Hi all,

Many of us LOSTies know a few of the members of Iron Dames group, but you may not know Kim Pace or the whole Iron Dames story… so have a read below… you’ll be glad you did. 

So Congratulations to all those Ironman Canada finishers and a special hats off to the the Iron Dames! (including Barb Pigott, even though she only was able to do the swim because of a broken ankle… at least she did the best part!) 

As for Kim, well it’s tough to adequately express the respect and admiration I have for what she’s done… well above and beyond the trivial sporting events we love so much.  Congrats Kim… on everything.

Cheers,

Rob

Ironmanlife: Kim Pace and the IronDames

Kevin Mackinnon reports on a great Ironman finish from Penticton. (Photo by Kat Clewley)

Published Friday, September 3, 2010

What would you do if you were given this choice by your doctor: undergo dramatic “salvage” surgery (including a hysterectomy along with removal of your lymph nodes and colon) or die in a year. How many of you would choose neither and, instead, start training for an Ironman?

That’s what Kim Pace did. Diagnosed with cervical cancer on December 17, 2007 (Merry Christmas!), Pace was initially given an optimistic prognosis. Hers was a cancer that usually responded to treatment.

Pace’s last chemotherapy treatment came on Valentines Day, 2008. For almost two months she’d been balancing work and her treatments. She’d thrown up in her best friend’s car on the way back from the hospital. Her body felt like a “toxic waste dump.” All that didn’t matter, though. She’d made it through.

There was just one problem. The treatment hadn’t worked. Six weeks after that last treatment, Pace learned that she had “persistent cervical cancer.” That’s when the doctor gave her those two wonderful options. Salvage surgery, or die in a year. Oh, and just to make the salvage surgery even more appealing, he pointed out that even with that there was little chance that she’d be around after five years.

“That’s when I began what I call my real journey,” Pace says. “How could I come to terms with what I had? I was terrified of the pain and suffering ahead for me and my friends.”

Possibly five years of life? Without most of her insides? What sort of choice was that? In June, 2008, Pace went to Atlanta, Georgia for 10-days at a clinic that “promotes holistic healing of the body, mind and spirit with enzyme-rich organic Living Foods.”

“I went there to learn how to die well,” Pace says. “To find the strength to tell everyone that I was not going to have the surgery.”
Pace came back with a lot of strength. She came back on a diet that would kill most mortal beings. Enzyme-rich? Sure. Each day now begins with a concoction affectionately referred to by her friends as “Romulan Ale” – some sort of a green, gooey mass of blended vegetables that even Pace could only take a sip of at first. It took her 12 days to be able to drink a cup. As if watching her drink that every morning wasn’t enough, Pace had two messages for her friends on her return: 1) she wasn’t going to have the surgery and 2) she was going to do Ironman Canada in 2010.

Another small problem. Pace had never done a triathlon. In fact, Pace wasn’t exactly what you’d call an athlete.

Instead of organizing an intervention to try and get her to see reason (“ummm … Kim, according to the doctors you’ll be in a grave before the 2009 Ironman Canada race”), her friends rallied around her. They formed an organization called the IronDames and began to raise money for Wellspring, a cancer program that promotes physical activity. In August, 2009, Pace and 11 of her friends began training for Ironman Canada, determined to raise $110,000, enough to support the Wellspring program in their region for two years.

On August 8th, 2010, Kim Pace wasn’t dead. In fact, that was the day she did her first triathlon. Three weeks later she finished Subaru Ironman Canada, along with Marla Ashmore, Andrea Buzza, JoAnn Daxner, Margaret Dorio, Marlene Line, Nancy Macelli, Julia Rodgerson, Kim Schizas, and Shirley Speakman. All 10 IronDames who competed in the race finished. (Barb Piggott suffered a broken ankle earlier this year, so only did the swim.) Seven of the 11 were first time Ironman finishers.

The $110,000 goal for Wellspring? Blown away. To date the group has raised $146,000.

I’m not sure I could do what Kim Pace chose to do with her options. I’m not sure most people would. Rather than simply give up, Pace chose to take control of her life. The result? Well, she’s not dead, she’s helped raise money for a great cause and she’s proved that when you take control, you can do pretty much anything.

To find out more about the IronDames, go to www.irondames.ca

You can reach Kevin Mackinnon at [email protected]
  

The IronDames before Subaru Ironman Canada:
Foreground Margaret Dorio and Julia Rodgerson.
Middle: Nancy Macelli, Kim Schizas, JoAnn Daxner, Andea Buzza, Shirley Speakman, Marlene Line.
Last Row: Barb Pigott (swim only), Kim Pace, Marla Ashmore