The Conservation Alliance fundraiser

Clarification on fundraiser:

The money I have collected will go to The Conservation Alliance. If folks wish to still contribute they are more than welcome. I am not doing my Movie Night fundraiser as I'd like to save the films for my next fundraiser. So, Movie Night is the fundraiser that has been cancelled....

Thanks for the inquiry,
Terri

Damaged Goods

This past week I’ve pined to join the ranks of those I have little tolerance for, and whine for just a minute… Whining, like worrying is generally a waste of breath. We play the victim blah...blah...blah... then we feel like we emotionally got hit by a truck. Yet here I am doing the injured athletes version of Russian Roulette—whining and fretting and hating myself for it all the while. Go ahead—pull the trigger.

This past May I had to pull out of a race for which I had trained well due to problems with my heart. Now I am facing a similar predicament—pulling out of my upcoming Antarctica event—due to a failed body part. More damaged goods. (whine, whine, whine)

After a thorough review with my sports medicine doctor of an Achilles tendon MRI, we’ve discovered I have a partial tear to my left anterior Achilles tendon near and above the attachment. About half of the area is still "healthy" while the rest looks like the page that Jon Stewart frantically scribbles on in The Daily Show intro, with a big messy ink blot at the base. The blot is fluid on the bone and bone inflammation.

I’ve deliberated over the upcoming event for many days and sleepless nights trying to find an opening that makes it feasible for me to race—and moreso to validate my really great fundraiser for The Conservation Alliance. But no matter how the MRI is sliced the fragmented scribble marks hang in my brain. As advised by my doc, I need to make the decision not to race and begin a very long rehab on my leg.

The end of the earth is a long way to travel to just check out the penguins and watch every one else run (can you feel the self pity building…). So the bitterness of deciding not to go hangs in my nostrils, kinda like after being hit in the head by a stray seagull turd. The repeated gull dive bomb is that I'm looking at several months or a lot more of modified training to get this thing healthy again.

Please don’t say, “it could be worse" - I'll get there in due time. I fully realize that I have a really great life and that I have in fact dodged true tragedy such as—a suicide bomber showing up on my mothers doorstep, my dog getting hit by a car, or someone telling me after my next speaking presentation that I remind them of Sarah Palin. But right now this feels like it really sucks and I just need to be in that and be pissed off at myself for not being nicer to my aging body. Right now I just need to whine a little. Knowing myself I’ll get over it very soon and be back at you with some more refined perspective. Wink ;)

Racing Antarctica, Movie Night, Book Launch Party!

Whew! So much exciting stuff happening.

I must first admit that fundraising has been hugely rewarding – I’m pleasantly surprised. Having passion for what the people at The Conservation Alliance are accomplishing keeps me motivated.

I am astonished at the generosity of so many friends and acquaintances. And it has been excellent touching base with some folks I haven’t corresponded with for quite a while. But this job is unceasing! Pass the word, send people my blog site, or better yet a direct link to my site where they can donate – http://www.terrischneider.net/

To add some fun to this process I’ve decided to host an “Endurance Madness” Movie Night as a fundraiser for Racing Antarctica and The Conservation Alliance. I’ll show film clips from Hawaii Ironman, Eco Challenge and an excellent documentary on Western States 100 and I’m certain that unless you have watched these with me you have never seen them – all “never been seen on TV footage”! This will be a get-motivated-or-your-money-back night of fun, film and raffle prizes. Plan to be massively inspired.
“Endurance Madness” Movie Night
Long Marine Lab, Santa Cruz, CA
Thursday, November 6th 7:00 PM


My new book has hit the market! I’ll be hosting a
Book Launching Party and Book Signing for:

Triathlon Revolution: Training, Technique and Inspiration
at
Capitola Book Café, Capitola CA
November 12, at 7:00 PM


If you’ve been thinking about writing a book I highly recommend it—loads of work but worth the rewards (kind of like an endurance event!).
Please come and celebrate this worthwhile project with me!!

Back at you with more Antarctica updates soon,
Terri