"Brock is the kind of guy you can handle in doses... but those doses should be small." - Dale Roth, Roth and Ramberg
8.2 million reason to be proud · 10 June 09
I am sorry this is late in coming, I have no excuse other than my life being busy… but life should never be too busy to share good news with the people who will read the stuff I write.
As you may already know (or remember), on May 31st I ran in the San Diego Marathon as part of the Leukemia and Lymphoma’s “Team in Training” and, thanks to many of you, I was able to contribute $7335.07 to the funds raised to help find a cure for blood cancer. There were ~2200 of us running in the race from “Team in Training” and together we raised over $8.2 million dollars (net) that goes directly to research and patient care. Woohoo!
The race itself was amazing too. I had a little trouble with some cramping behind my knees and ended up not making my goal finishing time but due to the slow down I was able to relax, take it easy and really enjoy the race. There were bands playing at every mile, cheerleaders from local schools doing personalized cheers, themed water stations (my favourite being the “Back to the 80’s” one where they actually had a DeLorean) and tons of kids that wanted high-fives! It was great I tell you! GREAT!
So, once again I want to thank all of you who donated – $8.2 million is an amazing amount, and that is just for the one race. If we keep this up, how can they not find a cure?!?
PS. I am planning on doing this all again in the new year… so if you missed out this time, there is always next time!
All I ever seem to blog about these days are races… it must be spring!
I ran the Dash’n for Compassion race last year (in 1:55:36) and had an absolute blast (and consumed my body weight in brunch afterwards). This year it was a too soon after the Vancouver Marathon and too close before the San Diego Marathon to race it seriously but I wanted to support the cause, get the shirt and eat the brunch so I signed up anyway.
It was the San Diego portion of the Team in Training ‘s “peak training day” so a lot of us planned to do the race together and treat it as we would any Saturday run (we even headed out for a nice 5km run before the race started). I planned to do the official 21.1km in 2:20 and I ended up doing in it 2:19:38 (I should be a freakin’ pace bunny!).
The race was fun, hilly and quite challenging. The brunch was big, bacony and delicious. The shirt is classy, comfortable and really good quality. What more could we ask for? It was a hoot of a morning and I am sure I will be back next year! WOO!
I was on there for nearly a full year and although I posted more than 1000 tweets (twots?) in that time, I don’t think I ever fully “got” the whole Twitter thing. Maybe I was looking for too much from it. Maybe I was following too many people’s twots (tweets?). Maybe I just plain spend too much time on a computer (probably)?? But, in any case, when the whole “Swine Flu” stupidity overtook and smothered the nerd talk on Twitter, I knew it was time for me to go. Don’t worry, I won’t start ranting about H1N1 here – that rant needs more exclamation points than this blog can handle!!!!
I guess all that is left now is to say: So long Twitter followers, it was a thing…
So, aside from some problems on a hill in Stanley Park (damn you Prospect Point) I had a lovely 21.1km run on Sunday (May 3rd – Vancouver Half-Marathon).
My time was 1:54:05 (a pace of 5:25/km) which I think is not too bad. Beat my time from last July in Calgary (Alberta Jeep Dealer’s Half-Marathon – 1:55:02) by a minute and my time from last May in Edmonton (Dashin’ for Compassion – 1:55:36) by a minute and a half. Not bad. Was hoping for better but… damn you Prospect Point!
Everyone from Team in Training did awsomely well during the race. James Kercher kicked my butt at 1:49:51. Best of all, the 200 runners from Team in Training that participated at the marathon, raised nearly $1 Million for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society! WOO!
Here is the only photo I have of the race. Thanks to my cousin Craig for snapping it with his Blackberry as I approached the chute.
If anyone is paying close attention to this blog anymore… mom?... they may notice that I have made some enhancements. I added a Twitter feed widget on the bottom left, changed my tagline, fixed up some out of date CSS (this site is from 2004 after all) and well… that is about it. Other than the Google Analytics code that I actually got around to adding to the whole site rather than just the blog.
Someday, when I have some time on my hands and the desire to be at a computer when I am not getting paid to be at a computer, I will do a complete redesign/rebuild of the site but until then… you are stuck with this. And me. YAY!
Oh yeah, I also fixed the “Comments” portion of the blog. For sometime now it has been hanging and timing out – that should be resolved now.
Perfectly adequate. Especially considering the snow, the ice, the number of people jammed on those narrow trails and, of course, my fractured left wrist.
In conjunction with the Edmonton premiere of the documentary “Pegwarmers“ (for which I wrote and performed the theme song), I will be hosting the official “Pegwarmers Afterparty” @ The Brixx Bar and Grill, Saturday March 28th.
The Brixx Bar and Grill is located at 10030-102 Street, just a short walk from the Stanley Milner Library Theatre (where the screening is starting at 3:00pm). I will play a set at about 6:00pm~ish.
The best part is that the afterparty is going to be in support of The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada. Admission to the afterparty is a mere $5.00, and all proceeds will be going directly to the Society.
I invite everyone to come out and see the film and then listen to some music, enjoy a tasty beverage and a snack, and most importantly help support a very worthy cause.
Oh yeah, by the way, I have a fractured left wrist so James Murdoch will be playing guitar and Shantel Koenig will be playing bass. I am going to try to play accordion (with a gutter splint on), but no promises. It is going to be… um, different!
I just received my musicians broadcast royalty statement (from SOCAN) and man-oh-man am I international! Way more international that I ever thought! I made $2.33 from Romania, $0.33 from Norway, $1.98 from Sweden, $0.01 from Chile, $1.32 from England and $0.19 from Malaysia!
I also got an email from 4 people in Germany who would like me to send them “4 handwritten pictures”. How awesome is that? Pretty awesome, that is how awesome. I have to hustle to get some 8X10s printed, but it is well worth it!
I may not be getting rich from being international but I am having fun. I almost feel like a rock star again… almost.
My cousin Erin Moffatt is enrolled in the Design and Motion Image class at Grant MacEwan College and I was lucky enough to be chosen to be the subject of one of her class projects. It is a video for a song Charles Wood and I wrote called The Devil Went Down East Hastings.
It is my biggest seller on iTunes and soon to be my most viewed on YouTube! Woohoo! Thanks Erin!
On May 31st I will be running for a personal best at the San Diego Marathon. A personal best in speed AND in fund raising as a member of Team In Training raising money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada (LLSC). I’m asking you to help by making a contribution! When you contribute, you are supporting LLSC’s mission to cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families.
You can help by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link below:
You will receive an email confirmation, along with a tax receipt for your donation and I will be notified as soon as you make your donation. You may also pay by cheque – send me an email and I will fill you in on how.
My grandmother, Lena Armstrong, is a survivor of lymphoma and my cousin, Janice Winsor, lost her battle with leukemia in 1996, at the age of 28. My Grandfather, Bill Dennis, was diagnosed with Lymphoma and died soon after, when I was very young… so I don’t need to tell you how much I stand behind and believe in this cause.
Please, give what you can – my personal fund raising goal is $5000 so every little bit helps!
I offer you a huge “thank you!!” in advance for your support, and very much appreciate your generosity!!
I am sorry this is late in coming, I have no excuse other than my life being busy… but life should never be too busy to share good news with the people who will read the stuff I write.
All I ever seem to blog about these days are races… it must be spring!
So that is it. I quit 
So, aside from some problems on a hill in Stanley Park (damn you Prospect Point) I had a lovely 21.1km run on Sunday (May 3rd – Vancouver Half-Marathon). 
In conjunction with the Edmonton premiere of the documentary “
On May 31st I will be running for a personal best at the