the relay for life...redemption! ***UPDATE!!**

[dave snow]

this is the team that went the whole 24...that's me, john from medfit, rick, and dale...and that is what 96 hours of walking looks like....

the 2009 american cancer society relay for life is over...and i could not be happier with the results or more proud of my team...

everyone that came out to the relay this year showed up with a positive attitude and a willingness to help everyone involved....there is no way we could have made it 24 hours without the help of everyone lining the track and pushing us along, cheering us every step, and offering us cookies, snacks, and water every few minutes....

the relay is a great event...and if you have never participated, i really hope you make time next year to come out and be a part of this great cause...you will come back every year..

we started the relay as "team dave snow"...i had some new teammates this year....rick duncan, jessica leigh, julie anderson, my parents (who rock!), kelly clark (my very supportive girlfriend), meghan stevens (who quit smoking and exercised everyday to get ready for the relay), and dale..

dale and rick decided they wanted to join me for the whole 24 hour walk...and dale (a cancer survivor himself) quickly became the heart of our team....not only did we push and support each other to get through the whole 24...we even ran a mile a the end to put an exclamation mark on the event...

after that...the name "team dave snow" just did not seem to fit anymore...i was surrounded by this great team, a true driving force of willpower and strength...and just having my name on the team did not feel right...so i decided it was time for a change..

from now on...we will be called "the survivors"...and at the end of the relay...i officially gave up my position as team captain and turned it over to dale...he was the driving force on our team...he overcame more than any of us can imagine to be on that track and complete that whole walk plus the run...he was truly an inspiration...

but honestly...that is what the relay is all about...you spend the whole day feeling inspired and seeing so many people that have overcome so much...and most of all...you get a huge dose of "quit feeling sorry for yourself"....it is truly one of the most positive environments you will ever find....you ride a high for a few days afterward...

i want to thank everyone...i am very proud of what we all did together out there...and i know we will be back next year stronger than ever...

i mean...after all, with a team captain like dale...we can't fail...

for more relay pictures...click here

***UPDATE!!***

as many of you may have heard at the relay, we were collecting plastic bottle caps to give to dayton children's hospital for chemo treatments...

it came as a great shock today when i found out that this "bottle cap drive" is actually a hoax...it is not the fault of dayton children's hospital, they have been receiving these caps from people all over who hope to be helping very sick children....the truth is...these caps are worthless....they do not have any special value, and the hospital has no way of turning them into the vast amounts of cash that it takes to provide adequate treatment....

it sucks that this is a hoax...

everyone at the relay really came together and collected those caps all night for this great cause....

we refuse to let all of that effort go to waste....

we at whitewater broadcasting are not going to let this hoax take away all the effort we put into collecting those caps to help those in need...

so the way we see it...we collected almost 500 bottle caps...and if they were worth a quarter a piece...that would be a $125 donation....

so we are donating $125 to the american cancer society on behalf of everyone that collected those battle caps all night at the relay...

thank you to everyone who helped us collect them...and thank you to our owner david rodgers, who wrote the personal check himself to make all our efforts worthwhile....

[Jeff Fudge]

I would like to commend you gentlemen on walking the entire 24 hours. Yes it is a great cause. I know many people with/or had cancer, but when the Dr's thought my 27 yr old daughter might have (she doesn't) the same type of ovarian cancer as my mother, it is time for me to be more productive toward the fight against cancer. So I walked as well, but for only 18 hours, had to work Sunday. I walked for the Richmond Catholic Community Team, I was the guy with the desert camo boonie hat and Camelback. I had the honor of walking with John from Medfit for a few laps Sat night, a good man, found out we are both retired military. I heard on Dave's show that you guys were going to walk the 24 hrs, I listen everytime I'm in Richmond, thought that's sounds like a good idea. I couldn't get off work Sunday, so the Thursday before, with no training at all, I decided to do 18 hours, 16 straight, catch a nap than 2 more before going to work back up in Muncie, where I live and work. Once I found out that Dale from your team was a cancer Survivor and walking the entire time, the fact I have no cartilage in my right knee, wasn't even a factor for not walking 18 hours. One time my knee was really bothering me, around hour 10, thought about stopping, and a little girl in a purple shirt smoked by me. You know from then on my knee was fine. After what she had been thru, my knee was NOTHING. Thanks again for all that you guys have done and will continue to do. You are an asset to the Richmond Community.

[Rick Duncan]

I agree with Dave and Jessica. The Relay For Life was a fantastic event! It's always great to see the community pull together for such a cause and there are few more worthwhile. I recently had a friend with a malignant brain tumor who is struggling to make it. Along with other friends and family members that have battled cancer, knowing what they've gone through with surgeries and chemotherapy, the aches and pains of walking 24 hours is minor in comparison. I was very proud to walk all 24 with Dave Snow and Dale Haworth of The Survivors and John Ballenger of Medfit.

[Jessica Leigh]

I was thrilled to be a part of "the survivors" again this year. Spending hours walking and talking, joking and laughing with the team members was an experience like no other. Dale was definitely an inspiration, I had the pleasure of walking along-side him for several hours and hearing his story...not once did I hear him complain, about anything. It was great to meet him and get to know him...he's one fantastic guy...living each day like it could be his last. I've said this many times, and I'll say it many more....The Relay For Life is a very beautiful thing. The community banded together to motivate and support one another...it really is something I'm happy to have been a part of....and I can hardly wait for next year's Relay!!!!!!!