Will you help me fight blood cancers in 2011?

 

Friends,

I start my 2011 campaign to combat blood cancers today and I want to ask for your support in the form of a $25 donation to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. To donate, please click on my link below:

http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri11/mbingram

Where is this coming from? Well, I started my third year with Team in Training last Saturday (5/14) with the focus on two goals, which include:

1. Raising awareness about blood cancers such as Leukemia and Lymphoma; and
2. Raising more than $2,000 to support cancer research and patient services while training to complete my third Olympic-distance triathlon with Team in Training

One MILLION people are living with, or are in remission from a blood cancer because of support from friends, family, doctors, and donors like you.

Raising Awareness

Blood cancers are diseases that can affect the bone marrow, the blood cells, the lymph nodes and other parts of the lymphatic system.
One person is diagnosed with a blood cancer every four minutes in the United States. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society estimated 137,260 people were diagnosed in 2010.

Ten percent of all new cancer cases in the United States are blood cancers.

Six people lose their battle with cancer every hour. Blood cancers account for ten percent of cancer-related deaths in the U.S.

Simply put, these cancers are relentlessly nasty and must be cured!

Raising Money for Charity 

I’m looking to kick off my fundraising campaign by asking for help from 60 friends. Will you help me by click on the following link?

http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri11/mbingram

I know money is tight for many of us; however, a contribution of $25 will make a big difference for individuals in need of information, treatment and research dollars to find a cure. If you’re willing and able to donate more, I would be very grateful.

Okay – that is it for me for this blog post. Thank you for your time! I look forward to updating you on a regular basis about my training this year.

Best Regards,

Matt

My Experience with Quibids.com



I won five items (2 mp3 players and 3 gift cards) worth $140 for $20 on penny auction and entertainment website, Quibids.com, and I would like to share my experience to help you save money in case you use the website, or a similar one in the future. If you’re a current Quibids.com user, skip to the section named “What I Learned.”

Quibids.com offers you the ability to purchase items you need or want for a discounted rate if you “win” an auction in a similar way to eBay.com. To participate in an auction, a user must set up an account and purchase “bids” to use in an auction. Per the website’s description, Quibids.com is a penny auction website; each bid you place increases the purchase price of the item you’re bidding on by one penny. Auctioneers have purchased products such as iPads, laptops, blenders, vacuum cleaners and dress watches for pennies; however, it is never that simple, is it…?

I found preparation to participate in an auction is much more expensive than I originally anticipated. If you recall, I said users must purchase bids. Bids cost users .60 cents each and I purchased 100 bids for $60.

What I Learned

Overall, I found out that Quibids.com auctions are highly efficient ways to separate you from large and small amounts of money very quickly; however, the rewards and opportunities to win products worth a lot of money are real. I’ve written a list of items I learned from using Quibids.com this month below for your reference.

• Quibids.com is a gambling website

The “penny-auction” moniker is misleading. I handed money over and received a chance to win more than I put down; however, the odds of winning are decisively not in a typical auctioneer’s favor.

• “Quiet times” to snag awesome deals do not exist

I researched Quibids.com on a website-monitoring website named Alexa.com. The graphs supplied by Alexa.com showed that Internet traffic to Quibids.com is approximately the same each day. 

Next, I spent time checking out the website during different times I would consider slow to any normal person (e.g., 4 AM EST in the morning). I noticed that there were not a lot of people bidding on products; however, there was a severe lack of notable products causing potential bidders to fight over the only decent items, which often included $25 gift cards to shops such as Target and restaurants such as Applebees.

• Bidding patterns do exist and anyone can take advantage of them to win items with less risk to your pocket book

If each bid costs .60 cents each, there are very few (illogical) people willing to place more bids than a product is worth therefore, there should be an optimum time to place bids and win products with a high chance of winning the product for significantly less than other bidders. When I joined Quibids.com, I believed bidding patterns must exist and I set out to track more than 50 auctions. While not a full statistical test, I learned enough to help me win my products very easily.

I noticed on average three to four “waves” of bidders on products with values between $9 and $100. I consider a “wave” a group of bidders priced out of winning an auction item because they have reached their threshold on how much they are willing to lose in pursuit of the item.

I also found that desirable products receive seven (7) bids per dollar value (listed on the auction page) on average. Hot items would often receive between 10 and 12 bids per dollar value. This means if a product is worth $25 then waves of bidders will place approximately 175 ( 25*7) bids on the item before it sells. Please note that the number of bids per dollar value does vary between types of products such as gift cards, electronics and bid vouchers.

• Beware: I was not the only one that knew when to start bidding to win products versus other bidders

I was apparently not the only person that has taken the time to figure out when to swoop in and win products for pennies compared to other bidders. I noticed other bidders do exactly what I did, or planned to do in many circumstances. Sometimes, bidders that had spent a lot of money would try to keep bidding; however, the new bidder(s) knew they were at an advantage and could outbid everyone else. I call these individuals “sharks.”

The longer an auction goes on, the more sharks appear. This causes auction items to receive between 12 and 24 bids per dollar value – significantly more than the average. I have never seen a product go for more than 24 bids per dollar value.

This post is long at this point so I’ll wrap it up, but I have a lot more information – if you have any questions for me please submit a comment and I’ll get back to you. I hope this helps with your Quibids.com auction going.

Spain Overcome Oranje Tantrum to Win World Cup

The World Cup concluded today, July 11 and Spain won 1 – 0 vs. the Netherlands.

Personally, it was hard to watch the first 90 minutes of play. Perhaps players from both teams should apply for the diving team in the summer Olympics given the amount of airtime players spent falling to the ground.

In Short

Spain played well and deserved the win. Spain committed fewer fouls and played in a manner that resembled professional football during the first 90 minutes. Composure and skill emerged in extra time and the team produced a goal in the dying minutes of the game.

The Dutch were determined to play a game filled with lackluster passing, dangerous tackles and a chip of entitlement on their shoulder. The Dutch accrued more than 10 yellow cards – shameful! I hope many fans, sports analysts, and FIFA officials assess Dutch play as unacceptable in the world of football.

I’m interested to see if FIFA changes much as a result of the 2010 World Cup.

How did you feel about the game?

Related Story: http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/newsid=1273113/index.html#oranje+face+bitter+defeat

Taking Philly by Storm

Family & Friends,

I competed in the Philadelphia Triathlon to support the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society this past weekend and I would like to keep in touch with you and share news about what I’ve been up to for the past four/five months in my personal life. I hope you like my impromptu race report below.

(T) Train

My Philly Tri Team in Training experience was special this year compared to my 2009 Nation’s Tri experience. I joined the Philly Tri team as a mentor and took on responsibilities to set up weekly group “buddy” workouts and actively help participants manage stress, reduce anxiety and accomplish their personal goals in Philly.

Training for a triathlon requires determination and maybe a slight bit of crazy – It took a while for me to recall memories that our training regimen started during the unexpected Snowmageddon and the once in a lifetime snowfall for the Washington D.C. area. There is a reason why no one took pictures back then – who wants to remember the cold.

Our training team persevered and I will always remember one of my team’s first Saturday practices where people digging out their cars cheered us on as we ran through Arlington and played hopscotch between the road and the sidewalk to dodge slippery ice.

Good weather, sunshine and a quick pace at work made the weeks fly by and soon race weekend was here. I drove up with my friend, Omid, and dozens of bike-laden cars that snaked up and down I-95 during our trip to Philly.

(E) Endure

Our arrival in Philly was as I expected – we were the best-looking, most well prepared athletes in town (I can afford some embellishment; it is my story after all).

My packet picked up, my race numbers affixed to my bike, helmet and race belt, I spent Saturday night at our hotel nervously awaiting my fate on Sunday. I was prepared; however, there is always room for stress before any endurance event. There were excessive heat warnings and rumors of water temperatures exceeding 84 degrees (the temperature at which wetsuits are not allowed) for the race.

Race morning was a blur – I woke up at 4:15 a.m. to dress and prep for the race. It was a treat and I’m sure you’re wishing you could have been there too right? By 5:00 a.m. approximately 160 Team in Training participants from across the U.S. were outside of the hotel, bikes in hand, ready to ride toward the transition zone to rack our bikes and prepare for the race ahead.

This is where things get a little interesting…

The man on the loud speakers welcoming athletes to transition broke the bad news shortly after our arrival that race directors had called off our swim and our triathlon must sadly turn into a duathalon consisting of a 5k run, 40k bike and a 10k run. A 40-year-old man sadly went missing during the sprint distance triathlon on Saturday and the Coast Guard’s search was still underway in the river.

While running is not my forte and the discipline I spent the least amount of time training for, I rolled with the punches. I had control over my attitude after all and I remembered why I was in Philly (more on that later).

The race started and my goodness the rumors about excessive heat were true – the local newspaper reported temperatures hovering around 90 degrees by 8:45 a.m. I was starting the second half of my bike around this time and the sun’s wattage amplified with every passing minute.

When I finished the bike course and left transition to run the last leg of the race I knew I was in for a rough time. I sweat a lot under normal conditions anyway and I knew I was having a hard time staying hydrated – I decided to forego any decent 10k time and walked most of the 10k.

(A) Achieve

While my final time was slower than I wanted at 3 hours 32 minutes, I was proud of a 30 minute 5k run and 90 minute 40k on the bike and two transition times that beat my times from last year.

I had a lot of fun cheering for my friends whether they were in front of me, about to pass me or behind me. This made an unbearable heat acceptable and a fun challenge. After all, if it isn’t enjoyable, why do it?

Everyone on my team achieved a tremendous amount this season and I’m so happy that I got to train with them throughout this year. Non-swimmers became sharks in the water and non-runners conquered the pavement during practices – some even entered into 5k races in Arlington to get in extra practice after a full week of training! That is dedication.

Personally, I am proud of everything that I achieved during the past five months. At a high level, I supported the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society inch closer to a cure for blood cancers; continued to live a more active and healthy lifestyle and meet new friends and amazing people in the area.

A small victory for me this season was my focus on swimming and building the endurance necessary to swim a mile or more using only freestyle. I depended on my breaststroke last year. I earned this achievement with the dedication of our coaching staff during team practices and my swimming partner in crime, Mindy, during our 5:30 a.m. buddy workouts at Washington & Lee HS.

(M) Matter

For me, Team in Training means a lot because everything affects the mission to find a cure for blood cancer. The Philly Tri team from Washington D.C. raised more than $160,000 and all TNT participants from across the U.S. participating in the Philly Tri raised more than $600,000 for cancer research and patient services! This money means that patients will live longer, healthier lives and researchers can continue their projects to find a cure.

One person can accomplish a lot; however, this race experience proved again that a TEAM always accomplishes more!

If you participate in any sort of event in the near future – consider doing it for a charitable cause such as Team in Training. I believe you’ll find a lot of satisfaction and value in helping a charity make a difference.

Where to Next

I do have one more race this year, The Nation’s Triathlon, in Washington D.C. on September 12. I’m training for this race with friends and always need more training partners. If you’re interested in joining – please e-mail me and let me know!

Personally, a successful career and a healthy lifestyle are important to me and I’m fortunately surrounded by great friends and colleagues that keep me going and encourage me to do my best. I offer a special thanks to my project bosses, Jennifer and Jim for their support, advice and encouragement.

Thank you to my team for making this a wonderful experience! Thank you to my mentees in particular – Way to Rock the Purple and Green! I know many participants signed up for Nation’s too and I’ll look forward to our workouts this summer. Thank you to Ohana, my closest group of friends that always support my efforts and are there through everything.
Most importantly, I want to thank my family for your support and somehow ingraining into my stubborn head, the importance of confidence and doing the right thing.

Best Regards,
Matt Ingram aka “Mentor Matt”

Will You Join Me?

I invite you to join Team in Training this summer to raise funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

The Team in Training program is holding a series of meetings throughout January to help you find out more about the organization and the program’s goals to fund cancer research and support families in need. Training for an endurance event with a team is a great way to meet people, support a charity and stay fit. The local TNT chapter is participating in the following events this year…

America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride
June 6, 2010

Rock ‘n’ Roll San Diego Marathon
June 6, 2010

Zooma Annapolis Half Marathon
June 6, 2010

Rock ‘n’ Roll Seattle Marathon and Half Marathon
June 26, 2010

Philadelphia Triathlon
June 27, 2010

Meet your new year’s resolutions and join us at one of the following meetings listed in the attached Word document linked below.

Summer 2010 Info Meeting list

I am a mentor for the TNT Philly Triathlon this summer and hope to meet you. I aspire to help a group of people cross their first triathlon finish line like my triathlon mentor in 2009.

Happy New Year

P.S. Please let me know if you can’t open the Word file

I Look Forward to a New Year Full of New Challenges

I had a fun 2009; however, I am ready for new challenges in 2010. I am also excited to write new blog posts on a regular basis to keep you up to date on what is going on in my life.

Looking Ahead – Three triathlons will test my mettle

Swimming, cycling and running will play a major role in my personal life for a majority of 2010. I attempted my first triathlon in September ’09 and loved every minute of the experience. Since September, I have signed up for three Olympic distance triathlons in 2010. The races include:

• The Columbia, MD Triathlon (May)
• Philly Triathlon (June)
• The Nation’s Triathlon (Sept)

[Are you excited to participate in any races in 2010?]

I don’t pretend that racing in three triathlons is easy, but I know that it is extremely rewarding and less stressful than endurance running races (especially now that I know I won’t drown during the swim).

I plan to travel more often during 2010 when I am not training. I’m going skiing for the first time ever in January and I am extremely excited despite hearing more than a handful of accident/injury related stories from family and friends.  With any luck, I will also vacation at a friend’s cabin in Maine during 2010; swimming in a lake, relaxing on a sun-soaked dock and eating lobster sound amazing right now.

I would also like to visit family and friends abroad and across the U.S. If you know of a guaranteed way to win the lottery please let me in on your secret!

Working Hard

My work life is going well. I work hard and hope to take on a lot more responsibility in 2010 and continue to challenge myself and improve my skills. I am about to wrap up my fourth year as a management consultant in April ’10. Time seems to have flown by quickly since graduation.

That is enough from me for this post.

Happy New Year!

Matt

[How will you shape your new year?]

I look forward to writing more often and hearing from you.

Road to Nations

The Road to Nation’s
September 23, 2009

Innocent Beginnings
I started a journey four months ago. The journey was initially a personal endeavor to complete a new challenge, but turned into an amazing experience where I met some amazing people while supporting an amazing charity. I would like to share a few highlights and thanks with you in this e-mail.

Spring started innocently enough – I flirted with the idea of buying a road bike and finally took the plunge about six months ago. The receipt is still crisp and filed away in a cabinet. The small aluminum frame and two wheels are more valuable than the engine, metal and plastic that I call a car.  I am still in awe of this little fact. I have included a picture – though she has been through a few upgrades since I took the picture including a new saddle, pedals, handlebar set up and a few new gadgets.

To welcome such an instrument of speed into my varied collection of hobbies I decided that I needed a goal and occasion to look forward to using my bike. The Nation’s Triathlon looked like the perfect opportunity. The race was sold out; however, there were open spots if you decided to join Team in Training, a charity for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. I joined Team in Training as soon as possible. I would raise money for the organization in return for training and support during my first triathlon. I understood the responsibility that I was taking on, but perhaps I did not fully appreciate the work that it takes to raise money for charity.

Training & Fundraising

The past four months were challenging in many ways, 5:00 a.m. wake up times became the norm as I headed off for my first work out and often went back to the gym at night for my second workout after work. I started my swim workouts barely able to swim a length of a pool without gasping for air and stopping to take a break. I now swim a mile no questions asked.

There were tough times during training. Our team of athletes traveled across Virginia, D.C. and Maryland every Saturday to meet up at put in between 20 and 30+ miles every weekend, there were hills, many hills, flat tires, jellyfish, and did I mention hills? It was worth every minute and the support of my coaches and teammates was phenomenal. I have included a picture from a Saturday morning practice in MD. I did write to my personal blog as much as I could with training updates. Balancing work, training and fundraising took a majority of my time so my last training entry was probably half way through the training season. Feel free to read a few of the posts below.
When it comes to fundraising – I quite simply could not have done it without the help of an amazing group of people. To donate to charity during these rough economic times is very generous and I would like to express my utmost thanks to everyone that contributed to this cause!

The BIG Day

The Nation’s Triathlon was quite simply one of the coolest experiences I have ever had. I woke up at 4:00 a.m. and headed out to meet my mentor with a friend and take a cab into D.C. to set up my gear at the transition area. We arrived at the transition area (where we left our bikes the previous day) and started to set up our cycling and running gear. I was nervous but shared smiles and laughter with friends before jumping into our wetsuits. We were ready and I was determined to enjoy every minute of what was ahead of me.

The Swim

The swim pen was certainly something new. More than 4,500 people were together and I was eager to jump into the Potomac. You read that sentence right, I was eager.  My wave of 25-29 yr old males was easily more than 100 people and I am sure we were a sight to see because all of us sported bright neon pink swim caps. The air horn sounded and off we went towards the Memorial Bridge. The Potomac was not bad at all! It was a perfect 73.2 degrees, the current was barely existent and contrary to popular opinion did not taste like crap.

The open-water swim is often the scariest thing for many people and I was no exception. It is too easy to think that something can go wrong, but I had a great time and stopped at the Memorial Bridge close to the turn around point to glance around me and say wow. Not many people will ever be able to say they have seen D.C. as I have. I made it back to the swim exit ramp and ran as fast as I could towards my bike in the transition area. The swim took me 44 minutes and I am extremely happy with that time. I know I can improve and will for my next triathlon in May 2010.

The Bike

Honestly, the bike was a bit of a blur dodging fallen water bottles and watching a wipeout or two.

I spent my time going between 18 & 20 m.p.h up towards Maryland and back. The 25-mile bike ride was a blast and I am thankful I did not get a flat tire! The total ride took me approximately 1 hr 20 minutes.

The Run

Running with my bike back into transition was probably one of the most surreal experiences I have had.  I had traveled approximately 26 miles, but had a 10k run left. I donned my running shoes, remembered to take my helmet off and took off towards the running course. The course was quick, flat and fast around a place called Hains Point in D.C. With the finish line in sight, I passed friends and coaches towards the finish line and let out a surprised, “WOW” when I crossed the finish line. I was ecstatic when I crossed the finish line after a 1.5K swim, 40K bike and 10K run.  I finished my first Olympic distance triathlon in 3 hrs and 25 minutes, WAHOO!

A Memorable Experience

Participating in the Nation’s Triathlon and supporting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society this summer was quite simply one of the best experiences of my life. I learned a lot about blood cancer and the resources available to families affected by this life-altering disease. Did you know that charitable organizations such as the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society fund a majority of the research to find a cure? I have included a few resources at the end of this e-mail and hope you take a moment to click on a few of them. Even though I questioned the possibility at first, I definitely look forward to signing up again next year. Maybe I can even convince a few of you to join me. To hear the words “you have cancer” is devastating, but a movement exists to ensure that a cure is found and future mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters and friends are not lost to blood cancers in the future.

One person is diagnosed with a blood cancer every four minutes in the U.S., and I am proud to have participated in an event with an organization that gives hope to those families and friends in their moment of need.

________________________________________

My Team

I would like to introduce and give a shout out to my team below. I completed the Nation’s Triathlon on Sunday, September 13 with everyone below on a wave of tremendous support.  This is one amazing group of people!

Thanks for reading.

Resources:

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society: http://lls.org/
Facts & Statistics: http://www.leukemia-lymphoma.org/all_page?item_id=12486
Patient Services: http://www.leukemia-lymphoma.org/all_toplevel.adp?item_id=4184
Find and event you want to participate in – Team in Training: http://www.teamintraining.org/

Matt

The Vacation Challenge

I am happy to report that I am going on a short vacation for four days to Maine to chill out in a log cabin at the side of a lake. I will manage to keep my training up with some open water swimming and runs around the area – however I do not want to lose my focus. Fund raising has been going extremely well and I would like to ask for your help while I am away.

From now – until noon Tuesday 8/11, I will match all donations made to my online account up to $300.  I truly believe in this cause and know the value of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s support for those facing a blood cancer.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE

http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/mingram

Please take a moment out of your day to donate to this very worthy cause and double your impact! I challenge you to donate and help raise $300 while I am away from my computer for the next four days.

Thank you for your help!

Matt

Happy Donate Your Status Day!

Hi Everyone!

If you have found yourself here from a friend’s status update please take a moment and donate to a very worthy cause. Any amount, no matter how small can really make a difference in the lives of those affected by these blood diseases.

http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/mingram

With the help of friends I have managed to raise more than 60 percent of the minimum fundraising amount! This is huge, but I still need your help to get me to my goal, $2400. Please donate today and start your week off knowing that you have made a difference!!!

Thank you everyone!

Matt

Donate Your FB Status for Charity on Monday August 3

The Situation

As you may or may not know, I am spending my summer supporting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society this year. Part of this endeavor is raising funds to support cancer research and help individuals and families in need. The other part includes the Nations Triathlon – an Olympic distance triathlon through the Potomac and the streets of Washington D.C. on September 13.

So What?

Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Blogs, Google Chat, AIM, Etc…

All of these programs have the ability to update your status and let your friends know what you are up to, or what is on your mind.

And…

I would like to ask for your help on Monday, August 3 by donating your status across your accounts to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

How will donating your status help?

By donating your status, I hope that you, your friends, and maybe even their friends would take a moment out of the typical Monday grind and donate to this very worthy cause.

What to Write – Suggestions

For Facebook I would suggest the following:

Please help and support Matt and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society! Donate today and help beat back cancer. http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/mingram. Any amount helps and might spare someone from losing his or her loved one, best friend, and/or parent from the sudden grief caused by this disease

For IM

Happy Monday – Start your week off right with some good karma and help Matt raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society! http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/mingram. Every donation and every amount matters!

For Twitter think about:

Help @mingram stamp out Leukemia. Great charity, please help: http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/mingram #help #charity

Have A Blog? Something short and sweet…

My friend, Matt Ingram, has decided to spend his summer supporting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Part of this endeavor he is raising $2400 to support cancer research and help individuals and families in need. The other part includes the Nations Triathlon – an Olympic distance triathlon through the Potomac and the streets of Washington D.C. on September 13.Please Be A Sponsor

I have written this blog post because I would like to request your help. Please donate to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and support Matt!

http://pages.teamintraining.org/nca/nattri09/mingram

Most blood cancer research is done almost primarily by organizations such as LLS. This makes fundraising efforts like the Team in Training group so important. Additionally, you are contributing to the research that might spare someone from losing his or her loved one, best friend, and/or parent from the sudden grief caused by this disease.

Make A Difference

Although LLS and TnT are well on the way to a cure, there is a hitch – Matt needs your support to get there! Please take a five minutes out of your day today (there isn’t much time left for fundraising) and make your donation online by clicking on the link below.

Thanks for reading.

For more information – you can check Matt’s blog out at http://mingram.wordpress.com