Pay It Forward! So Much More Than Just A Slogan To Me!

Well now that the 'cat is out of the bag' and I have officially announced my race series, at least here on my blog, I have another endeavor to add to that.  I am sure you have either heard of or maybe seen the movie, 'Pay It Forward'.  Its a few plus years old now, but the message of that movie, to me anyway, is timeless and with all the difficult times our country has been going through for the past few years, it seems like a good time to do just that, Pay It Forward.  So that is exactly what I am going to do.  And so are you!

When I did my first triathlon, it was 1993 and I think, if I remember correctly, I paid $25 for the race.  Granted, it was a sprint distance so not too far and probably not too much planning, size-wise for the race director.  But if you have been following triathlon and actually training and racing, you will have noticed, $25, these days, is going to get you a t-shirt and that's about it.  Times have changed and races are quite a bit more expensive today.  To that end, they're more involved, sometimes have more happening, pre-race expo, or pre-race dinner, guest speaker, you get the idea.  All of this costs money and getting the stuff you need to put on the race costs money, and definitely more than it used to.  So what to do if your bank account has been challenged over the past few years?  How do you keep racing?

Well according to USAT, as well as many journalist who deem our sport of triathlon to be note worthy, the average salary of the triathlete in the USA is $126K.  They refer to these lucky folks as, the C-Listers.  Not exactly sure how they decided that people making that amount of money per year fit into the C list category, but we'll leave that for another story I guess.  Considering I never reached that in the 20 years of my design/architecture career, which sort of seems pathetic now that I am writing this, but I thought I made a decent living.  Guess I would be on the D-List if there was one.  Not to worry, I just think D means, dynamic, dedicated, daring, and delicious.  Just as good as the C's in my opinion.  But regardless of what list your on or not on, for that matter, if you are not making what you may have made in the past few years, with job lay offs and all, how is it that you can afford to race these days?

I often wonder how many other people out there are like me.  I was making good money before I got laid off, but for the last 4 years or so, honestly, my income has been close to, if not below, the poverty level.  But I've made it work, on my own, no help from Uncle Sam.  I have had a few odd jobs at the same time, I am lucky to have already paid off my school loans, got rid of most, if not all, of my debt before I lost my job.  I live very simply and only buy what I absolutely need, which, when you are really tested, you realize is actually alot less than what you think.  It's not really living, it's more existing.  I miss out on some of the 'fun' things I used to do, but it brought me to where I am today, however winding of a road that may have been, I am grateful to now have something bigger and more fulfilling to do.  I have been working on this website and now the race series, to build a future that I have a bit more control over and in the long run, will probably touch more peoples lives than I ever could designing interiors for architecture firms and their clients.  That makes me feel good and like the person I see when I look in the mirror.  If I can make an honest living and touch someone while doing it, then that's all I really 'need'.  Everything else is just frosting...

But I know I am not alone.  How many other triathletes can't afford to race?  How many can't afford the $130 for new sneakers you need just to run in, let alone the extra food you need to ingest to keep you in proper health and give you the energy you need to run and ride and swim every day?  When you are on a really tight budget it's hard to splurge and buy the extra protein you need.  I can't tell you how many times I finish a 6 or 8 mile run and come home and wonder what I am going to eat to replenish.  I am usually really hungry by then, but it's tough at times. 

How many thousands of triathletes are there basically, on hold, indefinitely, until they get the new job that allows them to spend $450 do a race, say a 70.3 or 140.6.  Or, how many triathletes took a new job in the last year or so but they are making half, or less than half of what they made before, so they don't have that extra disposable income that they may have had before.  I sometimes think that phrase 'disposable income' is an oxymoron.  Really, who has income that they don't Need to use for real Needs, not just wants?  Although, I do know a few people who used to feel the Need to go shopping for more clothes and stuff that wasn't a 'need' at all, so I guess the word is really subjective, depending on who you talk to.   But really, most people these days, need every penny they get just to get by.  So how are you going to train for triathlons, buy all the gear and food, massages, chiropractic visits, maybe some coaching/nutrition tips from someone, all on a ridiculously tight budget, either being single, married, kids/ dog etc...  I often wonder about this.  I really do, probably now more than ever.

So, I don't have a solution for the jobs issue in this country, and I will not even attempt to give my two cents worth on the subject, but I do have an idea that may help a few triathletes.  I hope it really works and catches on and actually helps those triathletes out there who may still have the funds to train, but who may be struggling with the extra funds to race.  I've got the idea, but I need your help to execute! 

My idea is a 'scholarship' fund.  At first I thought, in most big cities, I know in LA and here in Denver there are apartment buildings that are somehow allocated to be for people who only make 'X' amount of money.  Of course, you have to prove it, bring in your W-2's etc... so the more I thought about it, the more I thought, 'Well, that's gonna be hard to do for triathletes, and I don't want to ask people for that'.  So how else to prove that you only make a modest living and can't afford to race. 

Well, this is where you come in, along with the tried and true, 'honor system' as well as just pure honesty and integrity.  If you're making 60K - 80K - 100+K, then you are not in the category of 'needing' help to pay your race fees, in my opinion anyway.  If you're making 25K - 35K - 45K and trying to pay your bills, trying to afford the gear you need to race, pay for the race, then you are going to be stretching those $5 bills the way I've been stretching them over the past few years.  Covering the cost of a 70.3 race is going to be huge for you.   Most of the racing, if any, I would assume, is going to just be sprint and Olympic distance races, which isn't anything to sniffle at, those are great races to do to be a part of the triathlon community.  But according to the USAT, the biggest percentage of people racing these days are racing the 70.3, or half Ironman.  (This is also the distance of the race I am planning to build for you guys). They also sell out like hot cakes, and if you're not online at 12:01 AM to get your spot, then in a few minutes, the races are full and you are SOL. (shit outa luck)  Wait for next year, find another race, maybe that other race is farther away, which now means 'travel' expenses will be incurred.  These are all in addition to the race fees you already were going to have a hard time covering.  The reasons go on and on, and so do the challenges, and I know I am not the only one who has thought about this.

So when I finish upgrading my website, which will literally start tomorrow, I am also going to be adding pages specifically for the race and information about this 'scholarship' program. 
There will be links from my website to the race registration pages where you will get more info on how to sign up if you are in need of help covering your race costs, etc... but most importantly, there is going to a 'scholarship' button for you to click on and read, a profile of someone, maybe it's my story for all I know, cuz I have a good one.  But someone who may be in need of a little help.  My friend and race committee member, was actually the one that came up with the term, so I thank her for that.  But she actually said, when she signs up for a race and sees something like this, she actually buys another race entry for someone else.  I thought that was awesome and I am not, in any way, shape or form, expecting anyone to pay for an entire race entry for someone, but if you do have the means to do so, and really do, then God Bless you, thank you for being so generous and I appreciate it on behalf of the scholarship fund.  But if you give, anything, $5, $15, $50, whatever you think you can, it will be appreciated and it will go to other athletes who I am sure will also be quite grateful.  We will keep adding it up.  For the first race, if we get enough, we will give those who need some help, an opportunity to race.  If we don't have enough for full race entries, we will divide it up and help out as many as we can.  This is a new program and I have a new race committee with smart people so between all of us, I know we are going to come up with the best scenario for the best outcome.  That is a promise!

I will also have a place on my Triathleta.com website, before the race website gets completely up and running, for all of you triathletes to come and actually sign up, in privacy, to be a beneficiary of this scholarship.  Like I said before, this is where the honesty and the honor system come in.  Sign up for the scholarship, or sign up someone you know, who may never sign up themselves because they may be to proud to ask for help, and have an opportunity to get a discounted race entry or full entry.  This is a new program and it may take some time to get people to sign up for it and for funds to go into it.  But I think it's needed, and I think triathletes are, for the most part, very welcoming to the 'newbies',  to those who need a few tips or just a helping hand.  They are the first to go up to a nervous girl or guy who is freaking out about how to do all these new things and say, 'Hey, look, do it like this', or 'you're gonna be fine just stay on the wings in the water, stay out of the washing machine', etc...You know what I mean if you ever needed help or gave help.  I know I got it, and I know I have given it and both times, it was welcomed. 

So I think this idea could really work and be really great.  I don't have a crystal ball and I don't know when many of the jobs will come back around.  I know mine wasn't coming back, which is why I created this new business - triathlon website/race thing.  It's always been a passion and it started the same time I began my original career.   Now I just really want to build my own dreams and future, not someone else's, and if I can figure out a way to 'Pay It Forward' while I am in the process of accomplishing my dream, well then it's full circle, the way it should be.  Give and Receive.

And there's more...I have been building a connection with a guy in Africa, about bringing triathlon to kids and future triathletes in the making.  The whole idea of the website was never just about me and sustaining myself.  Yes I have bills to pay and I can't pay them with fairy dust just because I do nice things for people.  I have to be able to sustain myself.  I have no husband, no sugar-daddy, no rich parents or siblings etc...so it's just me.  But when I help myself and create something with the intention of sharing, either something I know or something I have that others would benefit from, then its bigger than me. 

And this is much bigger than me.  What you buy from me helps me, yes, but it also helps my suppliers, who have mouths to feed too.  What you buy from me, may be your first wetsuit or your first pair of sneakers or first tri-bike.  It may change your life, bring you to a place where you fall in love with exercise and your past life of 'couch surfing' becomes a story overshadowed by much bigger more fun, exciting stories to be told in the near future.   What I do as an e-commerce business woman is important to me, creating the race is important to me, but it means nothing if I can't make an impact on you and somehow, in some small, microscopic way, make a difference in your life.  This is my 'pay it forward', scholarship program.  I want to infect the world with the same passion I have for triathlon.  You may not get infected with the same intensity that I have for the sport and want to do the same things I want to do, but if you make your life better, and your kids see this and it changes what they do, what they eat, how they see themselves.  Then it's all worth it.

My Mom is a nurse, long retired now, but when I was 12, there was a big change in my life.  My Dad got laid off his job and things were going to be different, and they were.  What happened to my Dad had more of an impact on my life than I knew, at the time.  It changed me in many ways, all of which, honestly, were not all so good, but I have found a way to make what I learned and experienced, make me a better human being, and for that, it became a good lesson learned. 
But I remember one day my Mom telling me something that, I literally can remember almost word for word.  She said that no matter what, having good health was THE most important thing you can ever have.  It doesn't matter if you become rich and have a ton of money.  If you are sick and walk into a doctors office, it doesn't matter how much money you throw at him and tell him to 'make you better'.  He can't!  No amount of money you ever make, will make you well again, nor will it ever BUY your health.  It has to come from what you do, what you eat, how you take care of yourself every day, for the rest of your life.  It is a conscious decision, that you respect your body, your soul and who and what you want to become.  It's not a given that you will be healthy, while disrespecting your body.  You  have to work at it and be aware of it.  That conversation was the most significant I probably had as a child with my Mom and one that shaped the way I have lived my life.  If I can share that knowledge with others through my business and with the scholarship program, then I will have honored those words given to me years ago and not a second of any amount of time I have put into my running or biking or swimming will have ever been wasted because it allowed me to be here, paying it forward to someone else.

I have heard a scary statistic recently, this year, 2013, there will be MORE people that die of obesity than die of starvation.  This is very sad and unfortunate to me.  It is also something that can change.  At no other time have I thought that the term 'survival of the fittest' is really in play.  I think there are a number of factors that cause this issue.  I'm not a doctor, I just have my observations, but if people put there minds to it, become educated about what food is and what it's not, people can become healthy again and we can alleviate many other issues we have in this country.  Health care issues, the costs associated with them could be reduced, if not eliminated, and the list goes on and on.  I don't want this to become another post entirely about this issue, but if some of these people who are trying to lose weight, really get healthy again, then it could change many things in this country.  If some of these people decided they wanted to try out triathlon as their 'sport of poison' to get themselves back into shape, then all the better.  Some of these people may be in the income bracket that would allow them to race, but some of them, maybe not.  If the scholarship program worked for the existing triathletes who just need a bit of help to get back to racing, then what could we do to help others who are trying to make a profound change in their life and get back to a healthy lifestyle.   The scholarship program could work for them too, then its truly a pay it forward moment for more than just existing athletes, its for new athletes as well.  They not only get into triathlons, but they get healthy again.  I know this is a big challenge, but it all starts with one person.

I think most of us under estimate what we can do to make a difference. 

I'd like to think that if some of the people who over eat, gave some of their food to the families and kids who are living without food,  or not know where and when their next meal is going to come from, the change would be huge.  I unfortunately was one of these people not too long ago.  I lost 15 lbs in one year and I didn't need to lose it.  I just didn't have the funds for food.  I actually remember awakening at night because of hunger pains.  It's a horrible feeling, physically and mentally.  With all the food in this country that gets thrown away, wasted at restaurants or to much is consumed by one person, you would think we could help the people who have no food.  And in doing so, we educate both of those groups about how to eat properly, how to live a healthy lifestyle, and how to exercise and enjoy being active, not live on the couch.  The possibilities are endless...

So that's it.  I'm finished with my pitch, that's my idea!  Lots of stuff being divulged here.  These ideas have been sitting in my head for more than 6 months so I hope to sleep easier now that some of them are out there.  I don't have to keep them inside anymore because honestly, they keep me awake at night!  I think this blog has become my journal, lol.  I hope some of what I have said here resonates with someone and you choose to get involved in some way.  Race, give back, pay it forward and change the small world we live in.

I would love to know what you think, provide me some feedback or other ideas, if you feel up to it.  You can email me directly if you have something specific to suggest or give to the effort.  support@triathleta.com is where you can write me at.  Other than that, you guys just need to stay tuned.  I am still waiting for the snow to melt so I can go and get my location for the race secured.  After that, it's a go.  We are supposed to get close to a foot of snow on Tuesday, April 9th, so just hope it melts fast.  I have the charity, my race committee is growing and I will have a full team in a matter of weeks.  So stay tuned...  and thank you!  I hope you guys are on board with this idea.  I really do think it can work and help out those who just need a hand.  We all have hard times where we need it.  This is just one small part we can play in that, so I hope you think about it.  Thank you! God Bless...

Caroline / Triathleta