Seattle 3-Day 2016 Route Update!

Last year on the 3-Day® blog, we shared some detailed “Insider’s Peek at the Route” posts with you. We pulled the curtain back on the overall process of planning and executing a 60-mile route, and then got even more in-depth with each individual 3-Day walk’s route.

This year, we continue to keep you looped-in with the updates and changes that have been made to the 3-Day routes for 2016.

We’re also bringing in members of the 3-Day Advisory Council to share their thoughts about the 2016 route changes. These participants stand as the “voice” of the 3-Day community and their input has been instrumental in strengthening the communication and camaraderie between Komen and the 3-Day family, so we’re thrilled to have their insight here on our route updates.

We have already shared the Michigan and Twin Cities route updates, and today, we bring you some exciting info about the SEATTLE 3-Day route.

The Seattle 3-Day is the event whose route has undergone the most significant changes in 2016. Because Seattle would be seeing such substantial updates to its route, earlier this year, Seattle Advisory Council members Dottie and Tina were invited to join the 3-Day event planners on a route drive in Seattle, where they got a sneak peek at the changes. Tina, who will be walking in her 15th and 16th 3-Day events this year (Seattle and San Diego), shared her thoughts on the updates. tina mcd

“I know the route has been an ongoing concern over the last years for the Seattle 3-Day and my team. Spending the day driving the routes with 3-Day staff and discussing the reasoning and thought process was amazing. Every single concern was addressed and great changes are being made. I love that they are looking at it through the eyes and perspective of someone who is walking the 60 miles.

“On Day 1 I am so excited that we are developing plans to walk through the Microsoft campus. Many hills were eliminated and roads have been changed to give us a change of scenery.

“Day 2 is looking to incorporate so many fun changes! We are planning on reversing the route heading out of camp so we can walk into Redmond Town Center and avoid heading straight up the huge hill first thing in the morning. We’re planning on heading into Kirkland from the opposite direction which is great because it takes us down to the water for lunch. I love the route out of lunch because we will continue to walk along the waterfront through downtown. To make our way back to Redmond we are working on a gradual, progressive uphill that incorporates the Cross Kirkland trail and hopefully the Google Campus. This will help break up the hill as well as move us safely over the freeway while providing some new scenery as well.

“I am so pinking excited for the changes to Day 3. I love that we are planning on heading north to Ravenna so we can walk along the shores of Green Lake again. This route would allow us to come into the South Lake Union area from a different direction, while enjoying views of the lake and downtown. Although I will miss the Ballard Locks, I can’t wait to see what this new route provides for walker stalker opportunities. I love, love, love how we are planning to walk into Seattle with views galore of our amazing city and the water that surrounds it. I love that we are planning to approach the city from a different way—walking along the waterfront with the possibility of having our last pit stop/grab & go at Centennial Park, which is clean, beautiful and amazing!

“All three days will provide new scenery, roads, photo opportunities, large areas for cheering stations, and something new for the veteran walkers, as well an amazing experience for our new walkers! I am beyond thrilled that the walkers’ voices have been heard and that we are making changes. I couldn’t be happier to be a part of this great experience and amazing organization.”

Another Advisory Council member taking part in the Seattle 3-Day is Anthony, a long-time Route Safety crew member from Arizona. “This will be my 8th event. All of them have been on Route Safety. This will be my FIRST time crewing Seattle. It will be lots of fun, especially since I lived there a long time ago.” anthony

Can’t wait to see all you Seattle 3-Dayers out there in a couple of weeks!

Hooray! 2016 Twin Cities 3-Day Saturday Award Winners and Honorees

The 3-Day relies on the hard work of everybody who is involved: with the fundraising, training, and the actual walking and crewing during the 3-Day weekend, it’s fair to say the immense dedication and commitment of everyone absolutely shines through. We’re grateful for every single one of you, and it’s our pleasure to recognize some members of our community who went way above and beyond. Join us in congratulating the 2016 Twin Cities Award Winners and Honorees!

Top Training Walk Leader:

Kathryn Labbe has been participating in the 3-Day for 11 years and has been a Training Walk Leader for seven years. Kathy joins us from Mesa, AZ, and is walking for the first time in the Twin Cities this weekend. Previously, she’s walked in Arizona, Washington, D.C., San Diego and Dallas/Fort Worth. Kathy has become quite adventurous in recent years. She has gone sky diving, parasailing, paragliding, and scuba diving since turning 50 years young!

Top Individual Walker Fundraiser:

Let’s hear it for Mary Ann Isaac! Mary Ann has raised $27,670 this year, and an astonishing $122,731 in her lifetime. She’s been a participant for 8 years and Twin Cities was her 8^th event. She is captain of Team Chicks for a Cure. This awesome total fundraising is especially impressive because Mary spends more days traveling and in hotels in a year than she spends in her own house!

Top Crew Fundraiser:

Shannon Riggs raised $5,500 this year, with an amazing $25,659 raised in her lifetime. She’s been involved with the 3-Day for 11 years and this is her 14^th event. She’s the Route Clean Up and Route Hydration Captain, and racing towards that fundraising is no problem because Shannon is a licensed race car driver, and she has traveled to more than 14 countries in the world…but not as a race car driver!

Top Youth Corps Fundraiser:

Let’s hear it for Ava Redpath who at just 11 years old raised $1,344 ! Ava is from Rosemount, MN and this is her 1^st time serving in Youth Corps.

Top Team Fundraiser:

It’s time for a super huge virtual high five – Cassie’s Cups is our top fundraising team award winner, with an incredible $54,510 raised this year. Cassie’s Cups has had 7 years as team and has raised a lifechanging $109,682 total. Their Team Captain is Christine Kokaisel and there are 25 members of Cassie’s Cups.

Milestone Award:

Our Milestone Award goes to Peggy Sowden who has participated for 11 years, and this was her 13^th event. She’s raised $58,067 in her lifetime, and as a self-proclaimed Disney Addict, she finds a way to get that mouse into almost everything she does. Peggy has supported her fellow walkers by being a Training Walker Leader and volunteering for local activities. In addition to Twin Cities, she has walked in Chicago and Seattle. What did her friends have to say about Peggy? “Peggy is a kind-hearted person who tries to bring a smile to everyone she meets. She is always willing to lend a hand to others in need.” – Sue N., friend and fellow participant. “2013 was her 10^th For those of you who also walked that year, you’ll remember that we had to cut the route short on Day 3 by 10 miles due to the extreme heat. One of Peggy’s friends said she remembered how bummed Peggy was because finishing that day would have meant that she had logged 600 miles in her 3-Day career, but instead ended up with 590!” – Kim W., friend and teammate. You’re awesome, Peggy!

Local Impact Award:

Congrats to our Local Impact Award winner Janet Stevens, who has participated in the 3-Day for 9 years. The Twin Cities 3-Day was her 11^th event, and she’s raised a knockout $43,369 in her lifetime. She’s a part of Team Breast Friends Walking, and in another life, Janet was a school teacher and taught swimming in her spare time. She is English, but has not lived in England since 1984. She moved to Wales until 1986 then went to Brussels in Belgium until 2001 when she returned to America. Janet can often be seen with her signature hot pink braided wig, and her friends have this to say about her: “If you are walking with Janet, don’t be in a hurry, as she needs to stop, chat, and make friends with EVERYONE along the way- That’s why we all love her! She’s also been known to take care of her teammates, by bringing coffee to our tents, first thing in the morning.” – Sandy A., teammate. “One of her teammates, I won’t name names, used to tell her that if they get separated in a crowd they would just look for a head with bright pink hair. But since there are a number of gals here with pink wigs that isn’t useful. So, now they listen for Janet’s distinct British accent and since she lives in Lake Elmo, they always refer to that as her “Lake Elmo” accent. You can always locate her then. Also, in walking with her for seven years now, I realize there isn’t a photo opportunity that she misses. She probably has a photo of every Twin Cities’ landmark along with every possible strange character we ever met on our journey. She could print all those out and wallpaper her house.” – Lyle K., teammate. Thank you so much, Janet!

Please join us in congratulating all of these amazing people! We couldn’t do the 3-Day without YOU!

2016 Twin Cities 3-Day Wrap-up

The Susan G. Komen Twin Cities 3-Day began early Friday morning as a cheerful pink family against a gray sky. The somber weather was no match for the enthusiasm and dedication radiating from our walkers and crew, who listened to moving stories from the honor speakers, shouted the names of their loved ones in memoriam, and were amped up by Chrissy Mathews, 3-Day Program Manager, and Dr. Sheri Prentiss. As music pulsed through the lot at Southdale Center in Edina, our 500 walkers began the first steps in their 3-Day journey.

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Pit Stop 1 greeted walkers with a peaceful vibe… of peace, love, and boobees, that is. Walkers refueled with juicy oranges and grahamwiches, filled up on sports drink, visited portapotties, and headed back out onto the route.

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Minnesota’s stunning green landscape didn’t disappoint at 6.3 miles in at Lake Harriet, where ducks floated by and squirrels dashed up trees.

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After lunch, the sweeping city views at Father Hennepin Bluffs Park were the perfect backdrop for photos (thanks, Bank of America!), and having clocked 14.7 miles, feet were starting to get sore. Pit stops refueled the walkers several miles later as grahamwiches were scarfed and hydration remained a priority.

Back at camp, walkers relaxed with Bank of America’s massage chairs and hands on massage, and sipped refreshing mocktails in our glamping lounge. Camp Angels helped set up pink tents and slowly a pink city rose against the blue dusk. We welcomed in our last walker and then heard from courageous survivor Teresa Swinson, 3-Day specialist Amber, played some games with Bank of America, and listened to the Youth Corps share their reasons for participating. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house! Camp show ended on an inspirational note, and we walked back to our tents feeling tired but grateful, finishing off the day knowing we made a 20-mile impact in the fight against breast cancer.

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Day 2 was full of what some walkers dubbed ‘tears of joy’. Sprinkles and downpours drenched our walkers and crew in liquid sunshine, but cheery yellow ponchos kept everyone relatively dry and the walk went on. Flooded roads put a slight crimp in the route, with a special re-route courtesy of cozy SAG buses that whisked our walkers away to lunch.
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While the rain kept coming down, the amazing and optimistic attitudes of 3-Dayers shone through even when the sun didn’t. The day was moved along by the hard work of our energetic crew, and pit Stops like Pit 4, the Wizard of Bras, provided hilarious entertainment with pumping music and dance parties. We may not have been in Kansas, but the yellow brick road and cold sports drink of Pit 4 proved that there’s no place like the 3-Day.

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Saturday is Friends and Family night at the 3-Day, so it was the perfect night to call out the extraordinary Top Fundraisers, Local Impact Award Winner, Milestone Award Winner, Veteran and New Walkers. They were all rewarded with personalized gifts from Bank of America, which was the perfect introduction to a special celebration loaded with surprises in honor of our 150th walk! We won’t tell you much here so it’s a surprise for everyone 😉

Though the rain may have made parts of Day 2 more challenging, it cleared up in time for a beautiful sunset, the perfect parting gift for a special 40 miles.

It was smiles all around in Camp on Sunday morning as walkers woke up in Harvest Park to clear blue skies.

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The public came out to cheer on our walkers at Northwood and Indian Mounds Parks, passing out candies, ribbons, and to some lucky walkers, hot coffee from a popular establishment. Indian Mounds Park was the source of the day’s knockout scenery, with the St. Paul skyline bursting through clearings in the trees.

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It was just a few more miles through downtown St. Paul to get to the gorgeous Harriet Island, home of our Closing Ceremony. Our walkers marched victoriously onto the field, surrounded by clapping Crew members. They knelt in solidarity, each holding a shoe towards the sky, saluting our brave survivors as they walked into the audience. Chrissy and Dr. Sheri shared the news that 500 walkers and 200 crew raised an astonishing $1.4 million dollars toward furthering the fight against breast cancer. Looking out into a sea of survivors and co-survivors, family and friends, we were reminded again of the magnitude of what we do, and the power, dedication, and HOPE that comes from the tenacity and commitment of each and every one of you. Twin Cities; we’re so proud of you, and we promise you: we will never give up.

HEROES