THANK YOU

To everyone who supported me in 2011 with my fundraising.  I raised over $10 500 for the Jodi Lee Foundation, so thank you all.  Please have a look around the rest of this site - there is a lot of information about bowel cancer awareness, general health and preventative medicine, my efforts in training for my first marathon after starting to run at the age of 37, and other musings as a runner.

12 Weeks to go!!!!!

I wanted to take this opportunity to loudly and gratefully thank all you who have donated to the Jodi Lee Foundation in support of my running efforts this year.  Every dollar helps, and as of this week, I have only $2656 left to raise.

Thank you for donating online via my website and the Jodi Lee Foundation website.  Thank you for donating directly to me.  Thank you for supporting my fundraising events - at Morrison, the Diamonds and Drinks night at EverettBrookes Jewellers and my Family Fun Day at Team Trampoline.  Thank you for donating prizes that can be raffled off.  Thank you for buying Rocky Road and cupcakes at Vital Core Physiotherapy!

My running training is going really well.  I am doing sessions that are much harder than I really thought about before I committed to following this program.  This week my sprint session consisted of 3 x 1600m sprints.  Now, it is true that I cannot actually sprint for 7 minutes.  But I ran hard and fast and had my heart rate up high.  It was less horrible than last weeks 6 x 800m.  Which was my hardest session to date - harder than 12 x 400m.  The 19 km on the weekend is very very easy in comparison!!  I am still running only 3 times a week, and this will continue to be my pattern.  The knee pain that was troubling me a few months ago has settled completely.  I am stretching almost every day, doing a hard yoga class every week and some cross training where I can.  Time is getting pretty pressed with extra work hours, so I am looking forward to the gradually longer days and drier weather to come.

I did a 10 km time trial last month in 45 mins 55 which I was pretty pleased with, and did another 10km training session the same week in 47 minutes, so there is some pace there sometimes.

I have entered in the Adelaide half marathon on the 28th August - Henley High to Adelaide Oval via Westlakes - 21.1km of running, for my second ever running event.  I am also going to compete in the City Bay Fun Run on September 18th.  This will be my first City Bay, and I'll have to run there and back that day (26 km run according to my program)!  I will be with the other runners for the Jodi Lee Foundation - keep an eye out for us in our Little Black Dresses (well, black tutu over the running gear!).  It will be great to be part of a big event with such a happy atmosphere!

There are now only 12 weeks to go until I am in New York, so I am getting pretty excited.

At this stage I may hold one more fundraising event so I will keep you posted.  I will definitely do another raffle as I have a few prizes donated but I need a few more.  If you have anything you can offer, it would be most gratefully received.

Bowel cancer is the 2nd most common form of cancer affecting Australians.  But early screening saves lives - 90% of all bowel cancer can be cured if it is caught early enough.  The Jodi Lee Foundation are a great cause, promoting awareness of Bowel Cancer Screening.  If you are able to give, it is most gratefully received.  Thank you again if you have already.

Love to all,

Tory xxxx

12 week update

After 12 weeks of running, there have been some pretty good changes.  I have gone from running twice a week, doing only long runs to mixing things up with speed work.  I have done my first 10 km time trial, finishing in 50 min 46, but in hindsight I was too slow for my first 5 km.  I started a 10 km training program 6 weeks ago that I found on the internet with the intention to build up speed and lactate tolerance.  It has made a dramatic difference.  At 4 weeks I did a half marathon - the longest run I've done to date, in the first running event I've ever done.  I did that in 1 hour 44 - faster than my 10 km run had been 4 weeks earlier.  I'll do another time trial at the end of the 8 week block, in a fortnight.  Then my marathon program will start another month or so later.

My fundraising is progressing along - the event at Morrison was a success, raising $1400 for the Jodi Lee Foundation, of which $700 has contributed to my tally.  My total raised now (15th May) is $2753.  Most of these have been donations via the website, with some cash contributions at work via my receipt book.  I am now just over a quarter of the way towards my total, so please continue to let others know!!!  I continue to talk to as many people as I can about my running, the Jodi Lee Foundation and bowel cancer screening. I'll do my screening next week.

Tory is a partner, a mother, a friend, a physio, an athlete.  Or trying to be an athlete again.  She was a member of the Australian Rowing team from 1991 – 1996, winning the World Junior Championships in the women’s pair in 1992 in Montreal, and winning a silver medal in the Women’s pair at the 1993 World Championships in Prague, and a Bronze medal in the Women’s Four at the 1994 World Championships in 1994.  Tory was a rowing scholarship holder at the SA Sports Institute from 1989 – 1996 and at the Australian Institute of Sport 1994 – 1996.  She retired from elite level sport in 1996 after the Atlanta Olympic Games at the age of 22.

15 years later, she has decided to tie the running shoes on and transform herself into a distance runner for charity!  Most of the last 15 years have been geared towards career – finishing university (put on hold whilst rowing), and establishing herself as a women’s health physio in Adelaide, and towards family, raising her two young children.  Fitness has been sporadic in the intervening years.  A little bike riding, mainly in short bursts in preparation for the Amy Gillett Foundation rides each year ‘Amy’s Ride’. An opportunity for a short venture into competition arose around a year ago, when Tory had an opportunity to join the Grange Surf Lifesaving Club women’s boat crew.  The team was selected as a SA State representative team, and the girls placed third in their interstate competitions and were well placed in the top 30 or so entries at the Australian Surf Lifesaving Titles before poor weather cancelled the competition in 2010.

But this year, Tory has a bigger goal. Tory is training to run the New York Marathon 2011!!!!  The biggest marathon in the world.  120,000 people apply to run the five bridges and five boroughs race.  45,000 get in.  Thanks to her partnership with the Jodi Lee Foundation, she get to be one of those 45,000. She will run from Staten Island, through Brooklyn and Queens, into Manhattan, through the Bronx, back to Manhattan and finish in Central Park, 42.195 km later.  She will not walk.  She promises.

Lawrence Photography and Design

A big thanks to Charlie at Lawrence Photography and Design. My partner and also a very talented local designer / photographer. Charlie was responsible for this website design, and many of the photos you see in the galleries. Visit his work at Lawrence Photography.

Alex Kebbell Web Design and Hosting

Another big thanks to Alex Kebbell Web Design. Working with Charlie, Alex was tireless in his efforts in building this fantastic site. The site is built using the latest CMS technology which allows me to regularly update the site, my blog and post images. He also provides great hosting and domain registration plans so visit him to get the best deal and service in Adelaide.