A few highlights in 2011 include:

• Growing to 35 race events,  from 23 in 2010  and held over 40 total events
• Welcoming Chattanooga, TN, Fort Myers, FL, Winston-Salem, NC, Baton Rouge, LA, Oxford, CT, Wichita, KS, Kansas City, MO, Phenix City, AL, Muscatine, IA, Saratoga, NY, Lake St. Louis, MO, Milwaukee, WI, Seattle, WA, Boston, MA, Irvine, CA
• Registering over 24,000 true participants with upwards of 30,000 people partaking in the events, including over 400 survivors and thousands of volunteers

Like all organizations, we recognize that who we are today is different than in our beginning.  We are focused on continuing to grow our events to serve our nation’s top two priorities for colorectal cancer – screening and education.  We intend to continue to communicate to our constituents, government and media in a manner that represents optimism.  Our updated mission statement is “to empower local communities to promote prevention and early detection of colon cancer and to provide support to those affected.”

Please enjoy the video created by Liz Lantz, volunteer and niece of Susie Lindquist Mjelde. Thank you for a great year!  “You” made it happen.

Sincerely,

Kristin Lindquist Tabor

President & Founder

Final tallies from Boston are still coming in, but it looks as though over 1,300 people participated in the inaugural event, raising over $100,000.

From WickedLocal.com – Halifax Bulletin Board, November 11, 2011

Get Your Rear in Gear 5K Race for Colon Cancer

Brian Shelly and Caitlin Gambee at packet pick-up before the Boston Get Your Rear in Gear

The Colon Cancer Coalition announces the inaugural Get Your Rear in Gear 5K race supporting colon cancer in Massachusetts. Sister duo, Caitlin and Maggie Gambee both in their 20s initiated the event in honor of their father who passed away from the disease at the age of 41.

In its first year, the event has already broken fundraising expectations raising over $54,000 for the cause and currently registering over 600 participants.

The Gambee sisters along with event co-chair Brian Shelly aim to spread the message of early detection through the ‘Boston, Get Your Rear in Gear 5K’ to be held at South Boston’s Castle Island Saturday, Nov. 12. Proceeds from the event will go to support local awareness, screening, healthy living programs.

“I am proud to be involved with the Get Your Rear in Gear Events,” Shelly said. “As the number two cancer killer, Boston should not go one year longer without creating an event that helps those battling colon cancer and offers them a network of support.” Shelly’s involvement stems from his brother in law’s diagnosis at age 35, which is now in remission.

Also on board for the race is colon cancer survivor and star of ABC’s Boston Med, Tom Alden whose story went live on air last year broadcasting to the nation everything from his diagnosis to his incredible recovery. From that point on, Alden has been active within the coalition as an advocate for prevention.

Funds raised at Get Your Rear in Gear events across the country stay in the local communities to further awareness of the disease and bring screening opportunities to those who are under-insured or uninsured. The money is distributed through grants from the Colon Cancer Coalition, the business arm of Get Your Rear in Gear.

To learn more about the race, visit www.getyourrearingear.com/events/list/2011/boston-ma or to read the event blog visit bostongyrig.tumblr.com.

My First Colonoscopy, or: How I Stopped Worrying and Drank A Gallon of Laxative.

By Toni Hudzina

Screening colonoscopies are now a part of my life.  My mother died last year from advanced Stage IV colon cancer, and I found out during her illness that there is much GI disease on her side of the family.  It’s safe to say I wasn’t looking forward to this, but I knew it was necessary. One of the lovely requisites of being a 40-something adult – right up there with flushing the water heater or paying property taxes.

I admit I was nervous about my first colonoscopy this past August.  Not about the procedure itself, but about the results.  My mother’s cancer had been particularly silent and particularly aggressive.  Even though I didn’t have any symptoms, I was worried about what they would find.  Logically I knew the odds were low that I had cancer, but worry overtook logic.  And I felt I had waited long enough, almost a year after her death.

So I went off to my local GI for my initial checkup and procedure scheduling.  His staff was very thorough during this process, and gave me a to-do list for my colonoscopy.

Now it’s no surprise to anyone who knows me – I love a good checklist.  My favorite app on my smart-phone isn’t a game or social network, it’s  2Do.   So to be handed a checklist for my colonoscopy prep?  I wouldn’t say it made me blissfully happy, but it did make me feel like I could handle my first-ever colonoscopy. There was a checklist – how hard could this be?

Silly me.  I started calling it “The Checklist of Doom”.

It started with:

• “One Week Before:  Pick up Laxative from Pharmacy.”

Admit it:  you’ve heard about the laxative.  It may be one of the major reasons you don’t get a colonoscopy in the first place.  And these feelings are completely reinforced when you pick up the laxative prescription at the pharmacy.  Because you’re not given a little discreet vial of pills.  Oh no – you are handed an empty gallon-sized jug. Well, not completely empty: there’s a solid visible layer of powdered laxative at the bottom.

The pharmacist helpfully told me I had my choice of flavor packets to make it taste better.   And that refrigeration made it easier to swallow.  That all went in one ear and out the other, because I was staring at the “helpful” fill line, placed distractingly near the top of the jug.

I know my GI wanted to make sure I had the laxative in plenty of time for my prep day. But because I  had succumbed to the compulsive need to obey the checklist, now I had an entire week to contemplate this semi-clear plastic jug with its helpful fill line.  The included flavor packets stuck to the top didn’t help – while Lemon-Lime, Orange, Cherry and Pineapple are generally appealing, I was personally hoping for something along the lines of Chocolate-Kahlua Milk Shake.

So I did what any sane person would do: I propped up some cooking magazines on it for camouflage and tried to ignore the miniature white elephant in my kitchen for the next few days.

So the first item on my colonoscopy check list was now ticked off – I was feeling like such an awesome patient and on top of the situation.  Having made the check mark, I obviously felt the need to  look at Item #2:

• “Three Days Out: Start a low-fiber diet.”

Most articles talk about the day-before prep, not anything three days out.  (The instructions on the Gallon Jug of Intestinal Distress said to stop eating only 4 hours before – nothing about multi-day dietary changes.) My husband had even had a colonoscopy performed a few years ago by the same GI, and he hadn’t gone through this.

But the nurse explained to me that they had changed their procedure since then to make the prep more effective – no high-fiber things in the system that would be difficult to expel.  Fair enough, but as that third-day-out approached, my pantry and refrigerator contents were mocking me.

Fresh berries from the Farmer’s Market.  Crudité.  Apples.  Kashi GoLean Cereal. Popcorn. Gherkins.  And olives.  Olives.  OLIVES.  I love olives – I could easily live on Kalamatas, goat cheese and Triscuits if you let me.  But for the next few days, these were alimenta non grata.  So I ended up bouncing around the grocery store like a pinball, referring to a low-fiber diet pulled up on my smart-phone, looking for the opposite of the high-fiber things currently inhabiting my kitchen.  Ultimately I just decided to get some ramen, macaroni and cheese, and my first-ever canned chicken breast and canned green beans.  Not terribly yummy, but definitively fit the over-cooked and low-fiber bill I was supposed to follow.

Shopping completed, I now had two days to ignore the checklist; even checklist-happy me was pleased about that.  But the dreaded “Day Before” rolled around, and so, the checklist was exhumed from its hiding place inside a La Cucina Italiana. Two items were required to start my day.

• “Morning before: Start a clear-liquid diet.”

• “Morning before: Mix laxative and chill.”

Getting the worst over with, I removed the jug from its Bon Appétit kitchen blind, poured in the orange flavor packet, added a gallon of water, “shook vigorously,” and deposited it in my refrigerator.  To try and keep my mind off the Gallon Jug of Short-Lived Water Weight Loss now staring me in the face, I made some cups of Lime Jell-O.  (Usually, I’m a Black Cherry kind of girl, but I had to avoid red and purple food coloring to avoid having the walls of my intestine possibly appear red, which would hide any bleeding.)

My one consolation was that at least I understood a clear-liquid diet – no more confusing low-fiber for me. I knew what I was allowed to consume. Ginger ale, water and tea are in my normal rotation.  Broth, clear juices and Gatorade, not so much, but these were better than nothing. (I did find myself muttering “Beef Broth – It’s What’s For Dinner.”)

Was I done with the prep-day checklist?  Not by a long-shot. Next item:

•         “12 Noon: Take Dulcolax.”

Insult to injury for certain, but trying to maintain my awesome patient attitude (but mostly, not anxious to go through this process again anytime soon with an incomplete cleanse), I complied.  While swallowing the Dulcolax precisely at noon, the next item caught my eye:

• “4 pm: Start drinking laxative.  Drink 8 ounces every 15 minutes until all laxative is gone or you have clear liquid stool.”

Even for a woman who drinks water out of 24-ounce glasses, this was daunting.  I decided to stop drinking after my lunch of chicken broth so my stomach wouldn’t get too upset with that much liquid.

At 3:45, I set myself up in the bedroom with a small checklist of my own.  Large cooler and ice packs to keep gallon jug cool?  Check.  A few cans of ginger ale to rinse out my mouth?  Check.  75 pound Bulldog locked downstairs so she couldn’t get in between me and the bathroom? Triple check.

At 4 pm (or as I called it, “The Point of No Return”), I poured my first glass.  Over the years I had heard people discuss how horrible the stuff tasted.  While I had a hopeful second or two where I could definitely smell the orange flavoring, I decided afterwards that was just a bizarre practical joke.  It wasn’t bad, per se, but it smelled like Orange Crush and tasted like flat salt water with only a drop or two of Orange Crush mixed in.  It was also a little foamy…and not in a gourmet root beer kind of way. But overall it actually wasn’t too bad. Especially since I rinsed my mouth out with ginger ale afterwards.  I could do this – what was the big deal?

As none of the expected laxative results actually occur for an hour or so, I decided to read a book to kill some time.  As it turns out, George R. R. Martin discusses food in vivid detail in “A Game of Thrones,” and reverting to a stand-by of Harry Potter left me wondering whether J.K. Rowling had a compulsive need to use the phrases “treacle tart,” “pumpkin pasty,” “cauldron cake,” and/or “chocolate frog” at least once a chapter.  All the magazines I’d brought up to the bedroom to read (i.e. – not my cooking ones) featured glossy ads with beautifully photographed food.  My bedroom TV was tuned to The Cooking Channel and the batteries for the satellite remote were dead.  Distraction obviously wasn’t on the menu.

Image is provided courtesy of Anne Taintor

I’ll spare you the biological details of the “cleansing”.  It takes a few hours, you will feel some “discomfort,” and you’ll still have to go for an hour or two after you’ve finished the laxative.  Also – even though the label recommends you drink each glass very quickly, don’t.  Unless you love nausea and want your own Exorcist Pea Soup Moment. Which means you get to extend the process.  My awesome patient attitude had now literally been flushed down the toilet.

After I was done, I had some more broth and ginger ale then went to bed, secure in my knowledge I was nearing the bottom of the checklist.   Surprisingly, I wasn’t really hungry – I think my body was too distracted by the abuse I’d just put it through and was just glad to be taking in something that wasn’t laxative solution.

The morning finally arrived and the last items on my checklist presented themselves:

• “Morning of procedure: Do not drink anything 4 hours previous to procedure.”

• “Show up 90 minutes before your scheduled procedure time.”

No problem on both of those.  I was up early out of nerves, and those same nerves meant I probably couldn’t have choked down a glass of water.  My husband (a.k.a. my “responsible driver”) and I arrived at the surgical facility nice and early.  Where they obviously had their own checklist.  I surrendered.

The staff was super-nice.  I was registered, weighed, poked and prodded, given a medical gown to wear (with a nifty heating vent, not really necessary in August) and set up with an IV in very short order.  My husband was fetched from the lobby, the privacy curtains closed around my bay, and we were then left alone for the next half hour or so.  As I wasn’t in the mood to talk, I let my husband fiddle with his smart-phone while I counted the squares on the curtain fabric surrounding my bed.  I decided that there’s a rule that states all hospital curtains must contain a shade of pink close to Pepto-Bismol.

As for the procedure?  I was rolled across the hall into the procedure room, my doctor made sure I didn’t have any last minute concerns, they asked me to roll on my left side, injected the anesthesia drugs into my IV, and the next thing I remember I was being rolled out of the procedure room into a recovery room.  I’m a bit hazy on that – my husband informs me I was talking non-stop, very rapidly, and free-association.  Hopefully I was being amusing and not embarrassing – like, say, going on about checklists.

After I had shaken off the anesthesia and signed a bunch of papers, I was free to go with my “responsible driver.” (My husband got a kick out of that – he thought that was a pretty big assumption.)  A plain turkey sandwich had never tasted so good.  And later that night I emptied out the olive jar.

As for the results: a single tiny polyp was removed and biopsied, and everything else looked good.  The polyp was an adenoma, the type that starts out benign but is considered to be pre-cancerous if left to its own devices.  I am actually happy with this result – while not a clean bill of health, I do know now that I am in an “at-risk” group, and I can get screened every 3 years instead of 5.  Which means I can hopefully stay ahead of any colon cancer trying to rear its ugly head – the point of this whole thing.

I’m sure in 3 years when I’m staring down the Gallon Jug of Official Olympic Sponsor of the Bathroom Sprint Team I won’t be quite so sunny about it, but deep down, I’ll know I’m doing the right thing.  And there will be that heavenly post-procedure turkey sandwich to look forward to.

Photo by Carly Bish, of Carly Bish Photography - CarlyBish.com

Team Kickin’ the Stick out of Colon Cancer created in honor  of Katie Tinnea was featured in the Newcastle News in advance of the Seattle Area Get Your Rear in Gear race.  The Seattle Area event is being held Sunday, November 6 at Brooks Sports, Inc in Bothell, WA.

Read this inspiring story of Mrs. Tinnea, a first grade teacher at Newcastle Elementary School and why she has chosen to continue teaching through her treatment.

UPDATE (Nov. 9, 2011): The reporter, Christina Lords, who first wrote Katie Tinnea’s story wrote a nice follow-up and relection of her thoughts upon meeting and interviewing this inspiring women.

Every time I find myself feeling down about a situation or problem, I think about Katie’s optimism and the power of positive thought. Her smile is infectious; her outlook on life is nothing short of remarkable.

She’s a woman not only dealing with the everyday stresses of being a teacher, a mother, a wife — things we all face — but she’s a woman living a life full of joy, hope and faith in defiance of a disease with no cure.

All she wants out of life is life itself.

That’s a lesson we can all learn.

- From “Off the Press – Life Lessons Taught by Tinnea” by Christina Lords, Issaquah Press, November 8, 2011

Jason and Molly Mesnick. Photo from Brooks Running.

Fans of ABC’s “The Bachelor” will recognize Molly Mesnick, who won the heart of bachelor Jason Mesnick during season 13 of the show. Seattle Area Get Your Rear in Gear event chair  and social media representative for Brooks Running, Keely O’Neill, recently shared with us that Molly will be running the Seattle GYRIG as part of a training run for the Las Vegas Rock ‘N Roll Half-Marathon. Molly plans to run the half-marathon with her husband, Jason, on December 4th.

Molly and Jason are training  for the half-marathon with Brooks Running. Molly shared some of her training tips and tricks through a Q & A on the Brooks Running Blog. Her advise for others training for a race?

“Whether your training hurdle has to do with time, an injury, or anything else, I think it’s important to do what works best for YOU! Many times people get too encumbered by following a strict training schedule that becomes impossible and overwhelming. Sometimes you need to compromise and re-prioritize. Follow a training plan that works for you and your body!”

Are you on Twitter? Considering following Molly through her training and race experiences, and here are others we recommend for info about the Seattle Area Get Your Rear in Gear:

• Molly Mesnick (@MollyMesnick)
• Keely O’Neill (@Keely_ONeilly)
• Brooks Running (@BrooksRunning)
• Get Your Rear in Gear (@GYRIG)

Calling all kids 12 and under: We want you to design the kids’ t-shirt for the 2012 Get Your Rear in Gear race season!

Get Your Rear in Gear Kids' Fun Run participant at the 2011 Twin Cities event. Photo Credit: Roger G. Brandel - RGB studios

Get Your Rear in Gear is looking for budding young artists with a connection to colorectal cancer to submit a design for the 2012 kids’ shirt. The winning artwork will be featured on the kids’ t-shirts that will be distributed at nearly 50 Get Your Rear in Gear events in 2012. Kids 12 and under should submit an original masterpiece showing the “Get Your Rear in Gear” spirit by December 1, 2011. The top designs will be featured on the Facebook page. From there the Get Your Rear in Gear Facebook community will vote for the artwork that will be featured on the 2012 Kids’ T-shirts.

Kids’ Design Contest Guidelines:
- The entry should depict positive, fun images and the words “Get Your Rear in Gear.”
- Artists must be 12-years-old or younger.
- Artists should use only two colors in their drawings. (Remember: Get Your Rear in Gear colors are orange and blue!)
- Keep in mind the t-shirts will be white.
- Original, hand-drawn artwork only please.
- Drawings must be drawn on 8.5″ x 11″ white paper (standard copy/printer paper).
- Only one entry per child will be considered for the prize.
- Don’t forget to sign your artwork like a real artist! (in the bottom right corner of the design).
- Consider ease of reproduction during the design process.

Submitted drawings must include the following with their entry:

• First and Last name of artist
• Age and birthdate
• Parent or guardian’s first and last name
• 

  Kids' Fun Run participants show off the 2011 kids' t-shirt. Photo from GYRIG Staff

  Parent or guardian’s email address (required) and Twitter handle (optional)

• Telephone number
• Two or three sentences describing artist’s connection to colorectal cancer (optional)

Drawings should be received no later than Thursday, December 1, 2011 via email to gyrig5k@gmail.com or via mail at:
Get Your Rear in Gear
Attn: Kids’ T-shirt Contest
8009 34th Ave, Suite 360
Bloomington, MN 55425

Entries received after December 1, 2011 (including mail-in entries) will not be considered for the voting round.

Please read complete contest rules before sending in your entry.

2012 GET YOUR REAR IN GEAR KIDS’ T-SHIRT DESIGN CONTEST OFFICIAL RULES

By participating in this contest, artists, and their parents and guardians, accept and agree to comply with these Rules.

Eligibility: This contest is open to all children 12-years-of-age or younger with parent or guardian consent.

Entry: Individuals may submit one entry for consideration. Entries must be original artwork, featuring two colors. No computer generated artwork will be considered. Drawings must fit on one 8.5”x11” sheet of paper. Artists should consider ease of production in their designs.

Designs should be submitted via email to gyrig5k@gmail.com as a JPG or PDF file, electronic files should not be larger than 5 MBs, or mail original artwork to Get Your Rear in Gear, Attn: Kids’ T-Shirt Contest, 8009 34th Ave, Suite 360, Bloomington, MN 55425. The Colon Cancer Coalition is not responsible for misdirected or lost entries.

By entering, the parent or guardian of the artist acknowledges, agrees, and understands that the winning design will become the exclusive property of the Colon Cancer Coalition / Get Your Rear in Gear which retains exclusive rights to the reproduction of the design and the submitting artist relinquishes all rights to such design.

By submitting the artwork on behalf of the child, parents and guardians acknowledge that each entry design is: (a) wholly original by the child; (b) does not incorporate or include any material that would require the consent of any third party; and (c) does not violate any copyright, trademark, publicity right, privacy right, or any other right of any third party. The Colon Cancer Coalition preserves the right to edit, composite, scan, duplicate or alter the entry design for any purpose which it deems necessary or desirable, without the need for any further compensation, and/or permission.

Deadline for entries: Entries must be received by 11:59 p.m. CT, Thursday, December 1, 2011.

Prize: One winner will be selected to have their design featured on the Get Your Rear in Gear kids’ t-shirts for the 2012 race season. This final design will also include the artist’s signature as part of the printed image. The winning artist will also receive free entry into the Get Your Rear in Gear race of their choice during the 2012 race season (up to $25 value) and a t-shirt with their winning design (Youth sizes  XS, S, M., or L). Prize does not include transportation, accommodations or other incidentals required for prize redemption. Prize is not transferable.

Selection of winner: All entered designs will be screened by Get Your Rear in Gear staff, volunteers and vendors. The top entries (no more than ten) that comply with these rules and have met the guidelines and specifications will be featured on the Get Your Rear in Gear Facebook page beginning Monday, December 5, 2011 (Facebook.com/GetYourRearinGear). The design receiving the most “Likes” by 5:00 PM CT, on Friday, December 16, 2011, and meeting all other criteria will be declared the winner. The winner will be notified via email on or about Monday, December 19, 2011.

Other: The Colon Cancer Coalition reserves the right to use kids’ shirt inventory remaining from 2011 at selected 2012 races. Contest is not open to immediate family members of Colon Cancer Coalition employees.

For a complete list of winners send a self-addressed stamped envelope to Get Your Rear in Gear, Attn: Kids’ T-Shirt Contest Winner, 8009 34th Ave, Suite 360, Bloomington, MN 55425.

Contest void where prohibited by law.

You can read a recap of the race on DecorahNews.com.

Northeast Iowa Crew

Here is the story of Charlie Hughes, as told to us by Kevin Laney, the driving force behind Get Your Rear in Gear Lake St. Louis.

Visit the Lake St. Louis Get Your Rear in Gear event page to register for the race or donate to this event.

Charlie Hughes

Charlie Hughes was 42 when he was diagnosed with colon cancer on Sunday, April 11, 2010 after going to the emergency room for back pain.  Everyone assumed it was nothing, until we heard the word…cancer.  Charlie died just three days shy of his six month diagnosis “anniversary” on Friday, October 8, 2010. During his all-too-short battle with cancer, Charlie rarely showed the pain he was in and would comfort those around him as he suffered with this disease.

Charlie was married for 18 years, 3 months and 2 days to Jan, whom he loved very much, and they have three precious children – Mikaelie, McKinnley and Tucker.  He loved life…more than anyone you have ever met.  Charlie was a practical joker and had a laugh that was contagious.  He was a man’s man, someone you would want with you if the chips were down, and he was a man that loved the Lord.

Charlie and Jan dreamed of going to Guatemala with their family and any friends that wanted to go. They planned to care for those who could not care for themselves.   That was just who he was….a great friend who cared for others more than himself.

Vera’s story stress the importance of knowing your family history and following the recommended screening guidelines for colon cancer. You can watch her story below.

Speedy Recovery from Colon Cancer from Lee Memorial Health System on Vimeo.

For more from this inspiring women you can read her story of overcoming colon cancer, and watch Vera tell it in her own words from the Fort Myer’s race in March 2011.