Fun facts per The Daily Spin Newsletter:
Oldest participant - 82
Countries represented - 18
Avg calories burned daily - 3410
Eggs - 44600
Pounds of pasta - 1200
Gallons of water - 18800
Portable toilets - 1100
Butt balm packets - 18000
The "rubber meets the road" guy welcomes us to the Half-Way to LA point during our 97.7 miles traveled. Woo Hoo! Evil Twins conquered!
I
am honored to be riding for Jeff today. His sister picked today when I
sent her the route link. Knowing that, I'm assuming this route
reflects a glimpse of him and from what I've seen so far he must have
been an amazing person. I hope as you see today's pictures, you will
send warm thoughts of Jeff to his family. Here 's to you, Jeff!
I wish I could have
captured more of the views for you as they were glorious. It was a
long day and I barely made it before the route closed. I reached the
last rest stop 10 minutes before closing so I filled my water bottle and
kept rolling. I didn't want Jeff's day ending with me on a bus! So
instead, I enjoyed a final 10 miles of tailwind. As we rolled into
wherever we are tonight, children waved, held out their hands for a
high-five and one little girl held a poster that said "believe in
yourself!" A couple of kids asked what we were doing and a rider
answered "raising awareness about AIDS." I often think about how
different I hope the world will be if our children don't have to deal
with AIDS. As long as there are children, there is hope.
The AIDS Lifecycle has, in the course of its history, covered 20
million miles by its riders. This year, we raised $14.2 million to buy
days of life. We were not able to buy days for Jeff but he inspires us
to try to do so for others.
Don't stop believing!
Hugs to Jeff's family tonight.
Made
it through Quadbuster (1.3 mile climb)! Had a crash with a rider who dropped his chain and hit his brakes with no warning. I was thankful for the
guardrail but those things don't have cushions! But I'm good and will
probably just have a few tattoo marks by morning. I was SO happy to
tackle Quadbuster as I knew it would be tough for me. So today is for
all of you facing a challenge that will take about all you have inside
of you. Even if you crash, keep on rolling 'til you see the crest!
Whatever it is, you can do it!
St
Luke's Church opened it's property for a rest stop and opened it's
doors in case we wanted some quiet time. It was so nice to have a few
minutes to pray and reflect and refocus on what this is all about this
week. However, I do believe that God has a sense of humor and
understood what I really meant when I said "And Lordy, Lordy - I ain't
forty no more!!"
There was a rest
stop at the Franciscan Mission San Miguel - founded in 1797. Dancing
"Barbies" are in the garden, a couple of friars in the courtyard
and a beautiful sanctuary open for us to reflect. I signed the
prayer/guest book and thanked the mission for supporting ALC riders and
thanked God for the lives of those I'm riding for -the ones I know and
the ones I don't. Now THIS is a church.
We passed through Bradley, where the tiny town (population about 120) serves lunch as a fundraiser, Covers activities for the kids for a year!
As we parked our bikes, we are each given letters
from the school we helped and enjoyed at lunch in Bradley.
It was VERY hot today so we tried to follow the medical team's advice: Drink and pee or get an IV.
Tonight we have traveled
257.3 miles and have 284.7 miles to go. Tomorrow we face the Evil Twins
and then will be half-way to LA!
Mother Nature definitely made it up to us today as all the vets from
last year remembered the awful rain out. The route was good. Made it
through the 108 miles. Pretty exhausted so not much I can say tonight.
Hope you enjoyed the sights with me!
What a day. The opening ceremonies were moving as always. The
morning was cold and cloudy and I was dressed for hot and sunny but the
sun finally came through to show us an awesome California. We rode
about 82 miles today. The first part was tough and the last half was
pretty flat. As I rode into Santa Cruz, a lady was holding a sign with a
picture of a handsome man. I pulled off the rode, we exchanged a hug
and I asked if it was her son. She told me it was her brother. I felt
like a dagger hit me when she said that. I adore my brother and it was
obvious she adored hers. His name was Gary. Last year, I rode by the people holding signs like that
and swore I'd never do that again. How special she made today. He may
have died in 1995 but not in her heart and now, not in mine.
Tomorrow is 108 miles. One day at a time!!
The
journey begins. Carol dropped me and Jamie off at the ATL this
morning. While standing in the baggage drop off line, a lady was
staring at my bike box. She said "Don't you
need some air holes in there?" At first I was touched -finally someone
else recognizes Jamie's almost human relationship with me! Then she
said "what kind of dog is in there anyway?" Only then did I realize
she thought my mighty Tiger paws were puppy paws for notifying handlers. Oh well.
The AIDS LifeCycle love bubble kicked off with orientation day. I was
relieved to see Jamie getting on the plane yesterday so I knew I would
have the essentials - a bike, shoes and helmet. Everything else could
be dealt with later.
A met up with a few of my new family
members hanging in the hotel lobby and shared a cab around 10 am to the
Cow Palace to get our bikes assembled, see safety videos and get our
numbers and stuff. Amazingly, one of the first people I saw was CJ, my
tent mate from last year. It was great to see her. I made a couple of
new friends in my 2 hour line to get my bike assembled - from Houston,
Tx and Seattle, Washington and India. Then I connected with Todd and
that just made everything okay.
The safety video is more than that - it is also a reminder of why we do
this, that the funds we raise change lives and save lives. It is a
reminder that while 51 weeks of the year I am an accountant - this week I
am a rider - just like my other 2200 riding family members. I am
reminded to take care of myself and also to take care of those I am
around. I am reminded that I belong . . . here - for this week. I am
reminded that creating a love bubble really isn't that hard. It just
requires seeing everyone on common ground - neither above or below the
status you've given yourself and caring about their well-being as well
as your own. So simple - yet we screw it up almost every day in "the
real world".
This week I am a Rider. I really do belong here.
(Except maybe in the porta-potties - which I cannot avoid until next
Saturday!!). I still do not think I belong there!
You belong, too. Be there this week. Wherever it is - really, really be there.
Today was for Gray. It's hard for me to describe what I feel when I
dedicate a day to someone, so I'll just simplify it to the nth degree
and say it is overwhelmingly special.
We had an interesting
start to our day as we were late getting started and fell behind all of
the SAG vehicles that leave last. We got caught by every single red
light getting off of Emory's campus and then we got stopped by a train
that went on and on and on. The idea of being the ride's caboose was
sealed within the first 15 minutes!
It was supposed to rain
on us today but the conditions were actually perfect and not a drop feel
on us. Someone told me years ago that friends in heaven get to paint
the daily sunsets and you'll always know if one of your loved ones was
involved. You'll see their colors or their style. With a 60% chance of
rain and not a drop, I can't help but wonder if Gray was up there
saying "Hey, not on my day!" So, thank you, Gray!
The route
was great this year and we saw lots of Georgia countryside beauty. I
was thankful for cycling buddies Stephen Frangis, Cindy Tanner and
Felicia Bianchi as we kept each other company for various parts of the
route. Stephen and I rode the full 100 miles together and I appreciate
him more than I can describe. In the end, the official caboose was
escorted in by our team mate Chip and that was perfect. He played some
good 'ole rock and roll to keep us pedaling for the last 10 miles or so.
We started out around 7:45 and arrived at Rock Eagle at about 5:15 - so
it was a full day. Lots of time to reflect, to pray and to think. On
the route we saw a lone Canadian goose with a broken wing which made me
sad. I've never prayed for a Canadian goose before today! There was a
group of cows who stared at us pedal by with a look that told us we were
weird looking cows. I thought mostly about Gray and the stories his
friends shared with me. At the end of the evening, a close friend of
Gray's came up to me to introduce himself and thank me for dedicating
today to Gray. I told him that Gray got me to the finish line as I was
ready to throw in the towel on 3 different times. He told me more about
Gray and I was so reminded about how little things matter so much and
we really should "sweat the small stuff." He was loved for his sweet
spirit, his love of sharing good meals with friends, his ability to
organize a tupperware cabinet (a huge talent in my book!), and all those
little things. His friend then made a profound statement - "There's no
telling what Gray could have done." Once again, we were robbed of by
AIDS. But today - I was not robbed. I was inspired to pay more
attention to those little things that matter - except for perhaps the
tupperware talent because I'm hopeless in that category!
Thank
you, Gray. I honestly don't know what else to say as it is obvious that
no other words would adequately describe the positive ripple effect of
your life on us.
Yes, today was for Gray. To his friends, I
hope you will raise a glass and celebrate him in whatever way he
deserves in your life.
I
have heard that the points of highest stress for NASCAR drivers is not
while they are moving at ridiculously fast speeds but, instead, while
they are sitting in the pit. I believe it!
Today is Pit Day
for me and all of my AV200 friends. While in the pit, we start
wondering what possessed us to commit to riding 200 miles on a bicycle.
We start wondering if we did enough on the fundraising front. We think
about the people we are riding to help and feel like there's no way to
do enough. We kick ourselves for eating those coconut cakes, cinnamon
roles and Girl Scout cookies (but only for a second!) We wonder if
we'll make it.
Today is also my birthday. My friends and
colleagues know that I LOVE birthdays, celebrate them for at least a
month and don't mind telling you it is my birthday. Unlike my
Grandmama, who used to make up an age and even confused her doctors, I
see each birthday as another milestone in life. My other Granny was a
wedding cake caterer and made magical birthday cakes representing my
theme for the year. She never questioned my choices from Cinderella to
Cowboys and Indians and various things in between. Each birthday is a
gift and perhaps sometimes even a symbol of surviving another year.
Personally, I will take each one I get and be happy.
On my birthday, I also remember friends and family who hit the end of
the birthday runs way before I wanted them too. Like most of you, I
have felt the pain of losing people way too soon - from cancer, from car
accidents, from suicide, from heart failures, from AIDS and various
other ending battles. As I sit in this Birthday/Pit Day Friday, my
engine gets revved up for one of those groups. Dang it - we're going to
find a vaccine for AIDS or at least go out swinging.
Tomorrow, I will ride for Gray. I never met him but feel like I did.
His birthdays ended a few years ago. It might not have if access to
medications had been an easier route. That makes me sad. That makes me
mad. That makes me ride. I will not be riding at a NASCAR pace by any
means - but I'll be happy and comfortable bringing up the rear in the
caboose section and sponsoring a Gray party for any other riders who
wish to join me!
Happy Birthday, everyone, on whatever day is yours!!
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