We’re re-directing, let’s run for JimJum! 2 2

[mattn792]

Hello once again all, and happy quickly approaching holidays!  Welcome to my fourth annual holiday charity thread!  If you didn't see last year's thread (or the prior years), the idea for running this effort first came to me following the result of a gentlemen's bet I had made with @jaybuck43 in the fall of 2020.  Suffice to say he won, and I put up the seed money.  The plan was for me to send said seed money to the charity of his choice, but then I thought, "Why stop there?  Let's see if some more board members want to get involved, and we can send that total further north."  We’ve gone from raising over $1500 in year one to the mid $2000s for the past two years.  Can we break the $3000 mark (or more?) this year?  Let’s find out!

Here's a link to last year's thread if you'd like to check it out: 

 

So how'd the bet go this year?

We actually didn’t do a bet this year as that part of the tradition seemed to be back of mind for both of us.  But why let that stop us! 

Edited December 21, 2023 by mattn792

[mattn792]

Now, the thread title says to “make you earn it”, please tell us how.

For the first three years of this endeavor, we’d all come together behind our internet enabled devices, have friendly banter and bidding wars, filled with many pics of our respective furry friends, and in the end have a nice pile of cash to send to that year’s chosen cause.  But this year, I’m basing the fundraising around my participation in the Dopey Challenge, which is held at Disney World from January 4-7.  For those who don’t want to Google this, there’s a 5k, 10k, half marathon, and full marathon held on consecutive days, and the Dopey Challenge is to complete all of them.  That’s 48.6 total miles over four days, and beyond just completing all of them, I also have time goals set for each race.  I’ll get to those in a bit, but suffice to say that participants can now have some extra fun – pledge per mile, per race, per time goal, or anything else you can think of!

Edited December 18, 2023 by mattn792

[mattn792]

How does the pledging process work?

I'll be accepting donation pledges from anyone who wishes to contribute, starting from the time this thread goes live until closing on January 1, 2024 at 7 PM central time.  No money is due until the thread closes.  I consider any pledge binding, so please Please PLEASE don't put up but not come through (never been an issue, but I always include the disclaimer).

Pledges can be anonymous or public.  For public pledges, please just post in this thread. 

Anonymous pledges should be sent to me via PM with the subject line "2023 Holiday Charity Thread."  For the purpose of transparency, if an anonymous pledge ends up qualifying for the prize pool, I will need to reveal that member’s board handle, unless the member chooses to pass on claiming one of the prize books.

I will try to post the pledge amounts qualifying for the prize pool on a daily basis, and the overall tally if the math isn’t too cumbersome.  Though these totals will likely have some caveats attached if people choose to place some contingent pledges, such as something like “beat your time goal in the 10k and I’ll add an extra $50.”  Then if I happen to flub the 10k, no $50. 
 

Is there a minimum? – Absolutely not, nor is there a maximum, so please pledge whatever you'd like.  This is meant to be a fun little event to raise a few bucks for charity, and any amount is appreciated.  As I like to say -- It's not about the money, it's about the gesture.  Unlike year’s past, there technically is going to be some fine print (per mile, per race), except you get to generate the fine print yourself.

How is the pledge money collected?

In the first three years I served as the central collection point and would then send our donation over in one, sometimes two, large sums.  But in keeping with the suggestion I received from multiple board members, this year everyone will send their donations directly to the cause.  This will help streamline things a bit by cutting out a redundant payment layer and giving each donor direct access to their receipt if needed for tax purposes.

All I ask is that proof of donation be provided to me, ideally either through sending me the receipt through pm or posting it within the thread (with any personal info redacted as desired).

Edited December 18, 2023 by mattn792

[mattn792]

So then, what is this year’s cause?

Normally jaybuck and I would choose the cause in advance that we would all contribute to, but 2023 has been wrought with challenges throughout the world, locally to globally.  So this year, I’d like to open the opportunity up to each pledged donor to pick a cause that they feel passionate about and contribute to a corresponding organization.  Though if you prefer, you can certainly join in with contributing to my chosen cause.

Speaking of which, this year I’m going to give my portion to the DuPage County Animal Services (Animal Services (dupagecounty.gov)), which is essentially our county animal control, but is NOT taxpayer funded.  Since I started following their Facebook page, one of the things that really struck me about the work they do is how many irresponsible pet owners they have to deal with around here.  While I live only about 25 miles outside of Chicago, I’m right near the edge of where Chicagoland ends and Illinois begins, meaning there starts to become a lot more open space.  Which leaves plenty of opportunity for shady breeders, absentee owners, and the like.  In just one example, this year had one severe animal hoarder get busted in the next town over, and DCAS took in and adopted out every single animal that was rescued.  And this year they've broken ground on a new, much bigger facility!

For some other ideas if needed, I also contribute to the following throughout the year through the giving program at work:
- World Central Kitchen
- ASPCA
- Best Friend’s Animal Society
- St. Jude’s

You can also consider visiting charitynavigator.org to search for a cause that may fit your particular passion if you’re struggling to come up with a specific organization.

Please name your cause when making your pledge.

Edited December 18, 2023 by mattn792

[mattn792]

Prizes!!!!

Before we get to the books, the rules for awarding the prizes:
1. The number of books that ultimately end up in the pool will mean the top pledge amounts up to that same amount will qualify for the prize pool.  And then we go in order – top pledge picks first, 2^nd top pledge picks second, 3^rd picks third, and so on until all prizes are claimed.

2. Books can absolutely be claimed and re-donated for sale to raise additional funds.  Any additional funds raised will go to the cause chosen by the member who re-donated the book, not to mine.

3. A donor who qualifies for the prize pool can certainly pass on claiming one of the prizes.  Should that occur, we’d keep moving down the line and add the first runner-up to the picking order (so in the case of 6 books, the 7^th top pledger would then be picking sixth should a qualifier pass on making a pick).

4. Other members often participate by running their own sales threads with the specification that the funds will be donated to this thread.  For tracking purposes in terms of pledging, in instances where a book is sold outside of this thread and the proceeds donated, the sale price will be credited as a pledge from the member who put up the book, not the member who purchased it.  Additionally, funds from any sales threads of this type will also go to the donating member’s cause, not to mine.

5. Prize books that I have donated will be shipped at my expense.  Anyone else donating books is free to set their own shipping criteria, just make sure that it is specified up front.

I’m starting out the prize pool with three books:

Amazing Spider-Man 51, CGC 5.5.  2nd Kingpin, and first cover appearance

ASM 239, CGC 9.4 newsie.  2nd Hobgoblin.

 

Batman 163, raw, about a 5.0.  Great Joker cover.

Since there was no seed bet this year, I am the only one ineligible for the prize books.

Edited December 18, 2023 by mattn792

[mattn792]

Now let’s get the ball rolling!  For starters, here are my time goals for each race:

5k – 37:30
10k – 1:15:00
Half – 2:30:00
Full – 5:00:00

If my math is correct, the total moving time that I’m allotting myself is 9 hours, 22 minutes, and 30 seconds.

If you haven’t read my training journal, I’ve been consistently nailing the time goals on the first three races, so I’m confident that when game day arrives, the same will hold true.  The full marathon is uncharted territory for me, and as my 15 mile run yesterday showed, the back half could get dicey.  So 5 hours might be optimistic, but I assure you, it will be all hands on deck that day!

With that said, here’s my seed money pledge:

-       $2 per mile, which I’ll round up to a total of $100 when all miles are completed.

-       $50 per time goal met

-       $100 if I come in under my total allotted moving time

So, if all criteria are met, that’ll be $400 total from me.

Now it’s your turn!  Have fun and get creative!  The only result oriented pledges that I’d prefer be avoided are specific time criteria (i.e. break 30 minutes on the 5k and I’ll add $x).  Beating my time goals is all that I’m worried about, be it by 1 second or 12 minutes.  This is a four-day endurance event, and there will be walking, especially at the ends of the races on the first three days as I’ll need to conserve all that I can for the monster that is day four.  However, I will do my best to use the first three races to bank some time against the overall time goal, leaving open the possibility that I can whiff on the marathon but still do better than the overall allotted time.

And as long as the pledging period is open, pledges can always be increased.  Especially once @SkOw arrives!  Just no decreases please.

If I haven’t covered something and questions arise, please pm me directly.  Any Q&A that will benefit the overall group will subsequently be posted in the thread.

Now, join the party, spread the word, and wish me good luck and good health on this endeavor!!!

Edited December 18, 2023 by mattn792

[mattn792]

Good evening everyone -

For those who didn’t see already, longtime and well respected board member @jimjum12 recently suffered a serious medical scare, and he could use our help:

Therefore, I’m redirecting this year’s thread to benefit his recovery.  @skypinkblu will be leading the effort, and I’ll merge all pertinent info into her thread.  The prize books will instead go up for sale to benefit the cause, and the running challenge is definitely still on!  Stay tuned, I’ve been told the thread should be up sometime on Friday.

 

[gunsmokin]

Love this! Let’s come together my friends!!

[Beige]

I'm not sure if I've got this right, but I'll have a stab!

 

I pledge $1 per mile completed, sent direct to JimJum.

 

All good?

[piper]

On 12/18/2023 at 10:59 AM, mattn792 said:

Now, the thread title says to “make you earn it”, please tell us how.

For the first three years of this endeavor, we’d all come together behind our internet enabled devices, have friendly banter and bidding wars, filled with many pics of our respective furry friends, and in the end have a nice pile of cash to send to that year’s chosen cause.  But this year, I’m basing the fundraising around my participation in the Dopey Challenge, which is held at Disney World from January 4-7.  For those who don’t want to Google this, there’s a 5k, 10k, half marathon, and full marathon held on consecutive days, and the Dopey Challenge is to complete all of them.  That’s 48.6 total miles over four days, and beyond just completing all of them, I also have time goals set for each race.  I’ll get to those in a bit, but suffice to say that participants can now have some extra fun – pledge per mile, per race, per time goal, or anything else you can think of!

It’s been a while since I’ve done that kind of serious running. I could barely walk after completing my first marathon. I’ve had friends do the challenge. It’s no joke. Make sure to carb load and take your gel packs!

[mattn792]

On 12/20/2023 at 11:05 PM, Beige said:

I'm not sure if I've got this right, but I'll have a stab!

 

I pledge $1 per mile completed, sent direct to JimJum.

 

All good?

Yessir!  I’ll move this pledge into the main thread once it’s up and running.

[mattn792]

On 12/20/2023 at 11:56 PM, piper said:

It’s been a while since I’ve done that kind of serious running. I could barely walk after completing my first marathon. I’ve had friends do the challenge. It’s no joke. Make sure to carb load and take your gel packs!

I tell ya, it’s been three days since my 15 mile run, and my body is still demanding “feed me!” at all hours 

[piper]

On 12/21/2023 at 8:49 AM, mattn792 said:

I tell ya, it’s been three days since my 15 mile run, and my body is still demanding “feed me!” at all hours 

I was so skinny when I was running 60k per week.  I've really had to cut back my food intake!

[rlextherobot]

Can't even conceive of running a half then a full the next day... after doing a 21k my body is pretty much useless for anything except sitting on the couch eating corn chips and watching Futurama reruns. Good luck with the runs and hitting your times!

Edited December 21, 2023 by rlextherobot

[mattn792]

On 12/21/2023 at 10:23 AM, rlextherobot said:

Can't even conceive of running a half then a full the next day... after doing a 21k my body is pretty much useless for anything except sitting on the couch eating corn chips and watching Futurama reruns. Good luck with the runs and hitting your times!

My successful practice runs for the first three legs gave me a good confidence boost for the marathon.  Even after doing 19ish miles in three days, I waken up on day four with my body feeling like I could make 26 happen.  No doubt it’s going to take some mind over matter though!

[gunsmokin]

On 12/21/2023 at 10:33 AM, mattn792 said:

My successful practice runs for the first three legs gave me a good confidence boost for the marathon.  Even after doing 19ish miles in three days, I waken up on day four with my body feeling like I could make 26 happen.  No doubt it’s going to take some mind over matter though!

Ice bath after the half and you'll be fine!

[mattn792]

@CGC Mike

Could you move this thread to general or the water cooler?  I’m enjoying all this conversation but don’t want to get in the way of the sales threads.  Thanks!

[JollyComics]

On 12/21/2023 at 10:34 AM, gunsmokin said:

Ice bath after the half and you'll be fine!

Espon salt.

[CGC Mike]

On 12/21/2023 at 11:36 AM, mattn792 said:

@CGC Mike

Could you move this thread to general or the water cooler?  I’m enjoying all this conversation but don’t want to get in the way of the sales threads.  Thanks!

Sure.  I will move it to comics general.

[mattn792]

On 12/21/2023 at 10:34 AM, gunsmokin said:

Ice bath after the half and you'll be fine!

 

On 12/21/2023 at 11:34 AM, JollyComics said:

Espon salt.

Happily I haven't needed a whole lot of treatment for anything other than the plantar fasciitis in my right foot.  Early on I was really worried that training would take a big toll on my knees, but no troubles!  

The foot is still holding up really well too, it will bark for about 12 hours after a long run, but then it snaps back to it's normal minor aches.  Maybe during this wind down period it will get that much better