This years Bike Tour brought a bit of a challenge....I was in Montreal the week leading up to the tour so I didn't get in any last minute training. I got home around 9pm Friday night and had to get some laundry done and get mostly packed for the weekend. I was beat and not really in the mood to pack so I didn't do much. I got up early and packed and was surprised by the amount of energy I had...good I thought...I'm going to need it!
The weather for the day was hot and sunny...no breeze. Those of you who know me know that these are not ideal conditions for me. I can handle warm but the sun beating down on me kind of sucks the life out of me. No worries though...it's not a race. At 9am we head out from Windsor. The first 20kms are no problem....I'm not breaking any records but I'm doing well...legs are feeling good. The next 15km or so are not so bad but all I can think about is that huge hill at the end and I'm getting hot. I am coming to the point where we approach the huge hill and to my delight we are not going that way! Don't get to excited....there was still one last hill to conquer. I admit I did a little walking but it wasn't as bad as last year! After 3.5 hours (ish) I arrived at Acadia University. Note - same time as last year but this year I rode an extra 4km.
I won't bore you with details of Day 2 except that it poured and we (my group of 4) called it quits at about the halfway point. We were soaked and all a little nervous about the wet roads and the possibility of wiping out on a turn. Those bikes have pretty skinny tires :) I felt a little guilty about not completing the route so I rode my bike to work today to make up for it. I will likely do that more now that I've done it once so it's win-win :)
The details that I do want to share with you are my teams fundraising efforts. We were able to recruit a few more members this year bringing our total to 12. One of our recruits - Sean Griffiths - brought an interesting story. His wife was diagnosed with MS 5 months after giving birth to their daughter. She has been able to manage it well and it hasn't affected her too much. We all know that could change. He won Rookie of the Year - this prize goes to a new rider who has raised the most money amongst all new riders. He also came in 2nd place for individual fundraising...amazing...it's his first year! He single handedly raised just under $12,000!!!! His amazing fundraising efforts put our team third overall for team fundraising! Sean Griffiths - You are the Man!! He has given me renewed motivation to raise even more next year. With that, I would like to thank you for your generous donations. I feel very fortunate to be in good health and to be able to participate in this amazing event. Next year I am going to increase my fundraising goal and I hope you will continue to help me in this very worthy cause. I know they are getting close to finding a cure and I am so glad to be a part of it and you should be too!!
Thanks again....words cannot express how much I appreciate your support.
No comments:
Post a Comment