And so it begins....(3 weeks until training officially begins)

I've created this blog as an outlet to share my experiences as I train for the Lifetime Fitness Triathlon this summer as a member of Team in Training.

Training officially starts February 2 and I'm a little intimidated of what I'm going to have to do. I want to challenge myself so I'm doing the olympic length which means I swim 1.5 k, bike 40 k (I still need a bike), and then run 10 k. I've never done a distance or endurance event before so this is going to be a sink or swim experience....hopefully, I'll swim.

What is Team in Training?
Team in Training is an endurance event training program (marathons, half marathons, 100-mile bike rides, triathlons, etc). During training, participants raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Since TNT's creation in 1988, over 340,000 participants have raised over $800,000,000 for cancer research. The Leukemia and Lymphoma society is dedicated to finding a cure for blood cancers and improving the quality of life of patients and their families.

Why am I doing this?
In early summer 2003, I found out a good friend of mine, Tony Horton, had been diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. He passed away in November 2005. I spoke to him on the phone the day before he died (I was back at school in MN, he was home in AK) and he asked me to thank my dad (gross paraphrase) "for everything he was doing to help raise money [through TNT] to find a cure because even though it was too late for him, it would help save someone else." I now have the opportunity to honor Tony's memory by participating in this event.

For more information about Team in Training please visit www.teamintraining.org or to donate visit http://www.active.com/donate/tntmn/evanelson