While some of you have been asking about my training and the launch of Racing for SickKids, I wanted to take a brief minute to share with everyone exactly what it is we are doing and how you can help.
Our goal is to use my preparation for the 2008 Florida Ironman as a vehicle to raise awareness and money for SickKids Hospital in memory of Jon Holiday. In visiting this site, we will share his story and update you on my training progress.
Jon was the youngest of Mike and Carole Holiday’s five children. My first introduction to the Holiday clan was through eldest son Kevin at age 13. Earliest memories include full contact mini-hockey games in his basement. Of course his younger brothers, Chris and Lawnboy, were trying to get into the games as younger brothers are wont to do.
While I didn’t know it at the time, this kid they called Lawn, whose real name I finally learned was Jon, had already been through far more than most go through in a lifetime. Only hours after being born with no signs of colour, he was rushed to SickKids hospital to have an emergency procedure to punch a hole in his heart. It was discovered that in addition to being born with a hole inside his heart, there were other problems such as arteries being in the wrong spots including his aorta being positioned towards the back of his heart instead of the front.
At the time, ultrasounds and pre-natal tests could do little to detect his many conditions. He spent the first two weeks of his life at SickKids receiving some of the best treatment anywhere in the world. Unfortunately he would be back.
Training Update
With the big race still 29 weeks away, there are a number of other races and events to focus on and get my fitness ready. First on the list is the Mississauga Marathon next month. My goal is to qualify for the Boston Marathon which means I must run under 3hours 11 minutes. I made the same attempt last fall and ran 3:17…so I have some work to do.
This winter my training has been pretty good. That is to say, I have consistently been in the pool a couple times a week, riding about 3x, and running 3x. I also aim to get 1-2 core workouts in when I can.
This offseason has also been hectic: I was fortunate enough to be on a “family” cruise in the fall, at a friend’s wedding in Dominican shortly after New Year’s and recent got back from a trip to Mexico. Somewhere in there, we managed to sell our condo, buy a house, and move. Oh yes, there was work too which has been interesting with the US housing marketing exploding. While all fun times, it is just now that I feel like I am getting down to business and focusing on what I need to do to get ready first for Mississauga next month and ultimately Florida in November.
Short term goals: getting down to my ‘race’ weight and doing a couple long runs in the 3hr range over the next two weeks.
If this past week is any indication, I am on the right track.
HOW YOU CAN HELP: there are so many demands and good causes to help support and we can’t help them all. If you have yet to select a charity of choice for 2008 than I would urge you to consider supporting the SickKids Cardiology division .
Friday, April 11, 2008
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THE CAUSE
Regardless of what brought you to our site, we welcome you. Simply put, Racing for SickKids – Ironman Florida 2008 exists for a sole purpose: to raise as much money as we can to support Cardiac Care at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.
The division of Cardiology at SickKids was established over 60 years ago and is now one of the largest and most successful of its kind. Like many of the Hospitals’ departments and programs they are world-class innovators, teachers and caregivers. But the real reason SickKids and the Cardiology group is so important to me among the many, many other causes and charities is what they did for my friend, Jonathan Holiday.
I am using the platform of training for and racing in an Ironman Triathlon to share his story. The physical challenges are quantifiable: I will swim 3.9km, cycle 180km and run 42km – consecutively. I will be racing 226km (140 miles) or approximately the distance from Toronto to Parry Sound in a single day. While daunting, I find the mental obstacles far more intimidating, notably having the discipline to fit 15 to 20+ hours of training a week into “life” while avoiding injuries and too many trips to the buffet table. While there is certainly a degree of physical and emotional pain in all of this, it pales in comparison to what the kids and their families are forced to endure every day at SickKids.
Jon was one of these kids. To me he was friend, student, and partner-in-crime. To others he was son, brother, grandson, nephew, classmate, teammate, boy friend. To most, he was better known as “Lawnboy”. For all, he was a special person who, at only 17 years old, left us far too early.
100% of the money we raise will support the Jonathan Holiday Fund to support Cardiology at SickKids. Please follow the link at the top right of the page or click HERE to make a secure online donation.
The division of Cardiology at SickKids was established over 60 years ago and is now one of the largest and most successful of its kind. Like many of the Hospitals’ departments and programs they are world-class innovators, teachers and caregivers. But the real reason SickKids and the Cardiology group is so important to me among the many, many other causes and charities is what they did for my friend, Jonathan Holiday.
I am using the platform of training for and racing in an Ironman Triathlon to share his story. The physical challenges are quantifiable: I will swim 3.9km, cycle 180km and run 42km – consecutively. I will be racing 226km (140 miles) or approximately the distance from Toronto to Parry Sound in a single day. While daunting, I find the mental obstacles far more intimidating, notably having the discipline to fit 15 to 20+ hours of training a week into “life” while avoiding injuries and too many trips to the buffet table. While there is certainly a degree of physical and emotional pain in all of this, it pales in comparison to what the kids and their families are forced to endure every day at SickKids.
Jon was one of these kids. To me he was friend, student, and partner-in-crime. To others he was son, brother, grandson, nephew, classmate, teammate, boy friend. To most, he was better known as “Lawnboy”. For all, he was a special person who, at only 17 years old, left us far too early.
100% of the money we raise will support the Jonathan Holiday Fund to support Cardiology at SickKids. Please follow the link at the top right of the page or click HERE to make a secure online donation.
