3 days left and over $7,500 raised for the RunForTheThree. Truly amazing! Final preparations are being made, mental notes are being filed, and the game plan has been put together.……

Anyone interested in following “live” via text message or email can now go to http://www.clevelandmarathon.com/ or click here. If anyone still has not made a pledge but would like to click here. Thanks to all and everyone that has helped make this such a success!

10 days......

10 days and counting. The butterflies have started and I can’t imagine how I’m going to be feeling at the start line. After 5 months of work I get chills thinking about everything finally coming together and laying it all on the line to make 3:10…..with the RFTT there’s no hiding failure on this one.

To date we have exceeded the $6,700 mark with $7,000 right there in our sights. If you have not done so please go to www.runforthethree.com and make your pledge and join the over 110 individual and families that have helped support the RFTT. I also want to give my very special thanks to the little girl who sent me a pledge yesterday that did chores around the house to make the money to support the cause. Wow, talk about humbling…..stay tuned.

RFTT Update.......

22 days and counting until race day and the final touches are put on the RFTT. With all of the support thus far totals have climbed to over $6,300 dollars. For all the math majors out there, that’s roughly $241 per mile. Time is running out so if you have not done so please go to http://www.runforthethree.com/ and pledge your support or forms can also be downloaded here.

A very cool option on race day that is not currently up yet but will be is to track my “live” progress during the race via text message. The messages are sent at 4 different points during the race with splits and pace. This run tracker usually doesn’t become an option through http://www.clevelandmarathon.com/ until right before race day, as soon as I see it I will post it here.

Training is going well and I’m wrapping up my final big week (60 miles) before I start to taper for race day. Anyone following me on Twitter knows I’m working hard to punch the miles out day by day to prepare myself for what will no doubt be the most important run of my life. Each day when I wake up at 4:15am or get off the treadmill at 1:45am I think about Kyle and how important this is to what he loved most….his family. I just hope I have done enough, stay tuned…..

5,215 Reasons to Run......

83......yup, that is the number of responders in building the RunForTheThree. Incredible. Each day more and more forms make their way into my mailbox and each day we all take a step closer to helping make a difference. To date from all 83 responders the RFTT effort has managed to raise over $5215 for the Steffan Children's Education Fund.

To all that have responded from the bottom of my heart, I say thank you. To those that haven't, there are exactly 42 days left until the Cleveland Marathon and I pound out 26.2 miles in tribute to Kyle. Forms can be downloaded here or you can fill out an electronic pledge form by going to http://www.runforthethree.com/.

Training, well let's just say as of this week a slight "setback" has occurred. It's nothing that will keep me from running the marathon or pushing the 3:10 mark....it's just a little something that makes the journey all that much more special. The legendary machine of a man that is Lance Armstrong once said...."Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit however, it lasts forever.” Enough said.......

Running to make a Difference.....

Wow, what can I say. Coming into the 4th week of the RunForTheThree and already we have overcome the the $3,000 dollar mark.....$3344.15 to be exact. The support and gratitude that everyone has shown is tremendous and very humbling, and I know we are only getting started.

To everyone that has supported the Run let me be the first to say thank you. Please continue to pass it on and encourage all that you know to help. It all makes a difference. To make a pledge via the web go to http://www.runforthethree.com/ or download a pledge form here.

Training wise things are well. For anyone keeping score, I'm finishing up week 5 of 16 to prepare for the run. And to all those that checked the 3:10 challenge, thanks for the inspiration. Believe me when I tell you there isn't one part of me that is not pushing each and every day to make you part with that extra money. Stay tuned....

RunForTheThree

In the end, it's not the years in your life that count, it's the life in your years.

~Abraham Lincoln.

Sometimes in life things do not always go as planned. Sometimes, life can test who and what we are made of. As in the loss of my good friend Kyle Steffan. Kyle, 28, touched the lives of many. From his dedication to family and friends to his enthusiasm for life, he was a special person we all knew and loved.

The time that Kyle shared with all of us ended too quickly however, the memories and moments we shared will last forever. On May 17, 2009 I will run the Cleveland Marathon (26.2 miles) in memory of Kyle and in support of the Steffan Children’s Education Fund. Please join me in helping to give back to someone that gave so much to us. Help me by supporting the RunForTheThree. Click here to download a RunForTheThree pledge form or fill out an electronic version at www.runforthethree.com

Ben Pearson Archery 2009

Check out the pages of the new Ben Pearson Archery catalog for 2009...

http://www.shootlikeben.com/products/BenPearson09Catalog.pdf