VIDEO: 'Team in Training' Raises Money for a Cure

Editor's Note: Today, Patch is debuting the second of four new video series. “Superstar Next Door” highlights notable athletes and teams in community sports leagues. New editions of Superstar Next Door appear every Tuesday.

You can tell who they are by the ribbons on their running shoes.

The pastel strips of fabric flap in the wind to remind them why they are covering so many miles—each ribbon a symbol of someone who’s been affected by blood cancer.

“It’s when the miles start getting long and my feet really start hurting that I really think about Tony,” said Eva Nelson, referring to a friend who died from Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. “They went through hell. I can run 13 miles. It’s not the end of the world.”

The runners are training for marathons and half marathons with Team in Training—a fundraising effort for . Participants, many of them new to running, work together and raise money for the society. Along the way, Team in Training coaches give the runners the support they need to meet their goals.

The organization also offers programs for walkers, triathletes, cyclists and hikers.

“It’s been going on strong for a good 22 years, and in the 22 years, there’s been over $1 billion raised for blood cancer research,” said Kristen Kelroy, a society campaign manager who works with Team in Training programs.

That’s a little extra motivation as the runners are ticking off the miles. 

“You’re out there for a long time running for 26 miles, so there’s a lot to think about. It’s easy to quit sometimes—you get tired, sore, bored,” said Mik Gusenius, who’s wife was cleared of leukemia after five rounds of chemotherapy. “But when I think about what my wife went through and how hard that was for her, it makes it seem a little bit easier.”

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On Mondays, Patch runs “Fish Out of Water,” which features Minnetonka Patch Local Editor Katelynn Metz trying her hand at a new job somewhere in the west metro. Wednesdays will feature the "Ask Me Anything" feature where local experts in various arenas of expertise showing us what they do and how they do it. And finally on Thursdays, Patch will debut "Order Up!" which introduces us to the personalities in the kitchen of a local restaurant.