Back from Bogota
I'm back from five amazing days in Bogota Colombia. This sprawling city of some eight million people hosted the 10th annual Terry Fox Run on Sunday October 9, and I was so delighted to be back for it. It's hard to believe it was 1996 when I voluntered to start the TFR, and with a dedicated band of Colombians and Canadians, we pulled it off. It keeps getting bigger and better, and exclusive of this past Run, has raised some $208,000 Cdn for cancer research.
All the money goes to the Instituto Nacional de Cancerologia, and has helped fund some 30 projects in cancer research. The most recent was the production of an atlas of cancer incidence, showing graphically the various types of cancer, for men and women, and the geographical incidence. This can help lead researchers to answer questions of why certain types are more prevalent in certain geographical areas.
I met up with so many friends from my previous 14 months in Bogota. I met Mario Mesa, a new member of the TFR comittee, and a sub-three hour marathoner; way out of my league. We did a 6.6k run on the Saturday, and the effects of 10% less oxygen really showed up. I felt like I had run at least 10k, and was gasping to get enough air.
The day of the Run was great; overcast, and not too warm. I did the 6.3k route in 32:14, not too bad for me in that altitude. The Run has gotten so much bigger and better, under the skilled leadership of Sra. Maria Suescun, who has been the Chair ever since I left in 1997. I met her at a cocktail party and knew she would be perfect to take over when I left, and amazingly, she agreed to do it. Her mother now suffers from cancer.
They were still figuring out just how much money had been raised when I left on Tuesday this week, but felt it had been very successful. Maria even got the Presidential Guard, a 100 member precision marching band, to appear and perform a 40 minute spectacular show. I revisited the INC and was so delighted to hear of the projects the TFR has funded. It was a truly amazing and very emotional experience.
The associated picture shows me just after finishing my speech to the 400+ participants, handing off the mic to Maria.
All the money goes to the Instituto Nacional de Cancerologia, and has helped fund some 30 projects in cancer research. The most recent was the production of an atlas of cancer incidence, showing graphically the various types of cancer, for men and women, and the geographical incidence. This can help lead researchers to answer questions of why certain types are more prevalent in certain geographical areas.
I met up with so many friends from my previous 14 months in Bogota. I met Mario Mesa, a new member of the TFR comittee, and a sub-three hour marathoner; way out of my league. We did a 6.6k run on the Saturday, and the effects of 10% less oxygen really showed up. I felt like I had run at least 10k, and was gasping to get enough air.
The day of the Run was great; overcast, and not too warm. I did the 6.3k route in 32:14, not too bad for me in that altitude. The Run has gotten so much bigger and better, under the skilled leadership of Sra. Maria Suescun, who has been the Chair ever since I left in 1997. I met her at a cocktail party and knew she would be perfect to take over when I left, and amazingly, she agreed to do it. Her mother now suffers from cancer.
They were still figuring out just how much money had been raised when I left on Tuesday this week, but felt it had been very successful. Maria even got the Presidential Guard, a 100 member precision marching band, to appear and perform a 40 minute spectacular show. I revisited the INC and was so delighted to hear of the projects the TFR has funded. It was a truly amazing and very emotional experience.
The associated picture shows me just after finishing my speech to the 400+ participants, handing off the mic to Maria.
posted by Bill Horne | 5:21 PM
1 Comments:
Wow, sounds like a great trip! It must have been so gratifying to see your race grow and flourish.
Are you having a little bit of climate-shock now that you're back up north??
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