Westside LA Team In Training - Summer 2009 Marathon & Half Marathon Team

Name: Matt Fantazier
Team: Westside Marathon (Greater LA)
Number of TNT Seasons: 1
Last TNT Event: San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll 2007

Why did you join TNT?
I moved to Los Angeles in 2006 after college and found myself in a new place, thousands of miles from home and without many friends. After a few months of working in LA, I found myself longing to be a part of something bigger. I went to an info session in Santa Monica with a friend and found myself signing up for a marathon by the time I was leaving. (How could you say no after that video?)

What was your best fundraiser?
My best method of fundraising was sending emails and letters. I’m lucky to work for a company that does a generous 2:1 match, so I made sure to help my co-workers fill out the forms to maximize my fundraising. Definitely use matching gifts if you can, it’s a great way to help reach your goal.

Most memorable TNT moment?
There are countless moments that I’ll never forget along with a group of people who went from the people I was running on Sunday mornings with to the group of people with whom I now talk to on a daily basis and are now some of my closest friends. I’d say the most memorable moment for me was being at the pasta party with all of my teammates and seeing how huge TNT was. You may not realize the impact of what you’re doing, but at that moment it becomes clear.

What would you have done differently during the season if you could start over?
I would have done more of the strength training. I have since adopted more of it into my training and have seen enormous benefits from it. It can be hard to make every session and every run during a busy season, but do your best.

Do you have any other words of wisdom for our participants?
Don’t get discouraged. There will be bumps along the way but know that you can acomplish anything. Joining TNT was easily one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. It got me into running (I’ve since completed multiple races), it brought me a group of amazing friends that mean the world to me and it also provided an avenue for me to help others. Go Team!

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This will be an ongoing series, where we will feature an alumni so you, our readers, can learn some new things from people who have done it before. If you’re a Team in Training Alumni, please fill out this form (or please spread the word).