Team In Training?
Has anyone ever joined Team In Training or any of the other athletic groups that does fundraising for leukemia/MS/AIDS etc. and coaches you in both race prep and fundraising? I'm thinking of training for a half-marathon or maaaybe another triathlon (though I'm fairly scared of open water swimming after my first one), and the idea of training with a team and getting help from trainers seems appealing. The idea of raising money for a cause I care about also seems good. And joining something with TIT as an acronym would certainly make me giggle in that "I'm 12" way.
My hesitations are that (a) I don't know how good the training experience is, (b) I don't know how effective and efficient these institutions are at getting money somewhere useful (or how much their particular causes need money -- some health research areas are a lot more desperate for funding than others, and (c) I have a lot of trouble asking other people for money to meet a fundraising goal (something I was raised to believe was very bad, even though now I'll happily donate when friends ask me). Does anyone have any feedback on (a) or (b)? (Or even any thoughts on (c) -- I'd love to know whether anyone actually thinks this form of fundraising is bad or dislikes getting asked for money for such event-based sponsorship-style fundraising).
My hesitations are that (a) I don't know how good the training experience is, (b) I don't know how effective and efficient these institutions are at getting money somewhere useful (or how much their particular causes need money -- some health research areas are a lot more desperate for funding than others, and (c) I have a lot of trouble asking other people for money to meet a fundraising goal (something I was raised to believe was very bad, even though now I'll happily donate when friends ask me). Does anyone have any feedback on (a) or (b)? (Or even any thoughts on (c) -- I'd love to know whether anyone actually thinks this form of fundraising is bad or dislikes getting asked for money for such event-based sponsorship-style fundraising).