The 1st Annual Great Prostate Cancer Challenge - DFW

First of all, I want to thank all of the participants of this very special event that I competed in last week, on Saturday September 10, The 1st Annual Great Prostate Cancer Challenge - DFW. Thank you to the walkers, runners, volunteers, and of course, the sponsors. Specifically, I want to thank ZeroCancer, DFW Runs, and all the UANT / USMD staff. The event took place at the Mavericks Activity Center (MAC) at UT Arlington.  Nationwide, a man dies from prostate cancer every 18 minutes, and affects 1 in 6 men. Almost 30,000 men will die this year alone. If those statistics bother you, then please do something about it by getting involved with this event next year. After I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in June of 2007, I chose USMD Prostate Cancer Center as the place where I would have have robotic surgery. Now, after a successful surgery, changing my diet, and running, my PSA is still undetectable. Please help support this amazing facility by joining them at their third annual open house on September 24 from 10AM - 2PM. There will be tours, food, exhibitions on leading cancer treatment technologies, and you'll be able to meet Dallas Cowboy Hall of Famer Bob Lilly, and DFW Today personality Jody Dean.  The sponsors of this very important event were ZeroCancer The Project to End Prostate Cancer, Urology Associates of North Texas, USMD Prostate Cancer Center, Abbot, Amgen, Vantos, Hockey Fights Cancer, Cliff Bar, Muscle Milk, Chick-Fil-A, The Runner Shop, Honest Tea, Genghis Grill, Bob Moore Subaru, and many more. The live band sponsor was Sun and Ski Sports. Pam Turner Volunteered and organized an incredible team from USMD and UANT.  Jessica Sixkiller was the team leader for USMD, which included several doctors running with their children. These dedicated individuals included Dr. Rich Bevan-Thomas, Dr. Justin Lee, Dr. Cliff Vestal, and Dr. Scott Thurman. Paul Rothschild attended the USMD tent where he handed out free items to the runners. There was a special room inside the MAC for prostate cancer survivors and their families. USMD's Brenda May was there handing out free t-shirts, food, and drinks. She and the other volunteers also hosted drawings for gifts. There were about 12 different races on Saturday and a few more the next day, on September 11. I trained hard for this race with 25 beautiful ladies in the 10:30 pace half marathon group at Run-On! My 5K race started at 9 AM in front of the MAC, and looped onto the street, off campus, and around the neighborhood. There was no turnaround at this race, which was excellent. There were a few small hills, but I was determined to not allow that to slow me down; I wanted to run a good race so I could give proper thanks to USMD Cancer Center for all that they have done for me and all their other patients. I lined up on the 1st row ready to give all I could for this great cause. While I waited for the start, several prostate cancer survivors talked to me and said they had read my running blog, which made me feel great. Last week, my Garmin timing device didn't work, so I had a lady that I met from LSU reset it for me. Now I know my average pace when I am running, but still can't figure out how to see my per lap pace while I am running. I started out fast. After a long stretch, we turned left, off campus, then ran on a long straightaway. My mile 1 time was 7:56. To my surprise there seemed to not be many runners ahead of me. Most races, there are at least over a hundred that pass me up at the beginning of the race. I guess this motivated me more, as I kept running hard, not letting up. I even passed a few more runners on my way to the next mile marker. My mile 2 time was 15:38 (a 7:42 / mile pace). With about half a mile to go, I could see the finish area up ahead. I knew that my son John and his girlfriend and her children would be at the finish line waiting for me, so I did my best to maintain my pace. My mile 3 time 23:32 (a 7:53 / mile pace). I turned on the straight away back to the finish line at the MAC, and I could see the large Muscle Milk display around the finish line. I never look back in a race, because if you want to beat me to the finish line you are going to have to run past me. Everyone knows who I am because I wear a USMD Prostate Cancer shirt, and a sign in the front of my shirt to promote prostate cancer awareness, prevention, and to show support the organizations that have helped me overcome my cancer.   My final time was 24:04 (7:43 / mile pace), and a new personal best 5K. I finished 13th place overall out of 260 chip timed finishers, 1st out of 14 in my 55-59 age division, and 10th out of 110 men. You can see the full race results at mychiptime.com. There were 150 ladies that participated in the race, which was surprisingly even more than the 110 men. Thanks to you ladies for supporting this important cause. Do it now so you will not have to be a caregiver to your man later. Keep this race open on your calendar for next year and help me spread the word. Remember, September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. There is free prostate cancer screenings at many local hospitals. Thank You. I run to raise awareness for prostate cancer and to benefit my community. www.runningforacause.tumblr.com

The DRC Breakfast Bash 5 Mile

On Saturday September 3rd, I ran in the DRC Breakfast Bash 5 mile at Winfrey Point in White Rock Lake at Dallas, TX. The race and breakfast was free to Dallas Running Club members.  Non-members had to pay $10.00 to register and another $5.00 for breakfast. In addition to the 5 mile event, they also had a kid's 1K race that started at about 9:00 AM. There were 832 DRC members pre registered for this race.    The featured charity was Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA), a non-profit, volunteer-driven organization dedicated to finding the cure for Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.  Specifically, the DRC supported the CCFA's Team Challenge, which is their endurance training and fundraising program that enables people to train for a half marathon, triathlon, or cycling event while helping to find a cure for those two horrible diseases.   The good news is that after over 2 years my youngest son, who helps me type up this blog and adds the pictures, has found full time work again. The bad news is that his time is limited, so I'm going to try to shorten these posts up a bit. I will keep doing most of the same things, but will try to condense my posts.   For some reason, my Garmin timing device would not record right at this event. Unfortunately, this means that I don't have any mile or pace times. Like all DRC races, Run-On! furnishes the chip timer for each runner free of charge. Their race team does a great job at each race. Thank you Run-On! for your support of the DRC.   I took a lot of pictures before the race. When it got closer to the starting time for the 5 mile, I lined up about 12 rows back. Usually, in a 5K, I run all-out from start to finish. But this was a 5 mile race, and it was a hot morning, and I had to slow my pace during the first half of the race. After the turnaround I started to run a little faster.   When I got to the point where there was only 1/2 mile left, I gave what I had left and finished in the time of 41:12, an 8:15 /mile pace. I finished 134 out of 648 finishers, but there were about 81 finishers in the Clydsdale / Athena division, which is separate from overall total.   To compare, last year my time in this race was 48:00, a 6:48 difference in 1 year.   Also, see the attached .pdf that shows the remaining free prostate cancer screenings in 2011.   Place   Bib#     Overall     Chip Time     Gun Time      Pace  7/23     765     134/648     41:12:00         41:15       8:15 / M I run to raise awareness for prostate cancer and to benefit my community. www.runningforacause.tumblr.com

The 13th annual Vibha Dream Mile 5K and 10K

On Saturday August 20, 2011, I ran in the 13th annual Vibha Dream Mile 5K and 10K at Tee Pee Hill in White Rock Lake, Dallas, TX. I ran in the 5K race this time. The host of the race, Vibha, is a non-profit organization that seeks to restore food, shelter, health and education to underprivileged children, mostly from India. The race benefited City House in Plano, whose mission is to provide emergency shelter and transitional residential services to children and young adults who are in need due to abuse, neglet, or homelessness. The race sponsors were Texas Instruments, Agent Insure, Krypton Solutions, Ecom Consulting Inc, Pepsico, and a few more.   Most of the time, races start at Winfrey Point, but Tee Pee Hill was a new race location at White Rock for me.  Tee Pee Hill. I left the house early and had to stop at a gas station to ask for directions. Despite that, I arrived before 6:00 AM. When I arrived, the large group of race volunteers were already setting up. Since there was no 1 mile race at the event, I found the start / finish line and ran slow 1 mile warm up jog. I always like to do that so I can not only warm up my legs and hips, but also see the race course which helps me finish as best as I can.    I saw many of my running friends out on their long training run around the lake, which is about 15K or 9 miles. Ruben Sayuil and his excellent racing systems ran this race. He is the man who runs the very affordable Carrolton Runners Club races every third Sunday of the month plus a prediction race for only $2.00 (if you pre register online).   Most of the races that I have run with both a 5K and a 10K start at same time. However, for this race the 10K started first at 7:35 AM, then the 5K started off at 7:50 AM. The temprature was 92 degrees, with 38% humidity, 5 mph winds. The course was measured by Ken Ashby, who always does a great job. Here's a pic of Ken, doing his thing...   We started in front of the Pavilion on a narrow trail. After a small loop, we were on the regular White Rock trail. I started on the 1st row, and felt great after a good week of Run-on! training. Recently, I've lost a few more pounds and now I'm back at my high school weight of 155 lbs.   After a quick start, I tried my best to keep my pace up. There were a few of my running friends from the Dallas Running Club in front of me. At mile 1 my pace was 7:44, and at the turnaround, about my time was 12:13. I then made it to the second mile in 15:42 (a 7:58 / mile pace).   About 2 1/2 miles into the race, a younger man that was behind me said "you are sure pushing me." I told him that I was only running my race the best I could. I guess this motivated him since he later passed me up to finish in front of me. My 3 mile time was 23:40 (a 7:57 / mile pace). I tried not to slow down until I crossed the finish line. When I finally got there, my time was 24:33.52 on my Garmin watch.   This was my first race that I can remember where I ran all 3 miles iunder 8 minutes. My final pace for this race was 7:54. Before the races started I ran, like most runners do before each race, in front of the starting line to warm up. I guess my chip timer started early because after the race there was some added time on the preliminary final total. Ruben corrected the mistake, and I placed 1st in the 50-59 age group and 13th out of 106 5K runners.   Place   Bib#    Men   Overall  Finish Time  Age Grade                                          1/5     6552   10/51  13/106    24:33:52      64.7% I run to raise awareness for prostate cancer and to benefit my community. www.runningforacause.tumblr.com