As I notice how many of you have generously voted for our "Kona Inspired" video, I am humbled by your gesture. I am also humbled by the company of the inspirational videos that I am collected with. You would think that watching all of those videos would be depressing, but on the contrary it just reminds me why I am doing all of this. We are celebrating LIFE! Shawn is our miracle! We feel God blessed us with Shawn's successful surgeries for the purpose of helping other families that are dealing with similar issues.
We realize that Shawn's conditions are the "rarest of rare" and affect 1 in 35 million children. Starting a foundation for that is just ludicrous, and I realize that, but that is not the reason the foundation was started. 1 in 30 children are born with some sort of abnormality that needs medical treatment and that stat is staggering to me. As a parent that witnessed their child go through such treatment and surgeries, I can assure you there are several things that medical insurance does not cover including food, housing for immediate family members and sometimes even parents, parking, transportation such as flights to get to where your need to get treatment, etc. The demand is large, but the assistance is few. Ronald McDonald house alone has to say, "I'm sorry, but we don't have enough resources to help" more than they can say, "Welcome!" THIS is why we started Shawn's Anomaly.
I know I may sometimes come across as a broken record, obsessed, or even crazy about spreading awareness about what we are doing. If you have ever been offended, or know someone who has been, please accept, and let those those know that may never see this blog, my apologies. That just means that I have failed miserably from expressing our mission correctly.
With all that said, I know hope you now understand why I am pushing to get to the Ironman World Championship in Kona, HI. On May 19, 2012, I became "Shawn's Ironman", but now I am want to race on the world stage for the 1 in 30 children that are born with abnormalities. I know that having the opportunity to be a featured athlete at Kona will spread awareness and help us raise the money needed to start medical research and assist families. I know that unless you have gone through this (and I pray every day that you never do), you may not understand my obsession to get the word out. I can't get there without your help though, so that is why I constantly beg and plead for your votes.
I am currently in 22nd place with my Kona Inspired video, but this is just the first round. If I am fortunate to be one of the 45 selected, then the voting really starts. Of the 86 entries into this contest, they will take the top 45 and split them into three groups of 15. The videos will be made available via the Kona Inspired Application for final Public Evaluation and sharing during the applicable time period as follows:
First Group of 15- June 4, 2012-June 18, 2012
Second Group of 15-June 19, 2012-July 3, 2012
Third group of 15-July 4, 2012-July 18, 2012
We are not in the top 45 yet, so please continue to vote, and most importantly, share with all your friends about voting for video. Remember, it is not about me, it is not about my family, and it is not even about Shawn. Although Shawn's medical journey is my inspiration to start this "Anything Is Possible" journey, it is ultimately about helping families from ever having to go through what we did with Shawn without education, hope, and help.
Thank you again to all of those that have supported us! I would not be where I am without you!
I know you are probably tired of me asking for votes, but I really hope you understand how much it would mean to the Shawn's Anomaly mission if I made it. Just in the past two local events (Kemah Triathlon & Ironman Texas) that I have been a part of, we have found two families that we are providing education, hope, and help to while their children are undergoing treatment. This just happened on a local level. Imagine what the exposure the Ironman World Championship will do since it is on a world stage.
Thank for everyone that is helping. You are doing a great job! Remember, sharing the link with all your friends is the GREATEST way to get votes that we need! Click the Vote Link Above!
I am still not sure if what I have done has really sunk in yet, but sometime after 10pm on May 19th, 2012, I became a part of the 1% of the world that has finished an Ironman. I can't believe that I did it, and most of all, I can't believe how good I feel today. I know that it would take several posts for me to tell all my stories because most of them are coming back to me little by little. Here are the immediate things that I remember: the familiar faces, the lens cap, the two angels of the bike leg, my running partner, and the announcement at the finish line.
Over the past two years, I have really gotten to know so many new friends either through training, Facebook, events, etc. I could not believe how many of them showed up back in my life immediately prior to IMTX including Edward Raudez, Dave Shaw, Carlos Suarez, Brandon Pounds, Jeff Farmer, Justin from Bicycle World, Sylvia Escobedo, Aaron & Rebekah Palaian, Chad Cook, Sabrina Haun, Bill & Gabrielle Baumeyer, and many many more that I just can't remember right now. I am sorry if I did not mention you by name and we had some interaction. In reality, the whole weekend is still somewhat a blur to me, and it is coming back to me in bits and pieces.
The one that stood out the most was Lillian Sockwell. I first met Lillian at a HRTC meeting a few months ago and we interacted on Facebook, but I could not believe how much she was going to be in my life this weekend. Lillian was there to check me in on Wednesday, then she was there at the body marking before the swim, and finally she was there there as one of those catching me at the finish line. To have a familiar face like that show up in so many place will be branded in my mind forever. Of course after further interaction with her on Facebook, I realized that she may be branded in more than just my memories of becoming an Ironman, but many, according to her arm notes. Top it all off, she is one of the nicest people you will ever meet and her smile is infectious. Thanks Lillian for helping me through the whole weekend. Hopefully I can do the same for you next year.
As I came through the canal just yards from the swim exit, I wanted to make sure that that I got close to the family and friends that made it out to the Ironman Texas. This was really the first time that they were ever able to see me up close while swimming. Usually they just see me take off and wait till I come out of the water. Sometimes they would catch me as I came out of the water, but other times they didn't. I saw Todd, Shawn's Anomaly Volunteer Coordinator, and I yelled out to him while I was swimming. He heard me and started gathering up everyone to come out to the dock. I finally saw Veronica (Shawn's Anomaly Associate Director), my mom, Todd, and my beautiful wife with our camera. I was so proud of her that she grabbed the camera, but then I realized that the lens cap was on. This should not show any reflection on Rachel or her ability to use a camera. I have done this several times in my life too, so I knew I should try to tell her. As I was breathing, I decided to yell, "RACHEL", stroke, "THE LEN'S CAP IS ON", stroke, "RACHEL", stroke, "I LOVE YOU!" She took the cap off, and took some pretty amazing shots. Let's hope she does not make me sleep on the couch for telling you that story.
There were people that God sent my way during the bike portion of the race, and I wish, I knew them better. If you have come here to see this blog and you can verify who these people are, I would greatly appreciate you getting us in contact with each other. First person came to me in the transition tent. I was taking out all my gear when I noticed that I did not have my socks. I could not believe it. I was mortified because I new that I would be going a good 60 miles or so before I would have another pair available. It was really the only mistake I made in my gear bags. Fortunately, while I was talking to a fellow competitor about my situation, he yelled out, "Does anyone have an extra pair of socks!?!" Suddenly, #828 (I think) threw me a pair. I was so grateful, and I would love to show you my appreciation now that the race is done. Second was the unnamed angel that may or may have not been an athlete in the race. You were somewhere around mile 100 on the bike. I was spent, and I was 99% sure that I was not going to be able to finish. All of a sudden you look up, you saw me, and said, "Shawn is waiting for you at the finish!" That is all the motivation that I needed to not only finish the bike, but take it one step at a time on the run. Who were you? How did you know me, our story? Either way, you will definitely be my 2 angels of the bike.
At the run aid station 4 on my second loop, I was walking with my new friend Andrew Reina (coincidentally the brother of Michael Reina of Texas Children's Hospital who posted our story on their blog on Thursday). I saw another familiar face whom I had gotten to know in the past few months with OnUrMark: Shauna Hall. Until that time, I was struggling, a lot, and you could tell she was too as she was stretching on the trash can. We had seen each other on the bike a little, but we did not have much time to converse till now. This timing was perfect, however, for both of us. We both needed support, and we found it in each other. We decided that we were going to finish this run (or walk) together, and nothing was going to stop us from becoming an Ironman that day. She pushed me, and I pushed her, but when it was time to rest and walk at a fast pace, we felt it together. It was amazing! Just thinking about it right now is making me tear up. My wife was relieved that we had found each other and I am sure her support team felt the same way. Shauna, together, we became an IRONMAN, and I would not have wanted it any other way. Thanks!
Finally, it was time for the chute. Shauna and I had already decided that she was going to go first, and I would follow up behind her so we could both enjoy the moment. I had everything planned out in my head on what I wanted to do. I was going to high five as many people as I could through the shoot, pump up the crowd as I always do, stop and kiss my wife and son by the stage, and run through the finish. All of that ended in a completely different way. As soon as I made it to the shoot, a rush of memories entered my head. I remembered all of the 14 previous finishes that I had completed in the last 2 years of smaller races or "just marathons", I started to see all the struggles and fights that Rachel and I had while I we were trying to find life balance with training, I remembered that I quit smoking to finish this race; and I remembered...Shawn's 3 Surgeries...and why I was doing this. I threw my hands up in the air, and I prayed my thankfulness to a God that obviously loves and has blessed us in an overflowing way.
It all hit me at once, and I could not contain my tears. What happened next? I will let you see for yourself as captured by my good friend, Gabrielle Baumeyer:
Thank you Mike Reilly (Voice Of Ironman) for making my finish as unique as our son's anomaly, and thank you again Gabrielle for capturing that moment!
One down, Kona to go, but I can't get there without your vote. Please vote and share at least once per day between now and May 31st. Together we can cross a finish line that will help thousands of families from going through the struggles we did with Shawn's birth abnormalities
Rachel McNeill of KPRC Channel 2 did an amazing job telling our story today during the 5:00 news on 5/15/2012. I can't tell you how honored we were to have her tell our story first here in the Houston media. Shawn even likes "Local 2"! I don't know how she did it, but she was able to tell everything that you needed to know about our journey in a little over 2 minutes. That is some high quality reporting. Thanks again Rachel.
Next up, the Ironman Foundation Featured Athlete Panel/Press Conference on Thursday, May 17, 2012 at 12:45pm CST at Ironman Village in The Woodlands, TX. Watch live on www.ironmanlive.com.
For those of you that are looking to follow me on Saturday, here are a few ways of doing so:
Example of a My Athlete Live Shadow
Option 1: The coolest way that you can track me is through the My Athlete Live Shadow tracking. I will be wearing a small cellular box called a shadow on the course that will track the bike and the run portion (Sorry folks they told me not to wear it during the swim. It should be a lot of fun, and if you see the little dot stop, send an ambulance:
To track online or with iPhone, iPad, etc: CLICK HERE
Handheld PDA/Blackberry/Palm: CLICK HERE
My Race Number
Option 2: You can also go to www.ironmanlive.com. This is where you can see the coverage of the interviews, and when I cross over a timing mat. It is not as fancy, but in case of bad cell coverage, that is going to be choice two. I am also sure you can watch the event live. Make sure to tune in around 9:00pm CST and after. That is about when I should be finishing.
Option 3: I will be tweeting before the race, and the Shawn's Anomaly associate director, Veronica, will be tweeting during the event, so keep an eye out for the updates at www.twitter.com/shawnsironman. If you have a twitter account, follow us and RT all of those tweets to your followers.
Option 4: Being at the event is the ultimate way to see, smell, and feel everything. Of course if you can choose this option, I can track you too.
Whatever option that you choose, I want to thank you in advance for following me. This has been 2 years in the making and to know that I will be done on May 19th around 9:00 is very humbling and overwhelming. You support has got me to where I am.
I have had several people who have tried to support me, but because of the layout or other issues they are having difficulty. First of all, I want to say THANK YOU so much for showing your support. I decided to post step by step instructions to aid you and prevent any future headaches.
Step 1: If you are on an Apple Mobile Product (iPad, iPod, iPhone), you need to use a different link. CLICK HERE. You can only vote one time with this link, but it will be an important vote because it is from a unique IP address. You can however vote as many times as you like on your Macbook Desktops or Laptops with the other link below.
Step 2: If you get to the www.konainspired.com website and the "Shawn's Ironman" video does not start, you will need to do a search for the video (If the "Shawn's Ironman" video starts, skip to Step 5):
Step 3: In the Keyword Box, search "Shawn's Ironman". Don't forget to include the quotation marks.
Step 4: Click on the video to start the video and get to the vote button.
Step 5: Now that they video has started, avoid the vote now at the top right. This is a bit confusing, but it actually takes back to the home page and it looks like it is not doing anything.
Step 6: You are now able cast your vote by clicking on the "Vote For This" at the bottom left of the video. Once you cast your vote, please click on the "Share" button at the bottom right.
Step 7: Thank you for you vote and clicking on Share. Now you can click on one of the 3 buttons to share via Email, Facebook, or Twitter.
I know that this may seem like a lot of work, but I promise you it only takes a few seconds and you can vote as many times as you want. Rachel voted 50 times in a row last night by just hitting refresh once she voted. I am not sure if they count or not, but if you are willing to do it, it would not hurt.
Once again, thank you for all your support. You are not only helping me get to the Ironman World Championship, but you are bringing awareness to Shawn's Anomaly that provides Education, Hope, & Help to Families Affected by Congenital Anomalies like we did with Shawn. MAHALO
I am so excited to announce to everyone today that, I have been chosen to be one of the Ironman Foundation featured athletes at Ironman Texas. Here is what I received:
The Ironman Foundation would like to provide you with the opportunity to be part of the Ironman Foundation Featured Athlete Panel/Press Conference. The panel interview will take place at the Ironman Expo Village on Thursday May 17th at 12:45PM, immediately following the Pro Panel/Press Conference. During this panel interview, we will present an overview of the Ironman Foundation’s programs and you the foundation athletes, with the opportunity to tell of your journey to become an Ironman and racing for a cause. This is a great opportunity to get the word out about your cause.
I cannot tell you how honored to have been asked to do this. I know that it will really help expose Shawn's Anomaly to people all over the world. This is AMAZING!
I am so excited to announce a new chance to get to Kona, and it is up to you to get me there!
It is called Kona Inspired. WTC asked people to submit a video that shows the Ironman mantra "Anything Is Possible"!
I submitted my video today but I need your help. WTC will decide the finalist based on views and votes. I ask that you please go to the link below and VOTE, VOTE, VOTE, for my video. You can vote once a day, so keep coming back. It takes just a few seconds of your day. Please share/email all your friends about voting as well.
I feel we have a really good chance. The voting closes on May 31st, so please tell as many people as you can. Like I said, a few seconds of your day can really go a long way to getting me to Kona to become "Shawn's Ironman"
As I notice how many of you have generously voted for our "Kona Inspired" video, I am humbled by your gesture. I am also humbled by the company of the inspirational videos that I am collected with. You would think that watching all of those videos would be depressing, but on the contrary it just reminds me why I am doing all of this. We are celebrating LIFE! Shawn is our miracle! We feel God blessed us with Shawn's successful surgeries for the purpose of helping other families that are dealing with similar issues.
