A contribution to the bigger picture

What is your profession?

I’m a primary school teacher.

 

Since when have you been doing sport? And how often do you do it?

Hmm, that depends on what you consider sport to be. I have been active all my life, but never practising it very intensely or with a specific goal, just because I love it and as a hobby.

 

What’s your favorite sport?

I love mountain biking, especially when there are nice downhill trails. 😊

 

What motivates you to participate in the Muskathlon?

I know a few people who participated in one and their enthusiasm for it made me curious. Since I currently work as a part time substitute in teaching, I am always looking for interesting projects that I can do on the side. The Muskathlon seems tailor made for me – I have a goal in sport that I can work towards and I can invest myself into something bigger than just my life, something even with an impact beyond Switzerland.

 

How many Muskathlons have you been part of?

My first Muskathlon was in May 2018 and the next one will be the one in Israel for Glowbalact.

 

How do you specifically train for the Muskathlon?

For the one that I did in Tanzania this year, I tried to train three times a week especially as it got closer to the event. I mainly cycled, both training on mountain trails and roads. I do need to add that the distance of 120km required for the Muskathlon, I only completed once during training. My focus during the weeks of preparation was altitude training, improving my cardio plus workouts to build up and strengthen my muscles.

 

Why did you choose to participate in the one in Tel Aviv?

Israel has been on my bucket list for some time – I want to get to know the people and the country.  I have also heard a lot about the work of  Tabea and Matt Oppliger. I am so impressed by what they do and that they gave up their comfortable life in Switzerland to dare to begin something new. Their work is so worthy of my support.

 

How do you inspire people to sponsor you for the cause?

Hmm, looking for sponsors is truly the most challenging part… Setting my training goals and working towards it is the much easier part.

But I found it to be the easiest to just tell people in my world what was going in my life and what and why I was passionate about being part of the Muskathlon . I discovered that the more personal it was and the more conviction I had, the more people caught fire and got on board. Often people then automatically offered to support me, and in the case where I actually had to ask people to donate, I had to learn to leave it up to them to say “yes” or “no” - I’m not responsible for them not being able to say “no”. That conclusion made it easier for me to talk about it and ask.

Now, the second time round, I have decided to find other ways. For example, I held a garden BBQ for friends and acquaintances and we raised almost 2000CHF! It was fun for me to organise and prepare the event and it created an opportunity for amazing encounters.

 

Do you have any advice and hints for people who are thinking of joining the Muskathlon?

Try to meet with people who have already done a Muskathlon. Hearing firsthand will help you to better understand the “heartbeat” and what it takes.

For those who are a little intimidated about raising the sum of 10000 CHF, don’t be. Give it a try! At first, it was not easy for me to raise those funds, but my overall experience of people’s response was only positive. You need to know, that every participant comes from completely different environments to raise money. Some have experience in it, are extroverted and have huge supporting communities, others don’t. But guess what? I did not reach my goal of raising the entire sum for the Tanzanian Muskathlon. That did at first hurt my pride, but it was a good process for me to learn that at the end of the day, it is not about how much I raise and how I look. It is about the big picture and that we can only achieve it together.