2014 Triathlon Participant Guide

2014 New York CitY triathloN PartiCiPaNt Guide

Race toStop MS

1 | raceMSnyc.org | Call: 212-463-9791 | Email: [email protected]

WELCOME tO thE 2014 RaCE tO StOp MS pROGRaM! Thank you for accepting the challenge of a New York City Triathlon consisting of a 1,500 meter swim, a 40k bike and a 10k run. Thank you also for committing to raise funds for the New York City – Southern New York Chapter of the National MS Society. Your fundraising will provide hundreds of vital programs and support services for the 12,000 people living with MS in our area and advance the Society’s goal to: StoP the progression of MS in its tracks; reStore function that has been lost and eNd the disease forever.

how does the Race to Stop MS – NYC tri program work? You have been accepted into the Race to Stop MS program as either a full or supporter team member. All full team members are required to raise a minimum of $2,500 to participate and receive one of our guaranteed entry spots into the race. All supporter team members should have secured a spot into the triathlon on their own and are required to raise $1,250 in order to receive all of the team benefits.

as a Race to Stop MS - NYC tri team member, you are entitled to the following benefits:

• Guaranteed entry into the 2014 NYC Triathlon

• Professional training and coaching

• A personal fundraising web page and use of our online fundraising tools

• Race to Stop MS technical training wearable

• Race to Stop MS personalized technical race day singlet

• Invitations to team social events

Save the dates:• May 16, 2014 - 25% Fundraising Deadline and Fundraising Day

• May 21, 2014 - Deadline to commit to training program

• May 28, 2014 - Training Program begins

• June 12, 2014 - Team Happy Hour

• June 13, 2014 – 50% Fundraising Deadline and Fundraising Day

• July 11, 2014 – 75% Fundraising Deadline and Fundraising Day

• July 24, 2014 - Team Happy Hour and Singlet pick-up

• August 1, 2014 – 100% Fundraising Deadline and Fundraising Day

• August 3, 2014 – NYC Triathlon

• September 5, 2014 – Fundraising Deadline for Top Fundraiser eligibility

Email: [email protected] | Call: 212-463-9791 | raceMSnyc.org | 2

tabLE Of CONtENtS:

thaNk YOu fOR RaCING

Fundraising ........................................................3 - 4

Using Your Participant Center ..........................5

Top Fundraisers .................................................5

Cheering Station .................................................6

Training ...............................................................6 - 7

Where My Fundraising Dollars Go ..................8

FAQ’s ...................................................................9

About Multiple Sclerosis ...................................10

Share your story and tell us why you Race to Stop MS. Email [email protected] today!

Read a personal story from one of our past Race to Stop MS NYC Tri team members:

Since I can remember, I’ve wanted to race in a triathlon. I had a very work intensive summer in 2012, yet came across a bike for sale in the fall from a co-worker. So when 2013 began, I said to myself, “This is going to be my summer to finish an Olympic distance triathlon!” But that was not all. I knew the commitment it would take to train for such an event, and I wanted to do it with a higher goal in mind – raising money for multiple sclerosis. Although I do not have a direct connection with the disease, as an athlete, I value the ability I have to walk, run, swim, bike, and move about this world. I connect with MS in the sense that I want to help the people that are burdened by it so that one day they can possibly run a triathlon, or achieve any physical feat they desire. I race for MS because I can, and because those suffering should have the chance to as well.

The notion of helping and raising money carried me through my training, through the early bike rides and long runs. Racing through New York City was in incredible feeling knowing that I had contributed to the fight against MS. It was an amazing feeling to run through Central Park with the New York City – Southern New York Chapter of the National MS staff cheering me on! It was a great feeling of accomplishment both physically and in support of such a great cause.

Kaitlin Green2013 Race to Stop MS NYC Triathlon Member

Kaitlin Green


fuNDRaISING 101Have FUN with FUNdraising! Here are five easy steps to get you started:

1. Be Bold – Aim high when you set your goal. Become a Top Fundraiser by raising $3,500 or more. Top Fundraisers will receive an embroidered branded wearable and other great perks. Update your goal on your Participant Center so that it is proudly displayed on your fundraising website. Be sure to share your goal when asking your friends and family for support. When you surpass your goal, update your page with a new one!

2. Start earlY – The early bird gets the worm! Successful fundraising is planned and executed. You can kick your fundraising off with a bang by making a self-pledge towards your goal. Others will be more inclined to give if they see that you made a donation yourself.

3. Be PerSoNal – Share your story with your family, friends and co-workers. Personalize your Participant Center page and tell everyone you know why you are doing the NYC Triathlon with the Race to Stop MS team.

4. KEEP IT SIMPLE – Go online and take advantage of the easy-to-use fundraising tools called your Participant Center! There, you can set up a personal web page, send out emails and track your progress. Go to www.raceMSnyc.org and get started now!

5. Be CreatiVe – We have all kinds of innovative fundraising ideas and tips to help get you started. Some ideas are listed in this guide and you can find more than a 100 at www.raceMSnyc.org. If you would like to meet with a Chapter staff member to discuss your fundraising plan and take advantage of more resources, please email Nicole Cannizzaro at [email protected] or call 212-453-3262.

be RESOuRCEfuL: fundraising is easy if you keep it simple and start small. Segment your contacts and plan specific outreach to ensure success! 1. Group One: Family and Very Close Friends Make a list of people in your inner circle that you are confident will make a donation. These individuals could be your parents, supervisor, or friends. 2. Group Two: People impacted by the MS Cause Identify any of your contacts that may have a personal connection to MS.

3. Group Three: Friends These should be people you think are more likely to donate.

4. Group Four: General Appeals This group consists of other friends, coworkers, extended family and the rest of your contacts.

5. Group Five: Social Media Contacts Don’t forget to utilize your Facebook and Twitter contacts by posting and tweeting how your fundraising is going on. use facebook and other social media outlets: o Our Boundless Fundraising tool allows you to use Facebook as an easy and fun way to raise money and awareness among all your friends. You can upload the tool to your Facebook account through your online Participant Center.


plan your own fundraising event:Whether it’s a dinner party at your home, a garage sale, a karaoke night or a bowling tournament, planning an event is a great way to raise proceeds to benefit your fundraising goal. A few ideas include:

• “A Night Out”: Partner with a local bar or restaurant for a fundraising night and ask if they would be willing to donate a percentage of one night’s profits to benefit your fundraising efforts. In exchange, you help promote the local business by inviting all your friends and family! The business may also be willing to distribute information to help raise awareness.

• Bake Sales/Garage Sales: Ask neighbors to donate gently used goods or baked goods that you can sell at your home or a community event.

• Exercise for a Cure: Ask a local gym if they would be willing to teach a Zumba or yoga class for free and invite friends, family and community members to participate for a set donation to your fundraising.

Get your company involved:

o See if your company has a Matching Gift Program (see Matching Gift Program section on page 5)

o Ask your supervisor if he or she would be willing to allow anyone, who gives a donation, a “dress down” day at the office.

o Ask if you can change your voicemail or email signature to include a URL/link for people to donate.

o Ask for permission to put a poster and a collection jar in the break room. We can create a custom poster for your fundraising efforts. Just ask!

o Hold a raffle – ask people to make a donation to your Race to Stop MS fundraising to receive a raffle ticket for a prize donated by a local retailer.

o Offer to do something unusual or embarrassing (i.e. shave your head or dye your hair a crazy color) that you know your friends would love to see if you raise a specific amount.

o Stick to traditional methods of in-person asks, letter writing and emails. In most cases, these are the best methods.

the New York City – Southern New York Chapter can support your event in the following ways:

• Provide you with literature about multiple sclerosis and the New York City – Southern New York Chapter of the National MS Society.

• Provide you with the Race to Stop MS logo (once the chapter approves how it will be used on your materials).


Mobile fundraisingManage your fundraising on the go with our Race to Stop MS mobile application. Update your web pages, send emails and check your progress– all from the palm of your hand! Keep your fundraising going through the final fundraising deadline. The free application is for iPhones and Droids and is available to all registered Race to Stop MS participants.

how It Works:

1. Search MS NYC SNY in either the iTunes App Store or Droid Market.

2. Download the mobile application to your phone as you would any other app.

3. Log in with the same username and password that you use online at www.race MSnyc.org. If you do not know your username and/or password email us at [email protected] or call 212-463-9791.

4. Use the app to email, view your donors, update your fundraising page, get updated event information, and share your fundraising progress on Facebook and to check the status of your personal and team fundraising.

Matching Gifts:You can significantly increase your fundraising total by having your donors apply for matching gifts! Many companies have matching employer gifts incentive programs to maximize their financial contributions to non-profit organizations. This means they will match donations to non-profits, which will increase your fundraising total and bring us closer to a world free of MS.

How it works:

• Send an email to your donors explaining the benefits of Matching Employer Gifts and let them know they can access an employer lookup at www.nationalmssociety.org/employermatch

• Instruct them to follow the procedure outlined by the company’s matching gift program; printed materials may be mailed to: New York City – Southern New York Chapter of the National MS Society Attn: Race to Stop MS Matching Gifts 733 Third Ave., Third Floor New York, NY 10017

• Our staff will send confirmation to the donor’s company. Upon receipt of the employer’s matching gifts check, we will credit your Race to Stop MS account. While this process may take up to several months, if we have received the matching gift paperwork by the final fundraising deadline of September 5, we will include it in your Race to Stop MS fundraising total.


YOuR paRtICIpaNt CENtERhOW-tO GuIDE

Utilizing the online fundraising tools available in your Participant Center is the fastest and easiest way to jump start your fundraising.

Keep track of your personal fundraising and update your goal

Customize your personal web page with personal messages and photos

Upload contacts to your address book to be able to email them all at once Send emails to your contacts –

you can use template messages already created or personalize your own

aCCESSING MY paRtICIpaNt CENtER• Step 1: Go to raceMSnyc.org and select ‘My Participant Center.’

• Step 2: Enter your username and password to access your Participant Center.

Fundraise with Facebook


fuNDRaISING DaYS Throughout the months leading up to the NYC Triathlon, we will be hosting various Fundraising Days, offering fundraising tips, encouragement and fundraising challenges that give you a chance to win great prizes! You will receive email notifications announcing the Fundraising Day challenges and prizes associated with them.

Fundraising Deadline – September 5, 2014The total you have raised by the Fundraising Deadline is used to rank all individuals and team fundraising efforts. You can still continue to fundraise towards your personal goals after this date.

IMpORtaNt fuNDRaISING DaYS• May 16, 2014 • June 13, 2014

• July 11, 2014 • August 1, 2014

RaISE $3,500 OR MORE aND bECOME a tOp fuNDRaISER! Benefits include:

• Receiving a Race to Stop MS Top Fundraiser commemorative wearable item embroidered with our Race to Stop MS logo.

• The opportunity to register and participate in one of our other signature events (Bike MS NYC or Climb to the Top) with no registration fee or minimum fundraising requirement.

• Bragging rights about the strides you made toward creating a world free of MS by becoming a Top Fundraiser.


training tips to follow:• Don’t Over-Train: the worst thing you can do is over-train; it’s much better to be slightly under-trained.

Over-training is one of the surest paths to injury, in which case you won’t even make it to the starting line.

• Plan Your Transitions: there is a natural progression to building the endurance and strength it takes to complete an endurance event such as a triathlon. Increasing your mileage gradually will help prevent injury and fatigue.

• Recover: there’s no need to train hard five, six or seven days a week. When you have a hard training day, ease up the following day or take a break altogether. Recovery and enough rest are essential to improvement and remaining injury free.

• Practice Nutrition: you are increasing your level of exertion so you should be prepared to increase your caloric intake. You will need to take in some nutrition on race day and you should use your long runs as a testing ground for what type of nutrition and hydration works best for you. Along with a running journal, also keep a nutrition journal. This way you will be aware of your nutrition needs before race day. Contact Jenny You at [email protected] or call 212-453-3228 to register for the training program.

tRaINING INfORMatION Race to Stop MS has teamed up with Asphalt Green to provide a training program for Race to Stop MS Aquaphor NYC Triathlon participants. The program begins in March and runs for 20 weeks with work-outs throughout the week led by some of New York’s top coaches. What’s included in the program is:

• Weekly training plans

• Informative education sessions and training tips

• Access to an Online Training Plan

• Access to coaching staff for questions on racing and training

Minimum Requirements:• Run 3 miles non-stop at any pace

• Bike 18 miles non-stop at any speed

• Swim 500 yards non-stop at any pace

ChEERING StatIONS aND ChEER kItS We want you to feel supported on race day, so our staff will be stationed at a cheer station along the route to encourage you to keep going! We welcome your friends and family to join us at our Race to Stop MS cheer station. We’ll create cheer kits for them to use with all kinds of great items like signs, noise makers, pom-poms and more.


Multiple sclerosis interrupts the flow of information between the brain and the body. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatment are moving us closer to a world free of MS.

abOut MuLtIpLE SCLEROSIS

facts about MS:• A chronic, often disabling disease that attacks the central nervous system (the brain, optic nerves and spinal cord)

• Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to loss of vision and paralysis

• Typically diagnosed in prime-of-life years, ages 20 to 50

• Most common neurological disease leading to disability in young adults

• Women are diagnosed two to three times more than men

• Affects 2.3 million people worldwide

The New York City – Southern New York Chapter of the National MS Society is committed to helping the 12,000 people living with multiple sclerosis in the five boroughs and Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange and Sullivan counties continue moving their lives forward. The chapter raises funds locally to support the Society’s critical research initiatives and to provide hundreds of comprehensive support services and educational programs for people living with MS, their family and friends. Visit www.MSnyc.org for more information.

In 2013 alone, through its national office and 50-state network of chapters, the Society devoted $121.9 million to its programs and services that assisted more than one million people. To move us closer to a world free of MS, the Society also invested $48 million to support over 380 new and ongoing research projects around the world. The Society is dedicated to achieving a world free of MS. Join the movement at www.nationalMSsociety.org.

abOut thE NYC – SOuthERN NY ChaptER


WhERE thE MONEY GOES Funds raised through Race to Stop MS will go toward the Society’s No Opportunity Wasted (NOW) initiative to fund more cutting-edge research than ever before. Through the NOW campaign we will: STOP the progression of MS in its tracks; RESTORE function that has been lost; and END the disease forever. With your participation and support in Race to Stop MS, we can make a bold commitment to do more NOW.

Where Your Money GoesEarly and ongoing treatment with FDA-approved therapy can make a difference for people with multiple sclerosis. Learn about your options by talking to your healthcare professional and contact-ing the National MS Society at nationalMSsociety.org or 1-800-344-4867 (1-800-FIGHT-MS).

Funds raised through Race to Stop MS also go toward programs and services for people living with MS and their families in our chapter area. Your donation of:

$37 will pay for someone living with MS to have two hours of personal care to assist them with bathing.

$50 will purchase a cane to foster independence for someone living with MS.

$75 will pay for a family to receive counseling when a loved one has just been diagnosed with MS.

$84 will pay for an occupational therapist to evaluate the safety of the home of someone living with MS.

$100 will cover the cost of a walker for someone living with MS who has mobility challenges.

$250 provides three sessions of rehabilitation therapy.

$1,500 can cover the cost of a scooter for someone living with MS.

$2,500 provides 150 hours of homecare assistance


Is there a minimum fundraising requirement? Yes. Team members who were accepted via the application process and granted an entry to the race are required to raise $2,500. Supporter team members are required to raise $1,250 to be eligible for team benefits. Your $100 application fee is applied towards your fundraising minimum.

Where do I send my donations?

Please forward your donations in the form of check or money order (no cash please)to:

National MS SocietyAttn: Race to Stop MS733 Third Ave., Third FloorNew York, NY 10017

Who do I make checks payable to? Make checks payable to Race to Stop MS. Remember to include your name and account number in the memo section of each check.

How long does it take for checks to show up in My Participant Center? It depends how many checks the office receives and how close it is to the event.

Checks that are mailed prior to the event can take two to four weeks to show up on your account. To avoid the wait, always encourage your donors to sponsor you online. Online donations are safe and easy.

Are donations tax deductible, and how do I get a receipt? Yes. All donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law. Your cleared check or credit card transaction serves as a receipt. Donors giving $250 or more will automatically receive an acknowledgement from the New York City – Southern New York Chapter of the National MS Society by the end of the calendar year in which the donation was made. For receipts and further information email us at [email protected] or call 212-463-9791.

faQ’S


June 21, 2014 muckfestMS.org

Climb to the Toppresented by:

March 2015 www.climbMSnyc.org

October 5, 2014bikeMSnyc.org

September 5-7, 2014 MSchallengewalkcapecod.org

walkMSnyc.orgApril 26, 27 & May 4, 2014


2014 Triathlon Participant Guide

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