl Izumi shoes that were on sale. Biking shoes can cost over 100 bucks easily but I found mine on clearance. When I was in Colorado visiting Sally King the weekend of my brother's wedding in January I bought a pair of clipless pedals... and was REALLY excited. The hard part was over...spending the money.... at least that is what I thought. I have been telling myself that I was going to put the pedals on ever since then...but they have just been floating along the bottom of my bag. It just seems really unnecessary to bolt yourself to a piece of medal that is moving up to 25 mph! But i did it...and yesterday I went for a ride at haines point...a 3 mile loop that overlooks the river and DC. I didnt fall once. Lots of clipping in and out. My boyfriend was riding with me and would yell "clip out" randomly so I could practice doing it without time to prepare. It wasn't soo bad! I'm really excited for practice this weekend.

Thursday I'm going to be guest bartending at the Mug to raise money for LLS! Stop by if you are in dC!

See Fox Shamrock a half....

2010-03-28T07:46:00.001-07:00

last week I was in Virginia Beach for the shamrock half marathon and marathon. It was soooo much fun! There were over 20 friends and we all stayed in the same house right on the beach. At least half of the participants are connected through TNT...

Here I am checking into registration...

Meet Kristen, I'm her mentor this season but she was the race manager for TNT when I went to Cap Tex last year.

A great performance T...

Kait, my honored teammate, enjoying her day on the beach...

A view down the beach from our back porch.

Playing on the beach with friends!

Family dinner the night before the race!

OMG...it was sooooo cold! My boyfriend, Sante, me, Noelle, and Tricia in the back are all huddled to stay warm.

Jumping around in an attempt to stay warm before the start

Lots of runners getting ready!

Justin Chae running into the finish...

Kaitlin finishing strong...

Dan getting excited to cross the finish line. Dan and I raced the Nations Triathlon.

Sante approaching the finish line...

Sam and I ran together for the first 10 miles. She is possibly the best pacer ever!

I just love her....

Apparently I finished too fast for our photographer...here I am appoaching the end...i'm behind the flag!

LOVE YOU ALL....enjoy!

cfox

See Fox encouraged...

2010-03-26T22:01:00.000-07:00

I just got a $50 donation from "Anonymous" and am so excited/touched! The donor contributed in honor of Bill Kotellos so I'm adding his name to my master list of loved ones who have fought the big C.

The good news about donating to LLS is that blood cancer research is easily applicable to all other cancer types. My friend Kait, who is an amazing survivor is gearing up for her fight to claim the title "Woman of the Year" for LLS. She is strong, enthusiastic, and makes things happen. Her website is up and details on her campaign are available at www.imlivingprooftoday.org.

Take a look and let us know if you want to help her...all cities and states welcome!

Sending you love from DC!

See Fox warming up... in the bitter cold!

2010-01-15T05:46:00.000-08:00

Training has been VERY cold lately. Last week we had our first bike practice...and it snowed the night before. Most of the team went out on the streets that had been plowed and a small group of us went for a long run on a trail that was covered in snow. It required a lot of focus as my ankle still feels off and there were icy patches.

After practice we had an indoor picnic to honor all our teammates who are currently fighting cancer and believe me there were plenty of tears. I was so inspired by every ones stories of determination and perseverance. Great reasons to keep swimming, biking and running.

Since then I've stuck to it but i'm out of town until next Saturday so I won't be able to train with my team which is always hard.

Looking forward to warmer days.

cfox

See Fox Double Up!

2010-01-07T19:51:00.000-08:00

Today was my first day of training with two workouts. I wore a brace when I swam and that helped stabalize my ankle while I kicked. This evening I bundled up to run in the absurd cold air that January is serving up to the District. The weather turned out to be manageable but the ankle...well not so much. It gave me more trouble than I was expecting, but in the end I was able to push through 30 to 40 minutes. I need to increase that by....well...a lot since I'm supposed to be running a half marathon in 2 months!

craziest part...i'm on the couch with my hear wrapped in a towel on my head snuggled in jammies and watching TV while all my friends are out drinking and being fun! I'm exhausted!

cfox out! it is bed time!

See Fox Dazed...

2010-01-06T06:56:00.000-08:00

On January 1st...after leighton made me change a bike tire for practice we started talking about Javier Gomez...my triathlon crush. (aside from you J.bell) and I decided it has been way to long since we have discussed him.

http://www.triathlon.org/files/media/mediacentre/profiles/javier-gomez.pdf

Here is his ITU profile from 09 and watch out ladies...he is single...or was!

http://www.triathlon.org/athletes/profile/javier_gomez/

and this link will give you more info on his racing career. there is a little video clip there to show you his crash in dextro london...some serious road rash on his back and shoulders! Ouch!

This post is dedicated to Tricia Kane and educating her in the ways of Jav! Your homework assignment is to find a professional triathlete that is going to be your tri crush!

love cfox

See Fox Inspired

2010-01-06T06:32:00.001-08:00

I just finished reading Jeff Bell's Ironman Arizona race report and the tears haven't even dried yet. He is a rock star and one of my hero's and I'm so excited to have someone like him around to inspire me to push myself harder. He is adorable!

He raced 140.6 miles in under 11 hours a couple of months ago. That includes a 2.4 mile swim, a 113 mile bike ride, and a marathon (26.2) run. That race is on my schedule already for 2012. A large group of us have decided to run in order to honor kaitlin and her 5 years of being cancer free!

In the mean time that same group has combined forces to make sure we get things taken care of. This year has been titled "the year of the run!" and our race schedule is already packed.

In March I'm running a half marathon, in April a 10 miler and an Olympic distance tri, in July a half ironman in New York and on halloween day...to celebrate turning 30...I'm running the marine corps marathon. That list doesn't include the 5k and 10k races that will pepper my calendar this year. Including the Remember the 10 run in Stillwater that I'm excited to get home for in April!

I love you all and am happy to be back at it. Enjoy a couple of pics of Jeff...

cfox

Jeff finishing Ironman AZ under 11 hours!

Jeff Bell running...GO 384!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jeff is a machine on the bike! go get'em pookie!

Here are the 2,700 racers starting at the same time! (in 60degree water!)

It's a whole new season!!!

2009-12-15T06:24:00.000-08:00

Well folks, it is official! Spring Season is off to a great start! Last Saturday was our first team practice and it was really fun to get the team together. It was a 20 degree day so everyone was bundled up, but the first run was quick and then we went to brunch together. Today was swim practice at 5:30 again. my arms are out of shape and were tired in no time! I love it an am happy to be back and get to know a whole new team of people fighting to cure blood cancers!

More to come soon!

xoxo

cfox

See Fox do it again...

2009-09-12T19:23:00.000-07:00

without the help of a support staff this time (really miss Connie, Dale, Carrie and Kenny being on the side lines for me) I'll be taking on my 2nd tri.

This time I have my entire team at the same race with me and I'm reporting from the comfort of my own bedroom instead of a hotel. Should be a great day tomorrow for a triathlon. I will also have lots of my teammates from last season coming out to check on me and Kenny Ginn with be on the race course with me as well! Its going to be fun!

i'll update my blog after the race...or after teh after party!

lots of love as i close my eyes!

cfox

See Fox in the final stretches...

2009-08-24T07:04:00.000-07:00

Wow,

It has been tooo long since I've posted. Training this season has gone well. I've enjoyed my team, but DC has about 170 participants so that makes it hard to get to know people. But we still have found a way to spend our weekends at fundraisers toasting, dancing, and laughing together. Late night empanada trips have become as common as my bike rides around haines point. Life is good and my race is quickly approaching.

Saturday I had a 2hour and 10 min bike ride followed immediately by a run along the national mall for what was supposed to be 50 minutes. One of my participants and I ran together and decided to increase forget about the time and run all the way to the Lincoln memorial...as I passed the WW2 memorial it started to drizzle. As we ran up the steps to the Lincoln it started to rain...in the distance we could see a serious storm brewing so we took a couple of seconds to enjoy the rain and recover from the steps and then ran back. about 10 minutes from the end we stopped running. It was raining so hard and we were so drenched that we were scared we would slip on a marble curb or the rocks on the sidewalk. The entire workout lasted 4 hours once you factored in the stretching.

Sunday we had our first open water swim. I didn't get a great workout in because I saw with the level 1 swimmers who are feeling pretty anxious about their abilities and the conditions on race day. They were slow but steady and we got them through the course. Today I'll run to the gym and bike for a bit tonight.

I have $200 that I still haven't posted to my account from friends...which means I'm 190 away from my minimum. Deadline is friday so if you would like to post please feel free!

http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/cfox

much love,

cfox

See Fox Inspired

2009-07-02T10:07:00.001-07:00

See Fox lose the lyrics

2009-06-25T05:32:00.000-07:00

As I type this I'm listening to 'We didn't start the fire' by Billy Joel. During my buddy swim today I was doing a good job of focusing on my stroke and form the entire time, so when we got to the final 300 I decided to give myself a break and just swim...which left my brain with nothing specific to think about. So I started to sing to myself and randomly came to this song which has a great beat and is fun, right? However, I could only remember about 15% of the words...so I was just humming and throwing in the phrases like "bay of pigs invasion" randomly. It kept me amused and the 300 was over before I knew it.

For the swimmers out there is there a song you like to swim with in your head? If you are training for a tri with an open water swim my coaches have always recommended singing a song to yourself on occasion so if you get anxious during your race (it happens if you take a kick to the face) you can calm yourself down.

Added the song to my playlist and Kanye was added yesterday as suggested by Kara Goucher (on runners world's list of playlists).

Much love peeps. get out there and move today!

ps. in case you care: the lyrics....

Harry Truman, Doris Day, Red China, Johnnie Ray
South Pacific, Walter Winchell, Joe DiMaggio

Joe McCarthy, Richard Nixon, Studebaker, television
North Korea, South Korea, Marilyn Monroe

Rosenbergs, H-Bomb, Sugar Ray, Panmunjom
Brando, "The King and I", and "The Catcher in the Rye"

Eisenhower, vaccine, England's got a new queen
Marciano, Liberace, Santayana goodbye

CHORUS
We didn't start the fire
It was always burning
Since the world's been turning
We didn't start the fire
No we didn't light it
But we tried to fight it

Josef Stalin, Malenkov, Nasser and Prokofiev
Rockefeller, Campanella, Communist Bloc

Roy Cohn, Juan Peron, Toscanini, Dacron
Dien Bien Phu Falls, Rock Around the Clock

Einstein, James Dean, Brooklyn's got a winning team
Davy Crockett, Peter Pan, Elvis Presley, Disneyland

Bardot, Budapest, Alabama, Khrushchev
Princess Grace, Peyton Place, Trouble in the Suez

We didn't start the fire
It was always burning
Since the world's been turning
We didn't start the fire
No we didn't light it
But we tried to fight it

Little Rock, Pasternak, Mickey Mantle, Kerouac
Sputnik, Chou En-Lai, Bridge On The River Kwai

Lebanon, Charles de Gaulle, California Baseball,
Starkwether, Homicide, Children of Thalidomide

Buddy Holly, Ben Hur, Space Monkey, Mafia
Hula Hoops, Castro, Edsel is a no-go

U2, Syngman Rhee, payola and Kennedy
Chubby Checker, Psycho, Belgians in the Congo

We didn't start the fire
It was always burning
Since the world's been turning
We didn't start the fire
No we didn't light it
But we tried to fight it

Hemingway, Eichmann, Stranger in a Strange Land,
Dylan, Berlin, Bay of Pigs invasion

Lawrence of Arabia, British Beatlemania
Ole Miss, John Glenn, Liston beats Patterson

Pope Paul, Malcolm X, British Politician sex
J.F.K. blown away, what else do I have to say

We didn't start the fire
It was always burning
Since the world's been turning
We didn't start the fire
No we didn't light it
But we tried to fight it

Birth control, Ho Chi Minh, Richard Nixon back again
Moonshot, Woodstock, Watergate, punk rock

Begin, Reagan, Palestine, Terror on the airline
Ayatollah's in Iran, Russians in Afghanistan

Wheel of Fortune, Sally Ride, heavy metal, suicide
Foreign debts, homeless Vets, AIDS, Crack, Bernie Goetz

Hypodermics on the shores, China's under martial law
Rock and Roller cola wars, I can't take it anymore

We didn't start the fire
It was always burning since the world's been turning.
We didn't start the fire
But when we are gone
It will still burn on, and on, and on, and on...

We didn't start the fire
It was always burning
Since the world's been turning
We didn't start the fire
No we didn't light it
But we tried to fight it

We didn't start the fire
It was always burning
Since the world's been turning
We didn't start the fire
No we didn't light it
But we tried to fight it

We didn't start the fire
It was always burning
Since the world's been turning
We didn't start the fire...

See Fox sleep in...

2009-06-24T08:54:00.000-07:00

This week has been a busy one and last night I decided to spend my morning sleeping and squeeze a run in at lunch. Then when I was getting ready this morning I saw a message my friend lisa referencing a thumbs down to coach cupcake (Mike, in the middle) and decided to post the pic from the night before cap tex! So this picture is for you lisa! Thumbs up for the thumbs down!

See Fox return to lane 5.

2009-06-23T04:46:00.000-07:00

I started out the swim this morning in lane 6 thinking that there was only one lane of level 3 swimmers. So I was sharing the lane with about 5 or 6 other kids that were all faster swimmers than me. I mean these kids were college swimmers and after a while I got frustrated...we were doing 6x100 and alternating between an RPE (Rate of perceived exertion?) of 7 and then 4. I couldn't really tell a difference between the 2 levels for some of them. I think I was swimming at e.an RPE of 7 the whole time and I didn't want to burn out half way through the workout...so...i moved down to lane 5 and was delighted to find out that they were also doing the level 3 workout! Yippie. They were closer to my pace I was still able to push myself to swim strong, but I could chase the person in front of me and never felt like I was holding everyone up.

I can feel the burn in my shoulders this morning. I want to keep it that way if I want to drop 3 minutes off my 1500 meter swim! That means I need to go 12 seconds faster for every 100 I swim. I think it is possible...but I am going to have to keep improving my stroke and pushing on speed drills.

And for Lindz...work on varying your speed. playing with sprint drills will help you build strength and over time efficiency.

much love friends!

cfox

See Fox Thankful!!!

2009-06-22T05:39:00.001-07:00

It is 8:00 and I've been up for about 2.5 hrs! Last night while
splitting a pitcher of beer with kaitlin, gimmy, and eddie we decided
to wake up this morning for an early bike ride! By the time I got
into bed and set my alarm I was immediately considering all the
excuses I could come up with in the morning...but when my alarm went
off at 5:30 I knew I wouldn't use them. I was excited to ride with my
girls and knew I needed to get the milage if I want to do better at
Nations....so I filled my water bottles and saddled up.

After we met at kaits and aired our tires we headed down capitol hill
around the mint and onto haines point which has a 3 mile loop around a
penninsula that is dedicated enitrely to DC parks and recreation. I
usually go there on the weekend to swim. It was a good ride. It
wasn't too fast of a pace, and the weather was beautiful. The sun was
rising as I left my house and I must say the national monuments are
beautiful in the early morning! Wish everyone could experience this!
Next time you are in DC consider renting a bike for an early ride.

While headed back home I got a surge of energy...happiness...TNT has
given me great friends who inspire me to get up and go. I'm so
thankful for them and for being healthy enough to do it. I'm thankful
for Gimmy singing out loud on the ride home which made me sing out
loud which prompted kait to tell me she was singing 'what's love got
to do with it' in her head. At that point we started singing outloud
and I was laughing so hard and enjoying myself...and then I hit
capitol hill and had to bike up that monster...it wasn't until I
reached the top that I noticed I did the whole thing in my 2nd ring!
Boo! Got home made breakfast and am about to get to work

Get out and enjoy the world!
Cfox

--
Sent from my mobile device

I'm racing to save lives! Please help me reach my goal of $4,500 by
making a tax deductible donation at:
http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/cfox

See Fox in lane 6

2009-06-16T04:17:00.000-07:00

So for the record I was only in lane six because I always do the longer workout, and the coaches only gave one lane to all of us. There are still so many beginners in the water that they are giving more lanes to levels one and two. Im not as fast as the rest of the lane but hopefully that will change.

for now i'm going to nap and then run on my lunch break. I have a fundraising clinic tonight afterwork...we will see how that goes!

:) cfox!

See fox stoaked

2009-06-11T20:54:00.001-07:00

Having drinks with my bike coach Jeff. He just told me that my swim
time at cap tex was at least a minute and a half faster thank his time
there last year. Also faster than my team captains. Of course they
both smoked me on bike/ run but worth getting excited about!!!!!

--
Sent from my mobile device

I'm racing to save lives! Please help me reach my goal of $4,500 by
making a tax deductible donation at:
http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/cfox

See Fox Saved.

2009-06-09T05:52:00.000-07:00

During our first Tuesday morning practice we spent 5 minutes warming up and then we all swam to the deep end to tread water while the coaches talked to us. We were all laughing and introducing ourselves to the other swimmers in our lane and then the thunder started...i loved it! I LOVE rain storms but after about 5 minutes of horizontal rain and non-stop thunder they pulled us out of the water! booo! It sounded like there was a hurd of elephants running over the aluminum roof!

I might swim later tonight if Kaitlin gets back into town!

Excited to get going again!

cfox

See Fox at it again!

2009-06-02T06:02:00.001-07:00

Happy Tuesday! Alarm went off at 5:30 this am...and I snoozed for 20 minutes before rolling out of bed to walk to the pool. I was totally out of it...but so happy that I had a nice pretty morning and not the freezing cold mornings of January to walk through.

I had a great hour long swim with Liz and Kait and it felt good to get an in early morning workout. 2400 meters and now i'm off to work!

practices officially start next tuesday!

cfox

See Fox In Action!

2009-05-31T19:49:00.000-07:00

When Kenny Ginn wasn't snapping pictures he was apparently video taping the race! I would appear that I was more interested in the spectators than the actual race...mabye that is why I didn't make my goal!!!

cfox

See Fox's boyfriends!

2009-05-27T13:28:00.001-07:00

Introducing Brenny Broermann!!!! That is what I call sending some love! Double-wristed even!!! NICE!!!

Spider-beau! You are number one little man for showing that spirit! TNT and LLS love you...but I still love you more...cuz count those bracelets...one! two! three! four! (Are you sleeping in a big boy bed now? Get out of town Bamboo!!! That is so exciting!)

Mr. Colin Broermann bringing the pain like a real competitor. Rumor has it you and Brenny went for a jog on Monday morning while I was racing! Thanks for joining the cause! Wanna run when I come for a visit or should we swim?

I'm loving the purple! YEAH!!!!!!!!!! I miss you guys...see you in a couple of weeks!

Man alive i could have used that slip n slide to get to the finish line! You guys are amazing!!! Thanks for all the excitment!

maybe when I am in town we can host a mini triathlon?!?!? what do you think. we can bring your bikes to the pool and do a swim bike run! Think you can handle it??

See Fox's favorite pictures

2009-05-26T21:30:00.001-07:00

I love this pic. Kenny used his zoom lense to find me pretty far out...but once I spotted them just before going under the bridge i waved in mid stroke! Shout out to all of you!

I dont get down in my aero bars too often...so this pic is a rare find! :) But the smile was there for a few reason...always smile for the camera (even when your legs are burning), friends cheering for you specifically is a treat, and I was just one bridge lenght from the end of the loop!!!

This was on the first lap of the run and I was already staring to melt. about .4 miles into the run we hit a water sand and a shower...yes...a sprinkler suspended from the roof of a tent that sprayed out like a water sprinkler...cold water...a first time triathlete who finds herself in Austin heat might also call this shower "a little slice of heaven" or perhaps "wattery goodness". After that treat I had to walk a bit. When kenny took this I was about 1/3 of my way through my run and he was keeping me entertained! I sure did like the company.

Lisa (my teammate) and Stephen (her former TNT teammate who now lives in Austin) and came to support us. He was so fun and was great to see on the course! So was lisa...she was about 30 minutes faster than me! Amazing...and a great inspiration to see on the course!

The whole crew of cheerleaders from left to right: Mr Dale, Me, Carrie, Justin, Alle, Ryan, Connie Kenny. Directly behind us is the archway we ran under to get to the finish shoot. It was fun running under and seeing athletes who had already finished cheering you on from the stair case. You didnt have to walk over it...unless you needed to a specific side of the transition area.

If you would like to see more of the pictures kenny took the triathlon please visit the following link at http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLanding.action?c=oruiyvl.b4h739a9&x=0&y=-900vgc&localeid=en_US

I will have a more thorough story of what happend posted here in teh next day or two!

Again! Thanks everyone for your support and help. The number of text messages and emails I recieved is so sweet and supportive! I love you lots!

cfox

See Fox's Merchandise Coordinator

2009-05-26T21:17:00.000-07:00

Dr. Connie Fox is as cute as a mother comes! She made the sweetest tshirts for herself, Mr Dale, and the friends! What a rockstar. She wore them to our inspirational dinner the night before so my whole team knew that they belonged to me. I told everyone in our team meeting that they would be out there on the race course ready to cheer. My teammates loved it seeing them out there. Easy to spot in orange and at one point my mom almost missed me as I zipped by in my aero bars...but I couldnt miss her...she was standing in the street half the time with her hand shading her eyes waiting for me! Mom even did a bit of marketing of my blog when people asked what the shirt was about! Go Connie!

And Mr Dale was just as easy to spot. In fact he is the one I could pick out on the bridge while I was waiting to swim and finally in the water! It was lots of fun Having you both there! Thanks so much!

Connie is holding a picture of my sister's late grandmother-in-law who suffered from Leukemia for 12 years! She was a fighter and I competed in her memory.

cfox

See Fox's Personal Photographer!

2009-05-26T21:09:00.000-07:00

A Special Thanks to Kenny Ginn. Like Carrie he was a special part in documenting the day for me. He got some great pics of me, the race, and my friends. He drove me around when I needed to go to the grocery store for peanut butter, bananas, and rice cakes. He drove me to CVS for spray on waterproof sunscreen (which really works, btw) and even helped us track down magic markers for the NCA chapter's personal body marking session! You were great! Thanks so much!

Wanna come to DC for Nations and do the same thing all over again? Or will you be racing?

See Fox's favorite Paparazzi

2009-05-26T21:01:00.000-07:00

How cute is she??? I loved having here there...and wearing bright orange! (Go Pokes!) She did a great job and it made me a little teary when I finally got back to the computer and got to see it all. I felt so lucky to have so many people there...and I know my sisters and friends appreciated getting to see my progress! Maybe next time we need to get a live feed with a video camera and put her on the back of a motorcycle like in the Tour De France! If lance has one shouldn't I?

Thanks so much Carrie (and anyone who helped you)! You can guest blog for CFox anytime you want!

See Fox's Fans

2009-05-26T13:40:00.000-07:00

Stephanie and Chris (roommate and boyfriend) rocking bracelets like rockstars. She is training for an MS bike ride this summer! And her bike is sooo much cuter than mine!

chris and stephanie....cute ring steph!

Bryan Sloan...who I traveled to NYC and DC with while at OSU. He is training for a marathon and will be updating his blog...click here to follow!

Here is Isla supporting Team in Training.

She is much happier to wear her bracelet as a crown...like the princess she is!

See Fox TRI...no...CFox Do!!!!

2009-05-25T11:55:00.000-07:00

I am back at the hotel and a mess. Chain grease, sand, rocks, magic marker, sweat (lots) and tears....essentially I could use a shower. I still haven't made enough progress through all the messages, texts, emails and IM's to know which direction is up! I will get back to you all asap...but for now i need about 2 more bottles of gatorade, a shower, a huge salad...and time to decompress. There is so much that happened on race that the pictures and posts didn't show, so I will send more updates soon! For now I just have to thank everyone...everyone who sned word, everyone who donated, and especially everyone who was here with me standing in that heat and humidity. They are soldiers and made this so much easier. I have lots of pics, race times, and stories...so keep coming back!

much love from Austonia...
your faithful triathlete!
cfox

Special thanks to kenny and Carrie...kenny always seemed to be there....easy to spot and cheering me on. And carrie was my guest blogger princess!

PS I'm already excited for my next race! Bring it D.C.!

Here she is!!

2009-05-25T09:45:00.000-07:00

And giving out very sweaty hugs!

We love u T!! Nice work!!

See Fox Finish!!

2009-05-25T09:40:00.000-07:00

She just finished!!! Woohooo!!

Sorry the picture didn't turn out too well she ran by SO fast! But
that's her leg.

Congratulations Cfox you did it!!

See Fox Run

2009-05-25T08:30:00.000-07:00

She just ran by us and said "this part sucks!!" but still all smiles!

She's almost done!!

See Fox Run

2009-05-25T08:16:00.001-07:00

We just saw Cfox run out of the start gate!! She looks fantastic!!

This is the last leg. It is starting to get hot out here!

See Fox Bike lap 4

2009-05-25T07:47:00.001-07:00

CFox just rode by and said "she's feeling good!"

This is her last lap than off to the run!!

Sent from my iPhone

See Fox Bike & Yell " Mom!!"

2009-05-25T07:36:00.001-07:00

Finishing up lap 3! She yells "Mom!!" as she rides by!

See Fox Bike lap 3!!

2009-05-25T07:25:00.001-07:00

She's starting her third lap! She actually yelled out at us "update my
blog it's hard!" at least I think that's what she said?! She's making
it look easy though-she's all smiles!!

We even got a shout out from a TNT teammate of CFoxs "go Fox family"
as she rode by-we are here in force!

Sent from my iPhone

See Fox Tri Fan club!

2009-05-25T07:02:00.001-07:00

Our shirts made by CFox's Mom!! Thanks Connie!

See Fox Bike 2

2009-05-25T06:59:00.000-07:00

CFox finishing up lap 1 of 4! (see yellow bike-purple top)

See Fox Ride

2009-05-25T06:39:00.001-07:00

Here is a pic of CFox as she is running with her bike to the
transition point...Here they are checked and hop on for the bike
portion!

See Fox Swim-here she is!!

2009-05-25T06:17:00.000-07:00

CFox has been spotted in the water-she stopped and smiled and looking
strong! Off to the bikes.

See Fox Swim

2009-05-25T05:47:00.000-07:00

Good morning!! Carrie Williams reporting from the 1st street bridge.
CFox is in the water and it us 7:45am!!

There's a group of family and friends all cheering her on! We're
wearing orange t-shirts made by Connie Fox, that say "see Fox Tri"!!!

More updates and pics to come...

See Fox toss and turn

2009-05-24T21:13:00.001-07:00

Went to bed an hour ago. My mind is racing. If my feet move half as
fast tomorrow I will be pumped. Thanks for all the IMs, facebook posts
and emails!

Time to let brain settle. Already wrote out everything I have to do
when I wake up and at each transition. Now I just need sleep!

--
Sent from my mobile device

I'm racing to save lives! Please help me reach my goal of $4,500 by
making a tax deductible donation at:
http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/cfox

See Fox prepped.

2009-05-24T20:01:00.001-07:00

I'm packed and about to go to bed! Should be a good day to race
tomorrow! I have 4500 reasons to just keep moving and fully intend
to!

I want to thank everyone who has helped me get this far! I love you
all and will follow up shortly!

--
Sent from my mobile device

I'm racing to save lives! Please help me reach my goal of $4,500 by
making a tax deductible donation at:
http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/cfox

See Fox Crushin! Blue Crushin that is...

2009-05-22T20:45:00.000-07:00

Well I just went to Lounge 201 where Kait works and am happy to say I broke my vow to not drink anything until my race. It only took me 12 hours. I had like a drink and a half as part of a send off from my girls Kait and Kate and Jeff. We talked about race day and what to expect and I drank lots of water. When I got home the TV was on downstairs and BLUE CRUSH was on...at the very end when she is in the contest...one of the best kick ass motivation to be great and get fit and have fun and get a tan and be a total girl movies!

That is pretty much what me and Kate and Kait look like at open water swim...minus the boards that is.

I love it...and so I will consider it a perfect send off to Austin. Good friends, good drinks, and good movie!

Oh no...it is coming on again and I need to finish packing! boo.

More updates to come from Austin!

cfox

See fox Viva

2009-05-21T18:56:00.001-07:00

I just thought of a better post name... And had to use it. I miss
carrie and my sisses and sal and my girls.

Thankful for the DC girls and laughing at the smell of pot

I'm not drunk. I promise. Coldplay just ran into stands. Standing
backwards on seayt

Loving life

--
Sent from my mobile device

I'm racing to save lives! Please help me reach my goal of $4,500 by
making a tax deductible donation at:
http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/cfox

See fox sublimly happy

2009-05-21T18:32:00.001-07:00

At a colplay concert with 3 other girls I've trained and played with thanks to team in training!!! I'm happy, surrounded with laughter, singing, and chris martain, and joy!

It happens more and more often these days where I stop myself and think 'my life is better because of team in training."

I wish so many people could be here with me to toast wine, down beer and jump up and down to yellow

Life is good and if you are reading this rest assured I miss you!!!

Gotta go lick Chris' face!

Cfox

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See Fox in the final stretch

2009-05-19T07:58:00.000-07:00

By this time next week you will be getting a complete race update! Yesterday I dropped off my bike at Conte's Bikes in Arlington, VA to be shipped. I have been walking around with my pedals in my purse sense then! I feel tough!

I think I am going to try to swim tonight at the group practice, and if that doesnt work maybe swim on my own at my nearby pool.

Thursday I'm going to a coldplay concert with 3 other girls from training and then I get to pack on friday and leave for the airport at some ungodly hour in the morning! Should be fabulous!

Also...I'm noticing that black nailpolish has taken the lead and that several of you are expecting my race time to be pretty fast...eek. I'm posting a new poll now for the running portion!

Can't wait!!!! Love you all and thanks again for the support!

cfox

See Fox's littliest fan...

2009-05-18T13:31:00.000-07:00

Meet Isla P...she clearly is doing a lot of thinking about my upcoming race and is pumped like whoa! Apparently she has been a little sick this morning, but managed to make it through the photo shoot looking cute as can be! Hope you enjoy the pics as much as I do!

Visit my sisters blog here to learn more about the adventures of Isla, Aunt Livy (as her nephews call her) and Ash Ash (the puppy).

Love you sister and niece! Wish I could hug you and kiss you and play dress up with Isla!

cfox

See Fox with a cool link...

2009-05-18T07:39:00.000-07:00

I just got this email from kenny:

If you are not a Kings of Leon fan you should be and whether or not you are an OU fan or not it shouldn't matter. Wayman Tisdale was an inspiration to many people over the last 2 years with his battle with cancer and when it finally took his life on Friday KOL paid tribute to him druing their performance on the Tonight Show. Check out the link and read the short paragraph about it and then watch their performance.

See Fox stuffing envelopes

2009-05-18T00:26:00.000-07:00

My Sunday was shot as a result of a very LONG Saturday night out. I was at a crabfest fundraiser for a team member and it was sooo much fun. I was hardly productive today but tonight after dinner with Kait I sat down and started writing cards and stuffing envelopes with the TNT bracelets I bought for everyone who donated. You should be getting yours this week! If you dont recieve it by Fri/Sat please let me know!

My hand is tired and I dont think I've hand written so much since college...but it was fun to sit and send notes to everyone!

Love you all and appreicate your help. When you get your bracelet please take a picture in it and send it to me (christinaffox@gmail.com) so I can post it to my page! I'm going to put up a slide show soon!

Cancer Sucks,

cfox

See Fox Open Water Swim!!!

2009-05-16T10:20:00.000-07:00

Well gang...we are close! Today was my last team practice before the race. We met at Sandy Point, MD. Its a "beach" not far from the Chesapeak Bay bridge

At one point I thought I was getting motion sickness. The swells were enough to leave me unstable and making sighting difficult...but it was fine. And knowing that Town Lake in Austin will be much calmer helps.

After the swim we peeled our wetsuits off and cleaned up for a picnic and information meeting. I got my flight info, all my tickets (and the tickets for Mom, Dale, Kenny, and Ryan to go with me to the Pasta dinner the night before) and of couse bike tags.

I drop my bike off tomorrow at an area bike shop to have it shipped to Austin, which means I dont have to ride until next weekend! YES!

At lunch I found out that 2 more of my teammates are leukemia survivors. Its pretty inspiring to swim with these women and see them fighting back. Thanks to everyone who helped keep me in this.

I love you all...more to come,

cfox

C Fox Tri mystery guest blogger coming soon!!

2009-05-15T20:11:00.001-07:00

Who is this mystery guest blogger?? I have officially hacked in and am
ready to get started! Stay tuned for live updates on the big race
day!! 5-25-09.

Muuhahaha!

Sent from my iPhone

See Fox Succeed!

2009-05-15T19:18:00.000-07:00

Thanks to some very thoughtful donations today I have reached my personal goal! Michael Holmes put me at 4,500...and I think it was due to the fact that I decided to auction off my sweaty race day socks! Thanks Michael!

I just recieved the following letter:

Congratulations Christina!

Our records indicate that you have met the participant goal set on your fundraising page for your event, Capital of Texas Triathlon which will be held on May 25, 2009.

To date, you have raised $4,500.00.

We know that you set your sights high and went the extra mile to raise funds to benefit The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s mission. We thank you.

Since its founding in 1949, LLS has invested more than $600 million in blood cancer research. We fund more blood cancer research than all other voluntary health agencies.

An LLS-funded researcher developed Gleevec®, a pill for Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML). Now, more than 95 percent of newly diagnosed CML patients survive more than five years with a good quality of life. LLS was also instrumental in the development of Velcade®, a targeted treatment approved for patients with multiple myeloma and mantle cell lymphoma.

In these tough economic times, charity could not be more important. Your determined fundraising will allow us to invest in our critical mission: Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families.

Thank you again for accelerating our lifesaving efforts.

Sincerely,

John Walter
President & CEO
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

Thanks to everyone who helped me get here!!!!! Of the 4 disciplines that TNT help coach their (tri)athletes through...fundraising is the scariest! But at this point we are 1 down with 3 to go...time to swim, bike, run!

See Fox with more cheerleaders!

2009-05-15T10:37:00.000-07:00

The Watsons (aka Watson and SWAT) both hilarious and fun...and Sarah Watson can kill you...if you don't keep an eye on how many times she fills up your martini glass! Sneeky sneeky! Love you both!
a

Seriously...you dont want to fight Sarah Clinton...she might look like a super model but she is tough! Plus she is a super cute and fun friend!

i heart you Mrs. Deana....thanks! And I can't wait to see you soon. Send my love to the family!

See Fox run it out!

2009-05-14T21:17:00.001-07:00

I ran tonight. Only an hour. I should have pushed for 90 minutes...but it was about 9 when I finally hit the treadmill tonight and I hadn't eaten and it didnt sound like a good idea. I was trying to take care of a couple of things while running so I stopped occasionally to send a text or 2 to Carrie about our trip to Austin (so excited she, Justin, Kenny, and Ryan are coming).

So I did 6 miles in an hour and felt good. I've been hating the runs lately so it was nice to knock out a good run like today. Would have been better for me to run outside but it was too late. Debating another run in morning or maybe bike ride to make up for missing Wednesday. We will see.

My speed isn't fabulous, and I hope to emprove my endurance for the next race, but my recovery is pretty great and I'm feeling good.

11 Days and counting!

Also, tomorrow is last day to donate...I'm sooo close to my goal! Please, donate if you haven't already!

cfox

P.S. Grays Anatomy was on the TV in the workout room and when Izzy and George died at the end I had to jump off for a sec...there's no crying on long runs!!!

See Fox's Suggestions

2009-05-14T13:38:00.000-07:00

I know I keep begging for powersong suggestions so here are a few
randoms I'm listening to these days:

Hanging around - Counting crows
Avalanche Rock - The Avalanches
Babble - The cure
Contact - Jurassic 5
Motivational - The toadies
Our Time is Fading - Our Lady Peace
Feel Good inc. - Gorillaz (an all time favorite)
Burrito - Pete Yorn
Your Body is a Wonderland - John Mayer (random I know)
Posse In Effect - The Beastie Boys

I don't necessarily consider all of these to be powersongs, but they
work for maintaining the pace!

See Fox's badass friends...

2009-05-13T19:14:00.000-07:00

Can you feel the force???

All the friends with their bracelets the night before the Remember the 10 race!

Ginny P my B.I.G (who is a great runner) and CFox...looks like she is on the brink of a giggle....wish I knew what we were talking about!

Duke (Allison's son) with CFox...ultimate mascot!

Robert being legit!

Bracelets are coming around! Send in your pics!

Fwd: See Fox on the go...

2009-05-12T05:14:00.001-07:00

Well I was up this morning with my standard 430 Tuesday alarm,
dressed-ate-and out the door by 5 am, and in the water by 5:30
kicking.

Today was an interesting practice. Lately I've been feeling really confident
about my swimming. I feel stronger and as a result faster but everyone
that is usually in my lane has already raced and so they aren't coming
to practice....so 2 of the swimmers who would normally be in lane 6
(meaning fast fast) bumpped down to my lane. Any confidence gained
this season was lost by the 2nd 150. They we're cruising and I was working harder than usual to keep up! My arms
were smoked 30 mins in and I was dreading the 500 meter final set at
race pace. I was able to hang with the cool kids for all the sets
until that final 500 where I let myself slide back a little. All in
all I haven't worked myself out in the pool like that in a long time.
So althought it was tough I feel like I got a great work out in.

I jumped out of the pool by 6:30 and hit the showers, washed my hair,
dressed and the girls and I were in the car headed to cap hill within
15 mins. I got home at about 5 after put some product on my soaking
curles and changed into travel/work clothes, laced my runners and was
out of the door by 7:20 to the train station. I'm going to be at BWI
for my flight to dallas by 8:20 and ona 9:20 flight. Its a big week
for work and I'll need to run everyday. I'm hoping to stay ontop my workouts but that might be tough. I land friday night back in DC and then have an open water swim practice early Saturday. If I can just make it there I should be good.

All my love and thanks for the support!
Cfox

--
Sent from my mobile device

I'm racing to save lives! Please help me reach my goal of $4,500 by
making a tax deductible donation at:
http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/txtri09/cfox

--
Sent from my mobile device

I'm racing to save lives! Please help me reach my goal of $4,500 by
making a tax deductible donation at:
http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/txtri09/cfox

See Fox Step Up!!!!

2009-05-11T18:33:00.000-07:00

Yes...that is correct. With only 2 weeks left I totally skipped practice. If, however, there is an acceptable reason to skip I think I had it. Tonight was the official kickoff meeting for Team Captains for next seasons Triathlon team...and my application was accepted by the National Captial Chapter of TNT to be a TC!!! I'm really excited.

I will have anywhere from 10 to 15 triathletes that I am charged with helping from now until race day. We are training for Nation's Triathlon on September 13th 2009! The entire course is in DC. We swim in the Potomac, bike along the river and C&O canal, and run around the mall. It will be a really fun course. And a few of my friends from this season are also signed up to be a TC which will make it all the more fun! My fundraising minimum is only $500 so it will be much easier to achieve. This time however I have a training minimum. In order to support the participants and make sure they have guidance and encouragement I have to be at a minimum of 75% of training practices. It should prove to be great for my training! I'm excited.

For more information watch the really cool video on the right side of the screen on http://www.thenationstriathlon.com/home.html

And here is the course map (but a huge chunk of the bike doesnt fit the graphic)

Get excited for TNT and all the great work they are doing for cancer research and patient support!

Fundraising ends on FRIDAY! Donate now!

cfox

See Fox Hungover....and headed to the pool.

2009-05-10T00:11:00.000-07:00

I just want to state for the record that a good run is one way to cure a hangover...but swimming never helps. At this point however I have no choice in the matter. It is a swim day and I have to get in that water and I have to get this workout over with! There will be pictures to come because last night was an all TNT group! Lots of fun and lots of beers to be had by everyone! Oh and Kait was our celebrity bartender...she is like my mom...Connie can make a meal out of anything in the fridge...Kait can make a shot out of anything!

more h20 please!

lots of love.

cfox

See Fox Optimistic

2009-05-09T08:51:00.001-07:00

"That's the thing about hope. If I could do everything, there would be no reason to hope" - Michael J. Fox

See Fox with new powersongs! YESSS~!!!

2009-05-08T19:12:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the new song suggestions from my team of supporters!

Jamie Cohea Chisamore: Footloose! (excellent call)

Joe Pfeifer: No cars go by Arcade Fire (recognized this one as soon as I heard it and love it) Universal mind control by Common and Soulshine by Allman Brothers. (also recommended a version by Govt Mule that I couldnt find on playlist.com but if you find it give it a go!)

Jami Hill-Smith: People who think they can by the waifs. (It isnt on playlist, but I found it on iTunes and agree it is an anthem and totally reminds me of you, Jami)

April Hessenius: Rise Above This by Seether (I didnt know this one but like it!)

Thanks guys for the suggestions and for the sweet notes that came with them! Can't wait to see each of you again soon!

Keep them coming!!! All suggestions welcome,

cfox

See Fox3000

2009-05-07T06:28:00.000-07:00

I was running late to practice but got there with enough time to swim with Kait and Kate for a while. Our workout was supposed to be a 30 minute swim but opted for a repeat of our 2700 meters workout from Tuesday since I had an hour. It was a pretty tough swim and I wanted another crack at it. About 2/3 through I had a quick break and decided to check my coaches math...and my practice was really a 3000 meter swim. Which is 2x the distance of our race distance...so I felt good when I finished. It was a workout.

It has been so rainy lately that I decided to wear my old chaco sandals to the pool and gave myself blisters on the bottom of my feet...the walk back sucked and my run is going to kill. A little annoyed about that.

I stopped to grab some treats at the market around the corner and passed some donuts!!! I was tired and HUNGRY and almost bought one...but saw an article in Shape about 6 months ago that said it takes a full hour of yoga to work off HALF a donut! I couldn't waste my entire morning swim on one lousy donut...damnit...got home made scrambled eggs (light on the yoke), whole grain english muffin with crunchy peanut butter, an apple, and a cup of vanilla yogurt! I'm much happier than if I had a donut...but it still sounds good.

much love peeps!

Keep sending your powersongs, pennies, and support!

cfox

See Fox Satisfied.

2009-05-06T19:14:00.000-07:00

I made it to the gym. It was drizzing on me the whole way there. I felt like I pushed a pretty good pace the whole way dispite being totally exhausted. As soon as I got there I said hi to a couple of friends and jumped on the bike and got to cranking. About 45 minutes into my workout Kait finished with hers and parked it on the bike next to me to chat and catch up. Lots of planning for girls night Thursday, Coldplay concert this summer, upcoming Tri races. Its shaping up to be a great summer already...just need a little sun!

I streched a little and left after 60 mins on the bike...I had to stop to get dinner on the way home and had a great chat withkait along the way ...it was raining on us the whole way back...but once I sat down and started to eat there was got one good crack of lightning and thunder...it rattled the fireplace! It was soooo satisfing to here the familiar old sound of the Oklahoma Thunderstorm...even if it only lasted 15 seconds.

Now I'm catching up on emails and getting ready to hit the hay. Gotta get up for swimming in less than 7 hours and still need to get at least 15 minutes of core work in...I hate situps/crunches.

much love...enjoy my view from my walk home...continue to send powersongs, pennies, and support...

cfox

PS. dinner was from Burrito Brothers and i got yummy tacos in corn tortillas and OMG they were good...but not nearly as good as Blazin Peppers in Tulsa!

See Fox Procrastinate

2009-05-06T17:00:00.000-07:00

I haven't been getting very good sleep lately...so I decided to sleep in today. I worked through lunch and now I have to go work out. But...I don't want to. I mean I want to, but it is rainy and windy and yucky out there....and I'd rather order thai food and watch Wednesday night TV...and I don't even know what comes on tonight.

Kenny Ginn suggested a new addition to my powersong list. Its queued up to play first. Ryan Adams is pretty fabulous. If it weren't raining and if my ipod was juiced I'll start my run with that. Instead it will have to wait. Thanks for the suggestion, Kenny. That's a great one.

Procrastination.

seriously! ok. gotta lace up my runners...training in memory/honor of/celebration of way to many people to take my health for granted for another second.

See Fox's Inspiration

2009-05-05T14:51:00.000-07:00

Here is the speach my friend Kait gave at the St A's Tri in Florida a couple of weeks ago. She was one of the survivors who spoke to all the athletes and their families! Very inspiring...

A friend once asked me, if I had the chance what would I say to cancer? God, could you imagine… I hate you. You made me hurt, bald, fat and sad. You took what should’ve been some of the happiest times in my life and made me hang out in a chemo wing instead. You made my mom and dad cry, my brothers worry, my friends scared. What did I ever do to you? Why me? Of course I would say all of those things... cancer is a horrible disease and chemo is an even worse experience. However, I would also say HA! right in cancer’s face. HA! I beat you. take that you big nasty bully. I fought you and I won. Nah nah nah. HA! I do triathlons now, you beep!! What do you think about that, cancer? Scared of ME yet?!

In January 2007 I had a cough… just a normal winter cold, nothing to worry about. A girlfriend developed a similar cough and was diagnosed with tuberculosis. Since I was exposed to her I had to go get tested as well… that cool little bubble test, and due to direct exposure, a chest x-ray. The bubble came back clean, but the chest x-ray was abnormal. In an AWESOME example of bedside manner, I was told “its either a shadow or cancer.. we have to do some more tests and figure it out.” No way its cancer, I remember thinking. Stupid doctor, getting me totally freaked out about a shadow. It couldn’t be cancer - I was too young. I was just getting started in my big political career in Washington, DC. I was too cute, too fun, a good girl who went to church and was a freaking athlete! – I couldn’t be sick.

Well, it was cancer. I was diagnosed with stage II large B cell medistinal non hodgkins lymphoma.

I was 24 years old.

I had an apple sized tumor in between my lungs and I was officially, INCREDIBLY scared. But the way I saw it.. .I had 2 choices. #1. I could sit in a corner, curl up in the fetal position and make everyone cater to and worry about me. Or, #2 I could channel Lance Armstrong – embrace my new status as a cancer warrior, fight, win, thrive and become a cancer advocate. Well, here I am competing with all of you tomorrow, so I think it’s pretty obvious which road I chose.

When I was diagnosed, I felt like I needed to be armed with some pretty heavy stuff to fight this disease. Being the techno-savvy, young professional I am, I immediately turned to… google. It was FRIGHTENING to learn that I had a 63% chance of surviving my first year, and less than 50% of making it through 5 years; that the type of cancer I had was normally diagnosed in those in their mid 60s; and that it was known to be pretty aggressive. In addition, I learned that 564,830 Americans are expected to die of cancer this year. Do the math. That’s more than 1500 people a day.

1500 a day.

That is more than AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis COMBINED! Oh, yeah...I was going to be fine.

Cancer is the SECOND most common cause of death in the US, exceeded only by heart disease. In fact, the scariest statistic I learned was that cancer is THE leading disease killer among 20-39 year olds. Well… that was enough. I turned google off.

Unfortunately, my family—like yours, I’m sure—is all too familiar with cancer. My brothers and I returned home for Christmas in 2005 to find my parents calling a family meeting. My mom had found a lump in her breast around thanksgiving. She had gone through a biopsy and would be starting treatment for breast cancer the following week. They sat us down, very matter of factly, and explained: that this was what we were going to do; this is the impact it would have; and this was how we could all help. My mom is an incredible woman—definitely an inspiration to watch. She is a doctor, an anesthesiologist, and continued to work during her treatment. She would work Monday through Friday, and take off Friday afternoon to get treatment so she had the weekend to recover. She inspired us, her friends, her work colleagues, and the community. It is because of her that I signed up to do my first true endurance event – the avon 40 mile walk for breast cancer – and when I first found my calling as a cancer advocate.

What can I say? I am my mother’s daughter. When I was diagnosed, I immediately got ready for battle. I had blood drawn, a bone marrow biopsy – which, let’s not sugarcoat it, is the MOST painful thing in the world—and mapped out a plan. My parents flew down from Maine, we met with my oncologist and agreed that we weren’t messing around – be aggressive! B-E aggressive was our motto. I immediately started chemo – spending every 3^rd Monday at the GW Cancer Center from 8:30-4:30, and back at work on Tuesday. I made friends, gave my nurses a hard time about taking steroids (as I was a vain, 24 year old and they were making me gain weight), and argued with my doctor about everything - being able to ride the metro, go to the gym, kiss my boyfriend… They became my support system. I could make the bald jokes, complain about wanting to go out to the bar with my friends for a beer instead of sitting at home watching American idol with a diet coke, and relate to them and their stories. Yes, this was a tough time in my life. As a young person, living alone in a city far away from home, I was already struggling to understand who I was and what I wanted. But please do not feel sorry for me. I believe I was the lucky one. I had a chance to learn life lessons that many my age simply will not encounter. I understand now just how important it is to not stress the small stuff, how crucial it is to fight for what you believe in, and how precious every day truly is.

I am the lucky one.

So… that’s my story. I got sick, I fought… and I won. I will celebrate my 2 year remission at the end of June.

I wanted to provide you with some background so you understood why I’m doing this. I need to prove to myself, not to mention to my family and friends, that I am “normal” again. I AM healthy, I can complete a triathlon and I will do well in that triathlon. I will not give up, and neither will you. You will hit that wall during the bike, where you legs and ass just burn so much that you think muscles might snap due to how tight they are. You may swallow a mouthful of water or get kicked during the swim. But you will not give up. You will not, because I am ahead of you, a beacon for you to follow. Or, I am behind you, inching up slowly but surely, and lord knows you don’t want to be passed by the cancer kid. Or (if you’re really lucky!) I’m right beside you.

You’ll know it’s me because -- as many of my teammates can attest to – I’ll be singing along, loudly, with whatever random song got stuck in my head that morning, trying to pace myself, and – seriously-- I’m too much fun to be around for you to not keep pace with me. So to quote Jimmy V, former college basketball coach and cancer advocate “don’t give up. Don’t ever give up.”

Cancer is a horrible, nasty disease that is simply affecting too many people. All of us have a friend, a relative, a neighbor or a coworker who has been affected in some way. I am incredibly relieved that I was able to battle through and beat this terrible disease. Although I recently received results that my latest CT scan was CLEAN, I live in constant fear that the disease will return and I will have to find the strength, again, to fight. One of the reasons I continue to do triathlons with Team in Training is not only to prove to friends and family that I am STILL healthy, but because it is hard to be fearful of this disease when I have my own personal army fighting to find a cure. I am going to fight you, cancer – with every stroke, pedal and strike. I am going to push harder every time just so you know how serious I am. Game on, Cancer! Bring it! I have an army behind me!

If I have learned one thing over the past few years, it is that life is far too short to be fearful of what the future “might” have in store for me. I am determined to live my life one day at a time, and to continue to give back to all the cancer advocacy groups who have provided me with support, knowledge, and scarves during my treatment. As my friend Dan, a fellow young cancer advocate who recently lost his courageous battle, used to say, “life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.” Well, this is how I am reacting. I am fighting back, regaining my strength, and preparing for the next battle.

As you all know, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s primary goal is to find a cure for blood cancers. As a blood cancer survivor, I want to thank you—all of you—for all that you have done, are doing, and will do. Each of us in this room has raised funds to combat these horrific diseases. What else can I say… other than thank you. Thank you for being good and wonderful people; for taking time out of your already busy schedules to train, host fundraisers, and do all the terrific things that you do, in the name of finding a cure for blood cancers and helping all those whom cancer affects. I recently found out that one of the drugs included in my chemo cocktail, Rituximab, which is an important antibody that targets the CD20 antigen on B cells (B lymphocytes) was found through a Leukemia Lymphoma Society funded research project. YOU helped me survive, and I THANK YOU.

Tomorrow morning, when the butterflies hit your stomach, and your brain starts asking “what the hell were you thinking?!” … Remember that you have trained, you have persevered, and you WILL flourish. 5 months ago you signed up to challenge yourself and assist with an important cause. Tomorrow you get to reap your rewards and become HEROES. And don’t forget… the hard part is already over! no more 5am swim practices without lane lines, no more cold Saturday morning rides. You are here, and tomorrow you WILL be amazing. Regardless of whether you are in front of me or behind me, know that I am by your side. I am cheering you on.

Thank you.

2 quick shout outs if I have time:

1. My teammate, Dan Poneman, who as of Thursday morning had raised over $18,000 on behalf of Arnie’s Army for LLS. Thank you Dan.

2. To my fellow honored teammate Cris Otepka and his wife Noel. Congratulations mom and dad!! I can’t wait to meet Baby O in less than 6 months! I am so happy for you both

See Fox Happy to be back!

2009-05-05T04:18:00.000-07:00

This morning was the first practice I have had in several week with my teammates. The girls who traced in the St.A's Tri are back and rested and decided to keep swimming with me! Some of them are doing more Tri's throughout the year, 1 girl is getting ready for her wedding and is happy to have good workouts and motivation...but ultimately I think that they agree that Tuesday morning swim practice is tough (especially waking up at 4:30, but we have a lot of fun doing it.

This morning there were only 12 people at practice...which means we each split a lane. It was really nice. I split mine with Kait who is fast and was never on the same set as me, but always is fun to swim with...lots of quick laughs and motivation to kick harder to the wall. Gimmy was next to me on the other side of the lane ropes and our coach said it looked like we were doing synchronized swimming. She is great to swim with because we have pretty similar paces.

Here are some things I was considering during set 3: 600m of Free at an RPE of 6 or 7:

1. I'm pretty OC about swimming with little rituals.

2. I breath every 3 strokes

3. As I rock to the side and breathe my feet overlap and I tap my ankles together.

4. Pushing off the wall sets the tone for the entire 25. If I don't get a good push I'm grumpy until I get to the other end and can push off again.

5. If I surface for my first breath and stroke before the first set of flags I'm disappointed and annoyed. This should only prove to work against me in the race...no walls in the middle of lake Austin to push off.

6. I am horrible at tracking my distance. I have to focus on the count of every 50...but I typically am confused about how much I finish and have to ask the girls I'm with to confirm how far along I am. Gimmy makes fun of me regularly for this!

7. My friend Kait and I usually get music stuck in our head and "under the sea" from the Little Mermaid is one of her favorites that I now find myself singing.

8. Getting music in my head is never good. I can tell I swim faster when I actually pay attention to my stroke and not singing to myself.

9. I always take my cap off to swim my last 50 of cool down. It just reminds me of being a kid and playing in the pool...

10. I love swimming! I'm so scared of the open water swim because it is going to be so much harder than just swimming a 1500 meter swim indoors....but I love swimming so I'm excited!

So thankful Kate wanted to go to practice this morning and drove the rest of us. It made me happy to see them all again! Thanks Kate!

Keep the encouragement, powersongs, and pennies coming!

cfox

See Fox Force Five

2009-05-05T04:06:00.000-07:00

Last week my training was completely derailed. I was on the road for business Wednesday through Friday and didn't really get any training in. Thursday night I found out that my sister was going to be induced on Friday morning so I changed my flight home and headed straight to Denver to meet my niece! It was so great to be there and to meet, hold, smell, and kiss my baby niece Isla! My mom and sister Sarah were able to get there Thursday night and help Becky though the entire labor and deliver and everything went very well. (Pictured above: Middle sister Sarah, oldest sister Becky, newest fox girl Isla, Grandma "Ina" Connie, and me right before we went home on Isla's second day here!)

Momma Ortyl with Isla P right after delivery! They both look great and are very happy!

Could she be any cuter??? I didn't think so either!

It was great to be there, but the trade off was that I missed my practice Tri and missed several practices. Don't worry, however, this weekend will more than make up for it!

More info to come...if you want to see more on Isla or hear more stories check out my sister's blog at babyortyl.blogspot.com...she is a cute blogger!

Thanks again for all the love and sport and don't forget to donate!

cfox

FW :Baby Ortyl

2009-05-01T15:42:00.001-07:00

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See Fox's Niece

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See Fox Fly

2009-05-01T15:03:00.001-07:00

And I don't mean during training. I'm in a car on my way to the Kansas
City Airport to catch a flight to Denver! I just left the client
office and am trying to make it to my sisters hospital because she is
in labor! Skipping practices this weekend but will get back to
training soon enough! Have a baby to kiss!!!

More updates soon! ...and on twitter and facebook!
See ya!
Cfox

--
Sent from my mobile device

I'm racing to save lives! Please help me reach my goal of $4,500 by
making a tax deductible donation at:
http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/txtri09/cfox

See Fox Oversleep

2009-04-29T05:33:00.000-07:00

I had every intention of going to the gym, biking, running, and maybe even doing a bit of core work. Instead I overslept! Booo! I'll have to do it once I arrive at the hotel tonight at 9! BOOOOOO!

See Fox miss Bambooooooo

2009-04-28T20:24:00.000-07:00

Beau Broermann celebrated his 3rd birthday (which is my 1/2 birthday...eek) and apparently had a good day!

I got to talk to him for a couple of minutes on the phone...something about dinosaurs in his ear and cupcakes. Pretty cute and I miss him a lot. Hope to see him soon along with the rest of the fam! The pic below is a daily email his preschool sends out to the parents. Clearly beau likes to be a camera hog on his bday!!! I like his style!

bed time!

cfox

See Fox Doubt

2009-04-28T18:24:00.000-07:00

So I was alone in the pool today and really did a lot of thinking. Unfortunately I didn't focus enough on my stroke and instead was thinking about my overall training. When you are in the water it is so different than running. While running I have so many distractions...you pass parks, houses, trees, war memorials...you know the usual distractions. When you are in the water however, its just you and the black line. So tonight I started to worry. "I haven't been doing enough 2-a-day practices" and "I haven't been doing enough long runs (as evident by my last 10k time)" and "I should be so much stronger than this" and "Swimming in a pool is one thing, but open water swimming is going to kick my ass!" It started to freak me out.

Don't get me wrong. I know I will finish. I will start this race in the water and swim strong. I will be able to bike the 25 miles. I will transition to my run...and that is where the fear starts to turn into panic. I wanted to really compete in this race. I wanted to run strong to the finish line and feel like I had trained as hard as I could and raced as fast as I could. Unfortunately between work travel and fundraising events and just getting to know new teammatesI know I have skipped more practices than was abolutely necessary. I know I could be faster and I wish I had 4 more months to train...(well maybe not...those 4:30 AM wake up calls are tough).

I was once worried about the fundraising but I'm now confident that I will get there. Now it comes down to me...my willpower in training and overcoming the mental part of this game! It's going to be hard...but I've got about 28 days to go! Maybe I should start sleeping in my runners.

OH! Funny side note as I was walking to the pool today i passed a house and heard a little girls voice "HI." I look around and notice her inside the house with the window open staring out the screen. "HI!" I almost laugh. "I'm in a window!" she exclaims...which made my night. She looked like me at the age of 4 or 5 but with brown hair. I'm laughing out loud now as I round the house and say "I can see that" and she says "Do you want to come over tomorrow?" and (while thinking "it's a good thing there are bars on those windows cuz who knows how many people she invites over") I said "I don't think I can" and she just said "Oh, sorry." and by then was out of my line of vision. Throughout my hour swim every time I got too sad about Marianne or too worried about the race I thought of her saying "I'm in a window" and would laugh and choke on water and it would lighten things up.

Hope you are all working hard and having fun! send more happy thoughts, power songs, and pennies!

cfox

See Fox Sad

2009-04-27T08:46:00.000-07:00

I found out today that a friend of my family passed away from stomach cancer yesterday. She was diagnosed several months ago and apparently the cancer had spread. She was a wonderful woman and am very upset about the news. She was intelligent, and giving, and considerate, and an athlete. She founded a 5k for her alma mater for scholarship fundraising, had recently ran a half marathon, and I have always known her to be very active.

Tonight I ran to the gym (it is a hot night out there) and did weights and stuff. It was a good night and workout but there were a couple of times that I was really sad thinking about Marianne...I kept going back to one of the main mantra's I've been repeating to myself all summer "I'm lucky to be here and healthy enough to work out." So chanel her energy and drive to keep moving.

Cancer Sucks...all forms...and I find comfort in the fact that research on blood cancers can be applied to other forms of cancer. The fundraising and training is hard...but when I think of all the ways cancer his impacted my friends and family what I'm doing hardly seems like enough...

There will be more. In the meantime keep fighthing in honor of everyone who has lost their battle, in celebration of everyone who has won, and in support of everyone currently fighting!

much love,

cfox

See Fox impressed!

2009-04-25T07:58:00.000-07:00

Lance Armstrong recommended that I watch this...must say I'm impressed...I'm close but still can't quite do this on my road bike!

See Fox with a little spring in her step!

2009-04-23T06:33:00.000-07:00

The weather makes a huge difference! I mean the fact that I dont have to put 2 layers of fleece on to walk to the pool at 6 in the morning is enough to make my day. This morning the walk was cool and peaceful! I loved it.

Practice wasnt my strongest. I wanted to stop the entire time, but I somehow managed to talk my self into staying strong. I actually finished the practice which is a good thing. After being out of town all last week and missing practice I think my arms got lazy. I wasnt supposed to swim today at all. Instead I have a 60 minute run on the agenda...but I plan to do that later. For now, I'm just happy that I got one last swim in with Kait before she leaves (tomorrow) for her race. She is trying to qualify for the San Fran Tri which I totally believe she can do!

ok...back to work.

send your pennies, powersongs, and good luck wishes!

cfox

See Fox sacrafice sleep...in the name of the blog???

2009-04-22T20:54:00.000-07:00

OMG...its almost midnight and I'm still updating! Have to give Jeff Bell credit for the 2 latest editions to the playlist. ACDC and Bon Jovi were both his call and great additions! Add them to your workout list and think of us!

And Emily...give girl talk another chance! They are soooo fun on a run!

See Fox surrender her soapbox for a moment....

2009-04-22T20:24:00.000-07:00

INTRODUCING SARA GIMMY!!! (aka TC Gimmy, TC Gim Gam, and work out buddy)

I asked my friend and teammate Sara (pictured above teaching us to change a tire) to write a guest blog for me and here is what she has to contribute!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I like peanut butter. I mean, I really like peanut butter. I'm a little partial to Skippy, but I do enjoy Jif or even store brand. Sometimes I'll opt for Smucker's for the natural variety.

You know, I always enjoyed my Skippy smooth PB: its texture, its artificially sweet flavor, its nutty scent, and its ability to make anything taste like heaven. But for years, I consumed those protein packed calories aware of said protein, a touch of sodium, and a fistful of fat. And for the longest time, I never really thought about it.

And then came triathlon.

In case you didn't know this, triathlon is essentially code for: We put peanut butter on everything. We encourage you to eat peanut butter at all meals. In any form, at any time of day. It has to do with the protein and caloric content. We like both of these things in endurance events. But that's the last that I mention anything about the nutrition facts. They don't matter beyond this point. Instead, I will share with you wonderful thoughts about peanut butter.

This one time, I was running with my friend, Kait. And naturally the conversation turns to peanut butter and she says, "You know, the average lifespan of a jar of peanut butter in my house is about two weeks."

I said, "Is that a long time or a short time?"

She says, "It's so fast!"

I said, "Oh." A jar of peanut butter lasts about one week in my fridge. And I don't share it with my roommates.

So where does it all go? Let me tell you...

I used to be a fan of the smooth variety, as I mentioned. But last summer, I stayed at Suzanne's house before the New Jersey State Triathlon and she told me not to bring any peanut butter (pre-race food of choice, normally on a rice cake) because she had some in stock. About 4am on a Sunday morning, I met Skippy Super Chunk. It was a life changing experience. I never liked chunky peanut butter, to be honest. But something about the super chunk made my tummy happy (maybe it's relentless chunk? I just don't know). I use Super Chunk a lot like I would with the Smooth PB: on a rice cake, on a spoon, in a recipe for peanut butter balls, on an apple, celery, or a banana. Sometimes with jelly, it can be a little much. But if sugar is your thing, then don't let me stop you.

Sometimes, I try to be health conscious and eat the natural peanut butter. You know, the kind that has the oil on the top, and you get shoulder cramps trying to stir it without pouring the oil over the sides the first time you open it. Now, I find the natural peanut butter is great on bananas, particularly bananas that have ripened further than most. On a rice cake, it can be a little dry but adding jelly makes all the difference. I think once I put it in a smoothie with a banana, soy milk and a tablespoon (or two) of chocolate syrup. Yep. I really like peanut butter.

For the record: I adore Sara Gimmy and want to be like her when I grow up and I'm insanely jealous that I wasn't on this particular run with the girls!

To follow Sara's blog check her out at: http://runsararun.tumblr.com/

See Fox Sweat

2009-04-22T20:12:00.000-07:00

I had a crazy work day today and by the time I got home from Baltimore I decided I just needed to rest...so I did. And before I knew it 8:30 had snuck up on me and I hadn't worked out all day. I was talking myself into the idea that one night off wouldn't hurt me...when all of the sudden my brain was overturned with the following thoughts in immediate succession...1) taking the night off will not help you finish the race strong. 2) cancer sucks and you are lucky that you are healthy enough to work out today! 3) If you hadn't taken so many running days off you would have had a better time at the Remember the 10.

Damn It.

I have to do it. So I jumped up, ate a banana, got ready and was headed out the door by 9:50. I ended up clocking a faster pace than usual and felt good on my run to the gym. I told myself I would run back but didn't believe it. Today's schedule called for core training and 50 minutes on the bike. I didn't do any strength work but did abs for a minute before jumping on the bike. I did an hour and kept my RPM at about 100 the whole time so it was tough but felt good....AND I ended up running the whole way home. So today was a 3 mile run and a 18 mile bike. I had the resistance pretty high so I feel good about my performance today. I do need to be at the pool in about 6 hours...so that will kinda suck but Kait will be there with me so it will be pretty fun...and besides: I want to finish the race strong, cancer sucks, and I'm lucky to be healthy enough to work out, right?

Lots of love to my cheering section! (especially Em for keeping me entertained on facebook all night) Adding new songs to the mix tonight!

See Fox in a wetsuit...

2009-04-21T04:22:00.000-07:00

Ok...so honestly...you will NOT be seeing me in a wetsuit unless you show up at the start of the Cap Tex Tri on memoial day. Not so sure I'm interested in posting that online! I hardly slept last night (maybe 3 hrs) but forced myself to go to practice regardless and was given my TNT wetsuit before practice started. Putting the suit while completly drained of energy was tough...but getting in the water was FUN! I felt like aquaman...and I'm confident it made my stroke impecable! Lots of fun.

I'm supposed to run today but I think I am going to try to get to a yoga class instead...I need to stretch out my sore legs

Ohhh.. one more thing! The Tri team in DC this year is divided between 2 different races. About 60-65 percent of my teammates are doing St. A's tri in Florida...NEXT WEEKEND! So this was the last training swim that I had with most of them. I'm excited for them and our practice was lots of fun...they took the lane ropes out and we did group start...were everyone crowds together adn swims at the same time...so i took a couple of kicks and punches and choked on some water...but survived. Getting nervous about the actual race!

cfox

P.S. This is my coaches idea of how we should train...he didn't have the American Gladiator sticks...but kickboards do the same thing!

See Fox 10k.

2009-04-20T07:05:00.000-07:00

Ok...so this year the Remember the 10 race was a new course which was better in a lot of ways...and worse in a couple of ways. I pretty much ran with Emily Bynum. She is one of my all time best running buddies. My running hasn't been as consistant as my swimming and biking has been during training so I'm really happy to have that 10k behind me. Em is a great running partner...talks to strangers on the course with me, tells me I'm a rockstar everytime we finish a hill or kilometer, reminds you of the cheese fries and beer waiting for us at Eskimo Joe's, and pretty much keeps me preoccupied. Now I need to figure out how to smuggle her onto the race course in austin because after 2 hours of swimming and biking I will need the help. There will be lots of pictures to come!

We started out in the back of the 10k pack and spent the first 30 minutes focusing on the next person I wanted to pass. We just kept picking them off. The second half hour was a bit tougher...but it was fun to run through campus! My legs were never really tired, it was more of keeping my mind in the game. I just don't know how I can hate and love running so much at the same time!

I will be completing a LOT of running over the next month to make sure I'm ready for this!

See Fox Celebrate

2009-04-20T06:51:00.001-07:00

Every year in April I head back to Oklahoma to run in the "Remember the 10" memorial 10k in Stillwater to honor the 10 men who were a part of the OSU basketball team that died in a plane crash January 25, 2001. The night before my friends and I always get together for dinner (and sometimes drinks) and this was a great reunion and celebration for so many friends who haven't seen each other in a while! I sure do miss them all. We laughed a lot Friday...and geared up for a great run in Stilly.

In this picture is the entire group sporting their Team in Training bracelets! From top left: Byron and Allison Wilkes, Toni Weinmeister, Me, Emily Bynum, Justin Anderson, Carrie Williams, Sarah Clinton, Jeff Cohea. Middle: Brooke Chapel. Bottom left: Ginny Cahalan, Dunkin Wilkes, Kenny Ginn.

Thanks friends for being such great cheerleaders.

See Fox's cute mom...

2009-04-16T12:05:00.000-07:00

Here is an email I just got from my mom. I recieved a donation from her online a few minutes ago and emailed to ask why she donated for a 2nd time....this is her responce:

On my way back from dropping Silvia (her car) off to get her insides tuned, I thought I would get a Starbux and a nice sandwich as a treat. Then I decided to come back to my office and just eat what was here and make a donation instead. But I clicked too fast and missed my opportunity to add the above comment. I thought it might inspire others to make some little sacrifices in the name of your fundraising!

Love you,
Mom

If at first you don't succeed, Tri, Tri, Tri again!!!

What a great little momma!

See Fox and Kait

2009-04-15T19:37:00.000-07:00

Here is a pic of Kait and I at our fundraiser a few weeks ago...I'm holding raffle tickets and a yummy Kaits Cocktail! This is the night I lost my debit card the first time for the month...anyone want to guess why?

See Fox Focus on Fundraising...

2009-04-15T17:48:00.000-07:00

Team In Training is the most successful endurance training fundraising program in the world...obviously...but the money raised is very real and every dollar has an impact on someone's life. Every dollar raised gets us closer to a cure, so i wanted to share with you our own TNT economic breakdown -

The Power of Donation:

$25 - Covers the cost of one prescription co-payment
$50 - Covers the cost of one CT scan
$75 - Covers the cost of one tissue typing test that is used to become a bone
marrow donor
$100 - Helps supply lab researchers with supplies and materials critical to
carrying out their search for cures
$150 - Provides for 5 patients to make a First Connection with a trained peer
volunteer patient/survivor
$200 - Provides funding for a Family Support Group Program for one year
while mediated by a trained facilitator
$500 - Provides a patient with leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma financial aid
to support medical treatment and travel to medical appointments for
one year - Wow!

See Fox's Hero

2009-04-15T06:26:00.000-07:00

I met a girl on the way back from Boston last week that goes to Boston College and is training for The Marathon! We chatted the whole way to DC about training and race day and how exhausted we always are. Since then I've been following the ramp up for this coming Monday's race! Here is a link to an Runner's World article on Kara Goucher! She is amazing and one of my personal heros!

http://www.runnersworld.com/cda/microsite/article/0,8029,s6-239-506-0-13108-0,00.html?cm_mmc=women-_-2009_04_15-_-women-_-ARTICLE:%20%20Fast%20Learner

Fire up for Boston!

cfox

See Fox Slack...

2009-04-15T05:39:00.000-07:00

I'm on the road at the moment and didn't get to the hotel until about midnight Monday night. Tuesday morning I was up at 7 and on the treadmill. Throughout the day I could feel my muscles tightening...should have stretched and Monday's training certainly contributed! So this morning I woke up at 6:45 with plans for another morning run...instead I watched the news. I mean I had to catch up on the pirate nonsense! I am planning to run tonight...but I also need to let my legs recover for Saturday's 10k. yuck. Maybe I can find a pool to swim in tonight!

In the meantime...enjoy one of my all time favorite youtube videos...a LiveStrong Commercial!

And don't forget to continue fighting cancer!

cfox

See Fox Stand Tall...

2009-04-13T07:57:00.000-07:00

So I woke up, ate breakfast (pb and toast and an orange), and ran to the gym. It is a beautiful cool morning so I had on my fleece and my headphones and was rocking out to Junior Senior and taking in the sights. The run from my house takes me by the SEC, Union Station, Senate Buildings, The Capitol, etc. Suddenly, I was overcome with a sense of pride. I was so scared when I started this process that I wouldn't have the resolve to finish. I'm a month and a half out and I know that I'm going to be there on race day! I already have raised over $2,000 and can't let the people down who donated to support me. I've been dedicated to swimming and biking and feeling very strong. And so now I'm in the home stretch... just need to pick up on my running to make sure I can finish out the 10k and I'm good.

My mentor mentioned to me the other day that he thinks I don't give myself enough credit. That I accomplish things and say "oh, anyone could do that." So on my run I started realizing what this race really represents to me. It will be at the tail end of my 4th year in DC. Since moving here I have made some great friend, I have pushed and challenged myself, and I have proven that I can stick through tough situations in order to reach my goals. My first year here was pretty brutal, but I made it through. Now I have friends I can call when my laundry machine breaks and I'm leaving town in less than 24 hours and have no clean clothes (thx keosha) or those friends that I can have a great meal or happy hour with, or watch college basketball with, or go for runs or swims with and feel perfectly at home. Its hard trying to make a life for yourself...and I'm actually proud of how far I've come!

So I walked into the gym standing tall and feeling proud...and then Abu reminded me through my training session that I have a long way to go. That's the thing...its not so much that I think "anyone can do this." I just know "I can do better" and "I can be more". So here is to a week full of great workouts and continuing to progress!

Love you all! send love, pennies, powersongs!

cfox

See Fox Swim Solo.

2009-04-12T21:06:00.000-07:00

Today was my first solitary swim workout in months. It was nice in some ways...if it is just me and the girls we can get chatty. However, its nice to have someone to chase when the others are around.

Today's swim ended with another 20 minute swim and 10 minute swim right after. I rested a little longer between the two but did the same mile swim. My arms were really tired. They have been getting a pretty tough workout lately...this week I'm on the road all week so I might get to a gym 1 or 2 nights, but mainly I think i'm going to be running on the treadmill...hoping to gear up for my 10k.

love you all. keep the sweet emails coming!

cfox

See Fox S-O-A-K-E-D!!!!

2009-04-11T10:32:00.000-07:00

Well the rain was...interesting. On one hand I seriously felt hard core at several points in my ride for braving the weather. On the other hand, however, it sucked! By mile 3 my butt and lower back were drenched from the water my back tire was flipping up. My mile 5 the front of my legs were drenched and my capri work out pants were plastered to my shins. Mile 7 brought a very uncomfortable dripping sensation down the arch of my foot. My socks were getting cold at this point and the toe of my shoes were squishy. By the time I finished I was literally soaking wet at every layer. Yuck....because then I had to get off my bike and run for 20 minutes. I lost the mental battle eventually and didn't quite run the whole thing. It was something about the amount of water that was flying out of my shoes every time I would swing my leg forward...or maybe the fact that I could see water bouncing out of my shoes every time they hit the pavement. Eventually, the part of your brain that just keeps saying "this is crazy" is shouting over the part that says "I'm a finisher!" At the end of the day I survived and did finish AND NEVER WIPED OUT. But I will need to focus more on running this week!

I'm glad I went today. Aside from training in difficult weather conditions I also had an interesting and valuable experience on my bike ride. We did about 2.5 miles from the start out to a loop. The loop we did was around 7 miles. I did the loop 2x. On the first loop I was trying to focus more on my cadence and wasn't wanting to play around in higher gears. It wasn't until one of the bike coaches rode by me and slowed down to chat that we started talking about my gearing.

I explained that I was horrified that I was going to fall on such steep and WET hills...there was soooo much water...and as a result wasn't wanting to mess with gears as much...and because of the hills I didn't want to switch into the much higher gears since I always seem to drop my chain when I do that. (Additionally, one of my team captains had told me to stay in the lower gears on one of our previous rides...so I listened.) We rode together for the next 5 miles or so and talked all about gearing. She was explaining the mechanics of the bike in a whole new way to me. It was sooooo enlightening! Ultimately once we really started cranking she pointed out that we were riding about 10 miles per hour faster than when she first joined me. And because we cranked into a better gear I was actually exerting LESS energy! It was a great lesson to learn! Now I just need to bike on flatter courses so I don't get too used to coasting downhill...or in the event of heavy rain....breaking downhill!

After our workout we had a picnic/grill out. Because we were in a National Park we had the benefit of bathrooms and covered picnic tables. Lunch (at 10:00 am) was yummy and I had a great time chatting and catching up with everyone. I could probably go on with other stories for hours...but I think I need to rest!

off to nap!

send love, support, pennies, powersongs, and anything else you think could help!

much love,

cfox

PS...this video shows a brief glance at the conditions I was practicing in...only it was really raining!

See Fox Scared.

2009-04-11T06:55:00.000-07:00

I was up at 6:00 am and texting Kate by 6:45 asking if we really had to make it to practice. It was raining hard and I couldn't imagine being on the bike. Now we are on our way out to Prince Edward's Forest and it is raining pretty hard.

For those of you who have known me for any length of time you know I am accident prone. Cycling 20 miles on hills in a pretty heavy rain just sounds like my own personal hell. I'm bound to fall. With my shoes strapped down and gripping that handlebars for dear life I'm just hoping to stay upright!

signign off...time to get out and prep for the ride...cross your figners for me!

cfox

2009-04-08T19:30:00.000-07:00

Kitty is my brother-in-law's mother and is pictured here with her mom and my honored team member, Shirley! When I told Kitty that I was racing in honor of her mother this is what she had to say:

Tina, With tearful heartfelt thanks I so appreciate your dedication. I have had a hard time with the cancer again in our family ( gregs sister Terri, like a sis to me too). I really loved my moms sense of humor and fight she had while trying to kick the cancer that took her. She was so fun and I miss her so much. I remember her saying at the beginning Kitty somehow its not fair to have two cancers is it?? And I said no it isn't mom but we will fight it and give it our best shot. She had the chronic leukemia for 12 years then developed the inflammatory breast cancer, the worst you can have, not detectable by mammograms. When she was in florida after her radiation and chemo was done it was taking over her whole body. She ended up in the hospital with the cancer blocking her bowels and had to have surgery fast. We threw everything in the car and drove straight through to the hospital in boca raton fl. and arrived that morning before she went to surgery. She was joking and looked pretty good for all she was dealing with. It was the best thing I ever did. She had such a tough time after that just trying to get her well enough to fly home to be with her family was rough. I flew in a two seater medvac plane, with two nurses. I had to be in the co-polit seat and was scared but felt a peacefulness just being at her side. She was always such a great mom. I got to share alot of fun times in the last 7 years with her before she left us. I am so glad she is out of the grip of that cancer, its so awful to see someone you love go through that.

She had to go into the icu in florida and I stayed with her through it all, never left the hospital but twice in the 3 weeks of the last of her days. She said she wanted her private nurse by her! For all she did for me it was the best to give back to caring for her and helping her by just being at her side. I could write a book about the experience. I stayed with her in florida, on the plane, ambulance ride to the hospital and then she got to come to her home to share her last days. Tough as a nurse knowing when death is near and its your mom. She was 76. I will send the paper obituary we wrote its was good closure.

It was so great the Jeff got to fly out to see her, Sarah sent pictures of the boys and a video of Grays birth which my mom loved seeing. She loved Jeff and called him Dr. Mcdreamy!! He was her first grandchild. Jeff and Sarah called when Gray was born and asked my mom to name him, She liked the name Bennett Gray and said call him Gray!! It was a very tearful time. I loved that Sarah was so great to allow Jeff to come out when she just had a baby!! He saw my mom one weekend and flew back the next weekend for her funeral.

My mom wanted to be a journalist! She sang beautiful and was in plays in High School. She also sang on the radio!! We always had music in our house and I know alot of the old songs from musicals from her singing them. I wish to this day we had recorded her singing, a beautiful voice!! Oh and she did scuba diving in florida!! Got her certification and loved diving. She also loved children and acted like one herself, I am alot like her!! She even went on roller coasters in her 70s with her grandchildren!! The boys called her The Great!! My mom taught herself how to type and when we were bigger got a job down at the navel base.

Wanted to let you know she spells the name Bernier. Not sure if I told E right or if he just transposed the i and n!! Eric and Seth are so great, they always bought her pink roses several times, esp on our trip to DC.

T, I love you dearly for this. From the heart, Kitty and Greg Will send pics and paper clippin later

See Fox Stronger

2009-04-07T08:12:00.000-07:00

Although my arms are still pretty stiff after yesterdays strenght training, I must admit that I felt great in the water. No lane ropes again, and we did a 20 minute swim. I could be off by 100 on either side, but I counted 1100 meters. The race is about 1600 total which means I'm on pace for a 30 minute swim if the water conditions arent too bad. After a 1 minute rest we did another 10 minute swim and I finished 550 meters. So that puts me at a mile swim! I'm excited. For those of you who voted that i could do it in under 30 minutes...well I sure hope you are right...it is my goal!

I'm certainly feeling stronger than I have. My stroke started to fall apart in the middle of the 20 minute swim, but I made up for it in the 10 minute swim!

In honor of my renewed strength today...enjoy a little Kanye on the playlist...another favorite powersong!

See Fox's Honored Teammate...Grandma Shirley

2009-04-06T12:31:00.000-07:00

Meet Grandma Shirley...or Shirley Beriner pictured above with Eric (brother-in-law's brother) and Seth. Great grandma to my newphews! She battled with cronic leukemia for 12 years and was always full of life! I'm racing in memory of Shirley! And will keep Kitty (her daughter) and the rest of her family in my heart as I train and Race!

Lots of love,

cfox

See Fox Swoon

2009-04-06T08:58:00.001-07:00

I mean he is soooo dreamy. I have no other reason for this post....but it is better to think of Ryan Reynolds during a run than the pain in my ankle!

See Fox Excited!

2009-04-06T08:07:00.000-07:00

I just found out we have a practice swim in Barton Springs the day before the race! I'm soo excited! I posted something the other day under "Things I want" on the right column of my blog...but i'm throwing a new picture out there because I'm so excited!

I HEART B.S.!

See Fox Singing in the Rain

2009-04-06T07:20:00.000-07:00

After I left Abu and the gym after an exhausting but great workout it was raining pretty hard and my place is 1.5 miles from the gym. So i wrapped my cell and ipod in a plastic bag and started running. I HATE running without music (the race will be tough) so I started singing to myself. Avril Levine - Girlfriend was stuck in my head since it was played during my last set of my circuit so that kept me entertained running across the mall and up capitol hill. So now my runners are soaked, I'm starving, and I'm not sure how I'm supposed to get up and make breakfast!

While I was at the gym Yale Scott, Karen Ross, and Devin McShane all donated! Thanks for your support guys! Fire up for fighting Cancer!

Love you all!

cfox

See Fox Sing...

2009-04-05T20:36:00.000-07:00

Mix Master Kenneth Ginn provided the following list of powersongs...chime in with comments to let me know what you think!

Cake - The Distance
Gorillaz - White Light
Justice - (play these 2 tracks back to back) Genesis & Let there be light
LCD Soundsystem - Daft Punk is playing at my house
LL Cool J - Mama said knock you out
OutKast - B.O.B. (bombs over baghdad)
Queen - One Vision
Veruca Salt - Seether
Junior Senior - Move Your Feet
Ghostland Observatory - Rich Man
Ghostland Observatory - Sad Sad City
Ghostland Observatory - Heavy Heart
Green Day - 2000 light years away
INXS - New Sensation
Matisyahu - King Without A Crown
MGMT - Kids
Moby - Body Rock
Muse - Hysteria
Muse - Knights of Cydonia
P.O.D. - Alive
Pearl Jam - Do The Evolution
Pete Yorn - For Nancy
Ryan Adams - So Alive
Saul Williams - List of Demands (this is the song from those Nike Spark Training commercials)
Simian Mobile Disco - Hustler
Smashing Pumpkins - Zero
Snoop Dog - Who am I? (what's my name)
The Sounds - Seven Days a Week

Knights of Cydonia is at the top of my list...and is now on my playlist! (mainly because it makes me think of Guitar Hero and anything that keeps my mind off of running makes the list)

Keep them coming! Songs and donations!

cfox

See Fox Easy on Sunday Morning!

2009-04-05T15:53:00.000-07:00

I love today. Was in the water by 10:30 with Kate and got in a good 60 minute swim...then I walked home and fell in love with the day! It is the first day that I was able to wear flip flops! I got home, cleaned up and made breakfast then spent the day walking down the mall, watching all the crazy tourists, and catching up with Andre 10k! The weather was perfect and we ended lounging on the mall and soaking up sun...then we walked back and grabbed beer and munchies!

So now I'm catching up on emails and watching Baby Mama for the first time! See? Perfect Day.

Tomorrow morning is personal training with Abu (also known as "try not to pass out or throw up and never say I can't" hour) and then an hour bike ride!

lots of love, cherry blossoms, and blue moon with orange!

cfox

See Fox Jam...

2009-04-04T11:58:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my boy, Kevin Manning, for the best email I got all week...and the only one with powersong suggestions. Please notice the addition to my playlist: When a man loves a woman...and Blame it on the rain. Apparently the latter works best on repeat, and the former when you are training with my little, Justin Anderson!

Send your favorites and I'll try to incorporate!