6 Days Before the New York City Marathon

Greetings,

Can you believe it, there's less than six days until the New York City Marathon!  I am extremely excited and really nervous about Race Day.  What is helping me stay focused to cross that finish line, having one of those volunteers drape my medal around my neck, and all the support and encouragement that everyone has given me.  Thank you so much!

Being cooped up for 10 days to mend my ankle was a lot tougher that I thought it would be.  To keep me from getting too lazy and to maintain my endurance, I did some exercises in a pool and spin cycling.  The swimming action felt like a light massage for the ankle.  I also continued my training sessions where they avoided putting any strain on the injured appendage.

On Monday, the ankle looked better, and felt about 95% normal.  So, I finally took a short run on Monday for a mile around the block, at 9:30 at night.  Yes, at night again!  The little 3 led headlamp that I bought did an awesome job shining through the darkness of my neighborhood.  That $25.00 investment saved my ankles and my dreams of finishing the marathon twice, as the surprisingly powerful light revealed a couple of potholes along the way.

It's amazing how chilly it has gotten in just 10 days.  The cold air caught my asthma by surprise, and my lungs weezed as I made my rounds around the block.  Thoughts of taking a couple of puffs of my inhaler seemed very inviting as I climbed the second hill.  All throughout my training never did I think about that inhaler once until Monday night.

Before training for the race, if for some reason I ran for a 1/4 mile I would have said, "I've had enough" and walk the rest.  Most of the time I would say, "It's too hot, let's stay in the A/C and not sweat".  Now with this injury, I mumble in my agravated voice, "I better not run anymore, because if you sprain your ankle again, your Marathon days for 2008 are over".  I can't beleive that I am tell myself to be patient, slow down, and cut my run short.  I missed my final long run, and it concerns me that I had such a reduction in my training in preparation for 26.2 miles will make it really tough for me.  Mentally I am ready to deal with the rigors and physically it hasn't been spelled out yet.  I am sure the endorphins will be pumping through the veins and I probably won't feel a thing until I stop running!  At that time, my brain would have caught up to my body and say, "You're ready to feel the pain now".

I ran 2 miles on Wednesday Night and 3.8 miles on Friday Night, and the ankle did not concern me, until I woke up the next day and it felt sore, but no pain.  Especially on Friday Night, I wanted to run a lot more, but I reminded myself to take it easy.  Actually, on the 3 runs this week, have been faster on average.  I guess resting really does help your split times.

I look forward to seeing you along the route. My Start Time will be at 10am which will be the Second Wave.  I will be wearing a CWI Medical Logo Hat, Florescent Yellow/Green Singlet for Team for Kids, probably Blue Shorts, and my bib color is Orange.  Yes, I have no fashion sense.

My Bib Race Number is 30088.  It's a great number.  In Chinese, numbers with curves in it is good luck.  For those who did not know, my wife and I had our wedding reception at the 888.  One of the phone numbers at the office is 866-588-3888.

Here is a link to the Race Map. http://www.ingnycmarathon.org/about/coursemap.pdf

Also, let me know if you want to be added to my Athlete Alert, which can email or text you an alert to your phone to update your on my split times at every 5K mark along the course as well as at the start, half-marathon mark (13.1 miles/21.1K), miles 16 through 26, and the finish.  Just send me your the email address if you want the alert sent to your email or your cell phone # and carrier to receive a text.

The race will be broadcast live exclusively on WNBC 4 New York for five hours. The WNBC 4 New York broadcast will begin at 9:00 a.m. with the pre-race warm-up and will follow the race through the five boroughs, across the bridges, and over the finish line until 2:00 p.m.   I am sure someone will see me live on TV in the sea of people.

More updates to come on Thursday, after I attend the Marathon Expo.

Best regards,

Noah

In 46 Days, I will be hitting the pavement to improve the health and fitness for our children around the world!

Greetings,

After over 13 years of sitting at my desk typing away at my computer, expanding my waistline and a rising blood pressure, I've chosen to make a healthy transformation in my life and in addition, to help improve the health and fitness of children across the United States and around the world.  I really want to play as long as possible with my kids, Emily, Zachary, and Elijah.

Sunday, November 2, 2008, my feet will be hitting the pavement of New York City to take on the challenge of one of the world's great road races, the New York City Marathon!  My running efforts will raise funds that will go towards my charity team, Team for Kids. 

Team for Kids plays a decisive role in responding to the devastating human and economic toll of childhood obesity a deadly scourge whose long term consequences will diminish tens of millions of lives and cost of hundreds of billions of dollars if left un-reversed.  Their programs improve health, combat obesity and enhance personal development of children with their running programs.

As a Team for Kids member, I am requesting your assistance by making a donation to my fundraising campaign

Please use the following link in this email to donate online quickly and securely. 

https://www.nyrrc.org/cgi-bin/start.cgi/mar-programs/nyrrf/team/2008/donations.htm

On the page, for the following fields please include my 

* ING  New York City Marathon Entry/Registration #    222354

* Member's Last Name or Team Name    Lam

You will receive a confirmation of your donation by email and, additionally, I will be notified as soon as you make your donation.

You can also print out the following donation card if you prefer to mail in your donation.

http://www.teamforkids.org/data/org/57/media/doc/4358_tfk08_donation_card.pdf

Each donation will help vulnerable children grow strong in body, mind, and spirit!

By the way, I am looking for people to run with preferably in the 12-13 min per mile range :)  

Over the next few weeks I will be emailing you with places you can watch the race!

 

Thanks for your support,

Noah

P.S. I would greatly appreciate it, if you would forward this email to as many people as you can and encourage them to donate as well.

Hello and Welcome to the Team for Kids Family!

The first email I received from Team for Kids...  Changed my life!

Your Team for Kids 2008 application has been approved -- you are now an official member of New York Road Runners Foundation Team for Kids and have received guaranteed entry for the ING New York City Marathon 2008. The marathon entrant database will reflect your affiliation with us after the June lottery.

We salute your participation as one of a team of 1,300+ runners who have committed to changing their lives – and the lives of countless at-risk children – by running the ING New York City Marathon as a member of Team for Kids this year. Your fellow Team members hail from dozens of states and countries and we have organized our resources to provide you with responsive, personalized support.

Team members who reside in the greater New York area are ‘Metro’ members and those from everywhere else – across the country and around the globe – are ‘National’ members. That said, we are ONE TEAM, and urge you to use our interactive tools to empower your training, fund-raising and TFK social experience.  It is by participating together as a team that each individual will enjoy the greatest and most meaningful support.

If you are a TFK National member, we welcome you to our on-line chats, coaches’ hours and other forums that enable you to ask questions and interact with coaches and fellow participants daily.  We’ll help you set up group runs with other TFKers local to you. If you are a TFK Metro member, we hope you will participate in NYC-based weekday training runs, weekend long runs and clinics with Team members. Regardless where you’re located however, you’ll receive a personalized training plan, individual coaching assistance and Team support, all designed to provide you with an incredible ING New York City Marathon experience.  

This season, members will enjoy a host of benefits for their efforts, including guaranteed entry into two premier NYRR races for the price of one -- the ING New York City Marathon and NYC Half-Marathon Presented by NIKE (limited entries available); an online member handbook with successful tips to make your fund-raising simple, significant and fun; race-day VIP perks; special ‘members only’ events throughout the season and marathon week; six-months of personalized training targeted to runners of all abilities; a vibrant online community with availability to our coaching staff via the Flotrackr module; as well as official Team for Kids signature gear.

Wondering … what’s next?

The online member handbook and our online community will be available shortly, the official six-month training program starts Saturday, May 10 (mark your calendar), and information on how to build your mileage base in preparation for the marathon training journey is coming soon. For a great first step, we recommend you bookmark and review tfkworldwide.org. Our site will provide a variety of resources to get you started with your fund-raising, and uplift your contributions above and beyond your funding pledge.

We’re thrilled to have you on the Team and are here now to answer questions and help get your fund-raising and training preparations started. Don't hesitate to contact us at 212.423.2227 or via email your respective Program Coordinator: tfkmetro@nyrr.org or tfknational@nyrr.org.

Yours in Running!

 Your Team for Kids Staff 

Insanity's Shaun T with Conan O'Brien on TBS Conan

Conan and Shaun T having fun working on Conan's Butt!






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