Our Ragnar Relay race is complete, but we’re still raising money for the cause!

Join us on Saturday for the Atlantic Frantic and our Raffle! You can buy bracelets for fantastic drink deals along the Atlantic Frantic pub crawl, t-shirts with the amazing Brooklyn Landshark logo AND raffle tickets for some great prizes… all proceeds benefitting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Remember, you don’t have to be present to win!! If you can’t be there Saturday night, but want raffle tickets anyway, just purchase them and if you win, we’ll get your winnings to you.

Raffle tickets are one for $5; three for $12; seven for $25; fifteen for $50.

You do NOT have to be present to win, but if you’re not buying tickets at the event itself and you don’t buy them by noon on Saturday, you cannot win!

The drawing will occur at the last stop on the Atlantic Frantic, Hank’s Saloon at Midnight on Saturday, June 11th.

Here are the prizes we have to date (we are adding more every hour!):
1. Open Sky Training Camp Weekend 8/26 or 9/16 (worth $250)
2. TWO (2) Tickets to Cirque de Soleil Zarkana on 6/23
3. TWO (2) Tickets to Brooklyn Cyclones Game on 6/29
4. TWO (2) Tickets to Brooklyn Cyclones Game on 7/6
5. THREE (3) Framed bicycle photographs from Miriam Weiskind
6. A Magnum of wine from Viansa Winery (Sonoma – worth $250)
7. THREE (3) International vintage bordeaux blend variety
8. Bottle of Wine from Sonkin Cellars
9. Landshark Jen’s famous Banana Bread
10. TWO (2) Tickets to Mets/Phillies Game on 7/15
11. TWO (2) Tickets to the Agony and Ecstasy of Steve Jobs by Mike Daisy at the
Public Theater (Fall 2011)
12. Sausage Making Lesson from Landshark Jed OR Sausage Made to Order
13. Season One of The Simpsons
14. THREE (3) bespoke haikus on topic of winner’s choosing by Landsharks Nems
15. THREE (3) hours of design work (personal/business logo, cards, t-shirt) by Landshark Nems (the creator of the Landsharks brand)
16. Brooklyn Landsharks t-shirt with all 12 Brooklyn Landshark signatures.
17. $25 Gift Certificate to Spring Lounge on Spring & Mulberry Streets in Manhattan (aka the “Shark Bar”!)

Please spread the word to all your friends – and remember, you can buy raffle tickets (until Noon on 6/11) even if you can’t attend! Because all prizes were donated, every dollar raised goes to LLS!

UPDATE: Raffle tickets can no longer be purchased online. You can still purchase raffle tickets at the Atlantic Frantic. Look for a Brooklyn Landshark and they will help you out.

My brother, Rory, was the reason that I and the Brooklyn Landsharks decided to start our quest to cure blood cancer through triathlons. He wrote a little letter that I wanted to share:

Dear supporters and future supporters of the Landsharks,

Training for a triathlon is an arduous task. Swimming. Biking. Running. Repeat. What the Landsharks are setting out to do (again) should not be taken lightly. The only thing to get you through these workouts is to keep your eyes on the prize: finding a cure for blood cancers. Yes, finishing the race will be nice for them too, but that’s only a small part of why they have banded together with Team in Training. This year, almost 140,000 people will learn they have a blood cancer. That represents close to 10% of the newly diagnosed cancers nationwide. On June 20, 2008 I became one of the newly diagnosed.

I was shocked. Just a year before I myself had done a triathlon with Team in Training. How could I have lymphoma? But like the 10k run to finish a triathlon I knew I just had to face it and beat it. I began my treatment, but by November it became clear that the treatment I chose wasn’t working and I needed something stronger. Luckily, there was a great chemo therapy treatment that with the help of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society had just won FDA approval—not that it was pleasant. Oh, what I would’ve given to swap treatment for a long, hilly bike ride. Then one year ago today, March 27, 2009 I was given the best news of my life: I was in remission.

Your donation to the Landsharks will not make their race any easier, but it will help fund research, patient and community assistance, education, and generally contribute to finding cures for blood cancers. I am not cured yet, but the treatment did its job of keeping the cancer at bay. When the Landsharks take the water and road on May 2, please remember that it’s not about whether they set a personal best or even just finish their first triathlon, but rather it’s about advancing the mission to find a cure for blood cancers. Please donate if you can.

With gratitude,
Rory

Imagine It Filled With People

This past Monday, the Landsharks piled into the pool to do the infamous “Snake Swim Drill”.  We had to a 1/2 mile continuous swim.  We would go up one lane, and down the next.  We would do this until we went from one end of the pool to the next.   And then we would swim back the other way.

The ‘Sharks were looking strong.  But we have a long way to go if we are going to swim the .93 Mile swim that is awaiting us at the Wildflower on May 2nd.

……..

This coming Saturday is our first BRick (Bike + Run).  It will be the first time our LandPups will get to feel what it’s like to run with concrete legs.  And it’s going to be a great time!!

……..

And here’s another LandShark that is working to keep us safe…

…until Skyet becomes self-aware.

As you may have already learned from reading this and that, my brother was my inspiration for the Brooklyn Landsharks.  My friend Laura recently forwarded the story of two sisters, Erica and Jaci, and their struggles with Erica’s leukemia.

Erica was diagnosed with leukemia in early 2006.  She received a bone marrow transplant, but still in April 2008, she experienced a relapse.  She never recovered and passed away at the end of 2008.

The blog chronicles Erica’s struggle.  You can gain a glimpse into the wonderful woman she was.  And what potential was snuffed too early.

One of the goals of the blog is to encourage people to sign-up for the bone marrow registry.  Especially among minority communities.  Currently, there are about 7 million people signed up for the bone marrow registry (that’s a good start), but 97% of them are white.  As race and ethnicity are important characteristics in finding bone marrow matches, we need more diversity in the registry.  You can sign-up for the registry here.  As bone marrow transplants are the key to curing many of the forms of leukemia and lymphoma (including my brothers), I cannot stress registration enough.  You will need to fill out a questionnaire and then they will send you a kit to your home so you can be added to the registry.

Here’s a song that Erica and Jaci wrote (with the help of the Barenaked Ladies) to inspire others to join the registry: If I Had a Donor

Last summer, after we finished the Wildflower, I was interviewed for this book called “How To Be An Everyday Philanthropist.”  Months later, it was published and my interview was actually featured!  Check it out…

You can purchase “How To Be An Everyday Philanthropist” here

Ah, the first snow has graced us with an appearance.  The cold snap of winter has us searching for gloves, hats, and our brand-new running shoes.  The Brooklyn Landsharks are taking to the roads of Prospect Park again for another round of training for the Spring Season.  And while the name sounds so warming, it actually means many sub-freezing days and nights in the park doing hill repeats, out-and-backs and squats.  Lots of squats.

But with a new season comes some new faces.  This year the Brooklyn Landsharks have grown in size.  We are now a squad of seven.  Our two new members (aka Landpups) are: Jessica and Alex!

Landpup Jessica!

Landpup Alex!

We are thrilled to have them aboard.  And they have all the skills necessary to be a first season triathlon: eager excitement, bouts of nervousness, and a not entirely clear sense of what’s ahead.  Oh, sure, Jessica’s run a few marathons. Fast. And Alex has ridden a bike before.

We are excited to have new teammates.  And we are excited to have begun training. It’s going to be a fantastic season.  And it’s already begun.

The sun was shining bright. It was brilliant as it reflected off the ocean. We were in Winslow Park in Freeport, ME. Maybe by this time, 8:30am, the temperature was breaking 50°. Maybe. The ocean did not look as inviting as it had two weeks ago during Labor Day Weekend when Aaron and I came by to take a dip and try the bike course. Both were not so bad. But somehow, with the 800 athletes milling about, prepping their stations in the transition area, the hundreds of onlookers/fans, the water seemed even more intimidating. Also, it was way colder.

I took a walk down to the beach to put my feet in before the start. The water was clearly not the balmy 68° we were promised. It made the hairs stand-up and the blood quicken.

And as the 9:00am start time rushed towards us, and the wet-suited athletes begun to huddle together like so many latex seals, the anxiety did not go away, but it was welcomed. What had been a new feeling only four and a half months ago was starting to feel commonplace. Lobsterman (these triathlons all seem to have such clever names) was my fourth triathlon in almost as many months. It is odd to think about.
When the Brooklyn Landsharks came together, it seemed as if it would be a fleeting moment. I knew I would need additional support to complete the training (let alone a race), and I knew I need to complete both. So, when I asked my friends for help and they said yes, I truly thought it would be just this one race. But, as we trained and trained, it started to dawn on us that one race was not enough. We all needed more. So, this summer, while we may not have done all our races together, we sure raced plenty. I did four triathlons, Don did three triathlons and one duathlon, Nems two did two triathlons, two half-marathons, one 218 mile relay race, Emily did three triathlons and a half marathon, and Aaron did four triathlons, one half marathon, and some road races thrown in for good measure. The Brooklyn Landsharks have gone farther than we all expected. And they will continue to do so…

On Saturday, Feb. 21^st, I ran my first race: the Al Gordon Snowflake. It was 5K. It was a beautiful 30° day (that’s a warm day for the Brooklyn Landsharks!).

Our coach, Peter, had us meet at 8:30 (thirty minutes later than normal!) so we could do a 2 mile warm-up. Of course, I did not really understand why we had to run before we had to race. But when Peter says “run”, we say “do we need to do core work after?”

Maybe I should take a moment to say who Al Gordon is and why he has a race named after him. Al Gordon is 105 years old and has been a member and benefactor of the New York Road Runners.

So, the Brooklyn chapter of Team in Training was joined by some of our Manhattan brethren and sistren. And we ran. And ran we did. I kept pace with TNT veteran Kate and her friend Rebecca (another race virgin) that she recruited to TNT. We were doing well and undeterred by the ten year old girl that passed us effortlessly.

Somewhere around the first mile, we were joined by Sasha (it was her first race too), she had just given birth to her second child ten weeks later. Let’s just say I was not going to let Sasha finish before me.

At the halfway point I tried to drink a freezing cold cup of water. It ended up all over my face. A woman shouted “all downhill from here” and Rebecca, unfortunately, believed her.

And a little after mile two we passed that ten year old. Slow poke!

We finished and bagels were handed out like candy on Halloween.

I ran a 10:24 mph pace. Brooklyn Landshark Alex did a 7:30 (but hey, he’s run the Twin Cities marathon before, so let’s get back to me). We talked to Carmello, one of the fastest Brooklyn TNT members, ran the race backwards – I beat him.

I can’t wait to beat my time at the NYRR 8000 in Central Park on March 14^th.

Brooklyn Landshark Aaron has thrown a Super Bowl party for almost as long as I have known him.   This year, he thought it would make a great fundraiser for the Brooklyn Landsharks!

I know, I know. A benefit for the Super Bowl? The Super Bowl is supposed to be the anti-benefit – a celebration of everything that is so wrong about this country that it’s right. It’s about wiping your hands on your shirt if the paper towels are on the other side of the room; drinking a case of beer by yourself while stacking your empties precariously near your seat and, deciding that you really NEED another batch of wings even though you just finished cleaning the kitchen and it’s already 1 am.

I’m with you. You know this. So we’ve planned a Super Bowl Party which will satisfy all of those urges and more, while also benefiting blood cancer research. 

—What can you expect?—

- A giant screen.  I mean huge.  About 25′ wide.
- All you can eat food and drink, including wings, guacamole, 6-foot long sandwiches, kegs of beer and a few other surprises,
- tunes provided before and after the game by DJ Longfellow,
- fabulous prizes,
- a short presentation about the Landsharks by Nems,
- and -
- a tax deduction!

—What will it cost?—-

If you pay now it will cost you only $40 ($20 of which is tax deductible.) That includes everything – your beer, your wings, your guacamole, your entries for fabulous prizes … you get the point. It will be $50 at the door ($30 of which will be deductible.)

If you want to come just shoot Aaron an email (aaron@choyo.net). You can pay via paypal ($41.50 to cover paypal charges) here or by personal check.

We will take care of issuing you a receipt so you can take the tax deduction.

—Who can come?—

Anyone you want. Seriously, there’s a large capacity. Encourage people to pay in advance as it will make it easier for us to plan food and beer. Those of you who work for employers that match donations are especially encouraged to come out!

-– Where and when do I show up? —

February 1, 2009
5:00 pm 

The Brooklyn Lyceum (map)
227 4th Avenue (between Union and President)
Brooklyn, NY 11215
718.857.4816

2,3,4,5,B,Q to Atlantic Avenue
D, N to Pacific Street
R to Union Street
B63 or B37 to Union Street (take the bus while you still can!)

— Can I still bring food? —

The Super Bowl has always been about more than eating. It’s been about competitive cooking… as well as competitive eating. The Landsharks will be preparing the food and, because you’re being so generous with your donations, you don’t have to bring anything. That said, I would never tell anyone not to cook something for the Super Bowl, so if you want to bring something just let us know and we’ll coordinate. 

Hope to see a ton of you there!