Home from Ron Jerina

I have not posted since our midnight to six shift and a lot has happened since that amazing night honoring and celebrating the lives of the names of friends and family we were riding for.

Our next shift was the 6AM to noon shift on Thursday and we were all very excited that  were finally going to be able to ride in the daylight.  Our previous 3 shifts have all been in the dark.  We could not wait to start because this was the day that Laurens was going to join us on the road.  One thing we were not expecting was a tropical storm from Mexico moving into the pathof our ride.  I don’t mind riding in the rain but I don’t like starting a ride in the rain.  Watching Team Green come in from their shift soaked to the bone, i was starting to dread the ride.  As they pulled in my mood changed when we got huge smiles and hugs from Team Green.  The rain did not slow them down and excitement started overtaking my body.  If all went well, we were going to be the team to bring the ride home to Austin.  We took off in the rain and it didn’t take long to be wet down to the skin even with rain gear on.  We road as cars and trucks passed by probably trying to figure out why 5 people were on their bikes out in this type of weather.  At one point, Tedd and I were on the back of the paceline and an 18 wheeler came flying by and hit a puddle and a wave the size of a house curled over us as we surfed thru it.  At that point, we were already soaked so it did not matter and we had to laugh.  As we rode thru a small town we sent the support van ahead to find all of our turns and as we came down a road we saw the van leave ahead of us and Laurens was standing there waiting for us to pass by.  As we did, I noticed she had her bike bag which got me excited because that meant she was going to get her gear on and come ride with us.  The bus picked her up as we continued to ride.  At our next sag stop, Laurens was ready to ride.  That was a huge pick up for all of us.  The rain had slowed down and our spirits were amazingly high.  We continued to get closer to Austin and this was the point I realized our team with Laurens on the road with us were going bring this ride into Austin.  Tears and joy overtook me and I could not imagine doing this with a better group of people.  We were within 10 miles of the hotel and we had our first flat of the ride.  Tedd blew a rear tire.  Quick change then off we went getting closer and closer.  THe ride turned slower as we got closer because of lights and stop signs then bam, another flat.  This time it was Laurens.  Another quick change then off we went.  We knew we were getting closer because we saw Ray and Joe Julian on the side of the road cheering us on and continued to see them several more times.  The wind picked up and we had our first tough head wind.  I was happy for that head wind because it slowed us down more and I did not want the ride to end.  I think it was the people we have lost to cancer thinking the same thing.  We made our final right turn and we put Laurens, Robin and Beth in the front as myself, Tedd and Joey were behind them and our two wonderful support ladies in a vehicle behind us.  Team Yellow was bringing the ride home.  We saw all the other riders and support folks cheering us on as we approached the hotel.  Tears were in all of our eyes again and we pulled into the hotel.  We got off the bikes and Team Yellow all embraced for several minutes.  We did not want to let go of each other.  We all became such great friends on the journey.  We celebrated our arrival with the rest of the folks then went into the hotel showered then cleaned up our bikes.

Friday morning was our final ride of the 2009 Challenge to Conquer Cancer.  All the teams and support who brought their bikes rode together into downtown Austin lead by 2 LAF employees.  It was a beautiful ride through the neighborhoods of Austin.  We stopped by Lance’s house but he was not home so we were not invited in.  I am sure if he was home, he would have made us breakfast.   We made it to our hotel downtown where we would stay for the next 3 nights.  Had another small celebration then went to lunch and the expo for LiveStrong weekend.

Friday night was the Challenge to Conquer Cancer celebration dinner.  It was at Scholz Garten and it was a great meal.  Brats, smoked turkey and brisket wre on the menu and we all had full tummies.  We got to see the pictures taken by EagleShotz (www.eagleshotz.com)  and reminisce about the ride.   I told my most memorable story about the ride and then asked others to come up and tell theirs.  It was an emotional evening.  Lives were changed on this trip and it was wonderful hearing the different stories about our ride.

Saturday was the 5k walk/run.  Over 3000 people participated and it was a sea of yellow.  Most of us walked with our warriors and survivors.  I was touched by the strength of so many people.  I saw an old friend that I met in 2007 at the LiveStrong Challenge.  Brian Fox is his name and he is a 5 year brain cancer survivor.  He was one of the 3 people I met that year that changed the way I was going to deal with cancer.  Before meeting Brian, Kim and Jenn in 2007, I felt sorry for myself because my dad died because of cancer at the young age of 61.  After meeting them, I was inspired to celebrate life and do something to beat cancer and that is how we came up with this ride.

Sunday was the LiveStrong Challenge ride.  I decided to do the 65 mile ride and hoped not to miss the turn this year like I did last year and ended up doing th 90 miler.  I started out with Tedd and Beth and 3800 other people.  We stayed together for a few miles but because there were so many people we got split up.   I had mechanical issues with my bike and had to pull into sag for repairs.  After getting it fixed I took off and rode most of the ride by myself.  It was nice to have some alone time to reflect on the ride and think about all my friends and family who have been affected by cancer.  I saw so many people out there with “in memory”, “in honor” or survivor cards pinned on their jerseys and prayed that I will never have one on my jersey with Jennifer or RJ or Reed or Ridge or anyone else.  Each year my list gets longer of family and friends with cancer and I want that list to stop growing.  I saw Chasse in the last sag stop and we continued the ride together.  We caught up with Jessica  and finished up the ride.  I laughed at all of Chasse’s one liners and was so proud of Jessica for doing her longest ride ever.  We crossed the finish line and I saw my beautiful wife who was walking towards the line after she completed her ride.  After the ride, I watch Joey and Joe pack the bus and trailer with precision and sent them home with the help of Dennis and Jeff.  The rest of us went back to the hotel to shower then went out for our final dinner in Austin.  Went to a great Irish Pub for dinner with a great group.

Monday morning we woke up early for our flight home.  I was concerned we would be delayed because bad storms but we made it out just in time.  I understand after we got out, they cancelled all flights heading east.  We made it back to Greenville around 12:30.

This years ride was incredible.  The route was great, everyone arrived safely and we had a great time.  I did not want the week to end but I was excited to get home.  Jennifer and I went to pick up Reed and Ridge from school and they both reinforced why I do this ride.  They both came running at us full speed and jumped into our arms.  RJ was the same way when he got home from school.  Like I said earlier, I don’t want to see their names on any card.

Thank you everyone for your support.  We will start planning next years ride soon and hope to max out the riders.  I would love to double the $200,000 we donated to our charities this year, next year.  Until then …

ScottStong, RideStrong, LiveStrong