Minneapolis 3-Day 60 mile Wrap Up

Hi Everyone,

We just finished up another fantastic event. August 20-22, Team Tittsburgh took on 60 miles of walking through the Twin Cities and won! The weather was mostly cooperative and we had a great time together. Team Tittsburgh had 11 walkers this year, Nicky, Stephanie, Mary, Joanne, Maggie, Cathy, Bev, Kerry, Paula and me and JR, Zach and Chris were our team gophers. What a good looking team!

Day 1:

Friday was a little moist, a little drizzle with a shower in the afternoon. All in all the temperature wasn’t too bad. We got back to camp early enough to have the Rosemount high school football team help us get our hot pink tents up. We love them! After some much needed showers and food, we enjoyed some camp entertainment, karaoke, and collected our mail from you all. Thank you! Fortunately lights out is around 9PM so we headed back to our tents and crashed hard. 

Mary and Joanne pushed themselves too hard on day 1. Joanne came into the event with a torn meniscus and made it worse, and Mary reinjured her stress fracture in her foot from the year before. Joanne was red carded and sent home, Mary begged and pleaded to NOT get red carded and that worked but she also had to go home for the night.

They actually were the lucky ones since it was really warm that night. 3 of us ended up with tents to ourselves, Maggie, Paula and I were only children, so that was quite nice. As it turned out, Nicky and Steph’s mattress would not stay blown up and neither would Crea and Cath’s. Night one sounds pretty rough doesn’t it?

Day 2:

We got up before the crack of dawn because the weather was calling for heat and humidity so we wanted to get walking as soon as possible. 6:30 was the earliest we could go, and we were walking by then. The weather was really good; it stayed cool, over cast and a little moist. All in all it was a good day.

Joanne and Mary came back in the morning and the Dr. “un-red tagged” Joanne because she had her brace and Mary had her boot to walk in so they let her stay too.  Team Tittsburgh was back on track!

For those of you who have not witnessed an event like this, let me describe what it’s like for walkers. All along the route are people cheering. Some are just sitting in lawn chairs outside of their homes. A lot of them decorate their houses or yards to support us. Kids are passing out candy or popsicles, some pass out beaded bracelets and necklaces they’ve made for us. Random families will be sitting on the side of the road with a truck load of bottled water to pass out to the walkers, music blaring. There are so many signs you can’t read them all. People drive by and honk their horns, as we cross bridges over highways, the truckers blast their horns for us. The cheer stations are packed with people; the fire houses we walk past have their trucks and fire fighters clapping and cheering and set up little spray stations if we want to walk through them to cool off. People dress up so we can stop along the route and get pictures taken with them. Cheerleading teams greet us at pit stops and have “boob” cheers they’ve made up. People dress their dogs in pink outfits. There is a group of bikers who wear pink and grey camouflage shirts with pink bras on their heads and follow the walkers around all weekend on their Harleys.

 

 And then there is Jody’s Couch. Jody lost her battle with breast cancer some years ago, but when she was still living and going through treatment, the only place she was truly comfortable was on her couch. This really is a comfortable couch. Her brother in law still has that couch and he brings it out to every Twin City 3-day event. He moves it from place to place throughout the route so walkers can have their pictures taken, have a rest and hear a story about a courageous young woman who lost her battle with breast cancer.

Family members and friends go ahead of the walkers on the route and write encouraging messages on the sidewalks in chalk. There are so many more examples of support that I can’t possibly write them all here. And every single person we pass thanks us for walking. It’s an amazing experience and keeps us moving our feet when we really have very little energy left. 

By the time I had gotten to the last cheer station on day 2, 18 miles in, I still had 5 miles left to walk. It was really hot by now, I was running out of energy and my back was hurting. We ran into one of the gals on our list that has been fighting breast cancer as long as I have and recently had brain surgery to remove a tumor that spread to her brain. She was very tired and weak; she had been waiting for us for 4 hours and was ready to go home. And who could blame her? Bethany has been my inspiration. I’d like to tell you that was the motivation I needed to finish those last 5 miles. Could I have done it? Yes, I could have. But I decided to rest my back and enjoy a cocktail with JR and friends at the Chalet across the street. It was the best Bloody Mary I’ve ever had in my life and I really needed the break. I think Bethany would approve.

My sneaky little team mates have been petitioning the 3-day for over a month to have me speak at camp this year. Out of the 270 survivors, they chose me to speak on Saturday night, which was a great honor. I had JR bring me home to get ready; I really wanted some dry clothes, dry hair and makeup for the talk.  JR and Chris brought me back to camp and stayed so they could experience camp life and watch my speech.

The temperature was nice by this time, cool and breezy and dinner was pleasant. I got up to do my speech at about 7:45. The time allotted was 3 minutes. On a good day I couldn’t tell my story in 3 minutes but I did get it down to 5. The speech went well, it was 9 minutes long, I hadn’t taken into account all the places applause could break out. But I got through it and it was good.  After the speech, it was time to dance! They had a dance party for about an hour and it was lights out. 

All our tent mates were back that night and Team Tittsburgh crashed hard that night too.

(Guest Author J.R. Says:  When Jen says "camp", it is really a small tent city with stores, a large medical center, Dinner / Entertainment area and of course all the pink tents.  

Jen's speech was amazing. Those of you who regularly read Jen's blog know the medical detail Jen chooses as she shares her story, and have laughed and cried along with her anecdotes.  Jen basically captured the spirit of her blog in a nine minute speech.  At the end of her speech with a strong voice and with much conviction she looked 3,500 listeners in the eye and announced; ".......Cancer is strong but so am I.  Someday cancer may take my body, but I absolutely refuse to give it my life.  I have a life worth living.  My name is Jen Anderson and I walk because everyone deserves a lifetime."  

I am so proud of Jen. Most of you get a part of Jen through friendship, a blog update, work, or family.  I am lucky and blessed to have Jen in my life every day.)

Day 3:

17.3 miles to go! Most of us started out together because we were in pretty good shape and could keep pace. Mary decided not to push it and only walk the last 5 miles (her foot was really bothering her). Joanne should have done the same but because she’s stubborn as hell, she kept walking with a bad knee the size of a small watermelon. Joanne and Cath got a late start because Cath’s feet were blisters with feet attached and she was still in medical when we left at 7:00 am.

Paula and Bev were making quick work of things and pulled ahead of the rest of us and was just cooking along! Steph, Nicky, Crea, Maggie and I were moving along at a good pace. Kerry’s little legs were trying to keep up but she fell behind for a while. At lunch (10 miles) we all caught up with each other. My back was killing me again but I had good energy otherwise. After lunch I decided to jump in the truck with JR, rest my back for the next 4 miles and hook up with the girls at the last cheer station and walk the last 3 miles in. 

Mary and I met up and went on our way since she’s a gimp in her boot and we figured the others would catch up to us. The last 3 miles were great! Looking out at St Paul and getting cheered in, amazing. Fortunately for Team Tittsburgh there is a bar less than a mile away from the state capital who loves pouring cocktails for walkers. Hard to believe I know. As it turns out, lots of walkers know where this place is and we hooked up with many fun teams. The bikers were there too!

 We have to be into the closing ceremony area by 4 pm so we had about 90 minutes to spend at the bar. As we headed out, Joanne and Cathy were trucking along with the most amount of determination I have ever seen. Team Tittsburgh was back together again with our support team and we finished the walk crossing over into victory lane together.

While we were having team pictures taken, one of the local news stations took an interest in us and interviewed me for the evening news. That was lots of fun. If you would like to see the interview, please click in the link here:

http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/dpp/news/twin-cities-3-day-walk-for-the-cure-raises-6-million-aug-22-2010

Closing ceremony was really emotional and very well done. I was happy that I didn’t have to go into the survivor circle by myself, Bev who is also a survivor went in with me. After the ceremony we went to Mancini’s for a delicious steak dinner and champagne toast. A great ending to a great weekend.

Out of the 11 walkers on Team Tittsburgh, 7 made it all 60 miles. Nicky, Stephanie, Maggie, Crea, Bev, Paula and Cath. Everyone was a rock star this weekend but I would like to award Cath the MVP of the team. If you knew what she physically did to herself to get all 60 miles walked, you’d be sending her co- pay money and gift certificates for a masseuse and pedicure. Mary, Kerry, Joanne and I did not make all 60 miles but we managed 40+ miles each.

Team Tittsburgh rose close to $27,000 and donations are still coming in.  The Susan G Komen for the Cure event raised $6.2 million dollars this weekend! Thank you to everyone who contributed to the cause, we could not have done it without you. Thank you to my team, I am honored that you walked with me and called yourself Team Tittsburgh!

Lastly, I got my tumor markers back last Tuesday and I am pleased to tell you that my markers are in the normal range two months in a row. Yeah!

Thank you again for your love and support, I really appreciate it. Have a great day!

Love to you all,

Jen

Hartford Breast Cancer Ride

Hi Everyone,

A couple of things. First, good news, my latest tumor marker test results have come back down to a 38, which is just a couple of points above the high side of normal again. Yeah! Dr. Bowers is very pleased so we’re going to keep with this treatment path.

 

Second, The Tittsburgh Wheelers completed our two day, 110 mile bike ride the weekend of August 7-8. We had a riding team of 10, a crewing team of 12 and had plenty of support once we got to the hotel/casino for day one camp.  And when I say camp, I mean a comfy king size be in the hotel. All in all I think we had about 30 people together this weekend. The weather was our biggest challenge, day one it rained, day two the heat and humidity was off the charts.

I will admit that I was the “weak tit” on the team, pun intended. When we got to the hotel/casino and cleaned up, we enjoyed some adult beverages, dinner, war stories and a great night of entertainment with the other riders, crews and supporters. 

The Tittsburgh Wheelers raised over $10,000 for Open Arms of Minnesota and Susan G. Komen for the Cure MN Affiliate charities. I am so proud of our team and what they accomplished this past summer and weekend. Thank you Tittsburgh Wheelers! 

And a big thank you to those who contributed to our team financially, we could not have done this without your support. 

For those who would like more detail about our experience on the ride, please read on. 

Day One: Mall of America to Treasure Island in Red Wing. Total miles 50 plus a 35 mile extension loop. 

We all got to the parking lot at about the same time. Day one was “decorate your helmet day” so decorating was taking place in the lot. Guys in pink tiaras are my favorite! The opening ceremony was really nice; A little fun, a little emotion, a lot of inspiration. We got started about 8:15 and headed out into a light rain. I think most riders appreciated the temperature.

(Mike, Jim & Sue, Mikes daughter Elle Edberg at Opening Ceremonies

We call them the Drafting Edbergs!)

I was struggling from the get go because about 3 miles into the ride we came upon a long and steady hill. You know what the best part of being on a team is? The help you get from teammates. Sue Edberg fixed my chain that popped off and Jeff Willie stayed with me for the rest of the day and helped me make it mile after mile. 

John Knievel, co worker and teammate, hooked up with another rider that was more in his “fitness and riding capability”. He just completed Colorado’s Triple Bi Pass ride a few weeks prior to our ride so he was more than qualified to be a Wheeler. Had he not taken the 35 mile extension loop after the first 50 miles, (yes, I’ve already recommended a psych evaluation to HR) he and his riding partner would have been the first and second riders to get to Treasure Island.  Way to go John!

The Edberg’s, Jim, Sue, Mike and Elle, were keeping pace ahead of the rest of us.  They had the whole Edberg Team Drafting thing going. Jim had a problem with his bike chain on the last leg which prevented him from getting all 50 miles in the order they were intended on the first day. But after he got the chain fixed at the final destination, he turned back around, met up with his family and they all rode in together. We love the Edberg’s!

Speaking of family, Jeff Willie and his sister Pam Carlson, long time friends of J.R.’s, came in from Denver CO and Alexandria MN to ride with us. When Jeff saw me struggling on the first leg, he slowed down his pace and stuck with me. They are both qualified to ride with Knievel but stayed with the slow pokes instead. Thank you Jeff and Pam! I really needed that!

The rest of the day, Jeff, Pam, J.R., our neighbor Denise (amazing woman!) and I were together. I really had a great time with everyone. By Pit stop 3 I had my fill, my neck was starting to hurt and I decided to get into the sweep van to the last stop and cheer in the gang. We love Sweep Van 7! Everyone made the first 50 miles on day one but me. I’m OK with that. 

We got checked into the hotel casino, had some lunch, napped and got cleaned up. Before dinner we managed to have ourselves “Happy Hour with the Edberg’s”, and hooked up with some of our illustrious crewmates who manned Pit stop 1, the best pit stop! Sitting around with friends and family swapping war stories is one of my all time favorite things to do in this world. They always make me laugh. Then we headed down for dinner, presentations and entertainment. 

Kari Mitchell, friend and Executive Director of the ride, asked me to speak at camp. She wanted me to tell my story and told me that I’d go on right before the comedians. Oh no! I think all in all the speech went well and the night in general was a huge success. Nicky and Zach made the trip down to Red Wing to support me during the speech and support the Tittsburgh Wheelers, thank you so much. Nicky, you’re my favorite.

Day Two: Bike back to Mall of America. Total miles 60. 

Day two was brutal to say the least. The temperature got up to 95 with a heat index of 109. Whew! But at least when we left camp we had a 2 mile hill to climb for our first leg of the ride….Denise and I met the team at Pit stop 1. She had a knee problem and needed some medical attention; I have no excuse other than I didn’t want to go up that hill. When we met up with the gang they said the hill was “challenging”, the ride down was super fun. We should have had the van drop us at the top of the hill.

The next leg was pretty easy; I believe it’s an old train track route. We were pretty much all together through that leg and that was really fun. The temperature was climbing and we knew the Tittsburgh Wheeler crew was the next stop. I wanted to spend as much time with them as I could so J.R. and I jumped into the sweep van to Pit 3.

Pit 3 had a carnival theme with games and music and everyone was all dressed in pink. This was the best pit stop yet. They even had Twinkies! When the Wheelers got to Pit 3 the heat and humidity was off the charts. Sue came in and was trying to cool off but was seeing purple spots and shaking. Not good. At this point I was more concerned for my friends’ health and well being than I was in anyone finishing the ride; it was really unbearable out there. We started to line up sweep vans to get us to lunch. 

 (Mike and Jim Edberg cooling off by pouring water over their heads)

Next thing I know, Mike, Jeff, Pam and Denise all started to get ready to ride. I told Mike that I didn’t want any of them to get sick riding and his response to me was “Yeah, but I don’t want you to have cancer any more either, so we’re going”.  I love my friends. And off they went. 

J.R., Jim, Elle, Sue and I met up with the gang at Pit 4 and you could tell that last leg was a killer. Everyone was looking pretty beat up and tired and I really thought that everyone was done. Thankfully Jeff’s experience as ski patrol and a veteran biker came in handy and he got the team back in shape quickly. One more leg to go and the temperature was still rising. I was dying just standing in that heat; I knew I wasn’t getting on the bike again and there was no way I was going to let Sue get on hers either.  But don’t you know it; the rest of them got on their bikes and went that last leg. My God do I love them! I started to cry watching them bike away. 

Destination: Mall of America

It was close to 3:00, I knew John had to have been in by several hours by now and was not worried about his safety. As it turns out he was in by 11:10 that morning. Way to go!

The Tittsburgh Wheeler crew was there and cheering in the riders. Sue and her sister Dolly preemptively went for the truck and drove the route in case they ran across any riders who needed help. The Sweep vans were working over time. They picked up Denise about 5 miles from the last pit stop and brought her back with them. I know that killed her to get in the truck. OK, 4 down. As the “cheerers”, we were drinking tons of water and icing ourselves down. Riders were being taken away in ambulances! 

Jim and Elle were the first riders in, 6 down. Next in were Jeff, Pam, J.R. and Mike. My team made it! It was everything I could do not to bawl my eyes out. They were there, they were safe, and they made the 110 miles in the BRUTAL heat! I was so happy to see them. 

The event went well, very professional, loads of fun and all for a good cause. A huge thank you to Kari and Bo Mitchell for their hard work and dedication through the year to prepare for this event, you did a great job! 

For those of you who have not done something like this before, you can’t imagine the commitment and sacrifice that it takes to get ready and participate. The fund raising and training are a commitment in itself, but actually completing this physical of an event, especially one taking place in such extreme heat, is both physically and emotionally draining. It has been a life changing experience for me. I am so proud of my team and honored that they sported the Tittsburgh Wheeler name. 

Thank you to everyone who participated this weekend. I am ever grateful. Last but not least, J.R., I love you.  Thank you for being by my side and making every day with you a blessing.

Next up, the 3-Day 60 mile walk for Team Tittsburgh in less than one week. (August 20, 21, 22)     Check out the site below for spectator information, cheering station locations, and come cheer on Team Tittsburgh and the other walker hero’s. Pray for cooler weather for that weekend. 

http://www.the3day.org/site/PageServer?pagename=TC_Spectator

Love to you all!

Jen