Thank You!

When the goal to raise $1,000 for the Hutchinson Center was made I'll admit that I wasn't sure how it was going to turn out. My initial plan was that I hoped that I knew 38 people that would be able to put in $26 each.

Well, everyone has been amazing. My good friends Matt and Chanda Manturuk, still riding the runner's high following their successful completion of the Marine Corp Marathon in Washington, DC, jumped in and were the first to donate. The young lady pictured above had the notable distinction of putting the fundraiser over the $1,000 mark. And finally, recent Ironman Florida finisher and member of the DC Triathlon Club Guillermo Cabrera helped push the fundraising over $1,250.

Also worth noting are the people who helped to spread the word and raise money beyond my immediate circle of friends. A certain attractive and talented young lady by the name of Katie Walsh brought members of her family and her friends from law school into the mix. As if she hadn't given enough of herself to cancer already, recent breast cancer survivor Jennifer Wealer is not only the largest donor to date but she also quickly worked to raise money from her friends and family. Another Jennifer that went above and beyond is my sister. It speaks a lot that she was able to gather several donations from people who have never met me and likely never will.

You have all been incredible through this entire process. It turns out that I grossly misjudged the effort that it would take to raise this money. At the time of posting this blog I have had 10 fewer people donate than I thought it would take to achieve my objective. Meanwhile, you have blown up my projections by raising a total of $1,316. Thank you so much and keep those donations rolling in.... There are still 4 weeks remaining before the marathon!

Thanksgiving

While I was a student at the University of Kansas I would contemplate hopping on my mountain bike and riding home from Lawrence to Topeka. I never attempted the ride because I was certain that if I did I'd probably die of exhaustion well before I hit the county line.

I was home recently for Thanksgiving and had a ticket to the KU v. KState football game. I had to get to Lawrence somehow so I figured I'd work a long training run in to get me there. I left around sunrise and started on the 18-mile journey from Topeka to Lawrence. Whoever said that Kansas is flat has never run the country roads in the northeast part of the state. It was quite a bit cooler there than it had been in Annapolis so I'll admit that I was pretty chilly those first couple of miles. It didn't take long for the effort on the hills to kick in, though, and I was plenty warm for the remainder of the run.

It was quite beautiful watching the sun come up over the plains, however, so at least I was able to keep my mind off of the cool temperatures and the distance of the run I had ahead of me. Some sights along the included seeing two foxes crossing the road just a few feet in front of me, countless prairie falcons searching for food and a very beautiful sunrise. Another unique sight along the way is the cemetery in the small town of Stull, KS, that is pictured below. If you look closely, in the middle of the photo is the remaining brick foundation of an old church that used to stand in the middle of the cemetery. Rumor has it that this church is the sight to one of the seven gateways to Hell.
Ultimately, the run was successful. This is the longest distance I've covered since my last marathon training program. By the end I was quite tired but my buddy Steve met me and pulled me through the last 6 miles of the run.

The question still remains, "I wonder if I could ride my bike from Lawrence to Topeka?" Well, I'll have to save that ride for another day but this run is going to linger as one of my most memorable.

PS- KU defeated the Wildcats that afternoon before a record crowd of 51,000 fans.

I Need Your Help

Please take a moment and visit my online donation site http://www.active.com/donate/travissiehndel. Thank you for your help.

Here we go....

Recently I've begun training for my second marathon. I'm nearly two months into my 4.5 month training plan that will culminate in the running of the P.F. Chang's Rock 'n Roll Marathon in Phoenix, AZ, on January 14th, 2007.

I began training for this event on Sept. 18th and since then I've been running 4 days a week and have covered more than 200 miles. My longest run to this point has been 16 miles and I'm building up to a 22-mile training run before traveling to AZ for the full 26.2 miles.

I've set up this blog so that you can visit the page and track my progress and training up to the event. I'll be checking in periodically to let you know how I'm doing and sharing some of the stories of my training.

Additionally, I'm in the process of setting up a link where you can help me raise money for a charitable cause that is very important to me. Please check back soon and see how you can help.

Here we go!