We'll be back selling our fantastic
Bonita noisemakers (this year they will be glow in the dark!!!) and
hand clappers from Avanti. We now have over 40 athletes on our team and we'd love to double that number so come on and register!
One of our amazing fundraising stars and the current frontrunner for best fundraiser is Peter Tinholt from Tauranga. Peter has set himself a very lofty goal of $25,000 and is well on his way!! Here's what he says about his work for CF.
I would love to raise over $20,000, so I have set a rather ambitious target of $25,000.
Why?
Well, there are a number of reasons. Firstly I was incredibly inspired by the stories of two remarkable individuals, Tracey Richardson and Aaron Fleming.
Tracey's story is incredible. Many Ironman athletes have used her story as an inspiration. I'm not the first and I am sure I will not be the last. Tracey's story can be found in her book (Tracey Richardson - Going the Distance by Random House) and on the Breath4CF web site.
Aaron Fleming's story is also amazing.
In 2006 my family and I went to watch the Ironman in Taupo as my sister in law's partner (Andrew) and another friend (Jeff) were competing. While we were standing along the famous Broadlands Rd, we came across a group of supporters who were cheering for this guy called Aaron. We soon found out his amazing story of hardship and how he had set a goal to compete in Ironman. Not only has Aaron raised a huge amount of money for CF he has now finished several Ironman events.
I have had a truly amazing life so far. I have not suffered any real hardship and have been very blessed. I have a fabulous family with a wonderful wife and two great kids. I have a super job and basically can't complain.
Having watched Ironman in person I was inspired in early 2006 to change from a happy couch potato, to become fit again and stop finding excuses to not exercise. In early 2006 a few friends and I all set a goal to do the Port of Tauranga Half Ironman in January 2007. After a fair amount of training and some build up events I managed to complete this in a respectable 5:32. In the process I lost 17kgs.
Having completed this challenge, I felt I wanted to do something more. So, after a fair bit of thought I have committed myself to doing Ironman NZ in March 2008. I have got myself a coach and am now busy training.
The second part of the challenge is to raise funds for Cystic Fibrosis through this Ironman campaign. CF is a debilitating disease that effects the lung function of sufferers. Exercise is unanimously regarded as the best way to have a reasonable quality of life, health and longevity. It is also the official charity of Ironman NZ.
I will thankfully not be the only person raising funds for CF by competing in Ironman 2008. I do hope that with your help we can make a real difference to those who need more help than we do.
Our
goal is to raise $100,000 to support people with CF to
stay healthy for longer by helping them to participate in
physical activities and sport. 
