Over and out

Hi everyone
The Perth Mothers Day Classic 2011 is now over.  What a gorgeous morning to be walking or running riverside this morning.  Being my first MDC I was amazed at how many people there were.  I knew we were expecting 4-5000 but you never know what that looks like till you are there.  There was a sea of people...running, walking, cheering and generally enjoying being with family, friends and loved ones.  The weather was perfect! 

I arrived at 7.15 with my husband Steve and son Nicholas in tow.  We checked in at the VIP tent as I was to be interviewed along with Lindsay Bennett (NBCF) by Dixie Marshall and Paul Murray close to 8am.  Julie Bishop the Perth ambassador for the event was there.  Didn't she look amazing?  She was there to participate in the 8km run (I think).  Prior to that there was a welcome to country, reminding us of the traditional owners of the land.  Robyn McSweeney was also there, saying a few words.  Dixie looked fabulous as always...she looks great on TV and fantastic in person!!  Paul Murray (whom I met on Friday) was in fine form and he and Dixie kept the program moving. 

After chatting to Dixie, the warm up began for the runners and I scanned the audience for my various family and friends and those who had volunteered.  At just after 8.30 the call went up for the 8km and 4km walkers and 4km runners to warm up and then assemble at the starting point.  At 08.50 the crowd started moving ...initially I thought it would be a  morning dawdle not a walk but then the crowd thinned as the road became wider and we took off at a reasonable pace. 

The river was flat, the sun was out, and Perth looked beautiful.  I managed to walk past where my sister was volunteering as a course marshal.  She often gets emotional at these kind of events and had earlier sent me a text as the first runners went by.  A big hug and we continued on....all of a sudden the finish was in sight...well so we thought.  Nicholas was quite excited about finishing only to find that we had another leg to finish.  So we soldiered on.  By this time though I was feeling pretty pumped and felt like doing another 4km.  We decided to finish however and good job we did.  My husband who had had the flu the past few days had bravely done the 4km walk.  He looked terrible by the end and sat down in complete exhaustion (luckily we could go to the VIP tent) and had a coffee and a rest.  What a trooper to still get up and participate today. 

Sadly it was time to go but not without plans to participate or volunteer in next year's event.  Our team of family and friends discussed having a theme or wearing tutus, so already the inspiration for MDC 2012 had been sparked.  My sister in law who had run the 8km whilst pushing a pram looked as if she had just taken a morning stroll.  She inspires me with her commitment to her fitness and I am hoping to internalise that inspiration and make it work for me over the next 12 months.

I hope you all had a wonderful time at the event and a fabulous mothers day.  I have enjoyed writing the blog and hope you have enjoyed reading it.  Thank you all and take care!

Not long now

Hi everyone

Just 3 more days until the big event.  How is your training going?  Are you fit and ready, intending a flat out run or a more leisurely walk?  The weather forecast is looking great ...fine and 28 degrees.  I am excited, got my MDC shirt in the post yesterday, have organised what I am going to wear (yes I did spend time thinking about it) and bought myself a pair of Pink Ribbon socks.  Caps are purchased for my menfolk, so between us all we will look the part. 

I think what I am most excited about is spending my morning on Mothers Day doing something worthwhile.  I am not a breakfast in bed type nor do I want to waste my day having a sleep in.  Don't get me wrong, the occasional sleep in is great but it is not necessary to sustain me.  Nicholas is looking forward to it too.  He wore his new cap with pride yesterday.

I won't just be walking with my husband and son, I will also have the company of some of my family members (my sister will be a course marshall on the day)some workmates, two members of the Amazons dragon boat team (one walking and one volunteering) and probably spying a few other faces I know in the crowd.  Paula's Pointed Posey will be there and I will certainly be looking out for them.  Look forward to seeing you Paula!!

I have been thinking about my online tribute.  Sadly only yesterday I attended the funeral of a lovely woman who I met through dragon boating.  I mentioned her in my last blog I think and mentioned that she was in the fight for her life.  Unfortunately she lost that fight.  She and her lovely family will be in my thoughts and I will carry her with me on Sunday morning.  It just reinforces to me how important it is to continue to raise awareness and funds to assist in research. 

On the subject of research I noted there was an update on my facebook page from Register 4.  You will remember I have mentioned this previously on this blog.  It was about a breakthrough in Breast cancer genes.  Here is the link http://breakthrough.org.uk/media_centre/news_views/breast_cancer_gene.html
I thought it might be of interest.  Further to that it again reinforces the need for funds for research and the need for the online register. 

Anyway Perth, make sure you get in some more walks or runs before the big day, hydrate well in the lead up and I believe there will be warm up sessions on the morning.  I look forward to seeing you on the day as I will have a birds eye view from the stage at about 7.55am. 

Happy Mother's Day to all the mums for Sunday.  Have a fabulous day!!

Who will you be walking or running for?

Having not participated in the Mothers Day Classic before, my head is spinning with ideas of what it might be like on the day.  I had the wierdest dream  the other night...it included the Mothers Day Classic, a terrorist plot, Langley Park and Powers Boothe!  A crazy dream that I can still 'see' so clearly.  What does it all mean I ask myself?? I won't analyse it all too much though.  I am quite prone to bizarre dreams.

Who will you be walking or running for this year?  I know that for me I will be carrying in my heart all those who have been affected and suffered as a result of breast cancer.  There has been a lot of it around me of late, I am sad to say.  My commitment to raising awareness gets stronger each passing day.  There are two lovely women  I know, one who lost her battle just recently and one who is fighting as we speak.  My thoughts are with their families and friends. 

Paula, a lovely woman, I have recently come to know,has just commenced her breast cancer journey and has registered a team to walk on the day - look out for Paula's Pointed Posey!  Give her a big cheer on the day!  I am thinking of you Paula!

I am so grateful to have come through my own journey and now 11 years on be able to give something back and hopefully help others. Remember you can do an online tribute through the Mothers Day Classic website. 

Enjoy your Easter Sunday!

Happy Easter Perth

Happy Easter everyone

Only 19 days to go until the big event.  How are your preparations coming along?  Easter is a slight hiccup along the way isn't it?  Training will be a little harder with those eggs rattling around.  What strategies do you have to keep on track??  I could use some of them myself! 

I have taken some leave to be with Nicholas during the school holidays and am therefore looking forward to getting out and about and preparing for our teams participation in the 4km course in the MDC.  I am anticipating a few bike rides to exercise some different muscles, dragon boating will continue and of course there will be many opportunities to go for extended walks.  Nicholas is probably thinking he is going to have a nice relaxing holiday!!  Look out for our team at the event...we will be the ones with the badges saying 'Wii Not Fit'.  I always get a giggle out of the name but find myself explaining it often...am I the only one amused?

How is the fundraising going?  Can I just say...I was more than pleasantly surprised about the Easter egg raffle my team and I conducted at work.  The allure of chocolate is much stronger than I gave it credit for.  Within three days of advertising the raffle and the 'guess how many eggs in the jar' competition, we had raised $100.  We will be announcing the winner tomorrow and I can't wait to reward some lucky punter with a basket full of Easter goodies and a box of truffles.  OK...so I guess if they are in training for the MDC, it might not be such a good idea and may have to be handed over with the condition that they don't eat it all themselves!!  All jokes aside though I was amazed at how generous and eager my colleagues were to support the raffle and ultimately the Mothers Day Classic and NBCF.  Our final amount will be tallied tomorrow morning!  We have some more ideas up our sleeve, so hopefully we can raise some more money before the event. 

What fundraising ideas have you had that worked well??  Would love to hear from you ...

That's it for me today...more to come later in the week!

Various ramblings with a strong pink focus

Our 'Pink Stall' at the Bayswater PS fete! (See windswept hair)

Whew what a busy last couple of weeks.  The Bayswater PS fete was a roaring success, what a committed school community.  I had a ball running my 'Pink Stall' and could not have done it without the assistance of some of my A-Mazing Amazon dragon boat buddies and family and friends.  It was a windy day however and whilst I perservered with wearing my pink wig, I am sure I looked more than a little windswept.  My lovely sister in law (who has been participating in the MDC for the past 3 years) came wearing her stunning MDC cap (and other clothes) and looked fit and ready for action.  What a great advertisement!  

It was lovely to chat to so many people about the Mothers Day Classic, as well as Register 4 (will tell you a bit more about that shortly), the Amazons Perth Dragon Boat team and BCNA.  We had a steady flow of visitors and there were many who were interested in participating in the MDC if not running or walking then volunteering.  I know I heard of one group of mothers who were looking to pull a team together.  Go girls!  I hope you get it up and running and will hopefully hear from you on how you are going.  There were also some family groups who were interested in joining in.  I know for myself, that I am really excited to be walking with my husband and son. 

On a more sombre note, the reality of the statistics for breast cancer never cease to amaze, in fact horrify me.  I can't believe how many people I spoke to on Sunday who know someone who has been diagnosed or have gone or are going through the trauma of a diagnosis themselves.  I feel for each and every one of you and that is why I am so passionate about doing my bit within the community.  It is just so important for us to continue raising awareness and necessary funds to make sure the researchers and doctors and other concerned professionals have the means to do what they do so well. 

The National Breast Cancer Foundation is a key recipient of funds raised by the Mothers Day Classic - thanks to Women in Super.  Up until last year NBCF had a huge focus on fundraising.  In late 2010 NBCF launched a new initiative called Register 4.  The goal is to for 1 million women to register online as a breast cancer research participant.  It does not cost you anything, only your time and willingess to be involved.  Please go to their website  http://www.register4.org.au/ for more information.  Get your friends, families and colleagues involved!

Now back to the Mothers Day Classic.  I am having a quiet chuckle to myself on reading the above as I feel like we just had a word from our sponsor.  But then...I am easy to amuse!  Fundraising!  It can be a tough call sometimes but just remember every little bit counts.  With Easter just over a week away it is a good opportunity to raise some funds!  I mean who doesn't like chocolate???  (I wish I didn't!).  Tomorrow I am taking into the office an Easter basket to raffle and a 'guess how many eggs in the jar' competition.  I have been asking people at work to be involved in the MDC and whilst I have had success with some, I figure the other way to get people involved is to ask for assistance in fundraising!  I will keep you posted on how we go!

What strategies do you have for fundraising??  Please share some of your ideas!

Until later in the week....

Back in town and feeling inspired!!

Good morning Perth!
I am back in town after an extremely exciting week in Canberra.  I attended the National Dragon Boat Championships along with 24 other members of the Amazons Perth Dragon Boat team.  It was a fabulous experience and I feel  greatly inspired to get fitter and healthier!  My focus now is to participate in the Mothers Day Classic along with the rest of you. 

Isn't it wonderful to get some rain?  The light relief in the weather will certainly be an encouragement to get out and get into training, I know it works for me.  I would love to hear what people are doing to get in shape for the event.

This weekend I will be actively involved with the Bayswater Primary School fete.  I will be running a stall that will promote the Mothers Day Classic as well as NBCF and the Register4 so if you are in the area and want some more information about the MDC please pop in.  A few lovely ladies from the Amazons Dragon Boat Team will also be helping on the day.  BCNA has also provided us with some pink items to dress up our stall.

Community events such as school fetes and local festivals are a fabulous opportunity to promote the Mothers Day Classic, so it may be something you could do in your area.  If you want any details on how to get promotional information please email me.

That's it for me today...see you on Sunday if you are in the Bayswater area and feel like popping in! 

Langley park on Sunday morning

This morning my son Nicholas and I decided we would try out the venue for this years Mothers Day Classic.  Langley Park was beautiful this morning...it always amazes me how many people are up and about so early, jogging, walking, rowing, bike riding...you name it.

I took a few photos of the venue in the gorgeous morning light.  Nicholas, my dog Noodle and I walked the 4km circuit and wonder now whether we should just walk the 4km's or the 8km circuit on the day.  I suppose we can try it out next time.  Anyway here is an early morning view of Langley Park!

                                                                                     

                                                                                  This is Nicholas doing some stretches after our walk!