LIVESTRONG BLOG

More Than a Challenge

Apr 13, 2011 by Guest

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There are many events you can take part in other than the LIVESTRONG Challenge. Team LIVESTRONG takes part in endurance events like marathons, half marathons, long distance cycling events, triathlons and more. Check out www.teamlivestrong.org for more information.

“You’re doing what?” is the number one question I get when I tell people I’ll be riding across the State of Iowa this summer with Team LIVESTRONG as part of RAGBRAI. For Iowa natives and bike enthusiasts, RAGBRAI is well known as one of the oldest and longest-running (at least it feels that way in the saddle) group rides in the country. It’s hard to describe in words what this event is like; it really is something that needs to be experienced in person. But for those in the know: pie, corn, Beekmans, pie, Roadkill, rumbles and pie sum it up pretty well.

Getting involved with Team LIVESTRONG doesn’t have to mean committing to a week-long ride across a Midwestern state. My first experience with Team LIVESTRONG came at the Austin LIVESTRONG Challenge. I originally turned to LIVESTRONG after being diagnosed with testicular cancer at the age of 26 and found strength and peace reading through many of the survivor stories on the LIVESTRONG website. Having been an active runner before my diagnosis and surgery, I wanted my survivor story to include a return to my running form of old. So I signed up to run the 5k along the streets of Austin.

Before my diagnosis, I wouldn?t think twice about running a 5k. It was something I did regularly; I bet I could have even done it in cowboy boots. It was much more difficult after my surgery. I lost lung capacity during my recovery and was much slower than before. I struggled to even finish a 5k run and every step reminded me of my diagnosis. I was frustrated and angry.

As I pushed myself through training, I became a stronger runner again while dealing with the effects of being a young adult cancer survivor. Running, for me, was a cathartic experience. Running the Austin Challenge 5k, crossing that finishing line with that yellow rose, was intensely emotional. I proved to myself that cancer could not keep me down, and I did it with thousands of others proving the very same thing.

Now, 5 years removed from my cancer diagnosis, I continue to push myself. I picked up road biking and ride the Philadelphia Challenge every year. I rode RAGBRAI with Team LIVESTRONG last year and completed my first century ride. This year I?m heading back to Iowa, but not before I run my first ever half marathon in May. These events are not bucket list items. They are a direct assault on the idea that cancer is in control.

Team LIVESTRONG events, like RAGBRAI, are best experienced first-hand. And while the types of events vary considerably, the theme is universal. You are joining the fight against cancer. I always encourage everyone to join the team. Together we can attack those Pennsylvania hills, stop for Farm Boys burritos on a warm Iowa morning, or charge that finish line in downtown Austin.

Russ Dudley
Team LIVESTRONG Mentor