Thursday, February 7, 2008

IronMan and the Special Olympics

Dear Friends and Family

As many of you know, I have been training for the last 5 months for the IronMan in Arizona. The race is April 13th and consists of a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and a 26.2 mile run that must be completed in 17 hours or less. It has been a huge commitment of time and energy that has demanded a large portion of my life. It has been the most satisfying and challenging endeavor of my life. At the same time, it borders on being a somewhat selfish sport in that it takes away from other commitments and obligations such as family, friends and work. I am thankful that the people in my life have been understanding of this and have been VERY supportive. So it is with some trepidation that I ask for any more from you. One of the great things about endurance sports is their affiliations with various charities. Many of you recently donated to my Daughter, Brittany's charity of choice "Run For Mobility" during her recent first full marathon. She completed her marathon and raised over $600, supplying 12 people in 3rd world countries with wheelchairs. These are people that were unable to get from one place to another on their own power. Now they are able to be mobile, literally changing their lives. Thank you for your generosity!

IronMan athletes are given the opportunity to use the visibility of their event to raise money for their charity of choice. All of the money goes directly to the charity. I have chosen the Special Olympics of Southern California. I have learned so much from my participation in this sport of Triathlon. It has shown me that anything is possible through hard work and dedication and that we are all running our own race, no matter where we are in the pack or what our abilities are. One day Brittany and I were doing a long (14 mile) run in Mile Square Park and we saw the athletes from the Special Olympics competing in a bike race. It was then that I decided that that would be my charity. It was inspiring to see challenged athletes competing at their peak ability. No matter what their individual abilities were, they can train and challenge themselves to be the best they can be, and that is a huge win.

A common misconception is that the Special Olympics is held once a year, or every four years like the regular Olympics. That is not the case. It is a year around program with several events throughout the year and training throughout the year as well. There are several sports such as Bowling, Golf, Swimming and of course, my favorite, Track and Field. The money donated goes towards training these athletes and sponsorship of the events.

I appreciate you reading this and your support of me (and my ramblings of all things triathlon:). If you are so inclined, you can donate to the Special Olympics of Southern California through my page at the Janus Charity Challenge website.

IronMan athletes don't get anything from this other than bringing awareness and donations to our charities. We've all been so blessed, and to share those blessings is the ultimate gift. And of course it is tax deductible.

Paul

http://januscharitychallenge.kintera.org/az08/paulboth
http://www.sosc.org/orangecounty.html