TH4OW Results are in

Hey there, race fans…the inaugural TriAdventure Summer Sprint Triathlon is in the books and the final results have been posted.  Plus, the first ever “Tri Hard for Orphans and Water” is complete, and we have those results as well!

The event was very well organized and well executed.  Over 240 people participated. The weather was perfect and I think everyone had a good time. My time was just a little off the winner’s pace, so my turn on the medal podium will have to wait until next year.  But, the good news is there was some noticeable improvement in my times from my first triathlon last September, even though this course was a little more challenging, hilly-wise. Here’s the breakdown:

Overall: 1:28:18 – 89th out of 121 men
Swim (400m): 9:22 – 69th
Transition 1: 1:43 – 55th
Bike (12.4 mi.): 44:27 – 72nd
Transition 2: 1:57 – 114th (getting pretty tired at this point!)
Run (5k): 30:51 – 103rd

My competition partner, who was competing in his FIRST triathlon, did a fantastic job and came in just slightly behind me, but we passed each other a couple times and ran together a while which made it even more fun. He will crush me next time, I’m sure of it.  His time was 1:30:14, good enough for 93rd place out of 121 as a ROOKIE. Race Day photos are below. Many thanks to the event organizers who did a fantastic job.

Setup Events

TriAdventure

Tri Hard for Orphans and Water

Our combined time was2:58:32, which means the winner of the TH4OW Mega Prize Pack is….

JONATHAN COST

with a winning guess of:

3:01:30

Jonathan was off by only 2 minutes and 58 seconds! Thanks so much to all who participated. I’m also pleased to report that all the funds have been raised for my trip costs! I will report a final total soon as I have a couple “verbals” still to come in, but this has been an incredible blessing to me to have received so much support and to know that I don’t have to worry about paying for the trip. God is faithful and he has provided through so many! The trip is still a month away and I can now focus on preparing for the trip, which is super exciting.

Picture time…

Breakfast + encouragement from my wife

Transition area prepped and ready

My racing buddy, Jonathan

Poorly done panorama of the Transition Area - but check out those steps we had to run UP. Yuck.

Swim Finish - had a little trouble getting that dumb swim cap off!*

Due to technical difficulties, the only real shot of me on the bike. The runner in black timed his appearance perfectly.

Beginning of the run, after I climbed all those dumb steps!

Jonathan heading for the finish. Proud of him, even if he did get there first!

Very flattering shot of my sprint to the finish line*

My Awesome Cheerleaders

This made it all worth it!

*Note: This pictures are obviously proofs.  The official race photos were taken by Red Barn Photography and I’m currently in the process of placing an order, so I’ll replace these with the “legal” versions once received.  These are just a screen capture from the Red Barn website.

 

Extreme Makeover: Korah Edition!

Our trip team has had several “virtual” meetings over the last few weeks and things are getting VERY exciting! We found out about a new ministry opportunity – at the invitation of the local church leaders, we get to do an “Extreme Home Makeover” in Korah for TWO homes! We’ll be re-mudding the walls, painting, installing new linoleum floors and helping to furnish with new cooking equipment, mattresses and food.  What a tremendous chance to MAN UP, DIG DEEP and do something BIG together.

We also have begun to hear some details about a feature-length movie that is going to be made about this trip. Randy Bacon is bringing a film crew to document this journey so this story of what God is doing can be re-told. He hopes to inspire others to Love BIG because we have a BIG God. Filming has already begun!  Below is a trailer from a one of Randy’s recent films, so you can see this is going to be a top-notch production.

Fundraising Update

Y’all, I am amazed once again at how the people of God have come together to support this trip. There has been a steady stream of donations, large and small, that have closed the gap on this trip cost to the point where all that’s left to raise is $341.50. But today I received one of the largest donations ever.  Right after dinner our doorbell rang. A van-full of my nieces and nephews showed up and handed me the envelopes in the picture below.  They were stuffed full of cash (both paper and coin varieties) they had each saved for tithing, and each had written me a note.

Yet again I was at a loss for words. These great kids, even at their young ages, have taught me a lesson in generosity, faith and loving BIG. It reminds me of a story in Mark 12 about a poor widow who gave only two small coins to the temple offering, worth only a few cents, while others were giving much more.  But Jesus said she is the one who gave more because she “gave extravagantly what she couldn’t afford” (Mark 12:44, The Message). They have Manned Up! Thank you so much, Kimzey Kids!

There’s only 36 hours left to get in on the Tri Hard for Orphans and Water prize giveaway the race is Sunday morning, June 26. Click on the link above for details. Will you consider helping me to reach this goal before Sunday morning? Once the trip is paid for, then we move into PHASE 2 of the fundraising, which will be a lot of fun.  More details soon…but I’ll give you a hint: Man Up for Goats!

 

Why I am doing this

You see that little thing in the middle with the pink shirt and one shoe on?

This is a picture of my daughters during our recent vacation at our traditional spot on the swing outside the Nature Center.  We have pictures on this swing going back about 7 years and I love seeing the growth – both in size and number!

Last night these 4 girls and my great wife took me out to dinner for Father’s Day (long story – but there were no crowds!).  Two things happened that stopped me dead in my tracks.  On the way there in the family van amongst all the hubub and din of 6 hungry people in a small space, this little voice comes from the biggest car seat screaming “DAD-DY! DAD-DY! DAD-DY!” on and on and on.  At first it just blended in to the noise of the ride but then Jody pointed out what she was saying.

There hadn’t really been any big build up to a big “Daddy” celebration so it was cute that she just started chanting my name. But even more importantly, when this beautiful little person was born there was no Daddy. Hers was to be a life of poverty, chronic illness, hunger, and fatherless-ness.  I’ve always thought childbirth is an amazing miracle, but I have witnessed how adoption is a different, but equally amazing miracle.  God took a dopey guy like me and gave this girl a father. I mess up constantly and could certainly do way better, but even my worst day is better than…nothing.  I digress. Let me continue the story.

So there we are, food finally at the table after a few trips “to the van” for Little Miss Impatient. Everyone’s ready to eat and Jody is about to say a quick prayer when that same little voice speaks up.  Her head is bowed low, hands folded carefully and we all hear:

“Dear Jesus, Nank-oo food, Nank-oo Daddy. Aaaaaay-men!”

And she looks up as proud as can be. (FYI, in case you don’t speak Zoe-gibberish, “nank-oo” is “Thank you”)  My heart was about to burst. Again I was completely humbled to the point where no words would come out.  For those of you who don’t already know Zoe, there are only two speeds – 150% and asleep.  For her to stop in the midst of all the activity and impending feast to take care of the prayer is…well…yet another miracle I’ve now witnessed.

I share this to give you a window into the life of an adoptive family. On one hand it’s just like anyone else’s life. On another hand there are moments where the blessings that we receive transcend anything you can imagine. And she is just one child. There are so many more who need a Father, a Mother, a family. In the big picture it takes so little to make such a big difference in someone’s life. For us, it was a tiny girl in Ethiopia. But there are kids all of the world, all over the US, even all over Virginia, who could be the next member of your family.

As you may already know, I’m going to be visiting the fatherless in Uganda and Ethiopia this summer. Trip info is here. The trip is not cheap, but I have been blessed to receive over 75% of the cost in donations already. I only need another $955 to have the trip paid for, and that’s when the fun begins.  Any FUNds raised beyond that will be to help the people and places to which we’ll be traveling.

I’m doing this little triathlon thing and you can give one of two ways – donate to our trip in my name directly to Visiting Orphans who is administering the trip, or by clicking on our Paypal button on the right to donate to me directly and you’ll also have a chance to win a fat-daddy prize package by guessing the closest to the combined time for me and my friend who are running this race together. You can enter for as little as $10. Find out the details on the Tri Hard for Orphans and Water page but the race is THIS SUNDAY morning so you only have a few days to submit your entries. I just finished my last big run this morning and can’t wait to do this – time for the Black Potato to suit up!

 

Tri HARD to Love BIG

Only 12 MORE DAYS until the triathlon! Where did this summer go and who thought it would be a good idea to sign up for a triathlon in June? Actually, although the training has been a little sparse compared to last summer, the workouts have gone pretty well and I’m feeling good about getting through this thing and crossing the finish line.

Crossing the finish line during last year’s Tri4Korah

I’m also feeling good about how awesome YOU all are for helping support this trip.  The final cost of the trip has been nailed down – $4,027 – which is a big number, but thanks to the contributions that have already rolled in we are over half-way there!  The grand total so far is $2,722!

But that means there is still another $1,305 to go before we can cross the first finish line together.  Let’s knock that number out ASAP so we can get to some BIG fundraising that can buy things like goats, mattresses and other supplies that can really help the Ugandans and Ethiopians we’ll encounter on our trip…

The Village of Korah – A short documentary from Sam Nuttmann on Vimeo.

The children’s prison “M” in Uganda where we will visit…

God’s Children from Sixty Feet on Vimeo.

BIG fundraising means lots of opportunities to love BIG! That is what we want to do on this trip. If you want to love BIG with us, click here to find out how you can give BIG!

 

Happy Birthday, Troy!

Many thanks to Amber Lucht, who gave a donation to TH4OW in honor of her husband Troy’s birthday, June 4! Here’s hoping it was a great celebration and Troy has a great year ahead. Take a minute and head on over to the Lucht’s Blog to see what’s going on with their family, and support their upcoming adoption. I also want to thank Amber for multiplying her blessing – honoring the father of her child on his birthday and supporting efforts to minister among the fatherless in Africa at the same time! What a fantastic idea…plus now the Luchts have a chance to win the TH4OW Mega-prize-pack-of-awesomeness.

Troy (green shirt) and Silas (in the tub)

Thanks to Amber’s great idea, I’d like to invite anyone else who’d like to honor someone by making a donation in their name to this upcoming trip.  If you’d like to honor someone for their birthday or other special event with a donation to the Man Up 4 Orphans trip, just let me know.  I’ll also plan a special Father’s Day post if anyone would like to contribute in honor of a special Father in their lives, on behalf of those without a Father that I’ll get to be with in August.  You’ll get to see your special person’s name in the glittering lights of the internet! Instructions for donating can be found here.