Eat, Live, Run » Echelon Gran Fondo

Echelon Gran Fondo

Jan 13th, 2010 by jenna

Please help me meet my Gran Fondo goal of $5,000 in support of cancer research.
***Training page to come so y’all can keep up with my progress as I work my way up to 100 miles!

38 Responses to “Echelon Gran Fondo”

on 13 Jan 2010 at 11:52 pm1Rocky Slaughter

I think we should get REALLY intimidating uniforms.
on 14 Jan 2010 at 8:26 am2Julie

I’m really excited to see you dip your toe into the cycling world! My husband is an avid cyclist and has been encouraging me to try for some time:) Thank you for this wonderful blog, and best of luck!
on 14 Jan 2010 at 3:07 pm3MMiller

Tried to donate, but it wouldn’t allow me to give less than $20! I’ll save up and donate closer to the end!

You will love cycling Jenna! You love the outdoors…and since you can’t run, cycling will be awesome for you! And see Rocky seems to have agreed! (Not that he actually had a choice!)
on 14 Jan 2010 at 5:19 pm4simpledaisy

Yeah for you!!!
You are going to feel GREAT when you accomplish 100 miles!!!
woohoo
on 14 Jan 2010 at 6:39 pm5Beth

I’m so excited for your new challenge!! My husband is an avid cyclist and, after watching him for a year, I recently started cycling myself. I’ve *really* been loving it as a nice break from all my running, so I hope you do, too. Are you putting together a team to ride with? So tempting…
on 15 Jan 2010 at 12:49 pm6Mae @ OhhMay

Thank you for your generosity and motivation. There are so many people out there that are active and even participate in races but don’t do so for a cause.
It’s wonderful that every time you begin a new fitness endeavor, it’s for a greater purpose. You’re so inspirational!
on 23 Jan 2010 at 6:30 pm7kaitlin

it’s seriously absolutely unbelievable that you can’t donate less than $20. you’re losing a lot of money.
on 30 Jan 2010 at 8:57 am8Louise

I’m guessing your bike, and all the accessories were donated to you. I think it’s extremely dishonest of you to not mention that to your readers.
on 30 Jan 2010 at 9:03 am9Cara

So basically you were given the bike and gear, and expect your readers to cough up the $5000? I have to disagree with Mae and say that that’s not exactly inspirational or motivational. I used to love reading your blog, but this along with the triathalon that never was last year have made me decide to stop reading.
on 30 Jan 2010 at 4:14 pm10Chrissie

I agree with the above – your track record of training and completing events isn’t that great. Yes, you got injured but if the bike was donated then to not mention that AND ask for donations is a bit dishonest. I’d much rather support Caitlin who actually paid for her bike and has shown true dedication in training and competing and suggest others do the same.
on 30 Jan 2010 at 6:35 pm11Jazzy

how can i donate?
on 31 Jan 2010 at 7:37 am12Karen

didn’t catch this one, your bike and equipment were donated??? Wow, even real bikers can’t get that deal, and my son has competed in many charity events.
on 31 Jan 2010 at 1:14 pm13Christine

Wow! I’m usually just a lurker on Jenna’s blog but I have to say something here – If you don’t want to donate don’t, but Jenna is raising money for cancer research not for herself . . . if a bike etc was donated to her, so what? She’s using it to raise money for a good cause.
on 31 Jan 2010 at 6:34 pm14M

Jenna did tell her readers that the bike was from the company — it’s in the comments section of this post:
http://eatliverun.com/riding-away/
I guess that’s not the same as writing that the bike was a gift in the caption of the picture, but she wasn’t trying to mislead anyone.
on 01 Feb 2010 at 6:55 am15Karen

still amazes me why someone would do that for a non-bike rider….
on 01 Feb 2010 at 11:08 am16Paul

…because of her widely-read blog, because she can positively represent and promote the event, because she exhibits a balanced and healthy lifestyle. In short, because she is the type of representative sponsors look for…… Makes sense to me!
on 01 Feb 2010 at 12:51 pm17JustSayin

Clearly, she doesn’t really care what you all think otherwise she would have responded. Why should she care? She got a free bike and is raising money for a good cause.
on 01 Feb 2010 at 1:33 pm18Tilly

Uhm, JustSayin? Why should Jenna care what we all think? Maybe because we’re the people who’ve been asked to support her charity ride?
on 01 Feb 2010 at 2:06 pm19jenna

Guys,

I’ve never tried to hide the fact that I am being sponsored to ride in this event. However, that doesn’t take away the fact that I still am raising $5,000 for cancer research all on my own as part of the deal. That has nothing to do with the fact that they got me a bike. Its still raising money for charity regardless!
on 01 Feb 2010 at 4:39 pm20Louise

Jenna, this is for charity yet you going to profit by a $$$ bike and equipment. Am I wrong in thinking that’s greedy? Do you plan to perhaps donate your bike when you are done? How about maybe raffling off the bike to one your readers that donate money to your cause?
on 02 Feb 2010 at 3:04 am21Becky

I don’t think Jenna tried to hide the fact that a bike was donated to her for this race, but I DO think that as this is supposed to be for charity, she should raffle off the bike after the race. She could raise MORE money for the charity by holding a raffle. It’s a bit of an oxymoron to say you are doing something for charity (not for profit) and then bank a brand new top of the line bike in the process. Not exactly moral, IMO.
on 04 Feb 2010 at 8:56 am22Following Julie

As a cyclist and triathlete myself, I would have loved the opportunity to get a nice bike for free. I don’t begrudge anybody that opportunity. In order to even things out and make some of your upset readers happy, perhaps you could self-donate an amount equal to the value of your gifts. Or, self-donate your minimum fundraising requirement and then ask your readers to donate additional funds to exceed your minimum. It really is all about charity, so the more money you can raise the better. Good luck!
on 04 Feb 2010 at 10:39 am23Nicole of Raspberry Stethoscope

Damn, all these comments with so much negativity. Even if the bike and equipment are free, I never once thought it was greedy to agree to raise money for cancer and ride 100 miles. Based on her blog, Jenna is obviously an honest person without hidden agendas. Cool it, people!
on 05 Feb 2010 at 11:24 am24shonarb

You people are vicious! So what if the bike was donated? You can’t raise money for charity in a BIKE race without a BIKE! If you look at it properly, the company is donating gear not to Jenna, but to the charity. Are you yelling at pro athletes for taking free shoes and other gear from companies (and NOT using them to raise money for charity)? I think not. I think the real issue is that you’re JEALOUS because you didn’t think of creating a widely read blog and then volunteering for a grueling 100 mile race and getting a free bike!
on 08 Feb 2010 at 6:36 am25anony

Shonarb…
Please direct us to the post(s) that “you people” posted that are so “viscious.”

I understand that you most likely have never met Jenna and you feel the need to lash out in her defense, but seriously, what exactly is it about posts that inquire about her bike donation and question whether she is being totally honest that are “viscious?”

You know, people can have dissenting opinions and (gasp!) question the validity or methods that someone employs since, you know, THEY PUT IT ON A BLOG FOR EVERYONE TO READ. But I guess we should all just be little lemings and post nothing but quips about “yummy oatmeal” in the food blog world so as not to appear so “viscious.”
on 08 Feb 2010 at 6:37 am26anony

ETA.. “vicious”
on 09 Feb 2010 at 3:03 pm27Cara

Shonarb,

Your comment is highly amusing. Jealous? Why do you suppose people are jealous? Because they have opinions? Because they comment on a PUBLIC blog? I run races for charity, yet do not take handouts from companies. I do it by fundraising, not begging for money. I read blogs for entertainment yet have zero interest in craving that kind of attention from strangers myself. I have zero interest in taking pictures of my oatmeal every morning and sharing it with the world. Just saying.
on 09 Feb 2010 at 4:16 pm28Julie

I don’t think she is being at all greedy nor did she hide the fact that her bicycle and gear was donated. She may have not donated her money or bought her own gear but she is donating something huge- her time. She is completely self employed. If she was really “greedy”, she would spend her time doing things that profit her (like writing). To be fair, you consider all the hours for training she has to put in to be able to compete and the value of her time and the effort she is putting into promoting the cause of cancer research. It would probably cost more than a value of a bike to hire someone to promote the event to the same number of people her blog will reach.

If you don’t like her blog, don’t read it. But why keep coming back just to spout negativity at someone who is trying to do something nice for a good cause? I think it shows real immaturity on your part to return to a blog no one is forcing you to read only to belittle others and promote your own accomplishments all while insisting you don’t crave attention from strangers. I’m sorry your life is so empty that you feel the need to return to a blog that you have “decide[d] to stop reading” to make yourself feel good by putting other people down.
on 12 Feb 2010 at 9:21 am29anony

Julie I am sorry your life is so empty that it is spent defending someone you have never met on the internet.

You went there.
on 12 Feb 2010 at 10:21 pm30Julie

anony-
It’s too bad you feel the need to attack “someone you have never met on the internet”. And if you do in fact know her, the courteous thing to do would be to contact her personally with your questions about her morals rather than making wild accusations on the internet.

Anyway, if I were Jenna, I would just chuckle and hit “delete”. You’re most likely a teenage boy trolling her page to piss off strangers you don’t know and someone you do- since you apparently know Jenna *so* much better than all the rest of us peons who read her blog.
on 14 Feb 2010 at 8:26 am31Elizabeth

I have to say that I was all primed to donates some money until it was not fully disclosed that you recevied a bike for free. It only came out in the comments section when someone asked. If you’re asking readers to donate money for you, then you need to come clean on what YOU are getting out of the deal. Regardless of intention, it SEEMS dishonest and shady.

On a seperate note, I have always wondered how all the freebies and samples that a blogger receives are reported to the IRS??
on 16 Feb 2010 at 2:12 pm32MelanieF

This has got out of hand…
on 17 Feb 2010 at 8:33 am33eatingRD

Hi Jenna! I’m also going to be racing to raise money for cancer research on Team Awesome! I think I’m going for the metric, hope to see you there! Maybe we can do a blogger meet-up, yay!
on 20 Feb 2010 at 7:40 pm34Jim Morris

I feel the need to put in my two cents here. I will start out by saying that Jenna works part time for me at Michel Schlumberger and I have had the pleasure of getting to know her over the past few months. I know her to be a sweet, giving, smart and very driven young lady who has a huge heart. I also respect her business savvy and her entrepreneurial spirit.

Any criticism of Jenna for reaping the benefits of creating a career by writing about her life experiences smacks of jealousy to me. As a businessman, I appreciate what she does with her business even if I dont fully understand it myself. I respect her as a businesswoman. She speaks to a particular audience that is very appealing to sponsors and by creating a highly successful brand, she should be encouraged to follow the many opportunities that she has been presented. The Eat Live Run business she has created should be an inspiration to others and I applaud her sponsors for seeing the potential in her.

If anything, Jenna is honest to a fault and fiercely protects her brand and represents her sponsors admirably. I am honored to having her represent our brand when she is at the winery and hope she continues to do so for a long time.

Hold your head high, you have earned everything presented to you and I encourage you to do continue to do what you do, do it well, and stick to your principles.
on 21 Feb 2010 at 4:41 pm35Rocky Slaughter

No good deed goes unpunished.
on 22 Feb 2010 at 9:00 am36Anessa

I stumbled across ELR a few months ago and have been reading pretty regularly since. This morning I stopped by and thought I would check out how Jenna was doing with her Fund raising. I am currently training with Team in Training to run a half marathon and raising money for Leukemia & Lymphoma. I thought the training would be hard but really it’s the fund raising that can be difficult. I feel that Jenna has done a great job working to build up her blog and if someone would like to sponsor her, why not. That doesn’t mean she isn’t doing a good thing. If she wasn’t donated the bike would she be able to afford to do the race and spend her time fund raising for a charity? Maybe not. She could do nothing and raise no money or ride with a donated bike and raise thousands of dollars for a good cause. Now really what is wrong with that? Keep it up Jenna, good luck with your race!
on 23 Feb 2010 at 10:50 am37Corinne

just keep doing what you are doing jenna you are going to finish and you are going to finish strong and help so many along the way! i cannot wait to read all about it!
on 23 Feb 2010 at 10:50 am38Corinne

and for the record, i love seeing your daily oatmeal pictures
on 03 Mar 2010 at 8:02 am39Chrissy

Wow…Just stumbled upon these and I think that so many of those comments are rediculous and completely miss the point of what you’re trying to do here, Jenna!! As a person who’s mother has beaten Cancer TWICE–I just wanted to tell you that I am rooting for you all the way and know you are going to do amazing! I miss you!!! We need to catch up soon