I’ve struggled all day to concentrate on tasks for work and yet now my mind is racing back over the last week.  There are so many great memories…..too many to list and ones I will never forget.  The ones that stand out the most for me tonight are hearing some of our warriors speak at the banquet.  Hearing their stories through trembling lips of remembered agony of hearing diagnoses and joys of revelations of the important things in life had me in tears that night and again tonight.  Walking the 5k with them and knowing that was no small task for some of them was inspirational.  They are beacons of light in what sometimes feels like a dark and stormy world.  They give life perspective as to what’s truly important.  They show me blessings I know are there but take for granted at times.  They make me smile through tears and give me strength.

My regret is that there weren’t more days and my body didn’t possess more energy to spend more time with each warrior individually.  Saturday after the 5k walk while at Mellow Johnny’s for the second of what would be three times to get gifts, I hit a wall like I’ve not hit in years.  To say I couldn’t think is more than an understatement.  I honestly didn’t think I would get back to the hotel before I fell asleep.  My intention was to lay down for an hour.  Three plus hours later I finally was awakened by a phone call.  Now mind you I had missed five earlier calls and several texts.  My phone was screaming and I was not conscious.   I’m not sure why this year was far more exhausting than what I remember of last year.  I had made a vow to myself that this year I would be more present and take it all in.  Laying here tonight and thinking back over the week, I’m not sure that’s physically possible….at least for me.  There is so much to do and so little time and a deficit of energy to compound the matter.  So as I lay here feeling like I failed at what my intentions were, I’m reminded it was one weekend.  While coming days won’t be in Austin, I hope I can be blessed with more times to spend with my C3 family and our warriors.  Love you all!!

I am truly amazed and astonished at the strength and energy our warriors possess!  They are truly inspirations!  I pray for their source of strength to forever be in abundance and their health to get better and better.  I’m devoted to them and to this ride to fight cancer but would love it if someday I just ride to ride because there isn’t a need to fight cancer any longer.  Hope God heard that……………

19. Funny stories and happenings- a lot of funny stories. When you are sleep deprived, hungry, and well….. not very clean, you will say anything to make anyone laugh, even if it means throwing yourself under the bus… Not sure Ron will ever be the same after the CARscares. Someone please play with Jeni. Did someone turn off the air back here. Where did Martha Laura and Ashley go? Are they still in the back?

18. Natchez Trace is an amazing place to pray and to feel one with God. You find yourself being held by God’s hands the entire ride. The trace is like a giant hug enveloping your body. The trace makes you feel like you really are loved by your team, by God and the energy that comes off the trace carries you through many many miles.

17. Because I like the recovery beverages, even if I haven’t exercised

16. Snuggling for 5 days straight- sometimes for more than 5 hours

15. No Cell phone reception can actually be a good thing:
It allows you to hug your kids that much harder when you see them
It also allows you to hug your husband even tighter then you normally would when you see him after a looooong sweaty shift of cycling and he doesn’t care…..
It allows you to focus on things like your team mates and what they are experiencing
It allows you to recharge your love for your work.
You think about brushing your teeth more- it was a 10.5 hour day in the van…..what can I say

14. I learn things about myself that I didn’t know before:
How long I can bite my tongue…… 10hours and 33 minutes.
Again, how many bottled waters it takes for a shower
That I can pee anywhere
That I can actually travel 10.5 hours in a car and not go crazy if I skipped my meds
Too much chips and salsa= a long time in a small room with a sink. And they don’t taste good the second time around when on a bike.
I can be as small as I want
That I can pedal when I don’t want to pedal
I can exfoliate in a van
Baby Wipes really do feel refreshing

13. I can get a great AB workout in the Van

12. I feel like a kid in the car instead of an adult.

11. I love seeking out new adventures with close friends

10. People do Crazy Funny things that you would never in a million years expect to see them do normally.

9. It brings out the good in everyone.

8. The Challenge is contagious, infectious, inspiring, empowering, and it gives you a sense of peace, and warm fuzzies when strangers come up and tell you a story….. and then thank you for riding the ride.

7. Because I am using my God Given Talents to give back to others.

6. I have an excuse not to eat healthy

5. Because I like to climb:
Mountains
Cars
Stairs
Into fountains
Statues
Monuments
Cars
Over, Under, around and through
….. and I never thought I would say I like to climb

4. I get to use a walkie talkie

3. I get a free massage almost every day

2. Because it makes a difference- an honest to goodness difference. Strangers thank you for making a difference and you know in your heart, your mind, and your body that you are doing the right thing……. When a stranger hands you $60 after you just finished riding your last leg on Highway 7 and you wanted to quit 30 minutes before that. Having strangers thank you ….. Having strangers thank you, having strangers thank you……

The number one reason why ……. Well of course it is going to be a good one:

Watching Krista dance with her husband and the smile they had on each other’s faces when 1 year and 1 week ago she was given 2 weeks to live….. and because now she CAN ride…. And I CAN ride, and all those that I honored on this ride that are dealing with the effects of this disease and….. I know for every right foot that goes around that pedal… I am investing my sweat and my leg’s to help change the direction of cancer….. That someday I may not ever need to say….. I can’t ride in the sun, or I can’t ride because of my surgery, or that I have lost a loved one or a friend has lost a loved one.

Last year it was accepting the card I have been dealt with for me and my daughter, the year before it was about honoring my father, The first year, it was all about meeting amazing people who truly believe in you, who care what happens to you, who want to see you beat this disease, and who do not judge you on your looks, the level of cancer you have.

This year it was about watching someone else cross the finish line when she thought she would never be on a bike, in Texas, with her husband, and having a team full of people cheering her on every…..step….. of the way…….. Seeing her beautiful smile, listening to other warriors and their cry for hope and their shouts of joy for their accomplishments in their battle. This year, it was about them, not about me….. not about my family and our battle, it was about pushing that behind me, and seeing what the TEAM sees when we honor a warrior. It was about getting to learn more about a person, deeply, truly and telling them DO NOT GIVE UP. It doesn’t matter how old you are or how young you are. What matters to us is knowing we care, we want to see you pull through and not let cancer define you. Empower yourself, get moving, feel good again, and let us help you in any way possible.

Thank you Austin, Thank you Ron and Jennifer, Thank you C3 family, and most important thank you to all of you how have supported this ride, I wish we could take you on the journey when we ride so that you can see how much heart and soul is poured into making this happen. If it were not for the supporters we could not be out there spreading the message. I am sure I have a few more blogs in me…. But until then, continue reading…. Many of us are living off of less than 3 hours of sleep per day for the past 9 days….. so our thought process is a little slack.

Ps
I Love you twins, Thank you Karen and Mark and Nina for taking care of our precious little girls. Thank you to all of my family and friends who asked how they can help.

Krista and TC at the LiveStrong Dinner Saturday Night 2011

Wednesday, after much deliberation about rendezvous points, we set out at noon.  The air was hot, the roads were bumpy, dusty, and edged with cotton flotsam.  Just about the time I was beginning to feel the toll of the heat and the fierce headwind, the air cooled, and the rain relieved us of our fatigue.  It poured!  Some of my team mates saw hail.  I enjoyed every minute of it.  Rivers of runoff gushed across the road in front of us.  I suppose it delayed us a bit, but it definitely made the ride more friendly to my physiology.  We transitioned with our buddies, the Polka Dots @ 6:00pm, and loaded up for some dinner at a place called, “the Landing.”  I had the alligator, blackened.  It tasted like chicken, but with more bite  The grain was much coarser, and the texture considerably more chewy, but not tough.  I also had some crawdad etouffee, except with little accent marks over the first and second e’s, only I don’t know how to do that on the computer, so you will have to pencil them in on your screen.  It was very tasty and nearly covered the flavour of the  slightly brackish water that accompanied the meal.  Note to self:  carry bottled water through Louisiana next year.

Thursday around 6:00pm Keith and Justina joined us on our short ride in to Austin.  It was fun to have them along for the ride.  We took a different route than the rides of previous years to minimize interaction with rush hour traffic.  I think it worked out quite well.  We rolled through beautiful countryside.  Many of the roads have longitudinal fissures snaking along the right side and to the center of the lane with some pronounced step-offs, so we had to be cautious.  We were.  Our team worked together, and we suffered no mishap.  Alright, I kind of spun along in my own little world up front, and they just let me play for a while.  It felt good.  Thanks for understanding, Team Livelong.  Then, we regrouped to get our night lights and rode into Austin in a proper double pace line to the enthusiastic cheers of our team mates.

Next year, I hope we can recruit a team of more relaxed riders to balance the pace of the enthusiastic riders.  We need five.   The greatest challenge this year was trying to adjust the transition points forward since all of the teams rode faster than anticipated.  Our support staff really had to scramble to recalculate our hotel locations and transport times.  We added in some doubling back and extra loops so that our little team would get our last ride in.  I do appreciate all the effort that went into that, by the way.  ”Bringing it Home” was quite the honor.

I keep going over two visual images in my head as I think back over the week. On Tuesday, team dots rode the noon to six shift on the Natchez Trace. It was a beautiful day and the Trace is a great road for riding. We tried not to disrupt traffic too much so Jennifer and Keith took the bus on up the road and I got to ride behind the team. It was so awesome to watch them work together as a team. They protected one another from the wind and shouted encouragement when they were feeling tired. My heart was so full thinking about these five people that were out on the road for me and everyone else battling cancer. The team was successful only because they worked together, just as cancer patients need their team around them to successfully  beat this horrible disease. I loved watching my team be a team.

The other picture that keeps coming to mind and putting a smile on my face is from our last shift. The team rode from six to midnight on Wednesday as we made our way from Louisiana to Texas. As the sun started to set, the sky exploded in beautiful colors. I was driving in front of the team when JD came on the walkie talkie to say that the riders were dedicating the sunset to Jennifer and I for helping them during the week. I love sunsets, they may be my favorite part of the day. The team could not have known that I was mid conversation with God thanking him for each of my dot teammates and for gifting us with such an amazing sunset to ride into. The team’s show of gratitude in making that dedication was overwhelming to me as I believe it is I who need to show my overwhelming gratitude to them. They let a non-cyclists come on this trip and welcomed me on to the team with open arms. I will forever be grateful.

All week, as excited as I have been to be on this journey with wonderful new friends, I have felt incomplete in a small way. Anne and Tedd Garner, my friends who are really more like family are the ones who introduced me to p3c3 last year when I was a warrior for their team. They could not make the trip this year due to other responsibilities in Greenville and there were times this week, I just needed one of them to be with me. They are such a vital part of my own support team and not talking to them multiple times a day was a hard thing to get used to. When we arrived at the Embassy Suites in Austin yesterday, we had our big group celebration and all of the teams took pictures (polka dots climbed in the fountain for ours!) I went up to the room with Martha Laura and Ashley so we could change clothes and meet people in the lobby to go to lunch and the LiveStrong expo. We walked out our door and I looked down to the lobby to look for our group. I saw Scott and Robin talking to someone who looked a lot like Tedd but I knew it couldn’t be him because we had been texting and he was at work! I looked again and saw Anne. And then I lost it. All of the emotions of the week took over. My two wonderful friends knew that I needed them here this weekend, that they needed to be part of the celebration that this weekend symbolizes for me, so they orchestrated the best surprise I have ever had. The elevator could not carry me down four floor fast enough. I, the self proclaimed non hugger of the group, could not wait to hug the crazy Garners. With them here, everything was finally right. The feeling that something was off, that something was missing vanished and I could not wipe the smile off my face. 

I left an assignment for my creative writing class that I cannot wait to talk to them about when I get back to Greenville. I asked them to write a six word memoir. As I have spent my six hours in the car by myself driving across the country I have thought a lot about what my own six word memoir will be. It is not an easy task and I kept wondering if I should extend it to a ten word memoir. Six words does not leave room for rambling and the words must be thoughtfully and purposefully chosen. And so, this is what I have come up with, at least this memoir covers the last year- 
scars add character, cancer didn’t win.

A BLOG from Sandman- Jeff to home

Bike ride is great! I like all my mates on my team. I have become very close with two bikes in a pod with our Dream Maker who has a tired personality and is never without a story from the Natchez Trace. He tells really dark stories which make all of us delusional out loud. I have to stop blogging soon. I know I promised a long bike ride today, but this morning I washed my cycling shorts and cleats and put them out to dry on the van’s iPhone. It looks like it is getting ready to rain cats and Hamdamboogers (pink panther voice). I better get off my possum and get my stars off the moon before I run out of my foggy underwear. I promise to Facebook my wheels off before my bottom hits the pillow tonight…. or tomorrow…. or maybe i will write next Friday.

Your Loving GU maker,
Jeff, AKA Sandman
Thanks Dream Team for another fun filled day in the van… does anyone know how hard it is to sit in a van for 10.5 hours with ADD? OMW…. You have know idea if you don’t have ADD….. it was torture… my teamy’s are the bestest ever… o wait I already said that one time before.. ok wait, ahhhhhh
MY TEAM ROCKS!

Picturesque; however, late. Sunrise SSS supposed to be at 7:32 am, Lisa tells us. (I tell her she’d be better off following th Dalai Lama’s Tweets.)

In lieu of rigging a makeshift and most likely unsanitary caffeine IV into the flexor muscles of my forearm, I am nursing a coffee from McDs. (Direct tweet to God: please let me never see the Golden Arches again.) Upon request for “a couple of creams and sugars,” the cashier gives me 7 creams and 14 sugars. I promise. I counted. I don’t even know what to say about that, except “is she trying to kill me!?”

So quickly now, before arteriosclerosis and/or diabetes take me out, let’s go back to the 6 pm transition–15 hours, 70 minutes of sleep, and 0 showers ago–somewhere outside Joyce, LA…..

(Lisa wishes to correct me: it’s been 70 minutes of sleep in the past 26 hours. I sit–blogging in a moving van on her iPad–corrected.)

It is the last round of shifts for everyone, which means emotions are, well, emotional. Everyone is pretty much a vulnerable mess of boundary-less raw feeling. In normal, polite society, we would avoid people in this condition, much like deer road kill on Hwy 7, but this is impossible since we are averaging about one cubic inch of personal space per person, and that space is oozing of B.O.
Personally, ew.

In a confessional moment, Taylor admits to taking his girlfriend to a Brittany Spears concert, adding that by doing so he “lost his man card.” Sometimes I think we think we’re giving up our man card by displaying emotions at all. I think the opposite is true; sometimes it takes great strength to be vulnerable, to be “emotional.” I am having a hard time this year not being emotional, altho normally I do pride mysef for being capable of showing up, doing my job, and being professional in the midde of great stress. The last few nights, not so much.

So the Dots start off on their final shift, and we skip out with LiveLong to dinner (alligator tastes like chicken, by the way). When we catch back up, the Dots are 20 miles from the Texas border, which leaves us just enough time for a Juice Run. The gas stations down here sell Juice for cheap, so we grab a few cases and shove them in the cooler. For the sake of the Greater Good (and some very thirsty Dots awaiting), we throw about three lbs of baby carrots out the window to make room.

The Dots make Texas, and the Lemon Bonkers take off.

My ex-boyfriend and best friend used to say, “nothing good happens at 4 in the morning.” Meaning, you can still be having fun at 3 am, or you can be getting a jump on the day at 5, but that 4 o’clock hour is a witching hour where if you’re awake, normally you’re wishing you weren’t. I have agreed with him until now. Beth, Donna, Mark and Mike are pulling the 12-6 am shift In Honor of cancer survivors and those currently fighting it. The 4 am hour is spent calling out names of people who inspire us with their courage and love for life. When everyone else is asleep, 4 lonely voices are shouting name after name at the skies, demanding to be heard. I name my client Margaret (who after being diagnosed with advanced colon cancer is finally going to Paris!) and BW, the man I love who is now in remission from lymphoma. He is the reason I do this ride, and the reason I have all these crazy adopted family members.

Still tho, 4 am is a good hour for sleeping, even if it is for an hour in the van in a baptist church parking lot on the side of the highway. Taylor saves the night by staying with the bus and cheering/running alongside/pushing uphill the bodies and spirits of the Lemons thru their final miles.

We toast their triumph–both in coming together as a team and riding for dozens of loved ones–with more Juice, this time from Mexico.

“I bet this is the craziest gas-up you’ve ever had,” Mike yells out to one of the several locals who pull into the gas station we have chosen for our 6 am transition. The pumps are only open for credit card purchases, and the parking lot is dark. Yes, the man laughs, as he asks about our entourage. “We’re riding our bikes cause we’re raising money to fight cancer and cause we’re Bad-A$$es!” Mike shouts in a triumphant manner. The man at the pump answers with what is becoming the traditional Southern response:

Daaaaaammmmmnn.

In this situation, less is more. Which makes BW’s favorite toast so appropriate…it’s why I do this ride:

“Not Dead Yet.”
Cheers.

Our shift ran from 6pm to midnight last night. Team livelong had ridden through rain and wind before the weather broke for the final part of their ride. The temperatures were perfect for an evening ride, and we rolled out after hugs with the crew of Livelong.

Our bodies were feeling the effects of the effort from the previous day’s ride along the Natchez trace, so we started out pretty slow. Everyone in their own little world, thinking their thoughts. At one of the very early stops, several spoke aloud for whom they were riding this evening. Others, stayed with their own silent dedications.

We had over two hours with good light before we had to turn on our headlights and taillights. The sunset was really beautiful with a long line of clouds in an otherwise clear sky. Ed proposed we riders dedicate the sunset portion of the ride to Cara and Jen. They have been awesome in taking care of us this ride and we were all happy to dedicate that half hour to them.

We made a number of stops, some quite short, others a bit long such that it took some time to warm up the already fatigued muscles of our legs. I stayed lost in my own world, considering again why I do this ride.

There are a lot of small reasons that sum together to answer that question. In the end, the sum of those answers lies in the simple statement that you may have read in other’s posts, or even on the P3C3 website. Because I can.

But what are some of those smaller reasons that go into that statement? The most obvious and largest part of that equation is because of the millions who suffer the effects of cancer. These folks silently endure physical and emotional pain that I cannot even imagine. They do this with dignity and pride and truly set an inspirational example.

Some parts of that equation are probably very much the same as many others who enjoy volunteering their time to help those who could use a hand. There is a lot of satisfaction knowing that I’ve made some positive impact on the world.

Another part, and perhaps the largest part of the remaining equation, lies in this incredible family I’ve found out here on the road between Greenville and Austin. These folks have taken me in and given me something I haven’t had for a long time – a shared sense of purpose, camaraderie and a sense of family.

All of those parts sum into that statement, although now I’ll modify it to say ‘Because WE can’. WE can make a difference, together.

Midnight now…. Dadgum, this bridge is 3.5 miles long! Well… There is the Texas sign… And 3/4 of a mile further… There are the bonkers…. High fives! Hugs !

And we are done. Wow. How could this be our last shift? We just left Greenville! What a feeling. We just rode over 320 miles in 4 shifts, and suddenly, pile into the van to search for a hotel.

It has been a privilege to ride as part of the Polka Dot team. It has been an honor to ride for my mom and dad, and for my friends John McDermott an Famin Chou, and to honor those who have survived cancer… who battle it daily… and to ride in memory of those who lost the fight. Numerous names, numerous families, numerous friends.

The LiveStrong Challenge weekend will be memorable, but the hours I spent on my bike thinking about those affected by cancer will never be forgotten.

Thanks.

The Polka Dots gave Keith and the bus a break by riding the wrong way on the Trace for a bit to try to get the group back on pace.  Livelong enjoyed massages and fellowship with Keith, Kelly, Lisa and Taylor, followed by lunch and coffee.  Thanks guys!  See you again soon!  Next stop, Natchez and nothing to do until noon tomorrow.  I think we’ll all enjoy a late start, but maybe we can find some live music tonight…

In short, once again, having you in my life has made a great experience possible.  Thank you.  I can’t wait to see you and Henry.

Just when the headwind and dusty, post-cotton harvest  highway were starting to wear us down, we were cooled off by a hard soaking rain.  This was no easy drizzle like we enjoyed on the Trace, but a hard, hail-infused downpour through mid afternoon, letting up just as we left Jena, LA.  Cooled off and refreshed from the rain and the attentive support of Sally, Dave and Keith, we hit a great stretch of rollers, each one, just long enough to be a challenge, but none long enough to sap ourt strength.  Looking up and seeing the Livelong Paceline power through the rolling hills of Central Louisiana was exciting and satisfying.  Although there were a couple of sprints, either spontaneous (sprint or sputter) or necessary (LaDoT workers waving us through a one lane construction site), Livelong’s day was one marked by great teamwork.

Due to a slight miscalculation on the transition, We saw the Polk Dots at 5:30.  They were gracious enough to load back up and follow us to Winnfield for a 6:00 transition.   Have a great final ride before Austin, guys!!!  The bookend to our day of new friends and new warrior magnets was meeting Jay and Colin, students at Winnfield Middle School.  They were curious about our ride and ended up telling us about their Assistant Principal, Mr. Grider, who is fighting cancer, and their Grandfather, Red Thompson, who is now cancer free.  We had a great time telling them about our rid and our reasons.

Livelong was once again joined for postride fun, fellowship and dinner by the van o’ love (Taylor, who shows our bikes love; Kelly, who shows our sore, tired muscles love; and Lisa, who is always ready to give the riders some camera love!)  The Landing in Nachitoches, La (pronounced Nak-uh-tish) showed us some love to with delicious creole food and some pretty darn good music (including some solid renditions of Norah Jones and Etta James).

We meet all sorts of people on this trip, some more random than others. In a not so random incident on the way to the noon transition, we met a Mississippi state trooper. He lost his sister and father to cancer. We added two more magnets to our van: Ginny Jones and Milton Sizemore.

We catch the Purple team at their hotel after their noon transition and take picture with the Mississippi River behind them. Altho the weather has been moody for a day (must be on it’s period), right now it is perfect.

We cross over the bridge into Louisiana, which for me symbolizes the beginning of the end of the trip…an endurance test that ends only when the last team pulls into the Austin hotel sometime Thursday afternoon/early evening. Louisiana is also a maze of sorts, meaning everything looks the same to tired eyes, so it’s super easy to get lost. At least last year it was. Turns out, this year too. Sorry Keith, we didn’t mean to hold your Subway sandwich hostage for 3 hours while we found you…

With nothing to do in the car but snack and drink sugary, caffeinated bevies, we sample a few local gas station bathrooms. A handwritten note on one such bathroom door reminds us that “if you enjoy using a clean bathroom, please leave it that way when you’re done.” Mental note: since I also enjoy having actual handles on the sink fixtures, I need to bring extras with me next year. Since LA reminds me of last year, I down a nasty vanilla double shot, like I did last year, and toast to Janelle (my old driver). I will not, however, be rescuing a stray dog, as we did last year, since Ron preemptively said nope.

In a gas station called “Chuck’s,” we meet a native with hardly any teeth. He asks us if we are some of those “crazy cyclists.” Yes?, we say. He gives us $5 for a magnet in honor of his mother: Corinne McBroom. The clerks inform us that they would cycle with us, if they could do so in their boots while smoking.

When we find Team LiveLong, support driver Dave informs us that “happiness is knowing your massage therapist is going to be there.” And she will be for the rest of the trip…because we are Magic. (And because we will be rotating napping/driving shifts. And because we are working on a way to hook up caffeine IVs into our elbows.)

Austin, here we come!
-Kelly

This message brought to you by the Hambasket, in honor of the Yellow Team of 2010. Missing you guys-Tedd, Anne, Robin, and Laurens.

The sendoff was quite emotional as I listened to Ron speak and looked over to see Kenya standing with her daughter in tears.  I met Kenya just a week or so before last year’s ride.  The story of that can be found in an earlier post here.  I made my way over to her and as I did Ron had asked for Davis, her son, and Ken, her dad, to come stand with him and the rest of our warriors.  I’m so happy they will share this experience together and with their family.  I don’t know how to put into words what they are about to experience.   It is for them, all our past and present warriors, and all those in my life who have had to battle cancer for whom I ride.  My deepest prayer is for better detection, better treatments, and ultimately a cure.  One dollar at a time and one pedal stroke at a time is how this group I call my C3 family will assist in making that come true.

My other Lemon Bonkers have posted about our rides to this point from their perspectives so be patient as I share mine.  Leaving the GHS Cancer Center was exciting and emotional.  As we rode out, I saw Laurens and then Tedd and Anne who were part of my life support on last year’s ride.  The tears were welling up because I already knew how much I was going to miss them.  AND I’VE MISSED THEM.  ALL OF THE 2010 YELLOW TEAM!

Our first shift was 6-9 pm and it would prove to be our most challenging with climbs.  The wind was strong but I felt good.  For night rides we are given safety vests to wear to be more visible to the passing vehicles.  This year’s vests were made for the jolly green giant.  About an hour into the ride, I leaned over to put my water bottle back in its cage.  As I sat up, my handlebars pulled quickly to the right and I knew immediately that no amount of effort was going to keep me vertical.  My vest, which was intended to keep me safe, had ensnarled around my handlebars like a python’s death grip.  I tried to tuck and roll but not sure I accomplished that at all.  Beth has since laughed herself silly saying I looked like I was caught up in a granny nightgown with it stretched over my face and helmet connecting my body and my bike.  Untangling from the safety web proved to need some assistance.  It is very funny now to try to see what I must have looked like from my teammates perspectives.  Keith, our tireless and caring medic butterflied my knee and bandaged me up as I hurried him.  He kept shaking his head and telling me I needed stitches. I rode for about another 30 or so minutes and could feel the butterfly bandages were not going to be enough.  As we came to a traffic signal and had to stop, Taylor who is our mechanic said he could hear a clicking on my bike.  I’m pretty sure everyone knew I needed to stop.  Keith had me back on the bus and soon Jana came on as well.  A needle and 6 stitches later by those two wonderful people and the wound was closed but I was not going to be allowed back on the bike.  Leaving Beth, Mike, and Mark to finish this leg of the ride was killing me.  It’s difficult enough with four and now they were three.   They rocked the remaining hour and half which made me miss being out there with them even more!  I’m not much of spectator.

The next day we had the 12-6 pm shift and honestly I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to ride.  Knees were stiff and sore but I wanted to ride.  I had worried most of the night and kept trying to move my knees as much as possible so they wouldn’t stiffen.  I’m very hesitant to ask God for things for myself but this time was I was begging.  I wanted to ride for my warriors, for my teammates, and yes even for myself.  A few pedal strokes into our shift and I knew I was good.  It was an incredible day….not without its difficulties…but one where I constantly thought of our warriors and their struggles.

Last night we were on the Natchez Trace, the longest flattest road in the middle of nothing but what seems like forest and no civilization.  Last year I was in the dark on this road and this year was in the dark from 6-midnight.  It is an intense ride as I’m not much for the dark in the woods where who knows what is going to jump out at you!  The other intense part is the last hours where we begin saying the names of those who lost their battle to cancer.  In the dark with tears in my eyes asking God why those that are so good had to be taken puts so much into perspective.

I know I’ve used that word a lot in this post…. Perspective.  Well this ride and this group have made me more conscious of not sweating the small stuff.  I love the C3 group more than I can ever make them realize.  I know I have received far more than I can ever give to this group and to this cause.

I’m in the car as I type this heading to our transition for our final leg of this relay….the midnight to 6 am shift.  I’m already sad this is the last one.  Well the last one for this year!  I’m already thinking of how to raise the money for next year.

May God bless our warriors/angels in Heaven, those past and present, and everyone who has been touched by cancer.  Keep all the teams safe on their final 2011 rides and give them the peace to take it all in.  Allow them the open hearts to be filled with the blessings and love they have and will continue to experience with this journey.

The participants began to arrive a little before1:00 and luggage was everywhere. Lots of hugs upon arrival and then packing began. Polka Dots packed up and our Miami teammate was still not there. I called him and he informed me that he had missed his flight. I quickly made the decision-cause I’m a thinker- to load his bike on the bus and started thinking of ways we could pick him up on the way. LUCKILY he is a practical joker and walked up right after we secured his bike on the bus. We got his bike put on the van and his bags packed too. It was great seeing all of the people that came out to see us, I know I didn’t get to see and speak to everyone. Thank you all for being there!! We all gathered on the the hill in front of the cancer center for a group photo and then gathered together for heartfelt thoughts from Ron and Dr. Stephenson. Our warriors were there and it was a powerful moment to see them gathered together. They are our inspiration for this ride and I look forward to spending time with them this weekend. Mother Roxanne delivered 3 beautiful prayers asking us to call by name those that we are riding in memory and in honor of. She gave thanks for the team and prayed for our safe journey. My heart was so full of love for this group of people as I too thanked God for this team of humanitarians.

It was now time for the riders to get on their bikes and the managers to get in their vehicles. But not before saying some very tearful goodbyes to my children. They have been so patient and giving during this busy time in their parent’s lives. I am so blessed. It is so comforting to be able to leave them with their loving grandmothers during our absence. Thank you Julie for being there for me as you always are, and thank you for the crosses for the entire team. Near my children stood my teammates from previous rides that also had tears which kept mine flowing. Gave quick hugs and reminders for them to call me. Jumped in the team van with Cara and we were rolling. Ringing our cowbell and waving I saw so many people on that road! (Laurens, I am so glad I saw you by the road before I left-what a gift).

For the past three years, I have stopped with all of the riders to re-load the van and head to Clemson to Mellow Mushroom. This year I am with the Dots which is the team FIRST in the rotation so we rolled right on by the parking lot where the rest of the teams loaded up in their vans – beeping the horn and ringing our cowbell. Our team of riders: Ed, JD, John S., Brandon and Toni ( our lone diva rider ). Our team has ridden together before, so they settled right in through our tour Powdersville, Easley, Clemson, Seneca and Westminster. Our first 3 hours flew by. We also got to see friends along the way. The Garners were following us to meet a couple of teams for lunch in Clemson. So good to see them! We had a great ride with beautiful weather and transitioned with the Lemon Bonkers who were ready to go. Our team was treated to their post ride massage by the wonderful KVL. We loaded back up in the van and drove to where we thought we would transition for our 6am ride. Cleveland TN here we come. I let the Dream Team know where we were to see if they wanted to take over our rooms when we left at 4:30 for our next shift. This was especially exciting for me, because Ron is on that team and I would get to see him. I put my head on the pillow some time after midnight but kept receiving texts and I was too afraid to sleep in case I would miss one. I think I managed a few naps. I kept thinking about driving the bus up and over 3 mountains praying that it wouldn’t overheat and that the brakes would definitely do their job as I followed our precious riders around curves. I had told dream team to text me upon arrival but I heard them before I got one. I jumped out of bed and rushed to the balcony to see my knight in shining armor emerge from his team van. They informed me that they had a great ride on that beautiful morning. I had to wake up some polka dots and get them moving so that we could get ready and so that Dream Team could grab some rest. It was so great seeing them and I got to kiss my sweet husband. We ate a great breakfast that the hotel put out early for us and loaded up. We did have to drive a little farther than we anticipated to catch up with Team Livelong. They had already climbed a mountain!!! We found a church on the plateau and cheered them in under one of the most beautiful skies I have ever witnessed. We exchanged hugs and shared thoughts about the ride. We found out it was Dave’s birthday and we gathered around and sang to him!! They sent us off with lots of cheers and we were on our way through the Tennessee mountains. In my nightmare the night before I had envisioned roads without guardrails so I was ecstatic when these roads we were traveling had them. The riders looked awesome riding up those mountains. I was so proud to see how they all worked together. However, in my wildest dreams I never thought of how fast I would have to drive the bus down the mountains. I’m pretty sure that my fingernail marks will permanently be imbedded in the steering wheel. I don’t even drive my own car down Caesars Head at the speed I was having to drive the bus. However, there was no way I was letting my team out of my sight. That bus and trailer hung on those curves, making some crazy sounds, like a champ – whew! I was so nervous I was shaking a bit, but let me tell you, by the second descent I was excited. It was amazing to watch those 5 riders fly around those curves!! I forgot to mention that the weather was amazing and warmer than all 3 previous years – Perfect ride conditions. The daylight was also a new treat for me this year. The countryside was so beautiful. Lots of cool barns, silos, horses, fences, etc. I cannot wait to see all of Lisa’s pictures. After the big mountains, there were lots of rollers so we made some recovery stops. It has been so much fun hanging out with KVL, Taylor and Lisa!! We were stopped for a while at a repair shop and I’m so glad we asked for directions because the road we needed to turn on was right beside us – we would have missed it for sure had we not asked. Lemon Bonkers found us at our rest stop and then traveled 12 miles down our newly found road to find a transition spot at the Church of Christ at Pocahontas. The team was going to change in the parking lot but Toni suggested we just go in the church since “they were playing bingo”. Everyone was treated to another massage under a pretty tree. I got a phone call from Ron asking where we were and they were close by so they came to the church too. We all decided to grab some lunch together. How cool is that? Dream Team, Polka Dots and Party Rockers found the closest mexican restaurant and proceeded to eat way too many chips and some not so delicious food. But the company was priceless. We gave hugs and kisses and went our separate ways.

We got back in the van and headed to Tupelo, Mississippi for the night. We checked into our hotel. We met for dinner at Logan’s and headed to the laundry mat to wash some well worn cycling gear. It was the SAME laundry facility that my team from last year used – too funny and kind of cool. We got in late again for bed time and decided to meet for breakfast at 8am. Some of my teammates were confused as to which time zone time we were supposed to be using (despite covering that in emails and meetings ANYWAY, we went to the iHop for some protein and Brandon ordered enough food for a small country: 2 Stuffed French Toast Combos- 2 pcs of Stuffed French toast, 4 eggs sunny side up, 4 pcs of bacon and a 1/2 pound of hash browns. He was done with the first combo before I ate a pancake. We then looked at the maps and talked with Sally and loaded up to go and meet them on the Natchez Trace. We were ahead of schedule by a full 3 hours so at breakfast we decided that we would just ride backwards 20-25 miles and turn around to try and even things back out so that all teams would get 4 shifts. We found a beautiful overlook to make our transition. It had been drizzling all morning so when LiveLong rolled in, they were soggy but said it was a great ride. The temperatures have been so great. We took pictures and gave them hugs and then got some nutrition off the bus for the van. We told Keith to have a rest and turn the bus off to rest while we were gone for our “backwards” ride. It did seem strange to travel the same stretch of road that our teammates just finished. I struggled just a bit with this concept. I was fully on board with the idea because instead of adding a loop, the Trace is the safest place to add miles. In my prayer before bed last night, I asked God to help me make sense of such a counter productive idea. I awoke this morning with a comforting idea. Yes we went backwards. Yes Team LiveLong had just finished that stretch of road. I know of two beautiful ladies in my life that have traveled down the road of hearing “You have Cancer” and then going through chemo, surgery and losing their hair ONLY to hear and go through it AGAIN. More so than wondering why we were traveling the same part of the Natchez Trace, I was overcome with emotion thinking how it must have felt to them knowing they were back on the same road again with this awful disease. I’m one of those people who feels like things happen for a reason and I feel like God put us on the same path twice to remind us of our friends and family who are battling and inspire us to understand that some of those with cancer will have to go down that same road AGAIN. It’s a terrifying thought and it makes me angry. But it also makes me so proud of this team- this group of people who are doing something to try and make a difference. We all gathered around Cara this morning and prayed that she will never have to go down the road with Cancer again. It better just stay away!! This team is doing what they can to raise funds for research, and on an emotional level this team is beside our warriors in the fight.

We are now in the car traveling to our last transition of the trip- the week has certainly gone by quickly as it always seems to do. We just stopped and had a nice lunch. I asked the team to leave their phones in the car. We have all been busy talking with other teammates and family and friends via all of our technology. I wanted us to have a relaxing lunch and talk with each other before beginning our last ride. It was great- I think we all learned more about each other. I have come to love these six people just as I knew that I would. We are looking forward to our last shift, rain or shine. We should cross over in to Texas tonight. We look forward to welcome the rest of our teammates into Austin. Our shift is lucky. We will be at the hotel when our warriors get in tomorrow. We are looking forward to meeting all of them and sharing our journey.

Godspeed to the rest of our team: Lemon Bonkers, Dream Team, Purple Power and LiveLong! We can’t wait to welcome you with hugging arms

Much love,
Jennifer

I had begun biking for my own health reasons, a mixture of losing weight and therapy, however, the more time I spent around the P3 team the more I saw that these riders were riding for everyone esle, for the people that couldn’t, “because we can” is the expression I hear so often. This amazing group of riders have determination and will power like I have never experienced before and a dedication to a cause that is beyond admirable.

Having first hand experienced the devastation left in the wake of this horrible disease, my wife having lost her young cousin Ellen Gstalder just a couple of years prior, I decided that I wanted to join this battle, because I could. I signed up as a rider and began down the road that ends with this epic journey, dedicating my challenge to Ellen and the huge hole left behind by her absence.

My other team members have already described the first stages of our journey so I will not try to echo what has already been described, but I have to say that last nights ride was almost surreal and incredibly humbling. We were all tired, sore and hurting. We had already started a man down and an early fall had left Donna with stitches on her knee, although you would never know it by the way she rides. I hurt getting in and out of the tiny holes in our vehicle that we had made our for ourselves, and even more when we got on our bikes, but we were here to ride, and we did.

The ride begun with a coldish chill and light rain on the Natchez Trace Trail. We were riding the 6pm till midnight, taking over after a great ride from the Polka Dots. As night descended we began dedications to friends and family who have lost their battles with this disease. The mood became very somber and not a sound was heard except the names of lost ones. Being called out with each rotation of our paceline, broken only by the occasional cracking of a voice as a name was called. It was incredibly emotional and put in to perspective that our personal pain, however great, was nothing in comparisom to those whose names were being called and to those who are still fighting and would gladly swap our pain for their chemo treatments and endless surgeries…..

We are soon to start our final stage, but I can say that without a doubt, I will return from this journey a better person, humbled by the sacrifices of so few for the cause that concerns so many and hoping that my own children will grow up in a cancer free world…

“WHY I RIDE” by Ed Hernando For all the hours, weeks and months of training and riding, Future families and friends are saved from suffering. For every sprocket spin and gears a-clicken, The months are extended for the stricken. Miles ridden through sun, sleet and rain, Goes towards numbing the pain. Riding through the night as the pain is rushing through the body as you are completing your 6 hour shift, This Pain is taken away from someone known or unknown and to them, it is a GIFT. For all the sweat and blood shed during training each day, May it fertilize the ground for new riders to take on the fight and to stay. I ride as one of many small soldiers out to Fight for those who cannot, So that one day the ride can stop. And as this conquest will one day be complete, Volunteers, riders and donors will WALK home victorious in Cancer’s defeat.

We have already arranged to share a hotel with the Lemon Bonkers post-transition. So we head off after them. (spoiler alert: we will later learn they have not joined the Church of Garmin and do not have the full technological support and search options that one would prefer when trying to find a hotel in the Wild West that is Central Mississippi. No, no one gets lost, but…)

When we finally reach the Economy Inn nestled deep in an industrial section of something that I suppose could be called a town, we are, um, slightly unsettled. (I think the exact conversation went something like this. “no way are we staying here. Did anyone see the police tape on that door? Is that guy doing a drug deal on his phone in the parking lot? Holy s—. No. No. No. No.)

So, in the spirit of comparison shopping (i.e. Not wanting to die) we follow the Garmin to a Hilton (i.e. Something we recognize, and altho it sounds too expensive, at this point, one extreme is better than the other) which is slightly out of our way (i.e. The opposite of slightly). At this point, we just need sleep.

A whole 6 hours later, when we wake up, we regret that decision. We are behind schedule, we have missed the 6 am transition, but we are feeling more like human beings, or “more normal,” as I tell Ron. “Whatever normal is for you,” he responds.

No way around it, and no one is to blame, but I hate that getting some actual sleep means missing an important transition. Justina and Tom were supposed to join the McDreamies for the last hour of their ride, to honor Jeni, one of our veteran riders who is battling skin cancer. We love you, Schumachers. We were there in spirit.

So, a quick shower (Taylor does a celebration dance upon realizing the shower head is tall enough for him, he doesn’t like “facials”), a run thru McDonalds (sad commentary that the golden arches are becoming a symbol of civilization at this point), and we are on the road again. As if on cue, “Life is a Highway” comes on the radio.

We are in a race to the noon transition where the Purps and LiveLongs want to ride over the Mississippi River together. It is debatable which will come first–the transition or the clogging of our arteries.

Our dinner at Penn’s Restaurant was fun, despite the mostly fried nature of almost all the food.. sorry, Kelly! It was nice to have Taylor, Kelly, and Lisa join us prior to their departure for catching up to the lemon bonkers, and our hunt for a hotel. We settled in and simply passed out for the night.

After breakfast, Jennifer talked a bit about an epiphany she had regarding why we rode backwards yesterday. It was the exact way I felt, she just put it into words much better than I could ever do. We travelled the same road twice on this journey, the same way some people do if they get cancer twice, or if they get a recurrence. We turned a routine ride effort into an effort to honor cancer victims like Jeni, like Rene, like Laurens, and like countless others who battle recurrence. Our road was tough, but nothing like theirs.

So, here is to a new day. A new road, a refreshed road. For team Polka Dot, and for you, Jeni… and Rene…. and Laurens…. And the countless others who fight the fight.

But I am getting ahead of myself. We were back on the Trace last I wrote, waiting for the Dots to roll in….. (cue flashback here):

The Lemons await the Dots, silly string canisters hidden in their back jersey pockets. After orchestrating a photo shoot, they spray them down with the stuff. Team mom jennifer jerina dutifully cleans up afterwards as I Mee-ssage the Dots and honorary team member Flat Stanley. He can’t take too much pressure, on account of being a piece of paper, but the rest of the Dots need some work and get it. Riding into the wind = sore legs.

Apparently my spa-like massage atmosphere on the side of the road under Pine trees is lacking, so Lisa turns up the car stereo. Suddenly the world is flooded with Depeche Mode. Brandon objects.

Lisa: “you got a problem with my music?”
Brandon: “yeah, I’m not in an elevator.”

Dinner with the Dots turns out to be a classic Deep South moment. I can smell Penns Restaurant before we are officially inside the building. Everything on the menu is fried. And then it’s fried again. And then maybe again. At one point, Brandon whips out his 3-inch knife at the table to illustrate a story he’s telling. The two stoic state troopers sitting right next to us simply look over and then resume their dinner of Fried Food. On our way out we say “good evening, officers.” They nod. Only in Mississippi.

At least I hope.

Back on the Trace, it’s pitch black, and the Lemons are riding in silence and in sync. For an hour or so, the riders and support drivers call out names of those who have died fighting cancer. Sometimes it’s simply a name and an “I love you.” Sometimes it’s a story. Sometimes it’s a long pause. Sometimes it’s impossible to say anything at all.

***

For the last hour of their ride, we coast next to the four riders-a mobile DJ service and cheerleading squad combined. Taylor finds a clubby Pandora station, and heads start to bop and bounce. The cadence picks up. Sly smiles creep onto faces.

FU, Cancer.

Jeni’s husband, Tom and Justina from Purple Power who transiton with our team started their shift an hour or so early so Tom and Jeni could do their family and friends together and ended with their list with their daughter Nicole and Jeni herself. It was sweet seeing them riding ahead of us holding hands.

We also did a memory sprint for our friend Perry Lyles. Perry did the Challenge to Conquer Cancer in 2009 and was a wonderful human being and one of those guys who you immediately became good friends with. Perry passed away 19 months ago of an enlarged heart. Jeni led the sprint out then I took over and Scott finished it up. I am not so happy with Perry right now though because my legs are paying for that sprint right now.

I have enjoyed the time with my team. We are all having a good time and getting along great. I was able to talk to all my boys yesterday before they went to bed. As he has done everytime I talk to him, Reed ask about every team and how they are doing. “How is mommy’s and Brandons team doing, who are they again Polka Dots? How are Miss Donna and Miss Beth and the rest of the Yellow Bonkers? Is Miss Justina and the Purple Power team doing well? Where is Miss Kerrie’s team, Livelong, what does that mean? I thought it was LiveStrong.”

Wait…I take back what I said about us all getting along. I am now mad at Scott for making fun of me again on how long it takes me to write on our blog. I do recall he did the same to me last year so this may be the end for us. So taken me 1-1/2 hours to write this post is that really a big deal. All we are doing is driving to Crokett, TX and doing Mad Libs.

I guess I will pass the computer to Scott so he can finally write on this blog since all he has done in the car is play with his new I-phone 4 with a high definition screen.

Thanks everyone for your support and following us on our journey. Next shift, 6am – 12 noon. We may see some sunshine.

Our event is well ahead of schedule, thanks to excellent rides by all teams involved. So, we began the day by meeting the LiveStrong team just 10 minutes from our hotel. Easy, until I remembered that I left my bike computer in the hotel. #*+£# it… Hate when i do dumb stuff like that. But thanks to Beth, Maribel, and Donna for their selflessness and fetching it for me. HURRAH !

Now, back to the story. Because of being ahead of schedule, and to be sure all teams get a chance to do all their shifts, we decided to ride BACKWARDS, heading north on the Nachez Trace Trail. Against a nasty, blowy, strong headwind… For almost 20 miles. Draining our legs. We finally turned around and headed south, and even with a tailwind, the wind was blustery. Upon reaching our original starting point, we stopped to enjoy some p.b.& j sandwiches. Then, we decided to try to reach 100 miles on the bikes, sort of the biker’s equivalent of a marathon.

We headed out with fresh intent, and team Polka Dot came alive. We began an awesome pace line, reaching steady speeds of up to 25 – 30 mph. We worked together, taking turns up front, and really started putting the miles behind us … Now, despite a LOT of training, my legs still began to tire. We hit 85 miles, and I felt my thighs burn. 15 miles to go to get our 100. And only 30 minutes left in our shift. And the road had a steady uphill grade. My legs were getting worse. Ed’s legs were tiring, too. Then, a great inspirational sentence came out of one our team rookies: Brandon yelled out, ” this is better than chemotherapy!”.

That jelled our team even more, and my now burning legs no longer were an issue , as I dug very deep and literally used mind over matter. As I turned those pedals, the last few miles passed in a blur. FINALLY ! 101 miles. 5 hours, 59 minutes, 30 seconds, our team finishing our century bike ride by 30 seconds. I was totally in the pain cave, my legs, back, and arms totally numbed from the effort. This is why I did this ride.

Emotional for me, as I recalled my dad having to endure chemotherapy for his colon cancer. Dad, this ride was for you. I love you and miss you. I still hear your voice and used your voice to help me finish this ride.

Now getting ready for bed as I am getting up extra early to go ride one HR with dream team as they are dedicating it to our family. Should be an emotional ride.

Until next time, over and out zzzzzzzzz.

Of course, what this meant, was that if the Dots just rode the distance that we are capable of riding, we would go from a half shift ahead, to a full shift ahead. So, it was decided (with buy-in from Team Boss Ron) that the Dots would help slow down the overall forward progress of the C3 team with an unconventional ride along the Natchez trace.

So, What is the Natchez Trace. Lots of historical stuff surrounds this road, and we get so busy on this ride in our travels that we sometimes don’t take enough time to appreciate the significance of the countryside through which we ride. Part of this history is about keeping the Nation together in the early days. It was a pony express route that connected the towns together and kept that sense of togetherness that people feel when they are part of a nation.

Today, the Natchez trace is a National scenic road that is frequently travelled by folks who are on vacation and by many bicyclists. It really is a beautiful road and we always enjoy riding along this road. The C3 team rides for over 400 miles along this road, and each team will get at least one shift on this road. Some teams – Purple Power I think, will get two shifts on this road.

As we rode today, Lisa, Kelly and Taylor caught up with us. Lisa took many photos as we rode along in our little formation. Then, Taylor slowed down the van (I happened to be on the front of our peloton) and she told me that she wanted to do a short interview with each rider. The question she wanted answered was “Why are you doing the ride?”

One by one, we each pulled up next to the van and Lisa was hanging out the window with her video camera. I was not able to hear what my team-mates said, but my response to that question was along these lines:
I am riding for my many friends, family and loved ones who have suffered from the effects of cancer and for those who have lost the battle with cancer. And, because I can.

This occurred many miles into today’s shift. By this time, we were feeling the effects of our efforts. This means our legs were feeling a bit sore, and mentally we had to work hard to maintain our efforts. To help the team stay motivated, Brandon told a motivational story, then a little later, I had one of my own. These stories were based on our own personal experiences and certainly could help with motivation, however, a little while later, Ed gave us the best motivation – “This hurts a lot less than Chemo”.
As a cyclist, there are a lot of really cool aspects to this ride that I could write about, but that would be missing the point of our mission out here on the road. One very cool aspect that translates to both the cyclist in me, and the guy who is working to help find a cure for cancer was the teamwork.

The Dots really came together today, even more than we did yesterday. Everyone did their share of the work for today’s ride, just the same as we all worked hard to raise money to fight this disease. With teamwork like this, I am sure we can make a big difference.

After last night’s dinner at one of the last restaurants on Hwy 76 in SC, the Dots decided to travel to Cleveland Tn for some rest. We arrived at the Jameson Inn where the night Manager Jackie took really good care of us. As with many people we meet, she has also been affected by cancer. She has lost several of her close family members and her sister had been recently diagnosed with breast cancer. We had her create several magnets that we have now added to the van.

We finally climbed in bed around 1230 with alarms set for 4am. Wouldn’t you know it, I couldn’t sleep. Too many thoughts of all the people for whom we ride. I think I finally dozed off around 2am. The phone woke me at 345am – it was team Momma Jen – The Dream Team was already outside the hotel!

It turns out that Team Purple Power really rocked their shift and put us ahead of schedule by quite a few miles. Doing some quick calculations, Team Livelong would be doing the first of the big climbs that in the past two years have been the exclusive domain of the Polka Dots.

Thanks again to Jackie, she opened up the breakfast service and we had breakfast around 430 after turning the rooms over to the dream team. We rolled out and headed for Dayton, Tn, where we had heard Team Livelong was headed for after crossing the Tennessee River around 430am.

At 510am, we got the word that they were in Dayton, and we knew for sure they would be doing the first climb. We passed them around 540am and they had rocked the climb! We pulled a short distance ahead of them, and pulled over to get ready for our first 6 hour shift.

Compared to the past two years, The C3 team was about 15-20 miles ahead of the planned schedule. Knowing this, the Dots decided to enjoy a great ride through this VERY beautiful country. Of course, picking up the baton from Team Livelong, we still had plenty of climbing to do, they had done the first 3ish miles of climbing. The rest was up to us.

The route is gorgeous. Rolling terrain that I have been referring to as the Tennessee Walking Horse country. I say this only because of the massive open fields where I imagine beautiful horses frolicking. Actually, we saw only a few horses and lots of cows.

In fact, we travelled the ‘Trail of Tears’. I know very little of the actual story behind this, but this was the route travelled by the Native Americans as they were displaced from North Carolina.

Our climbing route took us up two excellent climbs, and three descents (Team Livelong stole the first climb, but we got the reward of the descent). After that last descent, the route remained rolling. Being so far ahead of the planned route, we took our time, relaxing with a number of quite long breaks.

We stopped at a small motorcycle repair shop to allow traffic to pass, and ended up with another extended stop. At this point, we were about 5 hours into the shift and had covered about 62 miles. The Lemon Bonkers were rolling up behind us, and met us there for a few minutes. We asked them to go about 15 miles up the road and we’d transition with them there.

Again, the roads we travelled were just awesome. More rolling hills through farmland. Many very cool barns and silos and really just outstanding beauty. We arrived at the transition at exactly noon – The lemon bonkers were ready to roll, and we cheered them on after some quick hugs.

And what about Flat Stanley? Stanley was a big help today. He helped us with Transition by helping Cara do a little driving. After the ride, he met with the Dream Team for a quick introduction before we all headed to lunch.

After lunch, Stanley helped Siddens navigate, he even climbed up on a cotton stalk when we stopped for a break. I believe he’s enjoying his little adventure out here on the road. Most importantly, I think he is beginning to appreciate what the efforts of this little band of cyclists and team managers are trying to accomplish. We’re trying to make a difference in a horrible disease by helping as many people as possible.

Tonight, Tupelo, Ms, and tomorrow, we rock the Natchez Trace.

The Polka Dots gave Keith and the bus a break by riding the wrong way on the Trace for a bit to try to get the group back on pace.  Livelong enjoyed massages and fellowship with Keith, Kelly, Lisa and Taylor, followed by lunch and coffee.  Thanks guys!  See you again soon!  Next stop, Natchez and nothing to do until noon tomorrow.  I think we’ll all enjoy a late start, but maybe we can find some live music tonight…

Has anyone read the Alabama state map? State fathers were, let’s just say, creative when naming towns back in the day. Or they were sleepy after being on a road trip for days with their 6 other historical buddies in an 8-passenger horse carriage, plus bags and sweaty bike gear. Ok, so probably not accurate, but you get the idea. One is called “Hatchechubbee.” And that’s not even the best one.

Meanwhile, Lisa is jonesing for a Starbucks, and although Muscle Whatever is a college town, they are proverbially dry. Unlucky Lisa.

We find the Purple Peeps at a Shoney’s. I set up my table in the parking lot and knock out the teammates despite a small batch of onlookers at the window inside. Jerry overhears the manager telling a customer that he has no idea what that girl is doing outside, but “all of a sudden she opened up her “Mee-ssage table and started doing “Mee-ssages (emphasis is heavily on on the first syllables in both variations). It’s drizzling during my Mee-ssages in Muscle town and on Team LiveLong further down the Trace. So, our botched transition redeemed, we keep coming, through ‘Bama and into Mississippi.

So far we have not missed one transition. Well technically. Dreamies opted out of their 1 am massages after their first 3-hour stint, and after beginning the LiveLong 3-hour massages, my crew decided to leave in favor of capturing the sunset…. So, in my book, we’re looking at a 10/10.

The Dots have hatched a plan to backtrack down the Trace 30ish miles and then come again down the route, putting our transitions back on track. Every team has ended ahead of schedule thus far. Not a bad thing, given our stellar weather and strong riders. A wee bit of time is spent strategerizing whether to ride 30.28 or 30.32 miles back. This is important because it might change the number of Gu(s) that Brandon will take with him.

“Proper Planning Prevents P— Poor Performance,” he says. How can you argue with that?

And now we head back to the Nasty Trace to check on the Dots’ quest for a Century (bicycle slang for a 100 mile ride). Must go. Need hands to work the Garmin. Need to know exactly how long it will take us to get there so we can bring the appropriate number of Starbucks with us (yes, we found one, and Lisa is finally satisfied).

The Garmin must be obeyed. It is, after all, more powerful than even God Tweets.

-this message brought to you by Midol.

I should probably back up and fill you in on my thoughts on our first two shifts and our travels through SC, GA, NC, TN, AL, and now MS. I was overwhelmed at the support st our send of on Sunday. It was so fun to see so many people excited about our journey and it was sad to see so many dear friends who are not making the journey with us this year. Not a minute has gone by that I don’t think about all of you!

You have read from others about our first shift and our tip to eat some Humble Pie. We had a long dark drive Sunday night to Cleveland TN and I kept thinking what. Huge responsibility I had volunteered for, I had to get my six teammates safely to our next transition spot, and not only that, I had to remember that their bikes were strapped somewhat precariously to the top or our van! Yikes! We did fine and made it to transition with the LiveLong team at 6 yesterday morning. What a beautiful ride we had for our first six hour shift! Our cyclists had some tough climbs but they were amazing and conquered the climbs with tenacity. They were rewarded with some breathtaking descents. I was surprised a couple of times when I looked in my rear view to find some of the team on my rear bumper. After that, I got to practice my road racing skills. Note to my students: don’t speed down switchbacks- it is scary and will make your mothers and your teacher worry!

We were blessed with beautiful weather and transitioned with the Yellow Bonkers right on time. After transition, we headed to lunch with the Dream Teamers and the Party Rockers for some suspect Mexican food and then got on the road for Tupelo MS. All of my sweet teammates took much deserved naps after lunch and for a few minutes I was worried that I was going to drift off as well, but we stopped for gas, picked some cotton in a field, and all was well. John Siddens had been my navigator up to this point, but Brandon needed volunteered to sit up front and bear my barrage of constant questions. Along with giving directions, he also assumed the role of DJ and team dots was treated to special dedications with no harsh stops for the rest of the ride.

After a good sleep, I feel like a new girl and am ready to discover this Trace that I have heard so much about. We have heard from other teams that we are ahead of our transition schedule so we had a meeting of the minds at the Tupelo IHOP this morning to discuss how our team wants to attack the day and our shift. We are all looking for a challenge and have decided that creativity is our strong point!

I am having so much fun on this journey. My teammates have become my friends after multiple hours stuffed in the party van together. I am so honored and humbled to be able to make this trek and to be in the company of these six people. We have challenged each other to think differently and we have laughed, a lot.

To my students at GTCHS: I hope you are all enjoying Fall Break. I miss seeing you and knowing what is going on at school. Please be your wonderful amazing selves for your guest teacher. Know that you are the reason I am making this trip and I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t SO important. Know that I love you all. Go and be great!

Til next time!

As it has been every year the send off was incredible. I wish I had more time to meet everyone and thank them for coming out and supporting the 39 people who are participating in the ride but that does not happen so I want to say now thank you. I was not prepared this year for all the emotions that would over take me during the send off. Seeing our warriors there and the prayers that Mother Roxanne did got me to focus again on why I do this ride which I lost some of my focus last week as the ride approached. This year was the hardest year leaving my family. RJ, Reed and Ridge, your dad misses you and loves you. I can’t wait for the day when you are older and we can all do this ride together. It was also hard leaving some of my past teammates behind this year. Tedd, Anne , Robin and Laurens, I miss you guys.

Our first shift was the midnight to 3am shift. In the past this shift has always been the coldest. Two years ago it was 30 degrees, last year it was in mid 40′s this year was so nice. The temps were in the upper 50′s. The almost full moon gave us perfect mood lighting for riding. We were all very excited to ride and I thoroughly enjoyed our 3 hour shift. As I always do when I ride, I thought of my dad and wish he was still with us so I could just give him a hug and tell him I love him. This was the only the second time our whole team has been able to all ride together. It was a great ride with great people. After the ride we took over the rooms of the Polka Dots who were coming on to ride at 6am. I was very excited about this because I was able to see my beautiful side for a few seconds before I went to sleep. I did not expect to see her until Thursday when we arrived in Austin. We got a few hours sleep and had breakfast before taking off to our next transition. The nice folks at the Jamison Inn kept breakfast open longer for us and we really appreciated that.

We have had a lot of fun in our tiny team vehicle. We have laughed until our stomachs hurt. Watching Martha Laura and Ashley peel themselves out of the back seat is a sight everyone should see. I dont know how their bodies bend like that. Scott keeps us laughing and Jeni has kept the world informed of our doings with pictures and texts. Dawn and Jeff have got us everywhere we need to be safely. Jeff is the crossword puzzle king and Dawn has gone 1-1/2 days without hitting a deer which is good for her from what I understand. She did come close this morning though but her panther like reflexs avoided the one who had a death wish this morning. We caught up with the Polka Dots after their first 6 hour shift and we all had lunch together. We were also blessed with having Kelly, our massage therapist, Lisa, our photographer and Taylor, our mechanic join us for lunch. It was another special treat to see Jennifer again. We all had our fill of Mexican food and parted ways so we could make our way to transition.

We transitioned with the Lemon Bankers who had a good ride got our hugs and kisses and we were off on our first 6 hour shift. It was nice riding in day light for a couple of hours. We had an interesting ride and met all sorts of interesting people. Not far into our ride we rode part the Hilltop Memories Bar and were invited in. We didn’t want to be rude so Jeni and I rode our bikes in and made ourselves at home. There were 3 people inside included the bartender. They were amazed the sight of us and were asking all sorts of questions about our ride. They took pictures of the aliens inside their bar and said they would post us on Facebook. They were impressed with our journey and told us to stop by next year on our ride and he will have our picture on the wall. It was another warm evening so it was nice riding. Our next stop was in who knows where TN. We pulled into a gas station and immediately had people asking about our ride. The gas station was next to a McDonald’s. And Scott had the great idea of getting a cheesesburger so I jumped on that bandwagon. So he did not have to get off his bike he went thru the drivethru which again drew a lot of attention to our cause. Jeff also changed a tire for an older couple while we were there. We continued our ride and made it to the beginning of the Natchez Trace with an hour to go. Lisa our photographer along with Kelly and Taylor met us there and Loss got some great pictures before we took off to finish our shift. The last hour was peaceful and it was a great way to finish a great ride with a great group of people. Purple Power was waiting for us with open arms. It was so nice to see them. We got our hugs and kisses and sent them on their way. Kelly did an awesome job taking care of us as Taylor worked on the bikes that needed some tlc. We loaded up t our vehicle as we waited for Kelly to finish working on everyone. Once the car was loaded, Scott and I relaxed by laying over the warm hood of the car and listened to the engine hum. I haven’t been that relaxed in a long time. I was close to sleeping and drooling until cool, laid back Dawn decided to honk the horn. I must have jumped 3 feet in the air and spilled water all over me and the car. Thanks Dawn. My heart started beating again and we were off to take over Purples hotel room in Nashville for a few good hours of sleep.

Woke up this morning excited about doing my favorite shift, the midnight to 6am shift. It is my favorite because it is the ride where we will honor and ride in memory of our friends and loved ones. It is an emotional ride hearing all those names. It’s the hardest ride of all our shifts but my favorite.

We are off to do laundry and get something to eat. Can’t wait to ride with my awesome team again tonight.

Ps – please excuse any misprints and misspelled words. I did this post on my phone and the screen fits about 3 words in it.

We would sincerely like to thank the Lemon Bonkers for a fabulous dinner last night, but if anyone else asks us to eat mexi with them, we will politely say, “No way, are you crazy?!”

Thanks to the placement of a loop on the route in TN that doubles back on itself, we had some time to catch up with ourselves before meeting the midnight transition on the Natchez Trace.

So we set out to get all our gypsy ducks in a row in the somewhat civilized town of Hohenwald before leaving behind gas stations, flushy toilets and phone connections on the unlit and unpeopled Trace.

Three coffees from McDs? Check.
Beer (which we do not ever drink while driving)? Check.
Batteries from Walmart for our dead walkie? Check.

You see, the Trace is a vortex or sorts. For 439 miles, it’s just you and the deer, armadillos, skunks and foxes. And I’m not exaggerating one teeny, tiny little bit when I say there are three escapes, I mean exits, back to civilization on the whole beautifully preserved thing.

But we are ready. We are a veritable mobile newsroom. Between the three of us, we are packing the following techie hardware:
4 garmins
3 iPhones
2 laptops
2 iPads
1 iPod
54 lbs of camera gear
1 MiFi
1 video camera
1 inverter

It is a very different world inside our newsroom compared to the TN Walmart parking lot we are sitting in as we wait for Taylor to return from the beer run.

Lisa has developed the burps, so we triple pinkie swear no more Mexican.

At the midnight transition, massaging under the stars, Ron and Scott fall semi-asleep leaning against the hood of the van which warms their, um, hands. Until Dawn leans on the horn, sending Ron flying back three feet. Scott doesn’t flinch.

It’s after 1 am, and the closest hotel is back in Hole-in-the-Wall, I mean, Hohenwald. It’s a shady establishment, and the night manager is hard at work watching adult programming. We are the walking dead, and we don’t care. Much.

It’s Tuesday morning now, and we wake up “Rested, Refreshed, and Retarded,” according to Taylor. This will turn out to be an accurate prediction of our day. Our first confirmation of this comes with the realization that we are an hour behind schedule. Two of the three alarms we set failed to ring. And Lisa’s phone switched to central time, so rang an hour later than we wanted. For less confusion, we all stay on eastern standard time until we reach Austin, precisely so situations like this don’t happen.

We shower (halfway thru Taylor’s, I tell Lisa maybe he’s shaving. Everything.), and take off, but not before deciding to blame our missed transition on the full moon (why not?).

Wait tho, which day is the full moon actually? I guess we’ll have to wait for the official Tweet on that.

-Kelly

P.S. Lisa and I have each acquired an additional passenger. And so have Donna and Jeni, or so I hear. It’s getting crowded in here. Anyone else care to disclose a plus-one before we cross the Alabama border?

I am amazed by the amount of food I can consume in one sitting at a Mexican eatery in the middle of Tennessee. I don’t think I will eat chips and salsa for a LOOOOONg time. Kept retasting them- not fun on a bike. BLAHK.

So our next shift I was really excited about. We knew we would be seeing Laurens’ Path along the way. Found out that the DA I hit last night was the start of Laurens’ Slayer title. So it was ON like DONKEY KONG. We rode into the Sunset path of what the Lemon Bonkers whom allowed us to enjoy after their EPIC ride. Like for real…. 1 man down, a chick with stitches, and 4 cat 4 climbs… all those Paris MT repeats paid off. It was so nice to see pretty fall colors and fairy tunnels. (My twins call fairy tunnels when they see a tree tunnel where the tops of the trees form a tunnel. We like to think that is where the fairies sleep at night. Something my wonderful mom passed along to us. And yes Rene that is where the Fairy Godmother sleeps who found your keys.)

Sorry folks, ADD meds are wearing off…. where was I … O yea… we saw 19 DA* and smelled at least 5 that were unaccountable for. (Dead Animal) Thanks Laurens, we were screaming and laughing at the top of our lungs every time we saw one.

One thing I am extremely thankful for is the mesh of our team. The dream team…. we have no drama. We ride for unselfish reasons, we think like a team, we act like a team and we ride like a team. When one Teamy isn’t feelin good we do all that we can to make them as comfortable as possible. I love this team. LOVE IT. Even tho it is tight in the van, when you get off from an awesome Moon Lit trace… we snuggle up and get warm. We don’t even care that we are exfoliating each other’s arms…. I never thought I would see the day that I saw.. germafobia Ron share lip balm… isn’t that swapping germs? Who cares….we are having a McDreamy ride.

The sun was setting and I thought of Nicole… my sweet little girl, who isn’t going to be little much longer. First 12 where for you sweetness. And I ended on 10 for my dad. Loved thinking about all the funny things and memories. Morgan my love… as soon as I saw the fairy tunnel… I Yelled Fairy TUNNEL…. the team was quite clueless so I enjoyed sharing our little secret.

(bare with me folks I am runnin on 4 hours of sleep in 2 days I know my thoughts are all over the map…. hang with this ADD chick just a little longer… )

So on the ride, of the Dream Teams Embarkment to the Trace…. we had to pull over every 10 min due to traffic. It was challenging to pull over in the MIDDLE of big rollers and try to get the legs moving again… One stop tho made it fun. That would be the HILL TOP MEMORIES BAR. We found ourselves stopped at a 4 way allowing traffic to pass and noticed a small white bar on the other side of the road with 2 cars in it. We joked and said man I could use a drink… obviously we were not being serious, but low and behold this man came running out yelling HEY COME BACK AND GET A DRINK TO GO!! Oh I love a challenge…. hmmm hey Ron…. Ron, “O we soooo should..” Jeni, “HEY IS IT CLEAR?” Ashley, “CLEAR BACK!!!” and a big U ee in the middle of our ride landed us into MEMORY LANE. Ron and I rolled up in our Bikes INTO the bar… yes we Rolled in… The whites of the Eyes in the bar where well lit for sure in more ways than one. We had a great visit with our friends and as we said our goodbyes, the owner, John says… “Dude, stop in next year we will have your picture on the wall you can autograph it…. (I always had a dream of being famous… too bad I can’t remember what town I will be famous in… darn it.) ….. we neva (never) get thangs (things) like the-is (this) here!” The-is is too cool, we get Bikers like with motors n stuff but not, like people on bikes, riding to Texas…. ” I think Ashley and I counted 5 times the older gentleman asked us “…..now, where ya’all goin??????” He even let us take a few shots at pool. Well until we got thrown out for fighting… I think Keith got the photos. And off we went… I was looking forward to where our NEXT stop would be…

…………..and that stop would be McDonalds. O gross…. I can’t imagine a cheeseburger tradition like this any other way…. Hopefully i can upload a pic. You really can order on a bike at the drive thru. My abs hurt from laughing so hard.

As the moon lit our path for the rest of the 48 miles we had many Team moments of sharing and mindless talking.

Keeping it g rated… schools and kids can skip this (I would like to take this moment to thank the Rockin T train for allowing me to rest…. but I think I caught something from Lisa…. I just finished mine 3 days ago and now I have it again… not fair Lisa…. NOT FAIR. I don’t like having 2 in a row. Let alone one…. but as hard as you are working I will let it pass… we are so glad to have taking freakin AWESOME pictures…. love the glow bike one. Wish you could up load and show peeps that one.)

Hoping for more Spontaneous adventures with my awesome team….

Anyways, back to our leg… not far in at all, Donna reached down to grab her bottle, got entangled in her night-reflector-robe (these things were made to sleep in I think) and went flying like an eagle. tangled in a huge reflector vest and a bike. She hopped up and tried not to bleed on her SUPER COOL Dave Matthews Firedancer socks, but the knee had a mouth and that aint normal. Donna went on the bus and I rolled up to the van that had Jana in it (sorry, dark and don’t remember who else was in there) aand said into the window “They need to see Jana. Donna may need some stitches.” In some describable as a jeckyl-hyde moment, Jana became Dr. Morse sort of mixed in with Batwoman. She very seriously and intently climbed directly over people and seats and out of the van and actually flew to the Bus to help. Well maybe not flew but it was impressive. The rest of our leg included 4 category 4 climbs in a row and ended in family bliss. Love you dad.

River sounds, crickets and cool breezes in Hiawassee as we all rested our bones for today. We left my dad’s and hurried to our next transition point to ‘Take Hold The Flame” from the Polka Dots. We met them at a Church for Pocohantas. No kidding. Tennessee. My apologies to the residents of the senior citizens home there, they were having dinner and I came in to use the restroom which is right there attached to the room where they were. Cyclists eat weird stuff on rides. ’nuff said. Sorry peeps!

Donna felt great and loosened up quickly and the rest of our team felt strong so we had the golden century on our minds. Cyclists like to ride 100 miles (century) I guess to say we did it. Well, we did and we did it with grand style I think. Kudos to my team – Donna’s Garmin put us at 101 miles, 19.5mph, just shy of 4K ft of climbing. This with a four rider team, one less person to rotate to the front of our paceline and pull us across the country. We rocked it and we did it for Rene, Andrew, Brandy, Jeni, John, Davis, and I can’t even think of anyone else because it’s late and I’m getting emotional but we have so many people that we pedal and pray for. Tomorrow we will challenge ourselves emotionally and ride for all of our warriors, one by one. I’ve heard about this ride from Rene and it’s already difficult to think about it. Love you Rene, Maddy, Trevor, Henson, Ryleigh, I’ll try to blog again soon. Better check my facebook page and see who’s makin fun of me before I pass out! LONG LIVE THE LEMON BONKERS!

I have noticed in life that most bad decisions are a result of sleep deprivation (or hunger, or both). We are all both tired and hungry as Brandon suggests said eatery, and no one but me seems to realize the possible after effects.

Two equations:
Mex lunch + beans + beer + long sweaty bike ride = cozy collapsed dog pile in the van (Remainder: a sudden and uncomfortable awakening, motivated by a need for modern plumbing, which-like everything on this ride-must be shared in close quarters)

Mex lunch – beans – beer + warm van = long stretched out catnap over two seats

Several additional consequences (either prompted by a growing sleep deficit and/or the illusion of new energy prompted by waking up from a catnap):

Even tho I have been passed out in the car, my hips wedged in between seatbelt holders, I wake up instantly and alert at the sound of a police siren. Which goes to show how tuned in my ears are for that sound on this trip. Our decorated vans attract enough attention as is. The last thing I want to do is explain to a rural cop exactly what I am doing, Sir, kneeling on top of this man who is face down on my massage table, moaning. Sure, his hamstrings are cramping…

The fresh flood of energy turns both Lisa and me into songbirds, altho the radio now seems stuck in the Country stations. Perhaps that is inevitable when driving thro TN, same as the moon causing tides and menstrual cycles. In a moment of clarity, we realize Taylor might not be appreciating our serenades as much as we enjoy serenading. Oh no, he reassures us, our mute napping state was causing “a deep burning in his uterus.” Whew….

…wait: 1 van, 2 gals and 1 guy, yet 3 uterii (which is now the official word for the plural uterus). Can’t afford to waste brain cells analyzing that one.

Apparently decisions made under the less than ideal amount of sleep can be misinterpreted as random and brilliant. For example, during our third pit stop of the afternoon (which seems like an unusually high number until I remember lunch), it suddenly seems like the most natural thing to be doing at 5 in the afternoon when the seven of us eating communally from a Massive bag of Skittles simultaneously pelt Taylor with the Rainbow, simply because his back was turned.

I mean, wait, we healthy cyclist people never eat Skittles. In fact, I disavow all knowledge of the Massive bag of addictive candies in the back of the Dream Team van.

Finally, when running on fumes and emotions, we do crazy wonderful things like ride 101 miles with a team that’s technically a man down, where another teammate has a stitched up knee.

101 miles at 18mph in 6 hrs = Lemon Bonkers, you rock!

Our epic ride today began at about 3 am, after getting to bed at about midnight. Our schedule was t ride 6 am til noon. The Dream Team arrived after their ride, and we got up to let them ‘hotel share.’. This means they get our rooms after we leave, keeping costs down and that means more money goes to the event. Our friend at the excellent Jamison Inn, Jackie, allowed us to eat breakfast at 4 am instead of the usual 6 am, so that was a great help. We made it to our transition time easily, and met up with Team LiveLong. Our riders are awesome on all teams this year, and we are about 1 to 2 hours ahead of schedule.

Today’s ride was dedicated to my friend John McDermott. Although I don’t get to see John as much as I would like, I am amazed by his life prowess, and wish I could be more like him. He is a great dad, stepdad, and husband, and works hard a running an advertising agency well, despite these tough economic times. John was diagnosed with lymphoma, and is now over a year from being cancer free. My whole ride last year was dedicated to him, and one he is LivingStrong. My next goal is to get him involved in this event. You are my hero, John-Boy……

So, today’s ride ended up being 6 hours long to the minute, 76 miles long, with a nice average of just under 18 mph. We had a couple of good, solid climbs, and a couple of really fast descents, once daylight came. Our first great descent was in the dark, and Toni’s battery was almost dead, so we took it really easy, with JD and I teaming up to light her way. With a fresh battery, we rode on, and ended up on some REALLY beautiful rolling hills in the Tennessee countryside. Finally at noon, we transitioned with the Lemon Bonkers, and rolled into some little Tennessee town to have a nice Mexican lunch with the Dream Team and massage, mechanic, and photography now collectively known as Team Party Rockers…

And now, with tired (but good) legs, a full tummy, and a rolling vehicle, it is nap time… See ya later. Zzzzzzzzzz

We have 2 veteran riders on our team this year-Jeff and myself,  Anderson, Jana and Kim are new as well as Dave, our support, and it has been so much fun to answer all the questions and experience the newness all over with them.

I love being a part of this ride.  We open up our hearts and souls to all the people we encounter on our journey, whether it be at the convenience store, the local laundry mat or the various hotels who will accomodate us. Everyone has a story to tell and each one of them thanks us for what we do.  We raise awareness just by being.  It is our mere presence that moves people towards us.

I have participated every year on this ride and love it differently every time. Just like my friend, Ron Jerina said yesterday–we are getting ready to make all new memories.

I have to thank my donors – I wouldn’t be here without you. I especially have to thank my cousin, Jack Payne, for his generosity.

The send off yesterday was amazing. I was so thankful to have my hubby and boys there. I do this ride with the hopes that when they are adults there will be a cure for cancer – that they won’t have to experience the devastation of losing a friend or family member to cancer (miss you Aunt Moe), that they won’t have to experience the scare of learning a loved one has received the diagnosis no one wants to get.

I love this journey too because of the close bonds you form with 6 other people stuffed in an SUV. You learn things about people you can’t imagine – and sometimes want to forget (Scott’s brown spot), but you love them all and I, for one, am truly thankful to be riding with the Dream Team.

Now, it’s time for lunch! Happy to have the opportunity to dine with the Polka Dots and the Party Rockers.

I have already experienced every emotion possible on this journey and I am sure there is FAR more to come. I started our leg with thoughts of my Dad and his lost battle to single cell lung cancer. All of the “if onlys” came rushing in at one time and I couldn’t keep the tears in. If only I had called him more often…if only I had told him I over him…if only I had forgiven him for things I could only understand from my own insecure understanding. If only…if only…if only. So I let the emotion flow, in the dark of night under a beautifully lit moon. I am sure that other than Todd, my other team mates weren’t even aware of my purging…and that was how it needed to be.

Fueled with a new found energy, I found strength to pull my team When it was my turn, knowing that the pain in my legs was nothing compared to the pain that my dad, as well as other cancer patients, suffered. And I know that Dad will be with me for my entire journey, smiling down on me knowing that my “if onlys” are now simply “I love yous”.

We blog when we can. Our van is always on the move. Thankfully we’ve graduated from the rapid-fire 3-hour transitions to the more manageable 6-hour shifts. Blogging happens in large chunks, mostly while using lisa’s iPad in the back seat while Taylor is manning the wheel. Did I mention the Tennessee mountains? So you’ll forgive me if I misspell or lose my train of thought (or unintentionally vomit).

Yesterday the Polka Dots knocked out an early strong ride and handed it over to the Lemon Bonkers for an uphill climb, a nasty stretch through some cold Georgia mountains. Already a 4-person team, it dropped drown to 3 when a floppy reflective vest took Donna down. Keith and Jana sticked her up, and she cheered from the bus. We played the most obnoxious dance music on the walkie talkie that we could find, as well as mixed bottles and dug energy shots out of buried suitcases…anything to remind them we were right beside them as they climbed through the dark.

Mike’s father hosted us for dinner (huge thank you), and we were off into the night again. Found the Purple team-and by that I do mean that we got lost and then not lost again. Transitioned at a closed gas station whose owner showed up and offered to open up for anything we needed…Ron needed lip balm. Yes.

Snagged two hours sleep in a hotel, probably the only time we’ll get to do that until Austin, and then caught up with LiveLong and the Dots again before dawn. Massaging Anderson outside a McD’s, the employee who walked by us on her break tells me, “You know people get arrested for that…” I respond, “not for what I’m doing.”

Lisa decides she wants to catch the Dots on an overlook at dawn, which she tells me is 7:45 am. I ask her how she knows the exact time. “Does God twitter?” Wouldn’t be surprised…the Dalai Lama does.

Riding thru Tennessee countryside today, down switchbacks and past farms. Breathtaking. Lisa has pictures to prove it. She also has pictures of us atop plastic dinosaurs in front of Head Start (Taylor: “I don’t think I want to ride a frog”), of the farm animals (how do you tell a mule from a donkey?), or the giant yard elephant with a TN tattoo, of the construction workers who asked us if we were protesting Columbus Day (not that we know of, but tell us more…).

I tell Lisa of my plan to strap her to the roof of the minivan, belly down, with bungee cords so she can shoot and video as we fly around the mountains. And we might, except that most of them are being used as a form of life support for the bike racks/trays.

It is a perfect Fall morning, yet Ed is wearing a chamois and shoe covers. I tell him this is the equivalent of the boots/mini skirt phenomenon. The only explanation I am given is that he is from Florida. Ah.

This unwritten story (well one, at least) of this ride is the invasion of personal space. While stalling in front of a house near Spencer, TN, waiting for our team to catch up, an elderly man walks out and gives us a bag of apples. He only says that his wife died on May 15, and he gets lonely.

it is good to know that you are helping others, whether it’s keeping up a steady pep talk on the walkie thru a night climb, giving a super long hug when you know they don’t want to let go yet, or simply camping out in someone’s front yard long enough so they no longer feel alone.

-Kelly

P.S. for those keeping track, I peed outside this morning behind a church. So I’ve graduated from going in the dark, on a deserted Texan highway to broad daylight with people nearby who are known for playing tricks on others. That should count for something, right.

The departure is always a very emotional time. Many friends and family stopped by to see us off. There were so many cameras! People were snapping photos left and right. Of course, the polka dot team was fully outfitted in our dots. We made quite the spectacle!

I met one of the people for whom I ride today. Marty’s friend Mike is currently undergoing treatment, and I ride for him. It was great to see him out chatting with the riders and taking in the scene. Great meeting him. Nice to put a face with the name on the magnet.

As we rode out from the Cancer Center, the emotions are always running really high. There are so many people who are suffering or have suffered with this disease. Meeting their friends and family and seeing their appreciation for what the C3 team is doing is really amazing.

So, what about this stow-away? Well, a cousin of mine’s daughter Skye, is participating in the Flat Stanley project. Skye prepared a Flat Stanley and put him on a plane to come out with us, but I thought he never really arrived.

To my surprise, He did! There he was as we were doing the final preparations with the van! He even helped mount the rack on the roof! When I asked him what delayed, he stated he heard he was going on a bike ride, and had to stop for a change of clothes.

So, he jumped on the van with Jen and Cara and rode along. Here we are at dinner after the first shift!

Thanks to the lovely crowd that gathered at the Cancer Center to cheer as we rode away. Just coming up on the first transition in a few moments. Already we’ve bonded in ways we can’t print.

At issue is our team name. Last year my van was the Beach Ball team, after the rolling beach ball icon on our borrowed garmin. So far the options are:
-Dance Fever, due to Taylor’s choice of music
-Monster Jam, after the monster truck icon on the garmin
-Cookie Train, following Brandon’s bear-like raid of our fully stocked van. Suggestions please.

So while we have one dilemma to resolve, we have inadvertently solved another mystery: how skinny Taylor managed to crack his saddle during last year’s ride. Turns out it’s the Double Decker taco from Taco Bell.

Transition! Gotta go.

Thanks to the lovely crowd that gathered at the Cancer Center to cheer as we rode away. Just coming up on the first transition in a few moments. Already we’ve bonded in ways we can’t print.

At issue is our team name. Last year my van was the Beach Ball team, after the rolling beach ball icon on our borrowed garmin. So far the options are:
-Dance Fever, due to Taylor’s choice of music
-Monster Jam, after the monster truck icon on the garmin
-Cookie Train, following Brandon’s bear-like raid of our fully stocked van. Suggestions please.

So while we have one dilemma to resolve, we have inadvertently solved another mystery: how skinny Taylor managed to crack his saddle during last year’s ride. Turns out it’s the Double Decker taco from Taco Bell.

Transition! Gotta go.

I am excited to take on this support role. I am excited to get to know my six polka dot teammates as we spend time stuffed in our red party van. And as I told my students, I am excited to use the walkie talkies!

In Honor Of
Grandma Olds
Cindy Arnold
Rachel McAbee
John Allen
Dustin Retherford
Ellen Ehlers
Jeni Schumacher
Mike Herbert
Martin Remick
Diane Rinebold
Keith Houston
Laurens Flanagan
Zach Jordal
Jeannette Wood
Caroline Schultz
Rene McCurdy
Rose Wisner
Annette Corl
David McCall
James Heaton*
Valorie Clinkscales
Linda Flanders
Crystal Myers
Kathy Vogt

In Memory of
Jerry Scroggins
Uncle Buddy
Sarah Parker*
Clara “Boots” Staton
Toni Willard
Craig Franks
Gary “Dootz” Scala
Herman Sullivan
William D. Check
Mary Granger
Fagirama
Jack H. Furr
Bob Hoogstoel
Christeen Williams
Mike and Julie Hadley
Donna Gilbert
Tommy Mattison
Dianne Teschlog
John R. Dalton
Dot Eubank
Don Corl
Jerry Bootsma
Yanna Kroes

* Unfortunately, cancer affects children as well. Those marked by asterisk are children.

My husband can’t sit, or stand around, or be idle in any way.  Which is why this ride is taking place.  We can’t cure cancer, I wish we could.  We tried to think of something we could DO.  We CAN help raise funds that will allow the research to be done to get us closer to a cure. We CAN encourage others to do the same.  We have met the most amazing people over these last 4 years.  People that are now part of our family.  We have all been touched by this disease and God has put us on this path of healing and hope, together.

My husband is the man that he is because of his father.  There isn’t a day that goes by that we don’t think of Mike Jerina.  I am blessed that I get to see him through my husband and 3 boys.  This day, this ride, is for him and for all of those that our entire team rides for.  Loved ones that have recently been diagnosed and loved ones that we have lost.  In the morning I will print the name of one of my sorority sisters on an “In Memory Of” magnet – last year her name was on an “In Honor Of” magnet.   The question mark by Challenge in the title is a symbol.  When we started this ride it had a couple of meanings.  Challenge to raise lots of funds for research.  Challenge in the number of miles to go in a week.  The physical Challenge of riding a bicycle that far, that long, being stuffed in a vehicle like sardines, etc.  Those challenges will all be there again as we leave later today. We will travel some of the same roads, we will change shifts as it has been laid out for us, we will ring cowbells as we cheer on our teammates.  However, the ride/challenge will be different and new for everyone – even those of us who have been all four years.  I look forward to the challenge.

God Bless our Team of selfless, dedicated, loving peeps!

oh my, it is 1:18 am and I haven’t packed a thing.  I do love a challenge

I am stronger this year, yet I know more people who are sick this time around. Not to say they aren’t strong. They are tougher than nails to be able to fight cancer and keep their head up.

This year, again, I am dedicating this ride to BW, who has my heart. But I also send my love to the clients and friends and family and random strangers I have met while fundraising who are battling this Demon. They deserve our unconditional love, our support, our prayers and meditations, our bear hugs, our best homemade mac&cheeses…at the very least the symbol of remembrance and support that this ride is.

So tonight, we pack our cleats and spandex and gel packs and massage table in honor of them, the true Warriors.

It is amazing to meet such a group of selfless individuals. Many of the people associated with the Challenge to Conquer Cancer spend A LOT of hours preparing for fundraising events. Of course these folks have families, jobs and other activities they are involved with. It just happens that fighting cancer is something they have a passion for, and they are tireless in their efforts.

Tonight we gathered at the Brown Street Club for the Jazz Jam to Conquer Cancer. Of course it was an excellent time, and Montana Skies rocked the house. It was really great to see everyone. We are so ready to make this journey.

I hope everyone follows along with these blogs. And please, make comments on the blogs – it really means a lot to us when we hear from you.

Next post will be from the road. See you there!

jd

What an honor it is to be part of such a wonderful group and cause. I have learned so much and am so grateful to have had the opportunity to learn and grow.

See you ALL on Sunday!!!!

Shannon

“About a year ago, I went to Fall for Greenville with friends. I was introduced to a woman there in the middle of the street. I remembered her as nice and friendly. She was very pretty, but the kind of person who didn’t even know it. She chatted with us for a bit and then we split off to meet our perspective parties. Honestly, I never really thought about her again after that day. Our lives went on….I assumed parallel, not knowing one day they would again converge.

Just over a week later, I attended this event with my children held at the front of the GHS Cancer Center. We were still pretty new at this “cancer thing” and felt slightly awkward walking around not knowing anyone. We were there because I had received a facebook message from a woman whose children, years ago, had attended preschool with mine. She asked my permission to place a magnet on this car that was riding to Austin with a bunch of people on bicycles to raise money for cancer. Of course I said yes and so, felt obliged to attend this “send off” though I really had no idea what it was all about.

The kids and I walked through the crowds to find this caravan of, well vans, lined up along the road there in front of the hospital that we visited weekly (or more). Each had what looked like hundreds of magnets on them. As we approached, I could see that some magnets read “In honor of…” as others read “In memory of…” We looked but couldn’t locate Davis’ name. That’s when I saw that woman from Fall for Greenville. The encounter was brief but I remembered her face. Not remembering her name, I reintroduced myself and told her why I was there. Almost before I could finish she said with enthusiasm, “Oh you’re with Davis. He’s right here (pointing to his magnet). I am riding for him in this car.” Davis’ name was posted there right next to Jack Huffman’s, a friend who lost his battle just months before this ride. I didn’t know what to say.
What these people do is they commit themselves to riding bicycles from Greenville, SC to Austin, TX as part of the Lance Armstrong Livestrong Challenge to Conquer Cancer. They raise money for all cancers proper and almost all of the money raised stays right here at our own hospital. Now the part about the bike ride to Austin is worth repeating as I can’t even imagine what it would take to commit to a feat such as this. There are 24 riders who relay 24 hours a day from Sunday afternoon to Thursday in honor of and in memory of persons who fight and those whom we have lost. Unbelievable….

I introduced Davis to my new friend, Donna Navarro, and without hesitation he gave her the biggest hug, then went on to sign his name across her sleeve so that as she pushed on and things got tough along the ride, she could look down and see his name and be motivated to keep peddling….It was a surreal moment how the two of them connected.

Months later, I ran into her and another friend Beth and we talked more about the ride. They both vowed to me that night that they would ride this year for Davis, and my dad who had since been diagnosed, and they would nominate them as warriors for this trip. I received the call in August that my dad and Davis had, in fact, had been chosen as part of the 10 man warrior team that would be honored this year at Livestrong Event. They will be flying them to Austin, Texas as on October 13th. I can’t even express my gratitude to these people, especially Donna, who will make this experience happen for them, together.Livestrong raises millions of dollars a year for cancer research. They are the motivation behind this team. But again, the money the Palmetto Peloton Project raises stays right here in our community. Having a father who is presently on a trial that could have potentially been funded by this group of heroic human beings is implausible.Who knows how long my dad will be on the trial. He has a CT soon. If the tumors are the same or smaller, then they proceed. If they aren’t, well then I don’t know what happens after that. They are still accepting donations for the project if you feel inclined. http://www.p3ride.org/challenge-to-conquer-cancer/relay-from-greenville.html. The woman who’s path I crossed last week and mentioned in my last post also made me appreciate that every single dollar counts. Counted all together they can find a cure….Bikes pull out this Sunday, October 9th at 3pm in front of the GHS Cancer Center! Hope to see you there beforehand to be ready to cheer them on!”

Reading Kenya Holsombeck Taylor’s journal entry this morning brought back a flood of memories and emotions. The part of the story she doesn’t know is how SHE and DAVIS changed my life!

I was committed to the P3C3 cause for all the right reasons but the day of departure last year found me flat from my own life’s issues. That morning I had even thought I wouldn’t make the trip to Austin because of those issues. I had lost sight of why I was doing the ride. The thing you must understand about the C3 family, and yes they are family, is that they never leave you no matter what. They keep you strong and focused. They even take you by the hand and drag you along, pick you up and carry you, or get behind you and shove you forward when you can’t seem to do any of it for yourself.  The months, weeks and days prior to leaving were testing me and without my C3 family (Beth Rusch, Ron Jerina, Jennifer Ward Jerina, Laurens Flanagan,Scott Blackburn, Robin Blackburn, Anne Strange Garner, Tedd Garner) I wouldn’t have even been there to run into Kenya and meet Davis at the sendoff. 

Even as I arrived at GHS Cancer Center, I was still questioning if I should be leaving town.  My heart was heavy from the stress of it all.  Just when I was about to turn to Anne and say I couldn’t do this, I saw Kenya.  When I had met her several days before, our pleasantries had not included my ride or the fact that Davis was fighting cancer.  As we discovered why each of us was there and that coincidentally Davis’ magnet was on MY van, my heart filled with such lightness of joy where the stress had been just prior.  There was no question I was doing this ride and no question that this was exactly where I was supposed to be.  Having Davis hug me and then sit in my lap as he signed my arm warmer just kept filling me up with energy and a purpose of being. 

The ride to Austin was incredible and I thought of Davis every day and pulled my strength from him and from too many others for whom I was riding.  Arriving in Austin for the Livestrong Challenge and seeing the thousands of people who all shared the same fight was overwhelming to say the least.  I am so excited for our new riders and support people to experience this.  I’m beyond thrilled that Davis and his grandfather, Ken, will have this memory together.  Most of you know I’m not good at holding back the tears.  I have a feeling I should buy waterproof mascara before I leave.  Raccoon eyes are not fashionable from what I can see. 

It dawned on me this morning every moment of the past year or more whether it has been easy and pleasant or the exact opposite has been perfectly placed dominoes.  As each one has fallen, I’ve been given an abundance of blessings.  This C3 group entered my life with a force and has shown me the strength I possess.  I am so proud and incredibly honored to know that with them we can make a difference in this fight!  Thank you Beth, Ron, Jennifer, Anne, Tedd, Laurens, Robin, and Scott for your dragging, carrying, and shoving when it was needed.  Thank you Kenya, Davis, and Ken for giving me the strength and focus again this year!

Wednesday October 5th 6:30-11pm – 3rd Annual Jazz Jam to Conquer Cancer at The Brown Street Club (www.p3ride.org/jazzjam)

Thursday October 6th 6-9pm – Short Track Mountain Bike Race in Cleveland Park near the Zoo entrance (http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=249313941759053)

Getting people to attend these events is critical to our success. Please spread the word, help us get these events packed with supporters! You can also make a donation to help us get to Texas at https://secure.p3ride.org/donate/index.php?eid=3

Why?

Why put myself through what will be a very challenging ride? Easy answer: Cancer sucks. My mom and dad had it, I have had it, and I treat patients every day who have it. Cancer sucks. The C3 ride is one way I can put forth more effort to help those who have been affected by cancer. Now, don’t get me wrong. I treat patients who have cancers of the the eyes, the eyelids, the areas around the eyes, and in the eye sockets. But once I see them, formulate a plan, treat them, and then release them, my part is done. But what about them? Who deals with the psyche of knowing they had a cancer in a very important area? What if there is a problem with vision even if the cancer was successfully removed? What if they lose an eye? What do they do then?

This is one reason I ride. To extend what I can do for them. To help after the initial treatment that I can provide is done. To raise money that goes towards helping thwart cancer in the first place. To raise money that goes towards helping them cope with life after cancer. To raise money that goes towards helping the family cope with a loved one’s cancer.

This year I am on a new team, Team Polka Dot. (Also known as Polka Dotay !!). The name derives from the polka dot jersey that is awarded to the best bicycle climber in the Tour de France. It also represents a dear friend who we lost a couple of years ago: Perry Lyles. Although Perry did not die from cancer, he was on the original Team Polka Dot, and the name has stuck in his honor. This year, Team Polka Dot consists of me, Brandon Lee, Ed Hernando, John Davidson (JD), and Toni Leopard. Our managers are Jennifer (Mom) Jerina, and Cara Mathis. I am proud to be part of this team, and look forward to the challenge and to who we ride for. Each of us has our story to tell… so pay attention! You will laugh. You will cry. You will be amazed at what you will read.

So, enough of the heavy stuff. Usually, I blog lightly.. but here goes 2011…

RIDE STRONG ! LIVE STRONG ! ( and please, Dear Lord, no crash this year, huh???)

So…we’ve been home nearly 36 hours and I am already having some serious P3C3 withdrawal. Now I am thrilled to be home in my house with my sweet girls, mind you. However, it’s REALLY REALLY hard to come back to the reality of life after such an incredible experience.

As you blog followers know, I had a very difficult time blogging while driving the Yellow Handbaskets to Austin (yes, Bo…I know…I’m a Mom and should be able to multi-task!). Once we got to Austin, life continued to be non-stop so I am finally sitting down to write something. I don’t even know where to begin!

First, I must thank everyone who supported us on this ride:
our girls who understand as well as they can what this is all about and why it’s an important thing for us to do PLUS Mason & her friend Cata for raising $1,000 at their Cupcakes for Cancer event!!!!
my parents & Tedd’s parents for taking care of our girls for 8 days
everyone who attended one of our fundraisers and/or donated to us – you helped us exceed our goal by several thousand dollars
everyone who prayed for our journey and followed us on the blog as we made our way
my Yellow Handbasket teammates – you’re some of the best friends I have
the bigger P3C3 team – what a blessing you all are to me
our 2010 warriors who brightened my weekend with their presence
and so on and so on and so on…

This P3C3 “thing” is nearly impossible to describe. It’s not often you pile yourself into a mini-van with 7 other people you hardly know and come out as best friends at the end of a 5 day ride! That’s exactly what happened on last year’s ride. As much as I tried to explain that to people, no one could quite understand. I’m not even sure I understand! All I know is that we were an extremely lucky group of people to have been placed together as a team. Things happen for a reason, right? This year’s team was almost identical – we lost 2 riders (1 to another team and 1 who couldn’t ride this year), but gained 2 riders. It was very easy just falling back into the rhythm of the 2009 trip. We are a family – there is no doubt about it.

We all have our reasons for participating in this adventure. Some people have been touched very closely by cancer, others have been touched but a little farther away. Tedd and I had certainly been touched by cancer – lost grandparents and coworkers, watched friends go through treatments, etc. However, it hit us a lot closer this year. One of the P3C3 cancer warriors for 2010 is one of our best friends, Cara. She is very much a part of our family and is like the little sister that neither Tedd nor I have. In March of this year, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. That rocked our world. Because of Cara, we had even more of a reason to do this crazy thing! Cara was able to fly out to Austin, along with 4 other warriors, and spend the LiveStrong Challenge weekend with us. It was so great having her with us. She was completely embraced by other members of the P3C3 family and is now a card-carrying member of Team Yellow Hand-basket!! Walking across the 5K finish-line was more emotional than I think any of us counted on. As we started across the bridge toward the finish line, Cara looked at me and her eyes filled with tears. Of course, I was done at that point. Cara, Tedd and I walked across the finish-line arm in arm and it is a moment I won’t forget. A great weekend was made even better by having Cara there with us.

There is no doubt in my mind that the P3C3 Ride to Austin is an important thing in the fight against cancer. I can’t think of a stronger group of people to take on this fight. I am very honored and blessed to be a part of such an incredible group of people who are ready to win. Game on, cancer! Until next year…

Oh…and yes…even after a week, I’m still having withdrawals!

Where are my peeps

I tried really hard to get rid of my lonely feelings of missing my team…. So I hopped in to the backseat thinking this would help. No it did not.
Learning to feel again, Learning to breath again, Learning to own Cancer and not letting Cancer own you. These are a few of my favorite things…..
My 3rd year is a charm for me. I went into this year with a surgery on my mind, with being ashamed of my skin that is all wacked to H. E. double hockey sticks and low self confidence. Then I met Mark Knight. If you have not had the pleasure of meeting this amazing cancer survivor you NEED TO! He shared with me a tad bit of his journey and that he has forgotten how to feel. He has allowed Cancer to control him and consumed him. I have allowed Cancer to take over my self esteem. Not the same but some what. As He and I crossed the finish line He had a tear in his eye and said…. ” I Can” ( bear with me here.. I am aDD I will get to the point in a moment) I thought of I CANcer. I FIGHT. I WIN. I Persevere… I can.. over come my fears of my scars… Just like Mark crossed the finish line and said…. I am ready to feel again. I am ready to ride my BIKE. In my head I thought I am ready to feel good about me…. I have learned so much from this man…. in just 20 min…. God is so good to have allowed me the ability to challenge my body this way….
I say that often. And feel it when I say it. I am ready to move on away from my fears… Just like Mark, Just like Penny did when she wore her hat that exposed her beautiful head… Just like Cara did when she took off her hat…. I am ready …. Ready to ride, Ready to feel, Ready to face the challenges of “i CANcer” Bring it on. Thank you P3C3 peeps for this amazing experience. Thank you from the bottom of my little itty bitty toe. I love you all so very much. Be real. Be ready…. love. Jeni

Penny and Buddy

This is feeling....

Before I fill you in on the last week, let me first say…I tired to blog!  I spent an hour on a blog while riding in the swaying sardine can…err Sienna minivan.  When I was finally pleased (as much as I was going to be), I hit “Publish” and realized while doing so that I had no signal.  Blog lost.  At this point my brain needed resuscitation and there wasn’t a bed in sight for a while.  With less than desirable cell signals and satellite signals and others in the van who wanted to blog, I was forced to wait.  So I’m going to try again.  Please forgive my lateness in doing so and I apologize in advance for the length of this post.  However, it is my only one.

Team Yellow.  Ron, Ted, Scott, Robin, Laurens and me (Donna) were riders.  Anne and Jennifer were our rocking Team Managers aka moms.  Our first shift was the midnight to 3 am shift.  Our first transition was with the Conquistadors team.  There is something about riding at night that soothes my soul.  Riding with a group in a pace line forces you to trust those you ride with.  Riding at night increases this ten-fold.  While you may not be able to see your surroundings very well on a night ride, your other senses are intensified.  At one point we could hear a rushing river to our left while a shear rock wall was just at the shoulder of the road on our right.  While the temps were a bit cold, the exhilaration of finally being on the road made it bearable.  This first shift seemed to fly by!  We met up with ScottStrong to transition.  While changing in the dark, we were greeted by a police officer.  He seemed quite confused as to what was going on in this small parking lot alongside the river.  Two vans with spinning lights on top, a bus hauling a trailer all lit up, and 12 cyclists with lights on their handlebars and blinky lights on their saddles.  Quite a sight in the dark I’m sure!  I was just very thankful we were all changed and clothed when he drove up.  He just shook his head when Ron explained to him what we were doing and why which was my same reaction last year having never done the ride.

With only 15 hours until we had to be back on the bike, the next few hours would be spent driving to our next transition which would be with the Blue Agave team.  Transitions are moving targets.  They are decided on the fly.  They are fluid.  Everything and everyone involved with this endeavor must be fluid and easy to make it all work.  After estimating at what area Blue Agave’s shift would end, a transition spot was found in a church parking lot.  These are the most reliable and best places to accommodate 2 teams and all the vehicles.  My hope is that God understands the need to use surrounding nature as nature calls before getting on the bike or for that matter after getting off the bike.   This was our 6pm to 12 am shift.  We had just a short time in the daylight.  Knowing when to eat and how to eat can be an issue with every shift being at a different time.  On this shift, we decided to stop at a Mickey D’s for something other than a PBJ.  Being someone who doesn’t eat beef and hardly ever eats fast food, I wasn’t sure this would be the best thing for me.  I knew I needed something so I wouldn’t bonk and ordered a chicken sandwich and a coke.  The sugar and caffeine would be welcomed to keep me awake during this late shift.  All I will say is that meal energized me and kept me going and going.  Enough so to be branded the Energizer Bunny by teammates.  : ))  I was so hyper even at the end of the shift that I offered to drive to find our hotel.  We transitioned with the Conquistadors in a convenience store parking lot and headed off in search of a bed.  I was feeling good and surprised at how well I felt and how well things were going for us.  Did you hear it?  The music….signaling something is about to happen?  After arriving at the hotel, it is quickly recognized that a wheel slot is empty.  After a quick glance at the remaining wheels, I announce that it’s mine.  I had to laugh because this is just my luck and also in the big picture of what we were doing it was so not something to get worked up over.  Bob Kramer, our traveling mechanic, had brought extra wheels…thank goodness!  With that worry over, we were off to bed.

We were once again in the van.  Now at this point the van is getting a little less organized and lot more messy…or was it just my stuff that couldn’t be located quickly?  Our next shift would be to meet the Blue Agave on the Natchez Trace at midnight for our midnight to 6am shift.  Once we located them we pulled a little ways down the road to greet them as they passed.  The details of this greeting aren’t important but let’s just say after a long shift mostly spent in the dark where Blue Agave dealt with two flats and a crash that left them feeling a bit drained, they were brought to life once we came into sight.  Ha!  We got back into the van, passed them once again handing out snacks as we rolled alongside and then estimated where the transition might be.  We parked with the intention of getting an hour or so of sleep.  After about 10 minutes the temperature in the van had become uncomfortably hot.  Sweatshirts were removed and windows opened slightly.  A few more minutes passed and windows were lowered more.  Why was it that I felt like I was in some horror flick and a hockey masked chainsaw wielding mass murderer was going to come out of the woods while we all slept?  I couldn’t sleep and it seemed no one else could as well.  Technology began lighting up all over the van and Ted, Scott, and Anne went for a walk.  Several minutes later, Ron receives word from Blue Agave that we are too far down the road.  I climbed into the drivers seat and rolled the van slowly down the turnout towards our three brave walkers who seemed to not have heard about the hockey masked killer in my mind.  We were informed that Scott had contemplated what if the van rolls up and no one is driving because we are all murdered.  Yes, I’m telling you it is dark and can be scary on the Natchez Trace.  Finding an appropriate transition on the Trace is difficult when having to take into consideration the bus pulling the trailer.  We finally find a small pullout and set up there to greet the Blue Agave.  It would seem our earlier greeting gave the Blue Agave inspiration for their arrival into the transition area.  : ))  This would prove the most difficult shift for me.  It wasn’t the terrain as that was flat.  When I say flat, I mean flat!  At no time was our grade greater than 3% and finding that was rare.  It also wasn’t that we had to pedal the entire time because there was no downhills on which to coast.  It wasn’t that we were tired or sleepy because it was the middle of the night and our bodies were programmed to think they should be in bed.  The reason this ride was so tough…we formed a single file pace line and took turns taking pulls naming off a name for whom we ride for.  This took 3 hours!  We didn’t take long pulls…only 15-20 seconds or so and yet it took 3 hours.  Too many people battling Cancer!  We named off everyone on our lists which included those of the P3C3 family including one who is again having to find the fight to battle.  We took a fast pull for Perry…a member of the P3C3 family who we lost earlier this year to a heart attack.  I never had the pleasure of knowing Perry but I think the world of his wife and son.  On our last pull, we surrounded Laurens.  Laurens this time last year had just learned her cancer was back, started chemo, and was losing her hair.  She took control and shaved her head in Austin.  She is my inspiration and my angel.  Never will I ever be able to say no to Laurens.  We were six wide across the road.  No worries…not one car ever showed during this time.  Funny how that happened.  : ))  Oh and did I forget to mention that the roads were very wet and it was raining…lots of puddles…which translates into rooster tails and road grit as a meal?  When we found the Conquistador team under a bridge, we were so grateful for this transition spot.  When I tell you we were wet, I mean wringing the clothes out with streams of water falling from them wet!  Here is the unexpected joy after this ride.  Kelly V and Janelle were there!  Kelly is our massage therapist who is a tiny thing with the ability to use her hands and knees and forearms and elbows and make you feel like a noodle when she’s done.  I’m sure that all the motorists who saw her up on the portable massage table with her knees in our hamstrings in the dark or the daylight were wondering “What the heck?”  We even had one stop and ask if everything was okay?  Oh yes, at that point everything was just fine.  Changing under the bridge allowed for dry clothes to stay dry and off we were again to search for food and then a place to lay our heads….AFTER a shower of course.  Now no one would expect that every hotel in the area was booked due to a large court case and a death.  Finding rooms proved a little difficult but eventually two were found and we made them work.  By the time we were in the rooms and showered, we had been awake for over 34 hours!  Sleep.

I’m not sure I slept enough and the wake up call came early at 4 am, but we were off again to find our transition spot with the Blue Agave for our last shift, the 6 am to 12 pm.  Now at this point we had been in the dark for all of our shifts.  The thought of having to apply sunscreen, wear sunglasses, and actually see the surroundings as we ride down the road was something we were all looking forward to very much.  We also had Bob Kramer join us for this ride.  Our transition had to be on the side of what I think was a state highway with a large shoulder and cars screaming past us, and at 6 AM it was still dark.  We greeted the Blue Agave who had just completed 100+ miles with yellow roses…well they weren’t roses but it was what some of our group could find at the last minute.  Our last ride began in the dark on a busy state highway.  We pulled across the rumble strips and stayed in the shoulder as much as we could trying to dodge the debris that threatened flats.  From the start I knew this ride was going to be fast!  Our terrain wasn’t flat, but with gentle rollers we found our groove.  Yes, being in the daylight and having the go ahead of our fearless leader, we pushed on this last leg of our journey.   The Yellow Team had ridden a lot together leading up to this ride to Austin, and it showed in the seamless fluid pace line we maintained.  We did have a couple of hiccups…scary moments.  When one oncoming tractor trailer passes you, there is a delay and then gush of wind making it seem as if you are going to be blown off the road.  When there are several that pass you in a row, the gush of wind is scary and you better be holding on tight!  We also had ridden several miles in the medium successfully avoiding the rumble strips until…  They had ended for a stretch and then very quickly reappeared without warning.  These particular rumbles are difficult to see!  I’m not sure how but the only casualty was an ejected water bottle.  Laurens stopped without warning and Jenn driving the bus thought she would take her out with the open doors.  Scary moment but all were safe.  I found energy from thinking about all of those I know who are currently battling cancer…some who were riding with us to Austin and our warriors who would be meeting us in Austin.  It must have worked because I received two of the best compliments I could think of that day.  Laurens told me she loved being on my wheel because I was steady.  Bob Kramer told me when I pulled I never slowed down when ascending the rollers.  Me?  Seriously?  The girl who hates to climb?  No one has ever told me I climbed too fast!  I promise it was through the strength of those who fight Cancer that I was finding the inspiration and the power to ride strong.  It was knowing that I was helping in a small way to fund more research.  As we pulled off to the side of the road to transition with the Conquistadors one last time, the emotions were sadness knowing we had done our last shift, pride knowing the money we had raised and the good it would do, and joy to have shared it all with my very special teammates.

I wish I could tell you that I gave more than I received in being a part of the Challenge to Conquer Cancer.  However, I don’t think any of us can say that.  Yes we trained hard.  We had training rides in ungodly heat and ones that lasted way past the planned time.  We raised a lot…a lot…of money and went to fundraising events sometimes 3 times in a week.  We rode to Austin…on bicycles during the day and the night and in the wind and the rain and in spite of flat tires and a missing wheel and crashes on the bike and a car crash near us…but every single member of the 2010 Challenge to Conquer Cancer will tell you that what we received was so much more.

Thank you to this new family I’ve become part of for an awesome, life-altering, perspective giving, beyond epic ride!  I will definitely be joining you next year and am already brainstorming and planning on how to raise the money.

To those who donated in my name this year, your generosity and support overwhelmed me.

To those who are fighting, my prayers and love are always with you along with my continued efforts to help in any small way I can to bring about a cure.

To our warriors who came to Austin (Cara, Jerry, Mark, Penny, and Janet), what an inspiration!  You all are so incredible!  I am humbled and honored to know you.

And to my new little warrior, Davis, keep smiling little man and giving out those awesome hugs!  You are one amazing boy!

 It is always hot in Greenville, South Carolina

 Overtired liberal New England Democrats should limit their exposure to overtired Conservative Southern Republicans.

 In more ways than one the C3 family would be lost without Joey Sullivan

 Window Paint can be very dangerous in the wrong hands

 It takes an awful lot to make Ed blush

 Oatmeal cookies are better for you than whole wheat fig newtons

 Keith is spelt with 2 Es in Mississippi (Keeth)

 Not all bike saddles are made equal

 Joe Julian is 71 years old!!

 The world would be a much better place if we would simply embrace “benevolent dictatorships”

 There is a lot of scary information about bats available on Wikipedia

 15 passenger vans have the soul of a race car

 Some Hotels put beds in their conference rooms

 Driving at 15 mph for 1600 miles is very bad for a transmission

 Stray dogs have flees

 The Natchez Trace can change a person

 Biofreeze is the best thing since sliced bread

 “Uncle” Kevin is okay with you riding in the back of his pick up during a down pour

 “Uncle” Kevin is not okay with you riding in the back of his pickup during a thunder storm.

 Lance Armstrong can leave even Jeni and Leann speechless.

 No matter whom you are drinking with or who you are drinking for Crown Royal is gross

 It is just as easy to identify someone but their spandex covered butt as it is to identify them by their smile

 When someone says” hey that is not the seat belt” don’t turn to look

 Cell phone service is a privilege not a right

 Hanging out the window of a mini van demand good communication with the person controlling the brakes

 Yo me gusta Queso

 There are at least 4 separate techniques for women to choose from when peeing on the side of the road

 Bat poop stinks

 Some raccoons are suicidal

 If 3 people are good enough friends they can share the front seat of a SUV

 French toast is the greatest food ever

 Oh and most importantly….. What happens on the Trace stays on the Trace

This years Challenge to Conquer Cancer was as unique as the first two.  Half of the riders were new and did not know what they had gotten themselves into but everyone survived and I believe had a wonderful experience.   We had 5 warriors fly out on Thursday to meet us and be there as the teams did the final 15 miles together to wrap up the 2010 Challenge to Conquer Cancer on Friday and be with us to participate in the LiveStrong Challenge.  Jerry,Cara,Mark,Penny and Janet were the warriors who were able to join us in Austin.  They joined us in the celebration dinner Friday night and they got up early to participate in the 5k.  I loved walking with Cara and Jerry and it was such a wonderful sight seeing Jerry get out of his wheelchair and walk the last 1/4 of a mile. Seeing the smile on Penny’s face as she crossed the finish line was priceless and seeing the smile on Marks face as he told me how he ran the 5k will never be forgotten.

We bring our warriors out so they can get away from the day to day grind of dealing with cancer and come to a place where life is celebrated and they can join the celebration.  We had 5 wonderful warriors celebrating life and they all had a great time.  I can get very stressed before and during this ride making sure it all goes as planned but when one of our managers comes up and thanks me for allowing him to join us on our ride when the ride would not happen without him and they have a tear running down their cheek, I know we are doing a good thing changing peoples lives and my stress goes away.  But the moment my life changed again for the better is when one of our warriors, Mark Knights, came up to me and said the weekend changed his life and he is in a much better place now than he was before he came out to Austin.

Thank you all who donated, supported and participated in this years Challenge to Conquer Cancer but most of all thank you warriors for changing my life and making it better.

But I did manage to pull a few photos off my camera, and now I have the C3 group photo in front of the gates to Lance’s house as the desktop wallpaper on my P/C. This will be a constant reminder of an incredible experience: the rides on the bikes, the longer rides in the van, the stories and experiences we shared among ourselves, and the Livestrong events. It’s a good way to keep one’s priorities straight.

Good morning.  I should be in bed asleep recharging to do the Ride for the Roses this morning, but I can’t sleep.  There is a lot that is on my heart & mind.  I have had a great time in Austin with all of the P3C3 family.  Most importantly, I had an amazing time on the journey getting here.  The trek halfway across the country with people that you may or may not know well or at all before you start the journey can make many people uncomfortable.  That was not the case for me or most of Team ScottSTRONG to my knowledge.  It seemed as if we all embraced the opportunity to be a team, and took almost every chance to get to know each other better & make this journey more rewarding for the rest of us.

As for me, I am feeling so many different thoughts and emotions about life and what is important.  That make me appreciate what I have.  Most importantly, my health and my family.  As I am writing this, my wife’s grandmother is in failing health and is not expected to be with us too much longer.  (She has since passed on as of Sunday night).  Being separated from someone you care about is difficult, especially when they are hurting.  I have asked if I should come home and if that would provide comfort and the answer was, “You need to be there.  You are doing something important”.  I think to myself, that I have planned for over a year and a half to make this journey and all it entails.  The fund-raising,  the planning, the actual ride to Austin & of course the celebration with friends.  Those are all good reasons to do this, right?

Well, today was the LiveSTRONG Challenge 5K Walk/ Run and it was a very powerful event for me.  It was great to see the mass of humanity and the excitement of the emcee build up until the start.  The other really cool thing is being a part of the mass of humanity representing the P3C3 from Greenville in our neon green shirts that are recognizable from a mile…or two away.  I haven’t run any distance over a mile anytime in the past year or so.  I initially decided that I would just stay with the group or part of the group and do whatever feels right.  Well, a few or our serious runners really jumped out of the pack & made great time.  I was pulled by a feeling that I needed to run.  Not just to run for the sake of pride in running well, like I said, I haven’t run a mile in over a year.  It was to run from the mess that I feel is my life right now.  Life is hectic, work is…work & I just need some sanity.  So, I started to follow some of our more serious runners out of the large part of the group.  They kept going making a good showing & I had one thought in my mind.  “I am going to run solo.”  Not that I was in a bad mood, but I felt like I needed to run and do it myself.  I made a very respectable showing and felt good about finishing the 5K course in just about 30 minutes.  I then circled back to find some of the P3C3 crew waiting for others to finish.   This was the when I gained a little more clarity.  Being with our group & waiting for our people to finish was great.  The cheers for them as they passed and then joined us afterward was great.  We then had our Cancer Warriors approach our position on the way to the finish & we joined with them to finish the course.  We all made the rest of the way together as one.  For me as well as our Warriors, this was a tremendous experience.  I cannot speak for them, but I know it brought me to tears to know the work & determination and spirit that it took many of them to take this journey to Austin and show cancer what they were made of.

Sunday was the Ride for the Roses which is the signature event of the weekend & culminated our week long adventure together.  It offers several distances between 10 and 90 miles.  I had originally signed up for the 60 mile distance knowing that we would be maybe just a little tired of the bike after riding our bikes from Greenville to Austin.  However, with all that life is throwing at me now I was ready to just get on the bike and ride.  Well, not really ride, but run.  Run for as long as I could by myself (maybe with a couple familiar faces).  This is where I for a few days had been thinking that the BIKE was the only place that I am feeling real peace right now.  I just wanted to keep going and going and going, hopefully to clear my mind or get away from what I am dealing with.  My P3C3 friends kept asking me how long I was going to ride & I kept saying, “I just want to get on the BIKE and ride.  I am so thankful that the 5K was the day before.  On Saturday after the 5K, my thighs ached worse than I have felt in a long time.  As we all arrived in our vans to Dripping Springs, I started to come to my senses.  There were a couple of our guys doing the 90 mile ride, but I knew that it was going to be windy out there and that I would be suffering all day long.  With that in mind, I found that most of my friends were doing the 45 mile loop, so I decided that I would join them.  As we rolled up to the start, I didn’t know how I felt about making that decision.  As we lined up, I wasn’t with the people that I had planned to be with and so I felt a little alone.  I was still in the large pack of P3C3 that was very noticeable to everyone else there, but somehow didn’t feel it yet.  Then we were off.  As a mass of cyclist takes off from a mass start it is a little drawn out process, especially if you aren’t in the front.  It goes from a walk, to mounting the bike, to pushing along with a foot, then a slow spin.  As this is happening you are trying to keep your bearings of where the people you want to ride with are & how you navigate to get together.  I caught up with a handful of riders that I enjoy my time on the bike with and we began to make our way through the mass of riders and then try to get to a comfortable riding pace.   Throughout this Ride to Austin week we have seen great scenery & I was excited to be seeing the countryside of Texas since I’ve never traveled there.  I am very humbled by God’s creation and that it is so different from what we see everyday in Greenville or where I grew up in Myrtle Beach.  I can’t remember whether it was a power stop or if three of us just  organized and did a good portion of the ride at our pace, but then we came across another pack of the P3C3 that was in need of repair.  With the people in their group they could have handled it, but we happened to have one of the best mechanics around riding in our smaller group.  We stopped and we got the other rider back on the road and joined on with their group.  This made for a nice mid-sized pack to make the rest of the ride with.  We stopped for a group pic at “Camp Lucy” where someone had made a “bicycle” out of two large bales of hay and PVC pipe.  Sorry Ron, maybe you can upgrade them to steel for next year .  We got back on & and after a bit more we started to get close to the finish.  I had mixed emotions.  I was so glad that we were finishing as we had done 45 miles on new and different terrain with a fairly strong wind and my thighs were still feeling it from the 5K.  At the same time I was sad because this was my last ride and our last ride of the week-long adventure together.  We crossed the finish line and it was over.  We did a quick appearance to promote the P3C3 and then took our bikes to get packed on the bus.

Our BIKE adventure was over and I was at peace.  I realized that although a spin on the bike can help you work through things or escape, that it isn’t about the bike.  I NEEDED  to ride with my family.  The BIKE and the CAUSE is what has brought us together as that FAMILY.  We have done amazing things together that some people cannot imagine doing.  As a FAMILY, we raised over $200,000 to fight cancer.  I am honored to have taken part in this journey with each and every member of the P3C3 FAMILY and pray that I am able to join you for each and every journey like this one.   May each and every one of us RideSTRONG & LiveSTRONG.

Rob

Apparently, I have fallen asleep in a face plant on the bus bench. We are closing in on Austin, and things are starting to look more civilized. Not that that’s necessarily better. Nothing inspirational about highways and strip malls.

We pull into a hotel a little outside Austin proper to wait for all the teams to arrive. Tomorrow we all ride in as one. What day would that make tomorrow? Better yet, what is today? It is Thursday, we are told.
Janelle’s friend Tara meets us there, and they take the dog to its new home. And a flea bath.

The hotel dude tells me where to walk to get food, and I head in that direction, but soon I stop. I am starving, but it doesn’t matter. Even though it’s 4 p.m. and I haven’t eaten anything real since a hotel breakfast at 6:30 a.m., it doesn’t matter. We made it, we did it, and nothing else seems important. I almost cry.

I go back to the hotel and do another face plant on the bed. I don’t wake up till 7:30 the next morning. For those keeping track, that makes it Friday.

I look around, and there’s no Janelle. First I think, she got lucky. Then I realize it’s more likely she stayed at the ranch with Tara and the dog. Apparently so, and apparently the dog’s new name is Rolin. As in Beach Ball Team Rolin’ Out. . . . perfect!

Soon, all the teams have gathered, and we’re rolling out together for a 20ish mile ride into the heart of downtown Austin. A few miles into it, Laurens has a flat, which after shouting everyone else off who is trying to help (in the nicest possible way), she changes herself. She rides in the van with us as we catch her up to team. Laurens educates me about “the painlocker,” which is that hurty place that cyclists for some reason want to stay in as long as possible to get better and stronger for it. In my mind, I think we are finally out of the painlocker, and it feels good.

By the way, Laurens is one of my new heroes.

At some point I get bored of sitting in the back seat and hang out the back window of the van. When I was a kid, the sliding door window did not go down, so of course I have to explore this. Keith hands me the camera, and I start snapping away, one arm looped around the bike rack, and an ankle wedged into the seat. Keith tells me a (rather cute, I have to admit) guy walking down the sidewalk sees me hanging out of the van and says, “Wow.” My kind of town.

At a stop light, I see a homeless guy with the typical cardboard sign. Then he flips it over, and it says: “Smile, it’s contagious.” Everyone in the van starts laughing, and so does the homeless guy.

A short list of casualties we have sustained:

*Shadows under our eyes from little to no sleep.
*I have lost more weight, for which I will probably be in trouble when I get back.
*My fingernails are now long enough to cut someone.
*I have a 2 inch bruise on my thigh from running into my massage table in the dark. Janelle has no idea where her bruises came from.
*No idea what day it is.
*I may never be able to eat hotel eggs again.

On the brighter side:

*There are no stories about me running bottomless through a fountain, unlike someone I may know. 8^) (actually I’m undecided about whether this is a good thing or not)
*I do not have a saddle sore substantial enough to have earned a name. (sorry, Robin)
*I have a new best friend (yay Janelle!) and a rather large addition to make to the group I consider “family.”
*I did not break, lose or throw out the window the GPS loaned to me.
*I am hooked. The Challenge to Conquer Cancer Ride has a massage therapist for as long as it wants me.

No matter what challenges came our way, they were worth it. No matter what we are going through, there are people to help if we let them. As the homeless guy said, Smile, it’s contagious. . .

Beach Ball team: out!

p.s.: I have to say, I do love this town. If I don’t come back, can someone please bring my dog? And my yoga students, and massage clients, and. . . ok, I’m coming back. See you Monday everybody. I miss you.

Another p.s.: B.W., I did this for you. I love you. I hope in some small way that it helps.

WiFi, and chances to get to it, are fewer and farther between, mostly cause it’s the boonies out here (or as Sally called it: Bum F—) and partly cause as things get weirder and weirder, time to sit and type is hard/impossible to find. But so is sleep, a shower, a “flushy toilet” (translation: modern plumbing) and “real food” (translation: calories that are not squeezed from a gel pack; processed, packaged, synthesized or reconstituted from powder; candy, cookies, or any more of the once lovely but now stale cheesy scones we were sent off with. Basically, a hot meal).

So we have lots to report since Wednesday around noonish. First off, a shout out to the lovely bustling woman at the Natchez Coffee Co, where we did find the InterWeb at last. Thanks for the food which we delivered to our favorite bus crew who see the inside of a regular bathroom even less often than we do.

Kathy has merged onto the Bus Crew, to be nearer the teams on the road and get pictures. And so Janelle and I are on a mission to make all the remaining transitions: a “logistical nightmare,” according to Kevin.

At 12, we met the Conquistadors, and Milt (a.k.a. Full Moon), in a parking lot by an auto repair shop on the side of a poorly cared for Louisiana highway. This is after the team sprinted up the bridge crossing the Mississippi River. A shout out to Martha Laura for making it to the state line first. Also, a shout out to the entire team for its longest day yet, at 80 miles. Mechanics Buddy and Bob accompanied this leg.

On second thought, they may have reached 80 miles the morning on the Natchez Trace, but details are blurring together (and may begin to be fabricated, much like a Hunter S Thompson article. . .)

Proceeded to the next estimated transition, a little town called Tullos in the middle of L.A. (the state that is. Not to be confused with the city L.A., in which there is always something to do Brian Hill!, as well as readily available flushy toilets and real food). We take off driving, and driving and driving. . . Had we snagged more than 2 hours of sleep the night before we might have realized 40+ miles earlier that we had passed our target and had somehow ended up on the wrong highway. We may have distracted ourselves by talking about boys, but I can neither confirm nor deny that. For the next 2.5 hours we drove back and forth across L.A. without paying attention to what we were doing.

Me: “Look, a giant sprinkler! Ooooooo! Turn around!” Etc.

At one point we drove past the bus without noticing. This is rather alarming, because when I say the bus, I mean the bus pulling a trailer, a minivan in front of the bus and about 7 cyclists wearing bright yellow in between. Backtracking yet again, we catch up with the bus and too embarrassed for them to see us coming from the rear, we hide in a bank parking lot, then a McDonalds parking lot, waiting for them to get through the light.

While we were hiding from our team mates in the parking lot, we acquired a P3C3 mascot: a 3 month old blonde clumsy puppy wandering around looking lost. Obviously a stray. I promise we didn’t dognap. With stale cheesy scones, we lure the puppy into the van (sorry Ron, we couldn’t help it. Janelle is claiming the “better to ask forgiveness defense”) and speed off to get a collar before the transition. While on this mission we are told to pick up a pizza for the bus crew. Sure.

Pizza and puppy in tow, we catch up with the Polka Dots, who are on the side of the road dancing to the Black Eyed Peas’ “I got a feeling.” Some were gyrating. Oh, by the way, this was all happening in a church parking lot. In the spirit of the moment, we named the puppy Fergie. This wouldn’t last long.

While Janelle hides the stowaway from view in the van, I massage Scott Strong. It is then that I learn that tonight’s route has changed. All our earlier Strategery is for nought. Somehow we must ferry Buddy to a hotel in Jasper and then book it back up to the LA border to catch the midnight switch. This we pull off without a hitch because we are Awesome. Sleep deprivation is starting to distort our . . . . well, everything.

While driving like a fiend through the curvy unlit roads along the Texas border, Fergie, who had been perched on the console between the front seat vomits in the back seat (don’t worry, Ron, Janelle had previously dog-proofed the car with towels and garbage bags.)

Janelle, as she pitches everything into the woods: “I don’t usually litter, but this is disgusting.”

By the way, when we finally do reach our hotel in Austin, you may not hear from us for days. And that will also be our alibi when rumors of bizarre activities we may or may not have been observed participating in Austin reach your ears. We were sleeping. Got it Janelle, tell them we were sleeping!

I should also mention that after massaging people under the stars, my massage office will seem rather ordinary when I return, I am afraid. Also, setting my daily client schedule will seem ridiculously easy after getting used to traveling across a state (or 2) to find a moving target in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night.

Next up, the 6 am transition. The Polka Dots are done for the tour. And the Blue Agave will meet us across the Texas border in Lufkin we are told. Since there are no hotel rooms to be found in the REGION, apparently, we pull over to the side of the road and sleep from 4:30-6.

It is on this rather ordinary stretch of Texas highway that I finally peed outside. I know you were wanting to know.

When we wake, we find that the team has passed us and is checking into a hotel. We drive another 30 minutes to massage them, steal their shower and eat another hotel breakfast (we are the fence about whether this constitutes real food). We introduce our puppy and Blue Agave renames it “Austin.” We are also on the fence about that name, since the puppy will be living in Austin at a pet rescue farm that Janelle’s friend is opening: Wild Hearts of Austin. What do you think?

Pulling out our SuperWomen capes, we now attempt to rescue Buddy from the hotel in Jasper and make it to the noon transition which will occur somewhere on Highway 30 headed to Austin. Looking forward to skipping ahead to Austin after that and finally sleeping in an actual hotel bed, we are informed that our minivan is about to be, uh, repurposed again.

Janelle: “Are you kidding?”

The bus transmission is sick and needs to get to a bus doctor. We are to ride the sick bus to Austin, while the medic and mechanic follow the team in our home-away-from-home minivan. Trouble is, we are both wearing shorts again, and last we did this and boarded the bus, bad things happened to it. The sleepier we get, the more superstitious we are getting. . .

So the switch is made, and pulling into a gas station for a flushy toilet (thanks, Kevin!), smoke billows forth from the radiator and antifreeze streams onto the concrete. Poor bus. Kevin and Bob patch her up, and we are on our way once more to the Shop where hopefully she can be healed.

[Disclaimer: if you don’t like to listen to ranting skip ahead to the next bracket.]

Here’s the thing, the Challenge to Conquer Cancer Ride is a non-profit fundraising effort. Everyone working on this project, from planning, to coordinating routes, to renting and equipping vans, to forgoing sleep for 5 days straight to stay on the bus and monitor its heartbeat, to training and riding each day, to being a team mom, to driving 15 miles per hour in front of and behind the cyclists so they don’t get run over like a possum. . . .everyone doing this is a volunteer. We are either taking vacation, or taking time off from our self-employed small business to be here and work together toward a common goal. It’s not easy. It’s unpleasant at times, sometime downright confrontational, but ultimately we are in it together, like a family. So we give everything we have.

We still need help. We need a new bus. No one has asked me to say this, but we do. We also could use phones and/or radios that link each van with the others at all time, no matter how unreliable the cell phone coverage. We could use more convenient places to stay-perhaps some would be willing to volunteer their home for a night if they are along our route. We need water, snacks, bike parts, gas cards, and more, and each year we have to go out to the community and beg them. Which of course we don’t mind doing. The more help we get, the more money we can save, the more we can give toward the cause.

[ok, I’m done]

p.s. Did you know that there are neighboring counties in Texas named “Victoria” and “Brazoria”?

 I did not expect this reaction form me since I had done this ride
before.
The response from the people that we meet along the route is still amazing. They all told us stories of loved ones who are fighting cancer,
survived it, and were lost.
Each story is very personal and moving to all of us on the ride.
After hearing every inidividual story, we are always asked why we are making this journey.
My personal response is that I am trying to make a difference for someone who is fighting cancer. While I am not capable of curing their illness, I am capable of trying to make a difference in their lives by raising money for research, new drugs, etc by partipating in this ride.

Maybe the difference is only to put a smile on their face for one day.
We are making a difference.

 We see it in the people that we have meet along the way.
So, to those who been kind enough to support
me with your generous donations, thank you.

I don’t know any other way of telling you how much I appreciated your support other than to simply say “Thank You”.
You have helped make a difference in the fight against cancer.
I also want to offer a BIG thank you to our team managers, Lisa Barwick and Ron Fox.
Without their constant care for our safety, welfare, and their overall concern while rode during the week, we may not have made it to Austin.
Thank you Ron & Lisa!!
To my teammates on Team ScottStrong, thank you for a most enjoyable
and memorable week!!

Finally, to my wife Susan, who has lost loved 0nes to Cancer, thank you for your support and love for the past two years while I have participated in this wonderful event.

ScottStrong!!!

This morning we will have all the teams ride from our hotel on the NW side of Austin to our downtown hotel escorted by someone from the Lance Armstrong Foundation.  It is a 20 mile ride that winds through the neighborhoods of Austin with a stop by Lance’s house.  Maybe he will invite us in for breakfast this year.   Once we arrive at the hotel we will have a small celebration then lunch, packet pick up, then our big celebration dinner.  Tomorrow is the 5k and a special celebration for our warriors and cancer survivors with Lance.   Sunday we will have the LiveSrong Challenge ride and the rest of the day we can relax before we pack up to head home on Monday. 

Like I said the hard work is done and it is time to celebrate.  It is time to celebrate the lives of the ones we lost.  It is time to celebrate with the ones who have beat cancer.  Most importantantly it is time to celebrate LIFE!

Thank you to all who have been following us and supporting us.  It’s time to celebrate.

Team Red started and ended the Trace this year.  When we were getting close to the end Wednesday at noon we saw crossing the Mississippi as being possible and we made that happen!!!!!!  We made our transistion 10 miles inside Lousiana.  It was good to see some of the Trace in the daylight this year. 

Joe and I were the only riders to return on our team thi year.  We were glad to see Mike, Judy, and Don at the send off but missed them during the trip.  Kathy, who was on our team last year, was not able to ride her bike due to doctors orders but made the trip as our photographer.  She has taken a lot of pictures that will make a great slide show.  She also has some that …………  well let’s just say the moon was probably out during the daylight.

We are instituting an admendment to the rule “What happens on the Trace stays on the Trace”.  The admendment states” What happens on the Challenge to Conquer Cancer Ride stays on the ride”.

As we started the day out and in the van traveling the whole 5 minutes to our transistion point Kevin gave us the good news that the bus was having mechanical troubles and he would  be taking it to Austin to a mechanic.  I told him that if we had tools that I was schooled in auto mechanics and could fix it.  He said really.  I said “yea  after all we did stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night, right?”.  The rest of the van got a big laugh out of that.

Thanks to everyone that has made this trip possible and for your support, my family and friends.  It’s late for this older man and way past my bed time.  So night nite, sleep tight, and don’t let the bed bugs bite!!!

My personal satisfaction was meeting our cancer warrior, Jerry Scroggins. I have been communicating with Jerry for a year now and finnal;y got to meet him.  Once again, the reason I ride was exhibited in the emotion we shared.

On Saturday we will all partricipate in a 5K walk. Jerry may not be asble to walk 3 miles but he has my commitment that I will push him in a wheelchair if necessary. This is what we do and who we are.

I thank God for giving me the health to perform this feat and my wife and children for their continual support. 

I also wish to thank all of my supporters for their contributions that enabled  me to participate in this worthwhile cause.

I’d like to give a special “Shout out” to Scott Palmer of Murrell’s Inlet, SC. Scott is also a cancer survivor, a cyclist and a real warrior. LIVESTRONG Scott!! I hope to ride with again in the near future.  

Joe J

I finished my riding and wrenching this morning with an 83 mile ride with Team Yellow. These ladys and gentleman are fast, the average pace for my 83 mile ride was 19.4 mph, wow!

As I was riding with Yellow, I noticed Laurens Flanagan pulling at the front at 22 mph, uphill into the wind. Watching Laurens ride made me reflect on 2010.  I met Laurens on this ride last year, at that time she was undergoing chemo and could hardly ride at all. But she came on the ride anyway to support her team. So in January the chemo was finished and it was time for her to get back in shape and she asked me to help. Which I considered an honor! At our first training session last January, Laurens could not ride for 15 minutes on a Computrainer. But today she rode for 6 hours at 19.4 mph, what a great come back !

You might say that Laurens and I spent 2010 rescuing each other, and I hope we will be life long friends as a result. But that’s another story.

From Team ScottSTRONG

As Team ScottSTRONG is driving to our final transition in near Bryan, let me change that to Caldwell, TX we are feeling very bittersweet.  This week & the journey we have taken have been an experience almost too much for words.  We have had a wonderful time bonding with each other and going through a range of experiences and emotions together.  We have had the unique experience of being a group that had no real established relationships or riding experience together and we have been honored to have our teammate riding the ScottSTRONG bike.  This offers us a constant reminder of why we are doing this.  We have grown into a family and all feel great to just hang out together & are a little anxious about what is going to happen when we get to Austin.  We are pumped up about being the Team to bring it home tonight & none of our riders have had that experience before.  We are feeling great about about this journey & why we are doing this.  We as Team ScottSTRONG & the P3C3 are making a difference in the lives of those with cancer & hopefully will be able to be a part of finding the cure.  We thank all of you for your prayers and support.

As I mentioned, life is fluid, and you have to adapt. Just like a cancer victim does. So, recalling the meaning of the ride, Polka Dot made their second straight century (100 mile) ride, and we joined them for the last 10 – 12 miles. You must understand that for a cyclist to ride a century ride is akin to a runner running a marathon. So try running two marathons in a row.. the first one day and the second the next day. Simply amazing strength and conviction of Team Polka Dot…. they are awesome.

Now on to more fluid changes. Once we took off, we were hot to trot to make our own century, as we knew the roads would be flat, and it would be our last ride before reaching Austin. Well, the biking gremlins were out to get us again, as Dustin got a flat in the first MILE of our ride, slowing Polka Dot’s finish, and our start. Then, his derailleur began to misbehave, and his bike turned into a fixie (non-bikers: ONE gear. like low on your car.. you only go slow). I began to get really grumpy and rode off the front alone for a bit. I actually said a little prayer that the gremlins would find a hole to crawl into, and leave us alone. I am happy to say that the good Lord was listening, and the gremlins went away.. YAHOOOOO !!

Team Blue Agave finally found our mojo (just a day late, Bo!!!!). We cranked it up, and through the early morning hours we began to work together as a team as never before. Never mind that I crashed yesterday and probably cracked a rib and cant breathe deeply. That we had flat after flat, and delay after delay.. we CRANKED it up and absolutely KILLED it! We crossed into Texas at about 1:30 or 2:00 am, stopped for pictures, but only stopped 3 more times for food and bathroom breaks. Jimmy constantly hammering at us to get moving…. well, it worked. At 2 1/2 hours, were were at 50 miles…. at 4 hours, we notched it up to 75 miles, and as the 6 am transition loomed in front of us, we began to know in our hearts we would get our century…. and not only on time, but even a bit early. John and Parker kept us motivated by radio, filling us in on our negative splits (going faster each mile), and making our stops fly by. No mechanicals, no flats, no crashes, just fluid pedaling in a sweet uniformity. The only ominous thing we noticed was the rolling STEPS of climbing we were facing as we neared our transition. It was like pedaling up a series of long, even steps, and not going back down! LOL.. pissed us off, and we went even faster. Each of us pulled, even myself, but Jimmy did MONSTROUS pulls and probably was the one who got us there.

So as not to keep you in suspense: Team Blue Agave finished 101 miles at 17.9 mph, at 6 hours and 2 minutes finishing time. WOW !!! We all had such emotions… you just do not know.

We were met by a beautiful Team Yellow, who presented us with beautiful flowers (um.. mums? I am simply not a flower kind of guy).. and lots of hugs and smiles. What a finish. We began to change, and saw Yellow off with cheers and waves, packed in the van, and headed to the hotel in Lufkin, Texas, where Yellow left us towels and cool rooms to recover in, as well as a nice breakfast compliments of the hotel….

The next several hours were to be suffered packed like sardines in a can. Travelling to Austin took about 4 1/2 hours.. each seemingly longer than the next. However, we are here. We expect to greet each team as they arrive and will now get laundry cleaned and prepare for LIVESTRONG’S weekend of events.

Sigh.

Tensions builds in a teams dynamic and last night was a test for us all.  Not just our team, the P3 bus, the Beach Balls, other teams I know experience the tension.  This is what happens when you don’t get to sleep, your emotional, your heart is so over worked and you become vulnerable- personally.  Just like riding your bike on little tires, as these big trucks come buzzing by.  It is a parallel, foreshadowing.

I definitely was tested last night.  The turning point for me when I went from Grumpy to Happy….. was when a trucker shouted out on our channel.  I heard him say,” hey Darling, what is up with all the traffic in town?” I proceeded in explaining the cause.  He said in the LONG Texas deep voice…. ON A BICYCLE?  whaaaaaat? and then he drifted out of range.  We stopped regrouped an I thought of this parallel.

At one point a car passed us and this adorable little girls yells out… “thank you!  My Nana is fighting cancer…. THANK YOU FOR DOING THIS! ” Toot Toot went the horn.  Or how about when you have God’s starry night beaming down on you and you cant breath because your chest hurts so bad and you think of your friends mom who lost her battle (Celia Arledge) and you looked up after your prayer to thank God for the family and their love for their faith… and a shooting star goes by with a gorgeous tail.

Finally, How about this….. meeting up with an amazing team that rides WITH YOU. Together and allows you to share the road, the time, the ride and you get to dedicate it to an amazing women who has another battle ahead of her.  Rene…. we love you so much. You are a hero, a star with a long tail, a fighter just like me.  You have been a blessing to all of us and we are all here for you.  Thank you for allowing us to share our 100 mile with you and the BLUE AGAVE! Way to rock the Road out there last night.

And to the Trucker who started the turn of the tides….. thanks this darling is happily heading to Texas to finish the job We have been fighting for….

Peace out. Perry thanks again for the ride my friend. Glad you could be there yet once again.

hugs to friends and family following us and sending us prayers and messages.

The Beast.  As we crossed into LA, all that changed, and it was apparent why Capt. Ron calls it Lousyiana.  US Hwy 28, our route for the whole day, was rough, heavily trafficked, and full of rumble strips.  Welcome to The Beast.  Our transition was smooth — daylight and good weather helps that.  Turning our of Farriday, LA, we thought that the traffic would abate.  Then I saw the sign identifying the route as “El Camino” and showing it as a path crossing from Alabama to New Mexico. The first 30 miles were probably my all time worst ride.  Heavy traffic and logging truck drivers who thought they owned the road, forced us to cross over the rumble strips to the shoulder then back.  Finally, we stayed on the shoulder which was often rough and strewn with debris.  That stress led to a number of miscues that fortunaltely did not have serious consequnces.  The Beast was just laughing at us and licking his chops.

Despite all this, and an increasing headwind, we found the groove and started to motor on.  Finally, at around mile 60, The Beast started to get bored with us.  The road opened up, the logging trucks were still there, but less of a threat, and the weather was perfect.  Oh, did I mention the Wide Load?  See Rob’s post. The last two hours were in a great set of rollers, like the Sandhills of SC, but nowhere the same climb.  Sheila was our wild child of the day — the further we rode, the stronger she looked.  As we closed in on the end of our ride, we could see 90-100 miles possible.  The the Polka Dots passed us with their trademark exuberance, and we new the end was near.  95 miles under Rob’s Rules of Rounding and there we were. 

We’d conquered The Beast and were ready to celebrate.  Our incredible Team Manager  Lisa (aka Benevolent Dictator) gave the coordinates to the amazing Capt. Ron, and we were off to Natchitoches, LA and The Landing restaurant.  Don’t miss Lisa’s video on FB. What an expereience!  Live music with song titles chosen to honor us; even a ride-by of the Polka Dots.  The meal was a foodies delight — the BEST fried green tomatoes ever –period.  Natchitoches is actualy the venue where the movie of the same name was filmed.  Finally, we were welcomed in Jasper, TX, and off to a good night’s sleep.

The day had it highs and lows, but in conquereing The Beast, it provided a new insight into our Challenge to Conquer Cancer.  Something to remember forever.

Danielle and Jess here for a quick update of Day 3 on the road (we have to start getting ready for our next transition).  It was another incredible day on the bike!  Team Conquistadors acquired 2 new team members (thanks for riding with us Bob and Buddy) and knocked out another 80 miles yesterday…I’m thinking we need to change our name to Team 80…lol!  When we transitioned out with Team Yellow at 6:00 am it was chilly, raining and DARK!  Luckily, the rain only stayed with us for about an hour and a half and then it was sunny skies all the way to Louisiana – it was so nice to be riding in daylight again.  We think the coolest part about yesterday is that Team Conquistadors started the Natchez Trace and ended the Natchez Trace.  Didn’t see any animals on the Trace except roadkill…who ever hit that armadillo I’m sure got one heck of a flat tire!!

Once we came upon the end of the Trace, we made our way over to the Mississippi River and sprinted across the bridge…it was awesome…Danielle started the sprint at the direction of Bob and took off across the bridge pedaling fast and furious with Martha Laura right on her wheel.  It was almost like a Lance/George scene from the Tour de France cause just moments before we crossed the finish at the end of the bridge, Martha Laura came out from behind Danielle and literally sling shot herself to the finish line and won the sprint across the bridge!

Ah, 80 miles done!  Thanks to Team Beach Ball (Kelly, our awesome masseuse and Janelle) for meeting us at the transition point.  It was great to see you guys – thanks for making our tired bodies feel like a million bucks again!!

It is 9:55am Greenville time and we have to start getting ready to transition with Team Yellow. We are ALMOST to Austin!!!!!!

Today was the worst of rides. After about an hour and 40 minutes of our six hour shift, we decided that we needed a stop to regroup & have a team meeting. It was a very matter of fact meeting, but one that we laid out that we HAD TO be better at communication today. Riding on the shoulder a lot & with all the traffic we had, made us have to work at being much better communicators with our teammates to keep us from hitting debris or potholes or riding into each other while in a paceline.

It is quite amazing what happened from there. It became the best of rides. Not because it was easy, but because we all came together & showed great teamwork. We became a group that looked out for each other, not that we didn’t care for each other, but we had to be reminded of how to watch out for each other. Not only calling out “cars back”, “hole”, “stick”, or “slowing” but signaling as well. It is challenging enough to ride as a group on any road even if it is straight and level and nothing else is going on. This makes for a lot more mental and physical energy being expended. We still had a vicious headwind and the same kind of unrelenting traffic through Nowhere, LA blowing us off the road, but we were acting like a team. Let me change that. We were acting like the family that we’ve become on this journey. We wound up pushing pretty hard and finishing with a 95 mile total that we were ecstatic about. We pulled into our transition point with the Polka Dot team having a dance party to welcome us to the finish as they were pumping themselves up to start their 6:00PM-midnight shift. Once they got ready to roll we sent them off to hopefully a great ride tonight.

Well, we pushed hard today & overcame a lot of challenges. Not as bad as some that happen on this type of journey, but they were very challenging for a group that really has not had much experience riding together before. But after this journey, we are now family. Family finds a way to make it work & we have done that.

I forgot to include one small challenge added to today. That challenge is that there were NO hotel rooms available near our next potential transition point. We had heard of at least 2 other team having difficulty with this as there was some major event going on that had hotels filled for miles around. On this trip we have our Team Managers Lisa & Ron. We lucked out on this, but I think it was just meant to be. They are the perfect managers for any team, but we were the lucky ones who wound up with them. Both of them have embraced us and their responsibilities and have carried them out as close to perfect as one can. Lisa & Ron have worked wonderfully together to make everything run as smoothly as possible & keep us safe as riders. Well, as far as finding us a place to rest & recover as we still have one more shift to ride, Lisa came through big. We are now at the Best Western in Jasper, TX & when I complete this blog entry will be going to sleep to be ready for tomorrows travel & ride.

Boy, when I signed up for this, I knew that it wasn’t just a bicycle tour to TX. I knew that our reason is to raise money and awareness to cancer research & causes, but I had no idea just what makes this journey work & exactly what kind of journey it would be. It taught me so much even before the journey left Greenville & has taught me even more in a few short days between there & Texas.

I want to thank Team ScottSTRONG for allowing me to grow with each of them as a cyclist & as a person as well as our other P3C3 family members. Thanks also go out to the Holiday Inn Express in Cleveland, TN for taking very good care of us and also to Eddie in Jackson, MS who did everything he could to help us out even in a difficult situation.

It has been an amazing 3-4 days so far & as much as I don’t want this journey to end, I miss my family back home in Greenville. I hope that just a few of the things I experience here help me to be a better person, husband and father. See you on Monday.

As you have read in previous postings, we, um, can’t help but bond with our teammates on this journey.  You are in the van A LOT.  If you are one of the fortunate ones that can sleep in a van while traveling curvy roads, you grab some shut eye.  However, if you can’t , you are still fortunate that you get to know your fellow loving human being that has taken on this fight.  And now through technology, we can keep up with teammates through our blog.  Team Yellow hasn’t seen the Polka Dot or ScottStrong teams since Sunday.  We are looking forward to being reunited with them tomorrow.

Team Yellow has had some ups and downs this year.  As you have read, all of the teams have.  That’s why this ride is a Challenge.  We try to prepare but there are some things we just have to figure out along the way.  We ran a little late to our transition for our first 6 hour shift which had us a little anxious.  But guess why?  We wanted to take the mountain route that the Polka Dots had to ride to see their challenge that morning.  NOT knowing that our entire team would get a little van sick and that we would learn that Anne could be a NASCAR driver.  (we did make it on time which made Ron’s smile come back)  The team got on the road and I was in charge of navigating the bus to catch up.  Well I missed the first turn, Bob had to turn the bus around in a weird parking area where I know we bumped over some of those concrete parking bumps.  Anyway, we caught the team and settled in behind them.  Our first shift had been 12am-3am (dark) and this shift was 6pm-midnight so we started out with sunshine blinding us in the face (well thru the bus window).  And a good bit of traffic too.  The team was riding over in the bike lane in lots of debris.  A water bottle got ejected and Laurens stopped to pick it up without any warning to the bus.  All I could think was that we were gonna knock her over with the open doors.  We didn’t, but it sure looked like it from my front row bus seat.  Stomach officially in knots.  Then I see the team weaving in and out of the bike lane and a couple of the riders almost collided.  Scary scene, but we soon settled in.  Oh I forgot to mention that the speed limit on the road was 65.  Cars were zooming.  I was so thankful that the bus could block the traffic from getting so close to them.  We get a little further down the road and we leave the team to go get gas for the bus.  We had to drive a good 20 miles down the road to find a town.  We figured that it might take the team an hour to catch up.  So I made a bad choice to go back and find them.  But guess why?  I thought, “what if one of their lights is burned out” (a frequently occurring problem), or “what if they are cold?” (their extra layers were on the bus), or “what if they are hungry or thirsty?”  So we set out to find them. Now understand we didn’t have cell service so thats why we had no idea that they were VERY close to us.  In fact so close, that we did not even see them when we PASSED them on the road looking for them.  CRAZY huh?  How could I, along with 2 others on the bus, MISS seeing 6 YELLOW cyclists and a van with a flashing light????  Well we didn’t get cell coverage until we were back on a 2 lane road where we had to perform a 42 point turn to get the bus and trailer back on the road in the right direction to find the team again.  I was feeling pretty awful about letting my team down.  I actually fired myself and begged their forgiveness when we met again at the McDonalds in Hohenwald, TN.  They forgave me and would not let me fire myself.  We were now on a NEW section of our trip this year.  We passed the entrance to the Natchez Trace that we used last year to add some miles to the journey.  It was a little hilly to say the least but the team took those hills like the well oiled machine they had trained to be.  We made our transition with the Conquistadors and started loading our van.  When we made it to our hotel, our hearts sank to see that we had lost a wheel (Donna’s) on our way.  Oops.  Errors.  Human errors occured on this shift and Ron and I were feeling a little low.  Of course our team didn’t let us stay low for long.  We had to get back in the van to start working our way to our next transition.  We had a little more team bonding at the laundrymat and headed toward our midnight – 6am ride.  We were on the Trace looking for Blue Agave, we found them and showed our love for them on the road.  We got to see and hear lots of wildlife that dark night.  We tried to rest up in the van, wasn’t happening.  We found a transition spot and began to get ready.  We took over at midnight and started our early morning.  It was a great ride.  Our Honor Ride, naming all of our own personal reasons we ride.  2-1/2 hours of six people naming family and friends either lost to cancer or fighting it.  It was my great pleasure to see Laurens on her bicycle this year!  When we finished at 6am we refueled at Waffle House and decided to drive the van to where we thought we would be at 6am.  We have all been awake more than 24 hours at this point so we share the driving.  Thanks Laurens and Scott.  It is now 9:30, I have had a power nap but the rest of the team is asleep.  I am going too.  I think our wake up call is at 4am.  Each of the journeys over these last 3 years have been wonderful and unique.  I am proud to be a part of this group of loving, giving people.  We all are unified to do our small part to fight this battle, side by side. 

I miss my boys at home.  They know why we do this.  They know they want doctors to find a way to cure a disease that took their PaPa.  They know they don’t want anyone else in our family to have to worry about getting cancer.  I know that they can say, “We have LOTs of friends who help fight cancer, we help too, do you?”

I am rambling again, as I am prone to do. Before I sign off for now… my thanks to the following:

Kevin Dunn and Lisa Barwick – for conceiving the P3.

Ron and Jennifer Jerina – for countless hours me planning .. etc

P3 members – for your dedication.

Jeni Schumacher – my coach and conscious… thanks for training me.

Parker Carlisle and John Colacioppo – for your awesome abilities as team managers.. you kept Blue Agave together despite your trials of suffering potty humor in the van.

Kelly Vanleeuwen – awesome hands, elbows, and knees. Your massage techniques have kept us all on the road, and you have worked tirelessly to keep us there.

Jimmy and Heather Brehm, Rene Mccurdy, Dustin Retherford, and Beth Rusch.. what great teammates. couldn’t have asked for more… you each ROCK!

John McDermott – my friend who inspires me either on the bike or in life… I wanna be more like you…

Brian Powell – sorry you lost Carmon.. she is still with you, my friend… stay strong.

And to countless others who put their lives on hold to help…. thanks soooo much…

and last but not least.. to you who have cancer.. we ride for you. Stay strong and fight…

So there it is, in no particular order, but you are now privy to the inner workings and the inside jokes of the BasketCase team. Ok, sure you don’t really GET any of that but if we could share it with you we would…every intimate detail of it. But we can’t….those of you who have done this before..you know..those of you who haven’t…COME JOIN US AND YOU WILL KNOW….

You will also know a lot more….more about yourself, your limits, more about courage, more about feelings, more about friendship, more about love and more about the POWER TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE. We are doing that..and so are you….

YOU ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE if you are reading this..in some way..by your love and support.
YOU ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE in our lives with your courage and strength if you are a Cancer patient reading this…..Knowing you are reading this inspires us!
YOU ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE if you are a Dr. or Nurse at the Cancer Center…every day with every patient…Thank you…
YOU ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE if you helped us with a donation…with every dollar you contributed we are a bit closer to understanding this disease and to finding a cure.
YOU ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE if you are a survivor…your courage, strength and resiliance inspire all of us.

You may not understand all of our insider jokes, you may not feel compelled to ride you bike across the country..but YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE….Don’t miss the opportunity..it may change you life..or one of someone around you!

DO SOMETHING TODAY, right now… call a friend/relative dealing with cancer, send a bunch of flowers to the cancer center addressed to “someone who needs them today,” take a tour of the cancer center, make a donation to a cause dear to you, buy a bike and start training for next year’s trip with us, take a walk and remember someone you lost to cancer, decide to take better care of yourself or simply say a prayer…just DO SOMETHING TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

“There is no try, only do or do not” – Master Yoda

The gravity of this “ride” effects us when we least expect it. Everywhere we go we seem to meet somebody with a connection to cancer and a story to go along with it. A few minutes ago, we were getting gas and were approached by man named Chris who saw our van (our sweet pimped out Sienna) and told us about his wife who is now in remission after a battle with Leukemia. He, along with another man he was working with, made a donation to our efforts, and we are proudly carrying her name with us to Austin. The importance of our journey hits us differently, and these two people who we happened to run across off of the highway really resonated with me and just reiterates how many people are touched by this terrible disease. We will have a mile for her tonight.

I’m so proud to be a part of this group of people who have sacrificed so much to be here- from all of the riders who have put in so many hours on the saddle to our donors who make this all possible and especially the support staff who have been absolutely amazing. I have now had more massages this week than I have in the last 5 years combined (love some Kelly), and Buddy can change a tire (OK 2 tires) in record time and gives a good push. I’m not sure how I will ever be able to ride a bike again without a crew to hand me some food or a water bottle or give me a good moon when I’m needing a boost. Team Blue Agave has kept me laughing so much that my cheeks hurt almost more than my legs do. So, off we go into the night tonight knowing where our bikes will take us but not where the journey will lead us.

Love to you all. Ride Strong.

Last night our ride was challenging yes but so much good came out of it. I think we all got to see and face some challenges that in turn made us stronger and more aware of the mission. We got to a point where we realized it couldn’t get any worse and we needed to make the best of it. I know that cancer patients have these kind of days but they have this enourmous strength to suck it up, put on a smile and push forward. We all agreed that last night was far easier and more enjoable then one day with cancer or a single chemo treatment.

My team is full of comedians that I think should volunteer shifts at the cancer center to entertain you while you receive treatments, what do u think Dustin and Jimmy?? So many laughs on the van and what is discussed in the van stays in the van, so they say!!

The best thing about last night was we rode two a breast and dedicated each mile marker to the ones we have lost. I was with Jimmy Brehm and the first dedication mile was to his mom Susan Brehm whom just passed away to breast cancer and the reason he is riding. The irony is I have been asking Jimmy to come along on this ride for two years and to finally have him and Heather here has been awesome! My first mile was dedicated to Deena Muscato and my second mile was dedicated to Stephanie DeKoeyer, two of my best friends that passed away, the reason I ride! We continued on with everyone dedicating their miles and then my third mile was a very special dedication to Perry Lyles, he was on this ride last year and he is missed in so many ways. He has been with all of us everyday watching over us and keeping us safe, dealing us challenges and making us go hard and fast! I love you Perry and miss you on the road!!

To all the riders and support crew, (especially John and Parker who are the BOMB!!) that have been making many sacrifices on this journey I am so proud of each of you and all your accomplishments!! I cant wait to see you and celebrate life with you in Austin so until the RIDESTRONG and be safe!! Love you all so much!!

SO we are due a little break… tonight .. here is to a boring, uneventful ride!

I was a support driver for this ride last year for very different reasons.  I had finished most of my surgeries and treatment….I was still in the wig….I needed to be involved to help me get past all of it!!  THIS year…..I wasn’t going to come.  My husband had opened his agency and things are still tight.  Taking the time off and doing the fund raising is tough.  But when he said we were going to go, I realized how much going meant to me!  If we, as cancer patients, get complacent about raising money—how can we expect others to?  So here I am helping to drive and take care of the Polka Dot team once again.

As we prepared to leave on Sunday tensions were high.  Some of our team had not even met each other before we all piled into our 12 passenger van.  The “unknown” was a little stressful for all of us.  The second day as they started riding, there were some rough spots….they couldn’t get settled in a pace line….so many were giving orders….personalities had to find their place…and they all had to learn to work together.  By the third ride all had been worked out, they rode seemlessly as a team and at the end the emotions ran high.  Being a driver, and watching all of this from either behind from the bus, or in front via the rear view mirror is amazing!  I would love to be able to hear all the conversations the riders have on the road, but the walkie talkies are not for that purpose!  I am just grateful to be able to soak it all in and realize that all of these dynamics ARE part of the “challenge”.  

We have some on our team that were together last year and then we have new “blood”.  It has been awesome to get to know each and every one!!!  Each and everyone brings something to the team, to this experience, and to my life.  It takes all kinds of people to accomplish this goal to ride to Austin.  It takes the “A” personalities, the leaders, the worker bees, the nurturing ones, the detailed ones, and cheerleaders.  I find that I am the most happy being the cheerleader.  I want everyone to be happy, and for everyone to get along….and I so love seeing them conquer their goal—whatever that may be!  I love the emotion of it all.  The tears flow so easily and it reveals such honesty.  You REALLY get to see the inside of someones heart and soul.  While hard at times to know why the tears fall, it is cathartic as well.

This “challenge” is not unlike going thru the cancer journey.  You are stressed at the unknown, you go head spinning into the research and treatments, and then you put your faith and your heart into your “team” to make it through the physical, mental and emotional ups and downs…..to come out on the other side a changed person.

I am loving every second of being on this trip.  I hope to continue to be involved in it, and other things like this to find ways to raise money and spirits to fight cancer.  I am a changed person, inside and out!  You spend alot of years trying to find your passion…..maybe I have found mine?

Smiles

Love, Super Sally  or “safe sally” as my team has named me!

The rest of the ride was fun and wet. The road was really wet the entire ride and we had an occasional rain shower to guarantee we would be wet all morning. We saw deer and possums the whole way to our transition area but once we got on the bike we did not see any. I believe the creatures knew Laurens aka the Slayer was on the road and they all ran away from the road. We saw a very interesting person in the Conquistador van. Whoever / whatever it was had the face of Milt and the upper body of a Hawaiian Hula dancer. I believe Jennifer got a picture of whatever it was and we will try and get it posted soon. Hopefully the picture came out and won’t be all blurry like the pictures Bigfoot and Lizardman always seem to be.

It is obvious that John Siddens is delirious and is spreading false rumors about us. As all of Team Yellow Hand Basket Cases recalls, it was a very cloudy, dark night and there is no way you saw 1 moon let alone 8. We all understand you are tired and your mind plays tricks on you when you don’t sleep.

We are now on our way to Nacogdoches, TX for the night for our first full night of sleep. Our next and final shift starts at 6am tomorrow and we are all looking forward to riding with sunglasses on instead of night vision goggles.

Since this has taken me over an hour to write in the van and my teammates are making fun of me, I am signing off for now. I am missing my boys and can’t wait to see them. Thank you all for your support and following us on the blog. Especially all the fighters at the Cancer Center. We ride for you.

Peace out.

At this point in the trip, it would be easy to be, shall we say, cranky. If we were toddlers, somebody would probably be insisting that we nap right about now. After 2.5 hours sleep, Janelle and I rise from our Army-issue style cots (no kidding, we actually slept in a $30 room called the Conference Room), shower and head back to the Trace to catch Team Yellow at the 6 am transition. The end of the Trace is in sight, Texas seems closer than ever, and dreams of Embassy Suites are in our sights.

Team Yellow shows up with a small white basket tied to the grill of their minivan. No, it’s not Easter. It’s their Ham Basket. Apparently this is the time when everything goes to Hell in a HamBasket, and we are officially invited into the HamBasket. We are honored.

The HamBasket and everyone ride to Waffle House, which I’m surprised we haven’t visited thus far in our trip. And after a lovely feast, we split ways.

Even the Garmin is testy at this point. Daniel/Lee/Claire/Sylvia/French Felix is pissed off at us. Forget fooling around with our directions for his own twisted amusement. Now, he’s just plain riled. Apparently, he has overheard us making fun of him. Or maybe he’s been reading our blog. Who’s to say. Either way, he tried to take his revenge.

He ran us into a wall.

We did not actually drive into the wall. But if we had followed his command, we would have, and then we would have landed in the Mississippi River itself. I kid you not. We almost took a picture of the screen.

So here we are in Natchez, Mississippi, wary of our Garmin Leader and bemused by the locals. We have passed restaurants, and we’re not kidding, named “Cock on the Walk,” a bbq place called “Pig Out In,” “Shipleys’ Do-Nuts,” “Taste of Chicago,” “Biscuits and Blues,” “Fat Mamma’s Tamales,” and “James’ Deer Processing Plant.”

We tried to walk into Cock on the Walk, which was closed, so instead asked a local if there was a place to find WiFi in town. NO! she said. She also gave us a look which I can’t quite describe, but I know she thought we were crazy.

In the gift shop next door, there were T-Shirts reading, “Merry Christmas, Y,all,” “How can you drink all day if you don’t start in the morning,?” and “I survived the Natchez Trace.”

In just an hour, we will all have survived the Natchez Trace when Team Conquistadors meets ScottStrong at noon.

Looking forward to Austin. . . . I’m sure we will all be weird enough by then to fit right in.

Team Beach Ball, rolling out. . .

Did I mention I just drank a giant highly caffeinated beverage? I should tell I never drink caffeine. Or rarely do I do this. So right away, I have to go. Have you ever noticed that knowing you have no place to go makes you need to? Also, I should tell you—or confess probably—that I have never peed in the woods. Or behind a tree, or behind a bus, or anywhere other than on a porcelain throne.

In fact, sensing that this might be an issue on this trip, I had asked Janelle and Kathy the day before how exactly a female goes about doing this out in nature. Let’s just say, I now had detailed instructions.

However, I still lacked the guts to try it for the first time. Also, this is a rather ornery bunch, and I wasn’t too sure about letting it all hang on in such close proximity to pranksters.

So just hold that thought, cause I had to hold it for the next 3 hours. . .

So the bus and us take off for the midnight transition, our Ride being detained in Jackson. I timidly put in a request for a potty stop, knowing that I may have to wait until the next rest stop. And that’s ok. I don’t want to delay the riders.

Turns out, I was saved by the fact that the bus was running out of gas. Otherwise who knows how this story may have ended.

Before we can take off in search of gas, Jimmy blows a tire, which means he gets to crash on the bus and eat PB&Js while Buddy works his magic. With Jimmy on the road, we veer off for gas, only to be called back within moments because Heather has a flat. Buddy fixes her and then boards the Agave van armed with tools in case of another mechanical emergency, which it just so happens, happens.

So, both the cyclists and the bus mates are having momentum issues. . .

We follow the bus Garmin (which is silent and has no name) on long dark Mississippi roads to what looks like it may have at one point been a town. At this time, the transmission really fusses. Losing Drive again, we hear Parker say. . . well let’s just say we hear Parker. I had to admit it was nice to know that having 2 girls on his bus didn’t seem to affect his vocabulary. We take that as a compliment.

The first gas station, we couldn’t fit into. Attached to the bus is a trailer, which apparently has no turning radius. The next four gas stations, and I was counting because I really had to go—already I had opted out of 3 side-of-the-road pit stops which the riders and Janelle did not seem to mind taking advantage of—so, the next 4 gas stations were closed.

Parker: does everything in Mississippi close at 7? (Probably it does.)

Finally, we pull into some gas station and I run to the bathroom. Relief. At some point I really do have to make peace with going on the side of the road. I hear Tulip Tree Leaves are nature’s toilet paper.

Back on the bus, I hear Parker calling Joey back home and telling him we’re operating with an “uncertain transmission.” Good to know.

We catch back up with Agave around 9:30 pm. I know now why Keith hasn’t slept since we left on Sunday. Being behind the riders and contributing to their success and helping them when they need it seems imperative. Although taking care of yourself is important, it’s hard to leave when people you care about are out there in the dark struggling and fighting.

This was already on my mind when we hit a patch of construction and John Siddens crashes after his bike trips over an uneven lip in the pavement on a bridge. At the same moment, Parker had called out “car back” . . . a car was about to pass by, and John was now lying in the middle of that lane. Nothing happened, but everything froze.

I have been thinking about the word support, since we’re on the support team. Support means being there, even if it’s just to hold out an arm and help push uphill, or even if it’s just listening, or if it’s swerving the bus out into the opposing lane to block traffic from behind when one of your own is down.

It’s being there, especially if it’s dark and there’s no way to see.

As Robin from Team Yellow had said the night before after getting off their shift at midnight: “I can’t help thinking that there are some of us still out there, riding.”

Somebody’s out there, riding. There’s always somebody out there, riding.

Part 1

Rewind back to 4 pm yesterday (by the way, that means it was Tuesday. Just because we haven’t really slept since Sunday does not mean it’s still Sunday. We have to tell ourselves this.)

Fresh off our TJ Maxx run, we are summoned to the bus—the headquarters/Brain Center/mechanic & medic lair/rundown Hincapie retired cycle support bus. Turns out Taylor’s fat <derrier> has broken his saddle. Anyone who knows Taylor, knows this is a result of some unexplained supernatural phenomenon. Taylor probably wouldn’t break a fresh egg if he sat on it.

So, Kathy absconds with our roomy, luxurious massage van to go to Jackson and get a new saddle for T and deposits us on the bus. What happens on the bus, stays on the bus, we are told. Sorry guys.

We are told we’ll be picked up at the 6 pm transition or shortly after. So in our haste, I grab my small bag and Janelle grabs only her chapstick, sweatshirt and cell phone. Which by the way, this trip has shown that my AT&T service kicks her T Mobile service in the butt.

Also, I should say we both wore shorts today. So bare legged, there we are, stuck on the bus. We announce that we’ll be the entertainment for the trip, since the medic and mechanic are used to staring at cyclists’ butts going 20 mph for 6 hours straight.

Not so, it turns out.

Off the noon transition, Team Polka Dot had flown, hoping to make 130 miles that day. The weather was perfect. I repeat: perfect. And the road was the infamous Natchez Trace. Please remember here that civilization is at least 40 miles off the trace in any direction. This will come into play later. Also, did I mention that the weather was perfect?

So, for the first time, Janelle and I have the front row seat, watching cyclists’ butts in action. Nice. Not long after we settle in, the weather changes and it starts to rain. Then there was lightning and thunder. Or, as Scott from Team Yellow calls it, “a light night rod.”

In less than 2 seconds, the bus fills with 7 sweaty, rainy, somewhat sweet smelling Polka Dot riders. I find myself perched on top of duffle bags. Janelle is trapped between Ed and Mark. Very nice.

I will spare you the sexual innuendo, because most of what happens on the bus actually stays on the bus. And there are children reading, I am told.

Somehow, Janelle manages to be on the receiving end of a shoulder rub from Ed, and also some of his B.O. Quote Janelle: “not the worst.”

After about 20 minutes of giddiness, the party leaves the bus and equipped with rain gear continues on toward their goal of a centennial. Remember, Taylor’s butt is quite sore, and Ed is missing some of his B.O. (We love you, Ed, and you know that.)

Shortly after, we receive word that Team Blue Agave will be running late, due to a minor health issue. This gives the Dots more time to reach their goal, and emotions are soaring. We are counting the mile markers down over the radio and watching pace lines change and riders extend an arm here and there to help team mates up the hills.

Somewhere in there—remember details of the night are very shady now—the transmission has a hiccup. We lose Drive. Coasting along in second, with the sweet sounds of the transmission trying to fall to the concrete, we cheer as they reach the end of their ride, and their goal of 100 miles.

Tears and hugs come quickly after, and people seem to forget about getting a massage altogether. Which is good because there is no flat ground to put the table on, and we must leave with the bus to follow the next team, seeing as how we are hostages now. Bus-napped!

Really, it was kind of awesome to be so close to the action the whole night. However, we had gotten used to free access to modern plumbing and food whenever we liked, and that just wasn’t an option on the bus.

I should add here that just before we were dropped off onto the bus at 4 pm I had inhaled a 16 oz Starbucks Double Shot Vanilla concoction.

Already I had to pee. . . . .

Now… since we have ridden in the dark for the past 2.5 shifts… anybody know what day it is????????? LOL

As we passed about 65 miles, we were greeted to the wonderful site of a full moon. Wow, a SECOND full moon.. no.. make that at least EIGHT full moons… all across the road greeting us as we rolled along!!!! A wonderful pick-me-up from Team Yellow, especially in view of our ride up to then! Now, I do not have to tell you what 8 shining white <derriers> look like at night as you roll up with bike lights.. but it is one hilarious sight. We slapped a couple as we rolled by, and laughed almost the entire way back. What Dustin and the rest of our team cooked up in retaliation is best told by them. hee hee hee

Now, back to the reason we ride… and why you still get out of bed…. as we rolled along mid-ride, we began a very nice and touching thing. We rode two-by-two tonight, and each time we changed who were up front, we spoke aloud the name of someone who we knew who is or was touched by cancer. My choices were my friend John McDermott (mile 51), my late friend Carmon James Powell (mile 54), and the late father of one of the ophthalmic technicians who works in my office, Amos Gillum (mile 56). We each spoke aloud the name of the person mentioned. Makes the ride come home to your heart.

So, maybe we shoulda stayed in bed. But look what we would have missed (although I could have given up the crash.. sigh). Remember that all the discomforts we suffer. The pain of the difficulty of the ride. And it is STILL SO MUCH EASIER than dealing with cancer. So, there it is. I am tired and sore. But cancer free. And I thank God for that. Good night, friends.

PS: A shout out of, “HELLO! and thanks for keeping up with us!” to the patients of the GHS Cancer Center. You folks keep the faith, and keep fighting. We are out here getting our <derriers> beat up for you!!!!

First off, it must be shared that our team actually has 8 riders because we had Perry Lyles riding with us…  Ironically, true to form, he was feeling playful and didn’t want us to have it too easy so he graced us with a head wind for virtually the whole time.  

We were making good time despite this until just after 4 pm when the skies opened up and we had huge rain drops pounding us.  We were perfectly willing to ride on through this until the lightening started and when one bolt shot literally right over our heads, our support crew aka guardian angels made the call and pulled us over and we got in the bus for about 25 minutes until the worst of the storm blew over.  All in all, we ended up with just over 100 miles on the day and it was a very powerful day.  It is so amazing how a group of people can gel into a cohesive unit so quickly.  From such a spectrum of backgrounds, we feel like family and I am so proud to be sharing this journey with them!  Every moment with this amazing group of people shows me over and over the nobility of the human spirit and how rewarding it is to give of yourself and put others first.

We suffered on the bike today… but when we think of the fight that is going on for so many, what we felt was nothing and so there was not a word of complaint and we would have gladly kept riding .. and we’ll get up tomorrow and do it again and just be so thankful that we have been given the opportunity to try to make a difference!

This team has had a great adventure. We’ve been to Cleveland TN, Florence Al, then back to Columbia TN. Then to the Natchez trace. As we travel, we read the blogs and read our notes from our supporters. Team ScottStrong is really a cohesive group on and off the bike. One worries when you throw 8 people together how things will work out. It is working out just fine on this team. We’ve managed to have a TON of fun on our journey, with moments of reflection and inspiration sprinkled in at just the right moments.

Today, I received a message while on the ride that the Cancer Center patients were watching our blog and tracking our progress on the website. I told the team this during one of the breaks, and they immediately dedicated their ride today to all cancer patients at the Cancer Center. We rode for you today …in your honor! Blessings and well wishes to you from Team ScottStrong. The whole C3 team is so excited that you are watching us!

What an incredible experience to ride on the the Nachez Trace (and drive!). The personalities on the team have come out too….we have our comedian, Jerry. And the calming force, Ron Fox. Everyone on the team brings a great attribute.

One thing is certain, we are all wondering what day it is. This journey keeps you moving and the days run together and the time seems to pass by without you knowing. We are headed to LA tomorrow. Then on to Texas. Two more shifts.

As we make this journey with Scott Shuey’s bike, the one thought weighing on my mind for this year’s trip is the pain and sadness that friends and loved ones with cancer must go through. How incredibly painful it must be to hear the news, see your loved ones go through the tests and treatments, and uncertainties.

We continue our journey to Austin…., and think and ponder these thoughts and questions…we know we do this because we can and because it will make a difference.

Thanks to the Bryce team and Katherine coming to Greenville to see us off.  It was great to see you there.  I am riding in memory of Bryce. 

I can’t add any more about the ride to what Daniell, Jessica, and martha Laura have said.  They have said it all.  Tomorrow might be a different day for them as we try to bring reality into why we re riding.

The weather conditions on the Trail were cool but nothing near as bad as what we had Sunday night.  I think we burned more calories taking our clothes off and on as we tried to find that happy medium riding last night.  Hot, cold, hot cold seemed to be the theme.  We had a great pace line rolling and major kudos to JOE for a very successful first pace line experience!!! 

So what did we see on the Trail?  Well, first of all, we saw so many deer on the road I really thought Santa Claus was conducting a training ride of his own in preparation for the holiday season.  We saw 4 skunks (one of which had freshly sprayed and dang - not only did our nostrils burn but we could taste it and about lost our Gatorade), 4 armadillos (who knew they existed outside of Texas), 1 possum and 1 rabbit that just about became road kill by Team Conquistadors.  We also heard coyotes and an owl.    

Shortly before mile 50 we had the pleasure of Bob Kramer’s company on the road.  He stayed on the road with us all the way to our transition point with Team ScottSTRONG.  It was so great riding with you Bob -please join us again!! 

So, holy cow…80 HILL-LACIOUS miles completed and it felt oh so sweet!  We are finally heading to bed (but not before we watch the season finale of Jersey Shore – it’s our guilty pleasure – expect to see some fist pumping on the Trail) before we begin our 6:00am shift in the morning.  How many miles can Team Conquistadors belt out tomorrow???  Well, you will just have to find out tomorrow!!!

Hello to Team Polka Dots and Blue Agave – we look forward to seeing you in Austin!!! Team Mellow Yellow – see you at 6:00am!! Team ScottSTRONG…try not to get your bikes TP’d again and we will see you at noon.

Good night ya’ll!!!!!

I should introduce the team, really, after all this time we’ve been talking. Rude, huh?

Kathy has lost a lung to Lung Cancer and a best friend to Brain Cancer after 18 years. Her journey with Cancer started much earlier, when her sister was diagnosed with Breast Cancer in her early teens. Kathy is a hoot. Enough said.

Janelle is an Equestrian (though adverse to plunging her hands deep into day-old horse placenta when her teacher randomly surprises class with some). Since the BP oil spill, she is also studying environmental science. Next year she will ride to Austin (and I will be lacking a truly awesome road tripper/driver). She also is a fitness trainer at The Cliffs.

I am the team massage therapist and yoga teacher (although they don’t know that they’re in for a group stretch when we get to Austin. . .it won’t be pretty, I know exactly where they’re tight).

Today we gave Buddy back to the bus and loaned Kathy to them for a while. We traded in Aussie Lee on the Garmin for Claire from the Netherlands (can’t understand a word she says, but we giggle and make the German throat noise back at her each time she talks) and then for Italian Sylvia (also unintelligible, but makes me want spaghetti for some reason. Which reminds me, team ScottStrong may have wine to go with it.)

This morning we made it to Team Conquistador’s transition–haven’t seen them since Greenville. And honestly, I may not recognize them again, since I massaged them under thousands of stars on the Trace. At noon, we connected with Team ScottStrong, also for the first time. And an Alabama Sheriff. We told him we loved his state. True statement. We told him it was our first time on the Trace. Also true (for me).

Drove through Saltillo to get here (which took approximately 2 minutes. . .by the way, when the Garmin says “approaching Saltillo on the left,” does it know that the town is actually on both sides of the road, or is that a subtle put down?) Anyway, in tiny Saltillo, we saw a shop–for what we’re unsure–with the words “Just a Piddlin” on the window. That is exactly the opposite of what we are doing out here, and for the betterment of everyone back at home not crammed into a too-small passenger van forgetting what the smell of their own B.O. smells like, let me tell you how this trip works. . .

Every 6 hours, at midnight, 6 am, noon and 6 pm, we have a transition, which means that the team on the road meets up with the team about to take over. Which involves coordinating their support van and the massage/medic van …. team Beach Ball, of course.

The transition points have been mapped out ahead of time, but are in constant flux. For example, today we started out a full shift behind schedule. Which means we are literally following a highlighted line through the mountains of multiple states, unsure until sometimes moments before the transition, where exactly we will all converge.

A short list of obstacles include: unreliable cell phone coverage, spontaneous need for potty breaks, planning forages back to the main roads for food, photo opps in front of every state line, road blockages, flat tires, run-arounds from the Garmin pilot, and the fact that our brain power is dwindling as we speak the farther we get into this trip.

Oh, and a trip to a TJ Maxx in which we will look for more shorts for Janelle.

So, although the folks in Mississippi may be just Piddlin Around (something to aspire to, like Office Space), we are definitely not!

Ron wrote earlier about what a difference a year makes.  I couldn’t have said that any better.  Last summer I trained with the group to be ready to ride my bike to Austin.  Little did I know I was training for a larger challenge.  Shortly before we were to leave for Austin last year, I found that I had cancer, AGAIN.  So I came along for the car ride, not the bike ride.

Fast forward a year and I am on a bike riding stronger than I was before I got sick.  I hesitate telling people that I had cancer twice.  It used to be the one thing that I hated to hear.  I guess I always focused on the fact Lance Armstrong had such an aggressive cancer, beat it and is so healthy. So it happened, I became another statistic. With lots of prayers, an incredibly supportive family and some great doctors and nurses, I beat cancer again.

I think the hardest part of having cancer is the “comeback”.  This time was harder and easier than the first time. Easier in that I knew it was going to be hard and I couldn’t give up.  Harder in that I was much weaker this time around.

For me, there are so many correlations between having cancer and the Challenge to Conquer Cancer.  On our ride last night, we had LOTS of rolling hills.  Hearing that you have cancer is like an uphill.  You have to be prepared to work hard.  Normally, there is a downhill to follow.  So you get a break from hard work.  My husband, Will, and my Mama and Daddy were kind of like my downhill.  They did everything they could to make things easier for me.  Then, you have a team.  The team rides as one.  We support each other.  Unity is Strength.  My team from last year was supportive from the day that I was diagnosed.  They were with me in the darkest moments.  They even put up with my “drunk” texting from the hospital or chemo appointments.  (you know, lots of medicine makes me very loopy).  They came and sat with me in the hospital and made me funny signs when I “escaped” (thanks to Dr. Go and Stacey). They, in essence, pulled me through the night.  They put me in the middle of the paceline and made things easier for me.  I could go on forever with the correlations.

Everyone has a personal reason for participating in the Challenge to Conquer Cancer.  For me this year, more than any other, was to prove to myself that I had beaten cancer.  I can say without a shadow of doubt, Laurens 2, Cancer 0.

I wish I had the writing skills of my friends, like Kelly and Jeni… but I don’t. But these are the words of a rambling man, even after a good night’s sleep, and being awake and refreshed.

Now… WHERE IS BREAKFAST ??????????????

Anyways…some quick things about yesterday…

We had a great second shift last night.  It began at 6pm and we enjoyed some much need warmth and sushine for about 1-1/2 hours before the temperatures began to drop dramatically. Not as cold as the night before, but it cetainly made it tough to plan on what to wear later. The first part of our ride was relatively flat, but once we hit the now infamous “loop” (yes Bo, it actually happened/exists), the rollers began and then eventually we hit three climbs that would closely resemble the watershed.  Not too difficult,  just long and sustained.  Enough time to for Donna to find her legs and take off and really pull us up them…maybe it was the McDonalds stop at 9:30pm mid-ride that help her.  Personally…it gave me the “McLegs”.   Jen and Anne were great in the support vehicles as they periodically sang to us during the ride and gave us the “you have this hill” pep talk.  Tedd was his usual self and was cracking jokes the entire ride.  As far as Laurens, Robin, Ron, and myself?… we feed off  Tedd and then the joking appeared to snowball for most of the night.  A dog did run after us one time and everyone was yelling frantically to get him to stop.  I think it may have been the six Gatorade bottles that made him slow down…or the voice from the back of the paceline…”Now dog, you must stop…Dog?  Dog?”  (in a very calming voice). 

We had a great ride…a “well oiled machine” is Team Yellow and we must have looked like a lightnight bolt streaking down the road…alot of fun with moments of great focus.  As we pack this morning, eat a good breakfast (never can put too much syrup on a waffle) and prepare to hit the road, we are looking forward to our midright ride tonight on the Natchez and seeing Team Blue Agave and Team Conquistadors during our transitions. 

On a side note, Donna and I have survived the Team Yellow initiation.

Some early morning words (of wisdom) from the Conquistadors after their fantastic midnight ride…

on western medicine-
“…totally healed by a holistic healer, that healer should be a millionaire!”

on looking your age-
“I’m 58, but people say I look homeless.”

on the uber bright moving light in the sky-
“It’s a UFO! No really that is not an airplane!”

Team Beach Ball has traded in Aussie Lee, our navigator, for Claire from the Netherlands. We can’t understand a word she says, but she sure is entertaining! Pretty sure if she were standing infront of us talking we would be sprayed with spit, good thing she’s just a Garmin.

We are looking forward to sunlight on the Natchez Trace now that we have seen it lit by moonlight. Seems like the perfect place to continue this 1600 mile bicycle adventure. That’s a good thing because it looks like we are on it for a long while. Now let’s just hope the governing folks of the Trace don’t notice we are a parade in need of a license…

Catch you all at the next transition. Goodbye Tennessee, we have enjoyed your beautiful countryside!

Massaging people on hotel beds is a weird thing. Breathing in BioFreeze in a small enclosed room is also a little strange.

It was close to 2 am when I went back to my room. Although at first I couldn’t get it. My hotel key was next to my phone and had de-magnetized. Looked like I would have to crash on the floor of someone else’s room. For a moment I thought that having a bed to myself for 2 straight nights was going to turn out to be too good to be true.

Ate the rest of my Thai leftovers before I crawled back into bed, but was too tired to brush my teeth first.

Wow, after reading that, no one will ever ask me out again.

As most of you know the P3 family lost a very important member this spring and his name is on the back of each of our jerseys. So inevitably the more time you spend behind someone, the more you think about the void in our team.

When Dale Ernhart passed away unexpectedly in a race, he was nearly seemlessly replaced by his son Dale Ernhart Jr. Dale Jr possesed the same amazing natural talent that his father had. Not just any talent it is the kind of talent people cant help but notice. Everyone thought Dale Sr. was the best but apparentley that apple didnt fall too far from the tree. People could’nt help but cheer on Dale Jr. as he went on to be one of the stand out names in all of proffessional auto racing.

Last month we all cheered as Taylor Lyles took the spot as the state time trial champion in his first year of cycling. And as we see this young talent hit the road in his fathers spot this year on the Austin ride. You cant help but notice that Taylor has a stronger look in his eyes than he ever has, a new determination to not only finish this ride, but take the spot as the rider that is a leader, fighter, and yet has a understanding and compassion for why we are raising money. He has been a class act all season long and it is obvious that once again the apple didnt fall far from the tree. Taylor it is great to see you driving the black number 3 car. (or ride the black Scott bike)

So we were off and by that I mean up, then up some more. The climbing wouldnt let up until we made it to our transition point. We gladly got off of the bikes, loaded in the van and spent the next few hours telling dirty jokes instead of sleeping like we should.

I woke up for day two and met a Joy. Joy and her husband were so touched by what we are doing they could not stop telling the 50 people they were with about the Challenge to Conquer Cancer. To have so many people come up to me to tell me something nice about the ride was a great feeling, It was excactly what I needed to start the day. If there were 10 thousand Joys along the side of the road I think we could ride straight to Austin without stopping. So we hit the road. I dont know if it was lack of sleep (John Siddens snores), or just a bad day but I really had to dig deep today. I could not catch my breath and that has never been a problem for me, so I was obviously not at my best but I tried not to show it. After the ride I was brought back to life by a great massage, some cold beer, and the best elixer of all more dirty jokes in the van. I dont know if there has been a clinical trial done on it but potty humor and laughing until it hurts could be just the thing that cures cancer.

Aussie Lee was no kinder than Daniel to us, as far as sending us in meaningless circles down random country highways. The direction icon reads South, however we are “barely going South,” Kathy says, according to our fold out map taking up the entire back seat which reminds me of reading the Wall Street Journal while walking through the lunch rush at college. Dangerous, and leaves you with newsprint on your fingers. . . which sometimes you forget about and then rub your face.

Seeing a lot of random shite on our back country tour of Tennessee: a goat pooping on the side of the road, hay bales with Halloween faces painted on the sides, buffalo, a flipped over minivan, an out of order sign on a bathroom that really wasn’t at a Breeze In gas station, Gilmore Girls reruns playing at that same redneck stop, and my favorite: a plum purple VW 1/2 size van pulling a little purple trailer. I feel like the little girl in the Despicable Me movie at the theme park spontaneously shouting FLUFFY!, only it was PURPLE! (Seriously, best movie of the year.)

Also, did I mention the team we were following was wearing Viking Horns coming out of their helmets? The cows probably thought we were the weird ones.

We have made it through strange sounding towns like Vol, Caney Springs, Murphreesboro, Soddy-Daisy, McMinnville and Ducktown.

Today we have made 2 transitions: the Polka Dot team at noon. I was told after getting off the bike, I was their first priority, beer was the second. Awesome. The Blue Agave/Viking helmet wearing folks got off at 6. I was told someone wanted to rip my hands off and keep them for himself. Also awesome, although in a special sort of way. 8^)

We have holed up in Franklin, TN, to sleep for a few hours, then massage the Yellow team when they get off at midnight and come back here. Then, after a few more hours sleep, we’ll go out and catch the Conquistadors when they’re done at 6. Did I mention I normally go to bed around 10 pm and sleep for 8-9 hours?

Of all the random things we saw today, one inspired me: a church message board saying: faith makes things possible, not easy.

I am not complaining, being close to someone living with cancer has taught me not to do that. There is always something to be grateful for, or if you need to look at it this way, there is always someone worse off. Faith is showing up on this trip and believing that it’s making a difference for someone you care about. Or maybe for someone you don’t know yet, or will never meet. Faith is choosing to keep an open heart. No one said it wouldn’t hurt.

I’ve always believed that my glass is half full. It helps me deal with things when you are presented with difficult news. last October a very dear friend of mine was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer . This year he is doing well and is gaining strength everyday. His illness gave me the desire to do something, I need to thank him, and I will. Through his terrible illness , I am doing something I may not have ever done. Tom you are my hero.

I’m going to bed now so I can prepare for my 6 hours in the saddle tomorrow, and I will have a smile on my face.

Quick update from 1/3 of Team Beach Ball here. We are transitioning in Caney Springs TN in a church parking lot, making God proud

Blue Agave finally came through on that tequila tip, again making God proud

The cows around here are awfully talkative. Perhaps thinking the viking helment’s of team Blue Agave make this team one funny herd of cows?

I am so proud of the new riders on the team.  What an air of excitement they possess.  It’s good to have that newness around, makes me feel good about what I am doing and why.  If you read the blog last year, you know we brought Scott Shuey’s bike along every mile of the route.  He was one of our warriors who was supposed to go to Austin with us and unfortunately died before we left.  This year I have the honor of riding with his best friend Jerry Jannick who is riding Scott’s bike, all to honor him. Jerry had never ridden before so a what a great accomplishment for him. By the way, Jerry provides such humor to the team.  We are continuously cracking up!!!  Thank you, Jerry, for bringing your heart and soul with us on this journey.

This is my 3rd time riding to Austin. I am so moved each and every year by the new friendships I make. We are having so much fun together,  People can change a team but the cause remains the same. I am blessed with warm, compassionate riders around me.  Thank you, Ron Jerina, for just putting me out there and helping me grow physically on the bike and emotionally and spiritually in my heart. I will never forget these priceless moments I am experiencing.

We had 4 new riders this year & one new team manager. This had most of us a little anxious about our first shift. How cold was it going to be? What do I need to wear? What gloves?, etc. Well, we all made it down & then we traveled to find Team Yellow. As we tracked up the road, we came across them. They looked awesome in their double paceline. We were excited to see them & I know they were excited to pass the baton & get some sleep. We then proceeded to find a good spot to transition. This is not as easy as it seems, because you have to find a good spot for 2 vans, a large bus w/ trailer & people walking around getting ready. It really is a lot for a first-timer to take in. A couple of us had slightly misjudged what gear we needed to wear due to the lower temps than expected. Team Yellow rolled in looking great & we were pumped to see them & get on with our turn.

Once we got geared up we were ready to roll. As Kerrie led us out, there was an air of relief as we were now officially on our first shift with the P3 Challenge to Conquer Cancer. So much goes into what we are doing & we have been working so hard for this moment & the ones that follow.  This was the first time we would be on the road by ourselves, one team within the P3C3 larger team.  It is a great honor for us to be riding for those who have and who are fighting against cancer.  I will tell you that having our van covered in magnets honoring & memorializing and having arm warmers covered in names of those people is a very humbling experience.  We are riding for each of them & all of the other Cancer Warriors.

Being the first time that we rode together as a complete team, we had to gel a little.  It wasn’t that hard to gel as we all are here for the cause of the P3C3 and each are fun-loving people.  We do have riders of different paces and styles in our team & that at first can present some challenges, but this is not a race.  We are here for the journey.  This doesn’t mean we need to coast & it doesn’t mean we have to put the hammer down either.  Being on new, strange roads that we’ve never ridden before in the dark and having chilly temps doesn’t make it any easier, except for the fact that we are here TOGETHER for the same cause.  At first we seemed a little uncoordinated as it was the first time we’d ridden as a team & it was the first time at least one of our team had ridden in the dark.  However, we got it together & started to get a little more coordination if among our team.  We worked very well at alerting our members if there were cars passing, rocks, holes  or other debris to steer clear of.  We would make some crazy comment to keep each other loose and enjoying the ride.  We continued to gel as we rode in a closer group most of the time unless we were making a single file line to allow cars to pass.  As we got to our last hour of our first shift, we wanted to finish strong.  We wanted to make up a little ground & we did.  We worked as a TEAM and pushed the pace just a little more than before.  We were able to do this because we were starting to trust each other and pay attention to each other, slowing when we needed to & pushing it when we could.

We cruised for a good while & then I heard over the radio, “can you make 8 more miles?”  We were IN THE GROOVE & knew that we would make that 8 miles in great fashion to go transition with our TEAM POLKA DOT.  As we did with Team Yellow, the Polka Dots gave us a warm reception when we reached our finish line for our shift and transitioned with them.  We felt great, shift #1 was under our belts and all the jitters were gone.  We now have been out there & know what to expect and will have a great several days on our Ride to Austin for the Challenge to Conquer Cancer.  The thing is, that even though we are riding bikes, this is NOT about the BIKE.  It IS about the JOURNEY.  I am proud to be a part of Team ScottSTRONG along with team managers Lisa & Ron as well as fellow riders Kerrie, Sheila, Jeff Jerry &  Marty.  I am glad to be on this JOURNEY with all of you.

Thanks to everyone for your prayers, well-wishes, & warm thoughts.  It sure made my first shift and OUR first shift as a TEAM a complete success and has us well on our way to Austin.

I am now in AL. waiting to leave again tomorrow for our first 6hr. leg of this incredible journey.  I truly believe my friend Scott is riding with me to  get me up those hills and stay focused when the journey gets tough. Until later LiveSTRONG and SCOTTSTRONG!

Dad – the trip without you and Melanie this year joining us this year in Austin will be so different.  I will never forget how amazing it was to have you both their as we arrived in Austin last year.  Please continue to pray for us and all that cover the many of miles as I am sure you are already doing.  I love you both so much!!  What amazing parents.

Debbie – no words can express what it meant to see you yesterday.  Your heart is one of an angel.  I admire your never ending strength and NO ONE can not say that you have no been a true fighter every day.  I love you and think of you every hour I am riding.  This journey is for YOU.

Elizabeth – the beauty of a sweet little girl is a priceless gift.  I am blessed to have met you and I am thrilled to carry your magnet along with us until we return home and give it to you to keep.  Keep that beautiful smile!

This year greeted us with a gift or warmer temps.  After most of us purchased mountains of winter gear before the trip this year we quickly began shedding them within the first hour of our shift last night.  Amazing rock walls and the sounds of a running stream set the stage for our miles last night.  How I managed to use hand warmers in my shoes instead of foot warmers…lol…and then held them in my hands once in bed to warm up before falling fast a sleep.

More to come.  Next shift is from 6pm until midnight.

Robin Blackburn

Team Yellow

We have an amazing team. Harry has earned the name Prancer, Mark is definately an incredible climber… bless his heart he almost fell over slowing down to stay with the team… Taylor- Tay, Ed well we all know him as legs hernando, frame… freeze frame, Lee Anne aka miss LA! and finally Super Sally and Amazing Dawn. We ROCKED it today. It felt amazing gliding down the mountain, feeling the turns.. (tom dont read this) I looked down at one point and was doing 49 miles per hour. HOLY CRAP! Bob Kramer called me fearless speedy Jeni. Hmmm I responded… it is the only time I am allowed to speed! I loved watching the trees buzz by, the smell of the air, the beautiful colors. I felt each turn as I led down the mt. I had to lead because I was the one holding everyone back. Ed, Taylor, and Perry pushed me up 2 of the MT. I managed to squeeze out 2 mt. climbs without any hands.

Better sweet ending. I remembered things about Perry and Ed and JD last year. How cold they were and how many stops they made. How upset I was that I could not help. And they were so cold.

Today was so different. I thought about Naomi, and Mark, Jennifer, Laurens, Rene, and my Dad. What they were going through. I heard Taylor say,”Go Jeni, grab a wheel… go, go go… and I tried so hard to think of them. To dig deep. Push through the pain and just go.

Cancer is a lot like that. You never know what to expect when you go to the Dr. What they will find. Every visit you worry about what they will find what is around the corner. Today was YOUR day. Not mine.

The little engine that could…. Did it, all because of an amazing team! (miss you perry, miss you JD… wish you both were here. I will say… I have met some incredible peeps. I would not trade this experience for anything.

We traded in our navigator, British Daniel, for Lee the Aussie. He is much more fun to listen to, now we just have to figure out how to make him not send us in loops (literally)…..

We had a local visitor at the noon transition. He stopped to see what the parade was all about while he was sippin’ on some shine, then he was going home to pray to the creator for our safety. Gotta love the locals!

Steep downhills meant some hefty climbing first. Everyone is mentioning their low backs, but most are still feeling good. Finding it easier to climb up on the table and work Thai Massage style. This makes for a rather interesting picture for people driving by. Ah well!

Stopped at an Applebees for lunch. Civilization! . . .

Just kidding. Already missing the beautiful mountains. Talk to you soon.

Tonight we begin our 6-hour shifts and our first begins at midnight tonight We’ll ride until 6AM Tuesday morning.  Hopefully it will all be on the Natchez Trace Race Parkway.  The show goes on and the emoptions continue to run very high. I wish to again thank all of my contributors that made it possible for  to participate in this cause.

Joe

Now, on the lighter side…. half the ability to blog is to pour your heart and feelings out, but half is the crazy things that happen during the journey. So, let’s see. Hmmmmmm. Toyota Sienna minivan. Team Managers in the spacious front seats… driver, navigator. Check. Dustin (6’7″ 270 lbs), me (6’6″ 235 lbs), Jimmy Brehm (5’11″ 185 lbs)… all sharing the second row of seats (seats spoken sarcastically!), Beth, Heather, and Renee stuffed in the 3rd row of seats (even smaller). 2 bags for each of us. bike stuff. bike helmets. computers, Kindles, ipads, helmets with horns (see photos on Facebook.. a whole different story!!!).. and you can envision just what adventures we live in transition!! Last night we laughed until we cried discussing definitions from the ‘Urban Dictionary.’ Now, I have been alive almost 54 years, but I NEVER heard of some of the stuff in THAT website…. I’ll need a month to recover from it…. LOL!

I also want to thank Karen Goodman, a great friend and sister to Carla McDermott. She offered her home to us tonight.. which was unbelieveable since she had no idea who is on this team!!! LOL.. BUt with the change in plans, we cannot stay in Nashville tonight, we are pushing on to somewhere south of Memphis, which saves us 7 hours in this spacious van (thanks Ron!!! LOL) tomorrow… Karen, I will take a rain check on visiting you.. I sure miss you and your infections laugh…..

Ok, we are nearing our transition. gotta begin to get mentally prepped and physically stretched.

THank for following our blog! Team Agave loves each of you….

Danielle and Jess here from Team Conquistadors!  So I’m sure you are wondering what what the heck the title of our post means…well 3 hours on the bike heading into the middle of the night we can tend to get a little delerious so Disney movies pop into our heads and of course Jess and I start quoting lines from Finding Nemo…nothing like the sound of Dori’s voice popping into your head…”Just Keep Swimming, Just Keep Swimming.” ” I speak whale “Heeeeelllllooooo” ~ okay we’ll you get the picture.

We rolled into Murphy, NC and transitioned with Team Yellow – it was so great to see all of them.  When we got to the hotel around 1:30 am in Chattanooga we got to see Team ScottSTRONG before they headed out to transition with Team Yellow.  A HUGE THANK YOU to Kerrie for the goodies you left in our room for us – it was just what the doctor ordered after that little stretch. 

After we got settled into our hotel room we made a trip over to the Awful Waffle (Waffle House for your notherners who may not get it).  Kevin, Jess, Martha Laura, Justina and I had a nice late, late dinner (or really early breakfast) and talked about past experinces from previous rides as 3 of us are new this year. 

Today will just be a somewhat relaxing day…rumor has it we are going to tour the Jack Daniels Factory later today…we hope they serve samples!!!   We will begin our first of three 6 hour stretches on the bike tonight starting at midnight on the Nacthez Trace Trail…long dark roads with no street lights should be REAL interesting on the bike…THE FREAKS COME OUT AT NIGHT RIGHT???  We are excited at the possibility of warmer weather tonight!! 

Hi to The Polka Dot Team and Team Blue Agave – we haven’t had a chance to see you guys yet but we hope to transition with you soon!! 

More to come…PEDALSTRONG and LiveSTRONG!!!

Danielle and Jess

The team was so excited after finishing their first shift. The team is clicking and we are still full of life despite 3 hours of sleep in the last 24 hours.

Team polka dot was looking ready to get going. They began the first of six hour shifts at 6am.

Ron foxx is an awesome co team manager. Proud to be on team scott strong!

Now here we are on the road worrying about each other and offering words of encouragement through the pain and unknown conditions. I would not trade this experience for the world and have learned so much about myself and how to push beyond anything I ever thought I was capable of. This must be what cancer warriors do every day in their fight with such bravery and determination. We ride for you and are so proud to do it.

Second shift here we come! We are blessed with beautiful weather and are ready to pedal through Tennessee.

It was very hard, as always, to leave RJ, Reed and Ridge behind again this year but even though it was very sad leaving them, I know they understand why we are doing this and support us 100%.  Boys, make sure Mamama and Grandma go to bed early and you show them how good you are when it comes to homework and studying.   I am missing you and love you all.

Our first shift started at midnight and went to 3AM.  I was very excited about getting on the road but sad that Beth ad Joey were not riding with us this year.  Beth is riding with the Blue Agave team and I really miss talking with her as we ride through the night and Joey (this ride would have never happened without all his help) had to stay back in Greenville this year.  But we are really lucky to have Donna and Scott riding with us this year as the newbies of the team.  They are both a lot of fun to be around and keep us smiling and laughing on and off the bikes.  The weather was much better this year than last.  Robin was not shaking herself off the bike because she was so cold and we were actually looking forward to downhills to cool off a little.  It was a balmy 42 degrees this year compared to 30 last year.

Shortly before oure ride last year we got the shocking and sad news that Laurens’ cancer was back.  She was not able to ride with our team except for a couple of hours the very last day last year.  This year she is cancer free and riding very strong.  It was so great having her pull us through the hill this morning and we were all feeding off her energy.  I can’t explain how wonderful it is riding with her on this ride.  What a difference a year makes…

First 6 hour shift today. 6pm – midnight.  Time for some food.

British Daniel took us on a back road adventure on our hunt for the Holiday Inn (It definitely took me back to my college days spent in good ole Bristol TN). The counter lady was more than hospitable, giving us her family rate.

Now for our ponderment of the day… how do they get these hotel sheets so darn tucked in? We are thinking there is a sheet super hero whose powers are to stuff the sheets under so tight you can’t get your toes in. We don’t think he is very popular though, walking through walls and flying is way cooler

Next on the agenda is the noon transition. You will hear from Team Beach Ball (Kathy, Kelly, and myself) again then, that is if I can mooch some wi-fi from somewhere. Although we have had more luck finding wi-fi hot spots than cell service!

Any suggestions on a new Garmin accent? We have had enough of Daniel and his not British enough accent. Hmmm, wonder if there is an Australian guy?

Hey Judy .. I have only lost  my phone 3 times so far.

And oh, how we trust technology. The Garmin tells us to turn onto an unlined, unlit back country Tennessee road, and that is what we do. Janelle tells us “Welcome to Tennessee, Y,all!” Over and over again we obey the Garmin until we finally pop out (from the back way, of course) next to a Holiday Inn Express. Turns out, team Polka Dot has beat us there, and their Garmin took them down DIRT roads. At least we had pavement. Still the British Daniel is a wee bit too much for us, and we have muted him. Tomorrow we may trade him in for a new Garmin accent to guide us on our back country path.

Crashing for the night. Going to catch up with the noon transition and keep up with all the shifts tomorrow. Turns out it already feels like the most natural thing to do to be massaging sweaty, semi-undressed cyclists on the side of the road in the middle of the night while staring up at the sky.

One thing is sure, you can see the stars better out in the country. It’s a nice reminder to keep your head up.
-kelly

Team Beach Ball reporting from just outside Clayton, Georgia. Kelly is massaging Team Blue Agave (we are hoping for a tequila tip…) on the side of the road right outside Blackbearcreek Antiques. Hearing some ‘honk if you hate cancer’ going on as people drive by, which of course always helps with morale!

Probably going to try to fit in some sleep time here shortly. Then check back in bright and early!

Today started with a very wonderful heartfelt sendoff by a large crowd of friends and family and a few speaches by hospital staff.. then we pedalled off with much fanfare.  The Polka Dot team had the first leg so we kept riding and did three fairly uneventfull hours.  We rode at an easy enough pace that we got to talk and get to know each other better and talk of our connections to this great cause.

Challenge of the day was getting the bikes on top of the van whick took a trip to lowes and some wd40 and some channel locks.

I got some great pictures and video which will be uploaded once I get onto a wi-fi connection.

The team is learning about each other learning each others story and connection to the cause. We are all here with open hearts. I know that for sure.

We passed the Polka Dot Team en route to Clemson, SC.  Great job you guys!!!  We met up with The Yellow Team at Mellow Mushroom – great times and great laughs!

Now we are in the van, bellies full and heading to meet Team Blue Agave.  Team Conquistadors will ride from 9:00pm – 12:00 am.  Now the fun begins…sleep…what sleep!?!?!

Found a tractor supply for some much needed noise makers, cow bells! We want to be as loud and annoying when we greet the incoming riders during transitions

Transitioned in a Blood Connection parking lot in Seneca. Everyone is feeling good. The sun is dropping so it’s getting a little colder.

Thanks to everyone who came out for the big send off. At one point everyone gathered around said aloud the names of the people who had or have cancer, the people they’re taking this journey for. You are in our thoughts.

Georgia here we come!

After months of training and fundraising for the Challenge…it’s fianally here! The day I get to honor Scott Shuey and ride his bike to Austin. A great honor at that I am riding a man’s bike who has changed my life in many ways. I have seen a very athletic man lose a battle to cancer and never ask why God or complain of pain and suffering. For that I am a better Husband, Father and friend to all. I only wish Scott could be here to ride along side me, but I know he will be riding along with me.

I would like to thank my wife and kids for supporting me along the way and to the Shuey family for supporting Team SCOTTSTRONG in everyway possible to get to this point today!

Well Austin here I come ready or not I am gonna get there and experience what Scott should have.

To those who helped me reach my goal to participate in this journey, and to all of those who are struggling with cancer but still can smile and persevere, I offer my deepest and most heartfelt thanks!  This ride is for you!

I wish to thank each and everyone of you who has contributed financially, spiritually, physically and emotionally all these years to my bike ride.  Without your support I would not be riding.  I ride for your loved ones who have been affected by this violent disease. Please continue to keep all of us in your thought and prayers.

Much love to all the riders and managers!

RideSTRONG!

Beth B

Austin brought us together!

So…24 hours from right now we will be gathered on the grassy hill in front of the Greenville Hospital System’s Cancer Center. The sendoff itself is an incredible sight. Last year, I was overcome by emotion as I turned our team van right onto Faris Road. To look and see all of the cyclists, then the support vehicles and the bus…it was truly overwhelming. We were quite a group. My uncontrollable sobbing totally took me by surprise. It was only the beginning of a very emotional week! Maybe I’ll be better prepared for that tomorrow.

As meaningful as last year’s trip was, this year’s might be even more so. The ugly beast that is cancer hit a little closer to home this year. In March, Cara, my dear friend (and as close as I have to a little sister) was diagnosed with breast cancer. I am so excited because Cara is one of our cancer warriors and will be joining us in Austin for the LiveSTRONG Challenge weekend. It will mean a lot to Tedd and me to have her there with us. Then, my best friend, Joy, lost her dad to cancer in early September after a long fight with sarcoma. Joy was very interested in our trip because she’s a great friend, but it took on a different meaning when her family became more closely involved this year. Jim had also been chosen as one of our cancer warriors for the 2010 trip. I have known many people who have fought cancer and lost the battle and many who have beaten it, so cancer is nothing new to me. The trip just means more this year because of these close ties.

Tomorrow is the big day. Team Yellow is ready to squeeze into the Sienna to cover a lot of miles over the next 4 1/2 days. We are as ready as we can be for the unknown. We are ready for cold rides, sleepless nights, unforeseen problems, a slap-happy team, tears, laughter and a whole lot of fun! Thanks to all of our family and friends who have supported us and continue to support us this week! We couldn’t do this without you! I hope you will all continue to keep up with us here on the blog!

ons better if I can just close my eyes and people can tell me when we are over the bridge or safely through the turns on the mountain when the fear of plummeting down the side is gone.  However, when you are the driver, and you have other precious people in the car, you have to keep your eyes wide open and muddle through the panic attack.  I share this somewhat frivolous, but very real phobia of mine because I had it hit me in the face once again this week.

I had a meeting at my son’s school on Monday and when I got out of the meeting I noticed 3 missed calls from my husband.  I was on my way to run a few errands before I had to return to school to pick up the boys.  I called Ron on the way to Big Lots and asked “Hey I saw that you called 3 times is everything ok?”  He replied, “Beth called, Rene’s cancer is back”.  6 words.  Many things run through your mind when you hear that kind of news, but my reply was, “Where are they?  How do I get to them?”  Turns out they were on top of a mountain.  I’ve lived in Greenville my whole life and had never visited the towers on top of Paris Mountain until Monday.  As I maneuvered the turns in my gigantic SUV, I wasn’t sure if all 4 tires were gonna stay on the road.  Didn’t matter.  All I could think of was getting to them.  Well, my heart was fluttering and probably skipping some beats, but I think it was a combination of emotions running through my mind and very scared heart. I was uncertain where I was going but I knew I would get there, and I did.   Once there, I jumped out of my car and ran to them.  I just hugged them and then sat with them for a bit before we said anything.  Ron came up too, shortly after I did.  I didn’t have a lot of time because I had to return to elementary school to pick up our children.  Before I left that mountaintop, I reminded Rene that she has lots of people that are by her side.  Lots of people to help out when she needs it or even when she doesn’t realize she might need it.

I hate cancer!  The word itself is even awful.  I guess thats why some people call it the Big C, because its an awful word to even say!

When my father-in-law was diagnosed with cancer we were all very scared to say the least.  When the doctor came out of surgery and said, “We took his bladder, gave him a chemo wash and got it all” I was so relieved.  That was way before I really got to know cancer.  Before I got to know how cancer works.  To say I was in shock when he told us it had come back, is an understatement.  He fought so hard.  I never, not even once, thought he would lose the battle.  It was devastating.  Our world was UPSIDE DOWN.  By the grace of God, Ron found an outlet for his grief in exercise.  Running, then cycling which led him to participate in the Palmetto Peloton Project’s charity ride.  In 2007, he was a top fundraiser and we won a trip to the LiveStrong Challenge in 2007 where the idea of the “Challenge to Conquer Cancer” ride was born.  This year is our third annual journey.  It has been a way for us to do something.  We hope that with the dollars for research, doctors will find a cure.  It has also, to our pleasant surprise, been very healing.  We were angry and broken after losing so many family and friends to cancer.  But what we have found out along the way is that there are so many other people with similar stories.  Cancer is universal.  We all can do our part to help.  I am proud and honored to be a part of this beautiful group of people who are fighting side by side. I think we all hate cancer, but it has done ONE good thing.  It brought us all together.

I look forward to our send off tomorrow at 3:00.  I almost said I look forward to starting our 3rd annual journey tomorrow, but that isn’t a true statement.  The journey already started.  Lots of planning and training began a long time ago.  Logistically we get on the road tomorrow.  Lots of uncertainty ahead.  Traffic.  Temperature.  Wind.  Sleep Deprivation.  Darkness.  Animals running in front of us.  There might even be a bridge or a curvy road without a guardrail.  Doesn’t matter.  We will be side by side.  I do ask for your prayers.  I pray that God watches over us and continues to guide our minds and hearts to be the loving people he created us to be.  Thank you for following us, supporting us and keeping us in your thoughts and prayers.  Austin, here we come.

the 2009 LiveStrong Challenge 5K

Cancer has a way of spreading fear that can fill the deepest parts of our souls.   How can one person stop this from happening?  I am realizing that it is a simple act of love.  This C3 family that I belong to has more love and shown more love to me that it has proven to be far more powerful than fear itself.

For weeks my husband, Scott, has been after me for the names of those I wanted placed on my arm-warmers and magnets this year.  I have avoided this task so many times until this week.  I finally admitted to him that with all the names it became overwhelming and I began to let fear sneak in.  The love of my family, my friends, and even a stranger has once again cleared my heart and I am more hopeful that all of the efforts this year will make HUGE differences in treatment and hopefully finding a cure to end Cancer one day very soon.

 I am honored and proud to carry the names that I have chosen for this trip this year.  I ride for my Dad… for Debbie… Janis… Grandma and Grandpa… John… LouAnne… Bobby… Rene… Curran…and so many more.  Our journey will be different than last year.  We will have highs and lows along the way, possibly get lost, and likely miss having breakfast before a shift in the middle of a tropical storm (it happened!) but one thing is certain…. We will have plenty of love and support.

Robin Blackburn

It’s been amazing just how much this ride has changed my outlook on life and allowed me to see in the lives of so many others. Just today I asked Mike one of our security guards, if he would sign his wifes name on my arm warmer, because I would like to ride in memory of her. She lost the battle several weeks ago after finding out she had cancer just days before. His eyes watered as he wrote her name, and he just rubbed his finger over the name several times and thanked me. I could see the loss in his eyes, but also see the pride to have her, in name, make the journey with me and my team.

I think that we are all going on a journey, and as a group we will ride Strong to help others LiveStrong.

There is a lot standing between that team and Austin.  We will cover 1600 miles, cross through 8 states and climb hundreds of feet.  We pass through Georgia’s high country and climb over the Appalachian Mountains.  We will see the foothills of the great Smokey Mts and cross the mighty Mississippi.  There will be detours we didn’t expect and road conditions we couldn’t prepare for.  I am willing to bet someone will get lost and at least one van will end up needing repair.  There will be tears and exhaustion and our patience will be tested.  We will bonk.  We will flat.  We will have our share of road rash.  I am counting on a couple sleepless nights and I am prepared to lots of fast food.  None of that will matter.  In fact it will seem like a walk in the park. Not because we are in such great shape or so well trained that this won’t be a challenge but because we ride as one team with one purpose.  We ride with the memories of friends and family lost too soon in our thoughts.  We see the vans pass covered in names and in stories that flatten the hills.  We know that when we get to Austin our Warriors will be waiting for us.  The ride isn’t the challenge.  The ride is the metaphor.  How hard will you fight?  How much is too much? Could you get there on your own?  Did you know how strong you really are?  At some point you will pull your team at others they will pull you.  Friends will become family and you will be a changed person once we reach Austin. 

And you thought we were going on a bike ride……

A side note here: I’ve always found it difficult to just hand things over to God. I hear Him leading me through what I analogize as His throwing pebbles. As I continue to not listen, the pebbles grow to small stones and then to large rocks and boulders. Most times it is the mountain that finally gets my attention.

With this particular instance, God used machine gun fire of pebbles. Cancer was in every breath I took those next few days whether it was something on TV, an email from a friend, an article that landed in my lap, or phone calls from friends and family. No one knew I was considering this ride….no one but God. I made the decision to trust in Him and His infinite wisdom and make the commitment.

Well now it’s 5 days away! In 5 days, I will ride out from the Cancer Center with the most wonderful people that have ever come into my life to share in this experience. Training has been incredible. I am ready physically from the training schedule provided by Ron Jerina and Ted Garner and Jeni Schumacher. I am ready emotionally because of the new and wonderful and treasured friendships I have been blessed with from agreeing to be part of this P3C3 family. And they are family! Everyday I am reminded of this blessing by their show of support on and off the bike.

Emotions are running high these days. The 2010 C3 family has those who have battled and those still battling this disease. It is their incredible strength and that of my family/friends that I ride. May God keep us safe on this journey and provide continued strength and comfort to those who fight Cancer.

This will be my second time on this journey. I was part of the inaugural C3 event in 2008. I have to admit, when Ron Jerina and Kevin Dunn (fearless P3 leaders) told me about this idea for a relay bike ride idea in 2007, I thought they were crazy and I was not immediately supportive. My predictable, pragmatic response to both of them was that P3 was already successful, why would we do that, and secondly how in the world would they convince 30 cyclists and 20 support people to do such a crazy thing? Obviously it was possible. In October 2008, I was part of the Challenge to Conquer Cancer team, departing from Greenville Hospital System’s Cancer Center. Along with 50 other people (Ron and Kevin included) I was headed west to Texas by way of a relay bike ride.

On October 17 2010, I am leaving from the Greenville Hospital System’s Cancer Center with 50 or so other people, heading west to Texas for the second time. Although I feel experienced and confident, I am hopeful for unexpected challenges and new learning experiences that an event like this will offer.
While participating in the inaugural 2008 event, we didn’t really know what to expect and we were all newbies, making our way one mile at a time. The experience was surreal and often it felt like we had our own reality TV show. There was one stretch on the trip we were up for 40 hours straight without sleep. Keep in mind, we can’t be missed as we enter towns and cities along the way. There is the bus, with a trailer in tow. And then there are the lights – flashing ones attached to the bus and the support car. And don’t forget the lights on the bikes. Front and rear.
Our circus-like entrance into towns, parking lots and hotels allowed us to meet new people and tell them our story and raise awareness. We had the honor of hearing their stories…everyone we met had a cancer story. Their sister, their cousin, their mother. The church congregation, the hotel attendants, the Waffle King workers, the servers and patrons at “Not your Momma’s Cafe” (not kidding) located in Nowhere, LA all had stories. As we explained our purpose and goal, we could see in their eyes a brightness that may not have been present in a while. A glow that appeared to light the way to hope in their heart. It was then that I realized what I was doing made a difference. The sleep deprivation, the crowded van used for traveling when the team was not on the bike, the lack of substantial food at times – none of this really bothered us. We all knew that what we were a part of something important, and it had nothing to do with a bike ride across 5 states.
It was on that trip that my faith in humanity (and possibly myself) was restored. It is easy to distrust and lose faith. On my 2008 journey, I learned that people are still good and whole and the world still runs on a solid foundation of kindness and compassion, and hope still works. I conceded that life deserved more credit and respect from me. The trip changed my perspective and taught me to appreciate my life’s challenges in a way I had not before. Everyone I knew on the trip in 2008 had the same reaction – it was a life altering experience. As I prepare to leave on my second Challenge to Conquer Cancer journey, I reflect back to 2008 and cherish the moments of inspiration and the clarity of my thoughts in those months following the trip. In our daily routines, filled with constant demands and unrelenting schedules, clarity turns murky, perspective is lost and hope runs low. It is time for more clarity and a brighter light in my heart. I am ready to go.

I am thankful to my supporters who believe in me and P3. I am thrilled to be a part of something that is honoring those who are and have battled cancer. My thanks and appreciation to Ron Jerina, his awesome wife Jennifer for their leadership and guidance to the C3 for the third straight year.

I can tell you that next years planning will be much easier as I know to get an earlier start & that we have covered some of this ground before.  We have ideas on how to raise even more money by making little changes here & there like “make sure that you have good lighting for silent auction items” or make sure not to plan a benefit night at a burger place when one of the favorite local college football teams is playing an away game that is televised.  It all goes into the suggestion box for next year.

The wonderful part is that this year’s goal is all but met & will be taken care of before we leave.  I have several people to thank.  First, my wife Amy for all she has contributed to make this year’s challenge.  She has dealt with the training rides, morning or night.  Listened to me talk endlessly about how cool the ride & time in Austin are going to be & help me figure out some things about myself.  My parents, both my Mom & Amy’s parents who I think of as my Mom & Dad.  Without their help, our Notable Night fundraiser wouldn’t have gotten off of the ground as well as their talking about the cause with friends of theirs.  My P3C3 team.  I cannot think of a better group of people in this world that I am as honored to be a part of & I look forward to the journey with each of you to our destination.  You have taught me so much in the past year.  You have made me a better cyclist & more importantly a better person who is really giving back for one of the first times in his life.   You have made me laugh hysterically & cry, sometimes as I am laughing hysterically.  Finally, our Cancer Warriors.  You are the reason we are doing this.  You inspire us to DO SOMETHING!  We are riding a long way on bikes to bring awareness & raise money to find a cure & help those fighting cancer.  THANK YOU to each and every one of you who has been a part of my journey so far.  Whether you are my P3C3 team mate,a Cancer Warrior, Fuddruckers, someone who donated $1, $4 or $100, YOU have been an important part of this journey already for me.  I will not forget your contribution to this journey & more importantly the cause that we are supporting.  THANK YOU!

Sincerely,

Rob Bailey

It has been a great journey up to this point.  I am again surrounded by great people who are participating this year.  There are 30 riders and 15 support folks going.  This will be the largest group of the three years we have been doing this.  There have been new headaches with the larger group like how are we going to fit 8 adults in a Toyota Sienna minivan but we all will get through our discomforts and make this years ride another memorable one.  We have 6 of our 9 warriors meeting us in Austin for the weekend and I look forward to participating in the LiveStrong Challenge with them.  It is so uplifting and healing to be around 3000 other folks who are in Austin for the LiveStrong Challenge who all have the same general reason for being there – to win the battle against cancer.  

We are making a difference locally with the money we are all raising.  Come out to our send off at the Cancer Center on the Greenville Hospital System campus this Sunday (Oct.17) at 3:00 to find out more.  Thank you to all who have donated to a cause that is very important to me.  I hope you continue to follow us on the blog and support our efforts.

So, when I first rode to Austin, it was probably for the wrong reason. For me.  Some difficult personal problems made the trip seem perfect as a way to heal. Boy, was I wrong!  Healing is not the word, but not how I expected it…  I matured so much as a person, and the trip actually made me a better doctor in terms of how I deal with cancer patients! 

That first trip has an entire story to itself, but this year will be a new chapter.  My team is new.  I am much more fit, and the reason is still strong..  made especially urgent because of  my best friend from high school (Brian Powell) losing his wife, Carmon, to lung cancer just three weeks ago.  I hope you follow along  with us.  You will hear stories that will make you cry.  Make you laugh hysterically, and will hopefully get you involved in the fight.  Come with me, and come with all of us as we trek along another epic adventure from South Carolina to Texas.   WOOO HOOOOO!

“The bass I just bought was owned by Ken, former Assistant Principal Bassist of the ******* Symphony and one of my teachers. He fought melanoma for a year and a half before passing away in Feb. 2009.  Ken was 45.
He’s survived by his wife and his son, who is 6.

One last note about the ride this year.  Some of you are thinking there might be a full moon on the Trace during the night rides.  Only time will tell.  Ride on C3 team  RIDE ON !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This Friday we have our final night training ride beginning at 9:00pm for about “75ish” miles. We are excited and we are ready to leave for Austin today.

We are strong and prepared. Will anyone disagree? I doubt it. LETS ROLL!!!!

And to my Team SCOTTSTRONG Thank you for helping me carry this name to Austin. I look forward to the journey with each and everyone of you!

As a ride, what else can I say but we endured various challenging weather conditions while doing our best to cover as many miles as we could during our shifts.  I was quite confident the Polka Dot team could cover 100 miles every time we got on the bikes (for a 6 hour shift) and I was proven correct as we managed to complete back to back century rides  for our 2nd and 3rd six hour shifts (105.4 miles and 100.1 miles respectively).

Our first 6 hour shift challenged us with some difficult climbing and very cold weather.  While we did not cover 100 miles during this shift, we did manage to cover 75 miles under some very difficult riding conditions.  One of our team-mates was pulled from the ride at about mile 25 for borderline hypothermia.  Thankfully, she was fine once she was able to get her body temperature back under control.

Excitement ensued while riding along the Natchez Trace near Jackson Mississippi.  The Park Ranger pulled us over and asked “Do you have a permit?”.  Quite funny.  He delayed our ride for a few minutes, but ended by allowing us to continue without our support vehicles riding along with us.  The support vehicles leap-frogged to the next opportune vehicle pull-outs while we continued on the bike.  This was our 105 mile day.

The second part of this experience was an incredible personal growth opportunity.  It is thanks to the contributions of my supporters that I was able to participate in this event.  Thanks to all of you who contributed because this personal growth opportunity has provided me a different perspective on life and the challenges faced by people with this horrible disease we call cancer.

An additional yet somewhat unexpected benefit also came from this grand experience.  The fine group of people who participated with me have become very close friends.  I have not experienced this camaraderie since my Military days.  We shared an incredible sense of purpose that gave us true unity in spreading the message.

That message was not all negative either.  We heard many stories about and met many people who are survivors of this disease.  It was also a message of Hope.  Sally, our support driver, wore a pink cape for the entire journey.  On the back of her cape were the words “Hero for Hope”.

In some ways, we all became heroes for hope.  Not just those of us out on our bikes or those participating in a direct support role, but all of you too.  Those of you who contributed to this excellent cause should consider yourselves “Heroes for Hope” as well.

Thank you!

John Davidson
jd – Team Polka Dot

p.s.  You can view the photos I took through the following link:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=28674&id=1612725450&l=9e9ac2dacc

p.p.s.  If you did not have an opportunity to follow the C3 squad during the ride, you can read all of the squad blogs at www.ridetoaustin.com.  Remember they are posted in reverse chrono order (most recent posts first).  I’ve posted under the user name JohnD.

You can read my personal entries here:

http://windinmyhairbugsinmyteeth.blogspot.com/2009/08/jds-challenge-to-conquer-cancer.html

Joe  J.

“Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain.”

As I read Dustin’s statement that he is not only a cancer survivor but a CANCER FIGHTER I could not stop crying……I just LOVE that! So we all are now cancer fighters since we took this journey to hopefully save people from this dreaded disease!!!! So I will look into getting EVERYONE capes for next year!

The cape got many comments during the LAF run and ride over the weekend! Many people asked me why I was wearing it which gave me time to tell them what the Challenge to Conquer Cancer was all about which was GREAT! Other people would run or ride by me (notice that I was getting passed ALOT!) and say…”Love the cape”, or “great cape”! On the ride I answered that with “I had hoped it would give me super hero powers but it wasn’t working that day!” But their fun comments spurned me on!

On Saturday I did the 5K…thinking I would walk/run it since I haven’t been able to train much in the last couple of months. But I hooked up with Kim and Chasse and they kept me going! I ended up hand in hand with Chasse, who I so love and admire, sprinting and laughing crossing the finish line! A very special moment for me!

On Sunday I decided to shoot for the 45 mile ride. The longest ride I have ever done was only 31….but the 10 and 20 mile seemed too short so I wanted to do the 45. Well….at the second sag stop, which came AFTER the turn off to the 20 miler, I realized that I bit off more than I could chew. My lungs were burning and huffing/puffing, my legs were already feeling like jelly……maybe trying 45 only 2 months after the hysterectomy was too ambitious. I was very upset and considered asking a sag van to carry me back to the 20 mile turn, or ahead to the sag stop closest to the finish so I could ride across the finish line (cheater!)……I really wanted to quit and I was about to cry and throw in the towel. Chasse and Jessica urged me to get food to feel better. Just then I got a text on my cell phone and looked down to read that a man, whose name was on an “In Honor Of” magnet on our van had died that morning. Another person lost to cancer. I really wanted to kick something, punch something….but instead I decided to get my butt back on the bike and finish the 45 miles even if it killed me. I’ve never met the man that died but I rode for Woody Koonce and so many others. I finished with the help of Annette (who had only ridden 20 something miles before this!) and the last 5 miles with Will Flanagan pulling me! But I finished.

I am home now, back with my husband Kevin, who let me go on this journey and who was my ROCK thru everything I’ve been thru in the past year….double mastectomy, reconstruction, chemo, total hysterectomy…etc etc. Cancer sucks and we have to continue to do all that we can to help each other and others get thru it.

To my polka dot team and the P3C3 TEAM, I send huge hugs, tears of admiration and love and hope…….and I hope that the vulnerability that so many of us discovered along the way stays open so that we all can help anyone heal, learn, love………thanks for such an inspiring trip!

Sally

Now that I am home… I am in a state of shock. My body does not want to move the way I want it too. Nor does it want to sit on that saddle for a few days… well…maybe saturday.

People are asking me ” Did you have Fun?” “How was it?” My answer has not changed… Very humbling, life changing, and a challenge that I will do again. I cried everyday and laughed everyday. I hated some moments and cheerished others. I grew a lot on this journey. As a survivor, a mother, and wife. I can tell you I am changed for the good. I am so blessed to have friends and family that followed me on this journey.

Thank you for your comments, for following us on this journey. For your encouraging words. Was it fun? There were evenings that were fun after the ride but during the ride…. our team was focused, heartfelt, and determined to accomplish what we needed to as a team. For me, that was to have closure, for others it was understanding, encouraging, and mentoring others. Dawn and Sally – After God there are you two. Thanks for being the glue that held us together. Our team really did an awesome job being a family.

To family and friends, Bless you all for the prayers as they were all answered. Thank you for encouraging words from your heart. I will be doing this ride again next year. Hope that we all stay connected on this fight. God Bless you all.
Love, XxOo Jeni

Future families and friends are saved from suffering.

For every sprocket spin and gears a-clicken,

The months are extended for the stricken.

Miles ridden through sun, sleet and rain,

Goes towards numbing the pain.

Riding through the night as the pain is rushing through the body as you are completing your 6 hour shift,

This Pain is taken away from someone known or unknown and to them, it is a GIFT.

For all the sweat and blood shed during training each day,

May it fertilize the ground for new riders to take on the fight and to stay.

I ride as one of many small soldiers out to Fight for those who cannot,

So that one day the ride can stop.

And as this conquest will one day be complete,

Volunteers, riders and donors will WALK home victorious in Cancer’s defeat.

LiveSTRONG!

Dennis

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

Everybody’s heard about Team Awesome’s crazy battle with Tropical Storm Rick, so I won’t belabor that, other than the fact that we have another nickname because of the effects of all the rain, wind and cold: Team Snot Rocket (goes with the green).

However, I made a promise that night before we set out on our shift. I want to thank Deputy Sheriff Daniel Wagner of Grimes County, TX for keeping us company at that lonely gas station before we met up with Team Polka Dot. He was a super nice guy and gave us some pointers on how to get through College Station in the dead of night. Thanks Deputy Wagner…

Anyway, I want to drop a quick note about what has been one of my biggest challenges on this ride: reverse culture shock. It’s a phenomenon I’ve experienced several times when returning from stints overseas to friends and family back home. It’s odd. You go on a journey, become changed by the experience, and you come back, and everything is just a touch “off.” It takes some time to reintegrate with people that didn’t share those experiences along with you and go through the same changes. It’s like they don’t understand.

In any case, I’m feeling it again, now that I’m back in the real world. There are no maps to check, transition points to scope out, kits to clean, or food to be shoveled down in anticipation of the next shift. What’s more, there are no more of the intense emotions of triumph, loss, fellowship, pain, joy, and friendship that I got hooked on while with you all. I talked with my father after we completed our last shift and he said to me “you know, I reckon you’re coming back from this a completely different person.”

Know what? My Pop is right. I’m different, and I’m glad for it, even if it makes me feel a little out of place for a while. I guess this is my weird way of saying that I miss everybody already, and I hope that you all get home safe and get some rest so that we can get out on the road (or dare I say the trail for those of you with mountain bikes) soon!

Safe travels, and God bless

BoZ

It is funny how this week went by so fast. I was thinking about it as the bus rumbled along at speeds just slightly above the speed limit. What a great week. This year was a totally different experience than 2008 for me personally. In 08, I rode on Team 1 and we had a little different mentality about the ride (we rode pretty hard). That said, team 1 was a fantastic group of people and we all got it (we all were there for the same reason). This year I rode with the Yellow team. It was similar in feel but the connection of the team was completely different. This year was a lot more personal. Having a person on the team who is currently doing treatment really took it to another level for me personally and I think the team felt the same way. I think it was made a little harder by the fact that I see the same thing at home on a weekly basis with Susan.  

So, now it is time to get back to work, back to reality, and back to the shop to unload the bus and the trailer. I must say that I am truly thankful for all for all of the riders, the support personal, the sponsors and the personal supporters that helped  put together this ride. The ride was safe, the riders all rode well and we all completed this year’s challenge. It was a fantastic week!  I am excited about the prospect of 2010!

JOEY

So…6 AM EST, and I was sitting under a gas station awning in soaking wet clothes taking in the moment.  Dad would be SO proud.  And my journey, this Challenge to Conquer Cancer is quickly nearing a close.  My teammates were quickly changing into dry clothes, but I felt like I could go forever…I didn’t know that I really wanted it to end!  Sure, I hated being crammed in a KIA van with 6 other adults, but I loved the camaraderie, the people we’ve met along the way, the kindness of strangers, and the sense of purpose.  My purpose was to train, to raise awareness, to raise money, and to ride….all in the name of something that touches so many.  That is a beautiful thing, and I feel truly blessed to have been a part of this challenge.

God Bless all of my teammates.  I enjoyed the adventure!  LiveSTRONG!!

Thank you P3C3 for the Challenge, the Emotions, the opportunity, the memories will last a life time.  Will I do this again….. ONE HUNDRED PERCENT!!!

There were very cool sag (rest stops) on the route but the best was Mellow Johnny’s which included an espresso bar and beer keg!  I also managed to have two flat tires on the ride but it was all good because I at least flatted on the top of a hill!

However, say a few prayers because there were many wrecks on the course today, including two cyclists who hit a deer and they needed to be transported away by an ambulance.

I have decided the worst part and the thing that has frustrated me the most of this whole ordeal – the male cyclist shave their legs more than I do!!!!!!!

Well time to shower, grab some dinner tonight, post-ride party at Lance’s bar and then early flight home to South Carolina.  I am very homesick and miss Peter and my kids .

Pink out until next year…………..

 Yesterday morning we rode into Austin as a group and myself and the other survivors led the way into downtown Austin.  As i got closer i rode in silence while I thought about what a year this has been.  I am 2 weeks away from the anniversary of my diagnosis, its been 6 weeks since I lost my grandmother (although she showed up several times this week, and i am wearing her necklace while I’m riding as well) I ordered a bike before I could even walk this last winter and now I’m 1 mile away from saying I rode my bike to Austin.  It was indescribable the feeling I got when we came over the bridge and the first people I see are my best buddy Carlee, my grandfather, and my parents standing in the middle of the road as we pull in.   Later last night we had our reception dinner (huge thanks to New Belgium brewery and Todd at Eagleshotz) and although it was completely unplanned people stood up one at a time and told their story on why they ride and I know there was not a dry eye in the house. But what I realized is I stopped doing this for me a long time ago.  I am doing this with this crazy idea that we are going to beat this disease in our lifetime and I am with a bunch of morons who have the same belief. 

I woke up this morning and did the Livestrong challenge 5k and once again all of the survivors  and warriors crossed the finish line arm in arm in-front of 3,000+ people and we showed them how united our team is.  I was even stopped at starbucks 30 minutes later and had a woman say how she saw us finish and how she could see how special our p3c3 group is.   Then came the survivor reception,  and I could go on all night about how cool it was but im too tired. However during a Q&A part with Lance someone asked if he was in fear of his cancer returning.  I almost couldn’t look up because I didnt want to hear the answer because Lance had the same as I did and I know i am always in fear, but he could not have put it any better than when he said “I know my chances of a re accuring cancer is much greater than most people’s, but I stay physacly healthy and I am not sitting idle waiting for it to happen either i am fighting back in the mean time”.  And just like that its game on for me, if it was bad before its going to be terrible now.  Im going to go to bed and get up early to do the Livestrong 45mile race, Im going to beat the shit out of my bike and my body on the ride, and Im going to go back to Greenville tomorrow and show the world how to liveSTRONG.  I’m not a cancer survivor anymore….I’m a cancer fighter.

Friendship formed, even though this group has included various cycling abilities, ages, backgrounds, non-cyclist and folks who probably will not interact in the rhythm of their regular lives but are now family.

Without cancer the dynamic trio of Kim, Kerrie and Chasse  would not have formed!  I have also discovered the secret unrecognized powerhouse of encouragement for apparently every runner in Greenville and surrounding area in the powerhouse form of the humble Shopping Marathon Momma – Kerrie Sijon.  I am convinced that Kerrie is the heart and soul of the entire group!

Pink out-off to LAF survivorship dinner!

This morning we all participated in the 5k walk/run. It was a great walk and awesome to see all of the P3 folks in the bright yellow shirts. RunIn provided those shirts and boy did we stand out. It was awesome and lots of people commented on them throughout the morning.

I am not sure if I will get another opportunity to blog (I plan on trying when I get home), but I think i am most thankful that we had a great ride. We have a great group this year and I think it shows in the positive attitude and tremendous spirit that they have all brought to this event. The ride was safe. The weather was not the best but it was not bad. This is after all a challenge. With every challenge there must be a point where things get tough. We all had those points and we all made it through like champions. Cancer patients live a daily challenge. We simply have had a 5 day challenge. I like to remember that when I see my wife and our friends who have battled cancer.

2009 p3 Challenge to Conquer Cancer has been a super event with a super group of people! Thank you all to my personal supporters and all of our event sponsors. Without your support none of us could help in supporting the fight!

JOEY SULLIVAN

Sometime earlier this year Megggan sent me an email asking if I would be interested in joining a ride that she new about. She sent me the registration for the kick off banquet at the Palmetto center. I went, listened, and asked questions about the ride and decided that it would be something that I was interested in. I had been participating in another much larger ride for the past several years and was ready to change for reasons that I will not go into. Riding to Austin sounds interesting enough so I joined up.

For me this ride started out not as a way to bring awareness to conquer or cure cancer, but as a more challanging bike ride. I had sent Ron several emails getting information and asking questions about the ride.

The training rides started and I went to as many as I could. Bakery run at 7 a.m. sharp from Furman. Ron what’s your phone nuber so I can call you to let you now if I will be a few minutes late? I had a friend riding with me and he stayed back with me so I would know the way to the bakery. I had told Ron that I die in hills. When we got to the bakery the rest of the group was there and Ron greated me with a hugh smile asking how was it and with a big “You made it”.

Oct 18 was drawing near and I was sweating the fund raising. I was still $1000 short on Thursday before the ride. Friday afternoon several large donations came in so I told Ron at the shop I was officially in!!!!!!!!!

Sunday came and it was still another ride for me. I was feeling bad for Laurens because she was having to fight again and that she could not ride.

The white team is made up of bionic people. Joe has an artificial hip, Judy has 2 new knees, Kathy has lost one of her lungs to cancer, and me, well I have jsut lost part of my mind. So we were all missing something we were born with. We started out on US 76 where the Trail crosses. Kathy ook off like a bullet hollering into the night WE WERE FINALLY OFF AS A TEAM. It didn’t take long for me to realize what a struggle it was for kathy to do this ride with one lung. Can you imaginewhat it would be liek? Soon she was on the bus for a while. The hills just killed her. Judy started giving me background info about Kathy . During that night the ride turned from riding to Austin to figure out how we could keep Kathy on the road as long as we could. I remebered what Joe had said earlier in the year: “It’s not about how many miles or how fast we go. Don’t forget it is about the cause”. We finally made Murphy N.C. for our transistion. Off we go to find a bed and our next point of entery in the ride. Judy and I were still having our own conversations about how to keep Kathy on the bike as long as we could.

Then came the Natchez Trace. I had confettie popers to use at one of our transistion points and had planned to use them Tuesday night. We waited in Collenwood Tenn. for 3 hors tring to rest. The people in this small town were so nice to us. We were dressed and ready to ride and as we pulled out I spotted a vehicle with bikes on top. It was Laurens and Ann. They stopped us and we chatted. We told them e had a surprise for their team. We started down the Trace looking for a change over palce. We discussed the paty poppers. Mike got a phone call from Laurens saying that the team was down and needed some serious boosting. We turned around to find them and the decision was made to not use the poppers because it might cause someone to wreck. So thinking back for a moment to something we saw earlier taht was meant for the white team, I told Mike to drive by them slowly. As we got near them a new moon suddenly came oout from nowhere. We turned around and as we went by it suddenly appeared again. My “Mr. innocent” was blown. No one expects Uncle Milty to be the one. I was more than glad to do participate in something that would help the others out as we were not just the White team to Austin, but the P3C3 team.

We got on the Trace and off we go!!! I took the lead and slowed the pace down for Kathy. We wanted her on the bike as much as psooible. I tild her to stay behind me and I would pull her. when we got to hills I slowed down really slow hoping to help her conserve her oxygen. She stayed on the bike for almost 2 hours. We were so proud of her. encouraging her to keep going as long as she could, get in the bus and rest and to come back out when she was rested. . We stopped about every hour to make sure Joe got fed and watered. It had to be hard on him. He is 70 years old you know. We rode through part of Tenn. all of Alabama, and into Mississippi that night. So off to get some needed sleep and on to somewhere La.

After getting 4 hours of sleep we were off. A short cut urned into a long night for us as we had a flat tire. After gettting it fixed we were off down the trace again. We stopped just short of the Mississippi line ( I would tell you the name of the town but I can’t spell it lolol) for a short nap. Ron had tod us that it would be okay to be a little late due to our flat tire.

The yellow team was waitng on us when we got to our transsition point. It was still just another ride for me and and trying to keep Kathy on the road. After we had dressed Beth called me over to tell me something. She told me how they wre dedicating each mile to someone. Beth who made me laugh now made me start crying by bring into focus what the ride is really about. The ride then turned very emotional for me. Remembering the friends and family, my father, who died from camcer. It was just too much for me. I cried for most of the morning. Thinking why did Steve have to die young from cancer, Myria who didn’t get to spend much time with her new granddaughter, Why does Laurens, who is such and inspiration to me, have to fight it again. Sue, Sandra, and Spence wtih breast cancer, Jack with non hodgkins lymphoma.

Thank you to everyone on the P3C3 team. To the ones that rode their butts off not realizing that Laurens would decide that dhe would ride into Austin,
to Don for being the best photographer an individual team could have, to everyone one on the team that for making me feel like part of the larger team, the good times and the bad times, to Meggan for bring this ride to my attention, and to Ron for having a vision, and the rest of my new family and friemds!!!!!!!!!!!

the best tquote I can think of to leave everyone with with is to remeber: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.

I felt lonely, anxious, curious,  frazzled, frightened, disoriented. These are feelings that cancer warriors, survivors, caretakers feel often.

By the 2nd day, I  became part of this “bicycle family”. We  cycle not only for fun, exercise, comraderie, to achieve personal goals.  We cycle for a CAUSE.

 We are battling, symbolically and literally,  with this P3C3 Ride to Austin.  Here in Austin, we will  join  “zillions” of others in this  CHALLENGE to CONQUER CANCER.  We will make a $200,000+/-  contribution for cancer research and treatment through the LIVESTRONG Foundation.  Our thanks to those in the Upstate SC, NC area, family and friends from other places, who contributed to make this a reality.

As a 62 year young woman, this has been an experience unlike any other.
I am so thankful to those who made this journey possible.  Many encouraged me and some inspired me (one in particular). Please call on me when you want or need.   In 62 years, I have struggled with  family and friends.  You don’t need to know the particulars.  Others of this group have expressed that very well.   Must close now-need to drive the van to our next destination.

Today we are off to the city of Austin!!!!!!!!!!

THis ride has turned very emotional for me. I started this ride as another bike ride that sounded very interesting. Afte

We rode the outskirts of Austin and into the town of Bastrop. It was still dark but the rain was starting to ease up so maybe this ride would not be so dreary. We took a stop at a gas station about 22 miles out from our destination. At that moment, we were all completely energized by the sight of Laurens Flanagan getting ready to join us for the final miles of the ride.

I think the whole team has been lucky to have her in the support vehicles for this trip. We all wanted her to ride but having just completed a cycle of chemo the conditions have to be right for her to ride. She has been a personal warrior to our team and an incredibly positive influence as to why we all ride.

The final few miles were a little crazy. Ted had a flat. Arthur changed his wheel and got him rolling quickly. We rolled into the suburbs and the hills started to get a little steeper. With about 2 miles to go Laurens flatted. Once we got her rolling again I think we were all ready to roll out last few miles and start the celebration. It was awesome to see all of the teams waiting for us at the hotel! Greenville SC to Austin Tx. That is one long ride! But it is not about the ride.  This is a challenge. It is about the fight and teams  and why we all ride. Those last few miles completely eliminated those dreary thoughts early in the morning when it was cold and rainy (did I mention the sun came out about the time we finished!).

Tommorow, we roll into downtown Austin as one big team. All of the riders will be there and some of the support people will ride. I am very blessed to be surrounded by a tremendous team this year. Ron and Jennifer Jerina are the central force behind this ride to Austin. They allowed me to ride with this wonderful group of friends. Ted and Ann, Beth, Robin, Laurens, Ron and Jennifer truly made a super team to be a part of this year’s ride. I am not sure how so many completely different people spent 5 days in a car together and do it with nearly constant humor, support and never once did they threaten to throw me out of the car.  This year has been a completely different experience for me from the last. I can honestly say that I think people get it this year even more than the last.

I am looking forward to tommorow. I get see my wife Susan ( a warrior)! She will hopefully be at the hotel when we arrive. She is why I ride and truly an incredible survivor. This weekend has yet to begin but it will be a super weekend.

Thank you to all of my supporters for this trip. This has been a fantastic ride. More challenging, new people but all focusing on the same goal. This has been a fantastic finish into Austin, I am tired, sleepy and rambling on and on.

Joey Sullivan

We’ve all faced challenges throughout this journey from Greenville to Austin. All teams had a significant challenge with the cold temperatures in the beginning stages. They also had the challenge of long hours with little real sleep (more challenge for some teams than others due to the way the shifts worked out). Some teams were challenged with a climbing stage early in the ride. Most were challenged because they were also dealing with these conditions while riding in the dark.

I was talking to Ed the other day about the challenges presented by this year’s route. He was concerned that if the ride was too challenging, there might be difficulty in recruiting riders for next year. These adverse conditions, besides being difficult for the riders, could also present safety and health issues. This was perhaps his most important thought during the discussion.

During this time of year, it was inevitable that we were going to have some cooler temperatures in the mountains. Ed’s concern was the safety and security of the teams as they moved through this terrain. We were very concerned about Jeni after being pulled from the ride with borderline hypothermia (just to reiterate – she is fine now). Ed was also concerned for the well being of the entire team – we were all feeling the effects of the cold.

This discussion really got me thinking about the challenges we were facing during this journey. That Monday morning ride with the climbing and the cold weather was a significant physical and mental challenge – for me, and I think for just about anyone. I’m very proud that Team Polka Dot made it through those challenges. I think all of the P3C3 crew is proud of the way they were able to persevere through the adverse conditions presented to them during their rides.

As we rode the Natchez trace the following day (through simply incredible riding conditions I might add), I reflected further on how each person responds to a challenge. Everyone is going to respond differently to a specific challenge, and what is a challenge to one person might not be a challenge to another.

Most people in the United States voluntarily put themselves in situations in which they will be challenged. This is a luxury that we are very lucky to have. Unfortunately, there are many who find themselves challenged without having a choice in the matter. Nobody knows who will be diagnosed with cancer next. It seems too many already have been. I just found out about a co-worker who has been diagnosed with breast cancer.

When I think about the challenges we have faced on this ride, I realize they don’t compare to the challenges ahead of someone who is diagnosed with cancer. On this ride, I always had the option to get on the bus or in the van. I didn’t have to keep riding. For someone with cancer, they only have one choice and that is to fight.

On this ride there are a number of warriors, a very high number of survivors and the rest have a personal story about someone they know and love who is or has fought the battle against cancer.

What I’ve seen from this P3C3 crew these last days is each person responding to their individual challenges with strength and courage. Collectively, we have responded to the Challenge to Conquer cancer with that same courage and conviction. I’m proud to be involved with this group of excellent people.

jd – Team Polka Dot

As the year unfolded, my skepticism about fundraising began to mount.  I was convinced that we would end up short.  I couldn’t see folks opening their pockets in such a down economy… especially for me… I’ve gotten a reputation for being a tight wad.  The year was becoming increasingly negative.  Dad passed away in June.  I remember kneeling at the rail in the front of our church, asking God for help to somehow find the strength to support my wife and the wisdom to know what or how to be the comfort she needed.  The summer became a really low point in my life.  The demands of the many things in my life seemed to combine in a perfect storm.  My Saturdays became a day of watching Morgan while Meg trained.  I wouldn’t have much time for Loren… and I became bitter.  God was working on me.

In August, we held a fundraising barbeque at our church.  Meggan went out and tirelessly found businesses willing to donate to our cause.  It was incredible to see so many people willing to support the cause.  I had to do a bunch of research about cancer to find things to MC the BBQ.  I started to understand the full scope of what cancer research had done and is doing.  The night before the banquet, cancer claimed my Aunt Lila Elliott (Ricketts).  She had bravely fought a painful battle with bone cancer for about two years.  The following week I attended her funeral in Herman, MO.  At the funeral… everyone was really relieved that she was home.  Lila was the first of five children in the Ricketts family to pass.  My mom… a very strong woman, a survivor of polio, who rarely cries… whom I don’t recall ever having being shaken when speaking publicly, became emotional as she recounted visiting with Lila during the year before she passed.  She told about how Lila and Uncle Jim had just bought their first house after 30+ years in the ministry.  My parents, who are in the ministry as well, had just bought their first house about the same time.  Lila had made a comment about how ironic, wonderful, and a blessing it was that both she and my parents had finally gotten their own home to enjoy retirement… it was a comment that gave no power or credit to cancer. 

Got me to thinking about cancer, and my own life.  When I try to think back to my earliest memory of cancer, it brought back things I’d forgotten long ago.  I lost my grandpa Ricketts to cancer in 1983.  His name was Kenneth, which was where I got my middle name.  When he got sick, I was 6.  I remember making trips out to the farm where they lived in Illinois, to visit often as his time came closer.  The farmhouse had been filled with all kinds of special medical equipment that had been moved into the farmhouse with the hospital bed where he would later pass.  Inside the bathroom was an old fashioned water bottle – heat/ice bag.  Well… I was 6, and didn’t know what that was and hadn’t seen one before.  I assumed it had something to do with cancer.  Sometime after he passed, we visited my grandma Snyder.  I discovered a water bottle in her medicine cabinet.  I became upset to the point of tears that she had cancer and would die…  No… she didn’t have cancer, but cancer had made its initial presence known to me as something to be feared.

I mentioned earlier that I really didn’t know or understand my father-in-law, Jim.  During the time we spent in Iowa visiting him at the hospital, in hospice, and at the funeral; I got to know what a great man my children won’t get to know or play with.  Jim McIlravy, or Jimmy Mac, as the locals called him, was a character.  He was a fun loving man, who some folks thought was just some crazy guy to be made fun of.  But Jim wasn’t a character.  He was a man of character.  He was the type of man who would leave his crops in the field to help another farmer in need at harvest.  He didn’t value self… he was a man of service, and a man that was understood and respected by those who he selflessly loved.  Jim went to God in the arms of my wife as I looked on.  I don’t think I will ever see or feel anything in my life that will make me feel more helpless…

The BBQ turned my year around.  I learned alot about myself, about friendship, and about faith.  Our church family and friends turned out in awesome numbers.  Our friends stepped up and bailed me out of some poor planning on my part at the last minute.  All in all, we raised about a third of our money that night.  The $7500 seemed more manageable. 

The next week when I was at my Aunt’s funeral, my mother’ grade school classmate, Gail McDonald a published Christian author, wife of Gordon McDonald, another  Christian author, rode to the cemetery for the internment with my brother and I.  On the trip, she asked both my brother and I what our spiritual gifts were.  Then she asked what our wife’s gifts were.  I hadn’t thought about it in the context of where I was at with being in a funk, and in the context of what Meg was dealing with.  God’s hand continued to work.

Sometime during the training I discovered that watching Morgan on Saturdays was becoming the highlight of my week.  While meg was training… Morgan and I would train… ride the train at heritage park that is.  These are memories we will cherish forever.

The fundraising, planning, and now trip to Austin have helped me grow in my relationship with my wife , my understanding of friendship, and my faith walk.  I have a renewed faith in the generosity and heart of our county.  The news says things are down.  The reality is that people are up.  People are up to supporting good causes.  And they don’t need the government’s help to do it.

I now know that cancer, while a valid threat, is not something to live in fear of.  Cancer is something that we are a part of working to cure.  My Aunt Lila was right.  Cancer doesn’t mean stopping our dreams.  We have to continue to do the work we were gifted to do.

Turns out my spiritual gift is service.  I think Jimmy Mac and I had a lot in common… No – my kids won’t get to know grandpa Jim or play with him… but, I can be the kind of man he was…  and teach them the lessons of selfless loving service he valued. 

Cancer might have taken grandpa Jim, but his legacy will strongly live on.

It all started when I went out to the Jerinas lake house in the summer.  I didn’t really know what to expect, but I left there knowing that I had just met some very good, very passionate people.  Every meeting, training ride and event from that time on only confirmed my original impression.  All of those who have known me for long know that I firmly believe that everything happens for a reason.  I know that God was at work when Chasse asked me to do this just as He was at work on me when I agreed to do it.   And now, He’s been at work this week as we have made this journey across the country all working together to fight this disease that has plagued all of us in one way or another.

When Team Yellow arrived this morning, it was an incredible moment in time.  We were all so emotional and all I could think is that I’ve known most of these people for less than 6 months (and some much less than that) and yet I’m standing here crying with them, hugging them and loving them.  It’s amazing what can happen when people come together for a common cause.  It’s obviously what I needed to learn for my 43rd birthday and I’m so thankful for the lesson.  God, once again, thanks, I got it.

Dennis

Today’s ride greeted us with rain…lots of it. We started in the dark and looked forward to our first ride in the light. Not even 2 hours into the ride I was bonking and with that all of this weeks emotions flowed out and could not be stopped. I cried.. a lot… as I thought about all of those that helped make this possible. I did not want to let anyone down and just like that Joey and Ron pulled me back in and with their love and support I pushed forward.  Having Laurens join us brought the tears back.  I love this girl I love that she is such a fighter.  It was Laurens that brought me to this group of amazing people..now family.

This is what our team was like all week. If any one was suffering or needed an extra hug we just knew to do it. Anne and Jennifer were amazing and I know without a doubt that we could not have done this without them. Tedd (double D), Ron (karaoke king), Beth (queen of one-liners), Joey (route master) and Laurens (the slayer)  could not have been a more amazing team to be on.

Today my Aunt passed away from Cancer. As I said in an earlier post she had a “mean cancer” (her words) but she was thrilled to know we are fighting for her and all others that have been touched my this.

Thank you Ron for dreaming something so big and then allowing us all to be a part of it.  You are amazing!!

Relentless Forward Motion.

Robin Blackburn – Team Yellow

It is an honor to wear the P3C3 jersey… It has meant the world to me to ride for Kim….I am grateful to my team for pulling me. 

RJ, Reed and Ridge.. you are very lucky men.  

Tebbets, we missed you and have been thinking about you all week. 

John Cash  Thank you for making this possible for me… you are truely an inspiration.

Tommy  Thank you for the honor of riding for Kim…

Mum,Dad and Leah thanks for believing I could do this.

Jack and Alli I looked at your picture whenever I was tired.  I kept peddling!

Kim and Scottie… thanks for the help on the hills… i love and miss you both.

Nap time!

Kathy

First thing, word up everyone one for Kim Stancil’s birthday today – everyone send her a message! (I think she will remember this one!)

Ok, for the Pinkly adventures of yesterday:  we had the honor of being the inaugural team crossing into the Texas state line after crossing an approx 1 ½ mile bridge into the state.  After stopping for multiple photos we then had the pleasure of multiple miles of Texas rollers – no wonder Lance won the Tour!  Some people have a personal trainer; I have a personal pacer – thanks Arthur who was always there to pull me back into the group after the lovely rollers.  My tough moment came about 5 hrs into the ride when I started to bonk but remembered our team motto “shut and ride” and that we hoped to go 10 more miles before we took a break! Well, I sucked it up and took a Hammer Gel – big mistake. I spent the next 30 minutes on the bus holding a barf bag – but hey this old girl recovered and finished the ride with the gang hauling at a 20+ mph pace!!!!!

Pink out and on the town!

Our night shift from midnight to 6am started in Huntsville, TX in a light wind and rain, and it would only intensify.  By 3am the rain was blowing in stinging sheets and the wind made holding a straight paceline very difficult.  This was doable, but about 4ish the wind made a dramatic shift from south to north, and like passing through a refrigerated curtain the temperature dropped noticeably, the chill set in, and the rain was pelting us with force from 20 to 30 mph winds.

We soldiered on, with our field general, Jonathan, leading the way.  We quickly learned that an eschelon formation would help us to deflect  the strongest winds, and though new to working with each other, we fell into it like a seasoned team.  Riding with The Green Cycling Machine has been a living, learning experience that I will always cherish.

This ride also started out differently, as we took time during our Prayer Circle to dedicate the day to specific and special people.  I thought of my brother Dave, who survives leukemia and is now also focused on healing other health problems.  I thought of my Dad, taken 24 years ago but never forgotten.  My aunt and uncle, my Mom and younger brother, Chris, and all the friends whose lives have been connected with me through this Herculean effort.

My highest praises to the folks of the P3, especially Ron and Kevin, who I met after only a few days of moving to Greenville, and who opened my eyes and heart to a whole new way of living and contributing to life.

Lovestrong.  Livestrong.

We have arrived in Austin!  We are now heading out the front door of the hotel to welcome the Yellow Team, the finale of the trip that will bring us together for our parade into downtown as the P3C3!

Jerry

I admitted in an earlier post that I didn’t think we would ever find enough folks that would agree to take 8 days off of work, sit on a tiny bike seat for 6 hours, or ride in a vehicle for 1300 miles. Ron, Kevin and Kim KNEW we would.

Our journey here last year was incredible and everyone on it is a part of my heart. This year has proven to be incredible in a new way. It seemed strange to me leaving Greenville this time with some of our teammates from last year waving goodbye to us. I wasn’t sure if we could duplicate the bonding that went on last year, but oh how we have. When you are on a trip of this magnitude, you can’t help but get to know the people on your team. Our team is unique in that we have lots of returning members: Ron, Beth, Laurens, Joey and me. So we all knew a little bit about what to expect on the trip. It didn’t take any time for Tedd, Anne and Robin to blend right in. All the riders have been doing alot of training together and Anne and I are Iron wives together (Louisville 2007) so we have that bond already. The reason the definition of TEAM is on our jersey is because I wanted it there. It is such a key ingredient to this trip. I have been so touched by all of the teams who are posting here. It sounds as if they have had the same experience bonding and gelling as a team as we have.

Our midnight to 6am shift touched my heart in a way I didn’t know possible.  My sweet husband’s voice came over the radio advising the team that they would be dedicating each pull to those for who we ride.  I was in the bus behind them watching as they worked together.  Beth had a dedication where she wanted the team to kiss the sky.  In unison all five riders raised a hand to heaven.  I was both touched and saddened as Joey and Ron named so many family members.  Name after name, sometimes multiple names at a time kept coming over the radio.  Tears welled up and spilled over as I looked at my watch to see that they had been doing this almost THREE hours.  How could these five super- people still be calling out names?  At one point I saw Tedd reach out for Robin’s hand.  My heart swelled up with pride as I watched and listened.  I was in complete awe of my team.  Then they got out of their paceline and were riding side by side.  I instinctively knew what they were doing.  I knew what the next radio transmission would be.  They wanted Laurens to know they felt her riding with them, that they missed her physical presence beside them, how we are in the fight with her.  This ride, this team….I can’t express how honored I am to be here.  Cancer: it’s UGLY, it has broken us, it has ripped people from us, but….it has brought us together.  I feel so blessed to have these people in my life.  And when I say these people, I mean the entire P3C3 family.  I type this as we head to our transition with Green (Awesome) at 6am.  It’s dark again, it’s raining, we are cranking tunes in the car, singing to “It’s A Beautiful Day” and looking forward to seeing the rest of our family when we get to Austin later this morning.   I can’t wait to hug and kiss each and every one of you.

Love to you all,

Jennifer

we stopped at a gas station in east jesus texas and a woman walked up and asked what we were doing and she was so excited she donated to the cause and as we left, her and her daughter followed us for 10 miles just to see us ride.  Today was the first day we have ridden in any traffic and it was great! we felt like rock stars, nearly every other car and truck even fisherman in a lake were honking, waving,  giving us thumbs up ( a entire different finger than I am used to seeing on a bike).  It was so encouraging to the entire team that we kept going faster and riding stronger with each mile.  We were pulling into Lufkin tx and the rain started. We had expected that to slow us down but we turned into a well trained team (other than Arthur the pro who fell like a real winner) we were riding at 25 mph, in traffic, in the rain and we looked like a first class race team.   We got off of the bike and got a massage and drank some great texas beer. We are a strong team, with great support.  We are in the van now laughing and telling stupid stories. What a trip! Well Kerrie is telling me to get off of the computer, so im out.

Night one the darkness brought us cold.  To-the-bone cold that you have read about in the early blogs.  In that darkness we found teamwork and  hard efforts required to stay warm, to perservere and to defeat the cold inside of us and outside of us.  We didn’t do it alone, we did it together, taking turns bearing the brunt of the cold on the front and being thankful to others for providing us with the relief of tucking in at the back, even if just for a few blessed minutes.

Night two brought us the darkness of monotony. Long, straight, dark roads with no signs of forward progress, no signs of life, no signs of light,  like riding your bike on a treadmill in the dark.  But in the darkness of monotony came the light of comraderie!  We had to transform what we had, into what we needed.  So we sang, we quoted movies, told bad jokes (or at least I did), we lifted each other up. And then from an unexpected place, in an unexpected way (no really it was unexpected), help from friends.  Giving us what we needed to make it to the end of that night.

Night three brought us the darkness of pain and loss. This night we honored those who have been taken from us and those who have beaten cancer.  There were tears, lots of tears, and anger, but also glimmers, however brief, of victory and hope. In that darkness we found strength, courage,  honor and purpose inside of ourselves.  We found  we were not alone, we had angels pushing us forward, we had friends and family needing us to fight for them and we had each other to support, encourage and to push us forward.

When I think of this adventure and the view from the darkside, I remember, “There can be no transforming of darkness into light and of apathy into movement without emotion.”  As you have read this week, there have been a lot of emotions. So let the transformations begin.

Now it is up to all of you reading this take the emotions from these blogs, these riders, this journey… I challenge you to take your emotions, your enthusiasm, your anger and use it to transform the darkness of cancer into the light of a cancer free world. Donate, volunteer, hug a survivor, visit a warrior, pray, ride, run, sell lemonade, walk, it doesn’t matter what you do…just do something.  Because you never know when your actions are the light someone needs to help them out of their darkness. Together we can take the light of love and action and destroy the darkness of cancer….

The emotion of this trip has been transforming for me and for the whole Mellow Yellow team…and tomorrow..well..tomorrow, we see the light and we are excited for what the light brings!!

RideSTRONG into the light!

I started with a cycling friend name Jackie Whitted. He left to early with pancreatic cancer. He was the biggest George Hincapie fan I have ever seen! He was a rider just like us and would probably be there if he could to support this ride today. I went through my family list (Harrington’s, Sullivan’s, cousin’s. aunt’s, uncles, grandparents…..). I put some unusual names out there like the people of Bogalusa LA that have dealt with a blight of cancer due to environmental issues. Paul Newman and musicians. I left my personal reason for the end (and most importantly as it is Susan my wife but I always think of our 5 year old son as he too is part of this battle!). In what seemed like just a little while we were through with nearly 3 hours of our ride, just saying names and making our pulls in the paceline. Quite amazing and truly surreal.

Last year was the first year. Amazing ride but we were all trying something new and had no expectations. This year is way different. Different people, new course, new people we meet on the road that look at us funny and many that are bewildered by the meaning behind this ride until they look at the magnets and realize that they too are surrounded by Cancer. I think this year has been taken to a new level. For this team, it is not about pace, it is not about hurrying to the next point and not about how great we are climbing. It is simply about the cause.

We wrapped up our dedication portion with the group riding side by side as we named our warriors and our current survivors on the ride. I am not sure I personally considered how hard it must be to be in the support vehicles listening over the radios as the names were being called out for hours. It could have well gone on all day and night from Greenville to Austin. It was quite amazing to the see the light on the back of Scott Schuey’s bike as it rode on the support van in front of us for nearly the whole night. That red light was a constant reminder to all of us of why we ride and a person on the list that was there with us that night.

I am leaving to get some dinner, and go to bed early as we have a 3:30 wake up call to get us going to meet our 6 am transition. It should be our last ride of the process of going to Austin. Friday morning the team will ride as one into downtown Austin and enjoy the fruits of our labor. The sleep should come easily enough as we all are tired and are over 24 hours without sleep. I apologize for my rambling but it is hard to put all of these thoughts together in one page.

Austin, here we come! Thank you to all of our supporters, friends and families who understand why we ride! 

Joey Sullivan

Team Yellow

This has been an incredible experience. I’m several days behind and I’m not going to go back and recreate each day for you, especially since you can read about TeamYellow’s adventures in my team members’ entries. I just need to let you know what an honor it is to be a part of this particular team.  It’s amazing how quickly these people become like members of your family.  We’ve known some of the team members for some time now, but have really gotten to know the others and I can’t think of a better team to be on!  TeamYellow ROCKS!!!!!  

There have already been some extremely moving experiences for me.  The first one was when I turned out of the hospital parking lot onto Faris Road and looked at all of the cyclists and support vehicles ahead of me.  It truly was a sight to behold.  How incredible to have this many people making their way from Greenville, SC to Austin, TX raising awareness and money for cancer research.  Everyone is giving up 8 days of their busy lives for this important cause.  It seems that we have all been touched by cancer in some way – many of us, multiple times.  Next comes the times that our team is out on the road and Scott Shuey’s bike is on top of our support vehicle.  Laurens and I have truly felt like Scott was with us.  You’ve probably all read by now thm and at Scott was one of our warriors who lost his battle with cancer just a couple of weeks ago.  We are taking his bike to Austin with us to symbolize that he is with us.  For whatever reason, Laurens & I really felt his presence the night we were driving down the pitch-black Natchez Trace.  We knew that we were taking Scott along for the ride and that was extremely special.  Lastly (at least to this point) was last night’s ride in which TeamYellow members would ride in the front of the paceline for  a few minutes, sharing with the team via radio, a name of someone they were riding in honor of or in memory of right at that moment.  Ron came on the radio at 1:00 and said that we would be doing this for the next hour.  It lasted over 3 hours and we didn’t get to all of the names on our team van.  It was unreal.  Our team has some very special people on it and I am so blessed to be a part of it.

Spending time with Laurens in the van while the riders have been on the ride has been a highlight.  I didn’t really know her when we started this journey, but now…….We can just look at each other and get the giggles.  We have had tons of fun during these many hours in the van and have lots of inside jokes!   When we get to Austin and participate in the 5K/ride this weekend, I’ve added Laurens to my list of why I’m here, as she is currently going through chemo because her cancer came back.  She’s just a great person to be around!

So…we’ll try to catch some zzzz’s here tonight before heading into Austin tomorrow morning.  It’s hard to believe that this part of the journey is almost over.  Now we have the Austin adventure to look forward to for the weekend.  I’ll try to blog again soon!  Thanks so much for supporting us in this really important cause and thanks for following us!

LiveSTRONG!

Anne

After a few mishaps on the first day that kept us medics a little busy, all of the riders have been accident-free and have been working together like a team; focused on a goal with a common mission in mind. I have been impressed by the encouragement passed among and between each of the teams, as they pass each other on the road or meet the next team at the next rendezvous point.

The point that was seared into my memory was the two hours last night that the Green Team spent riding in honor, or in memory, of loved ones have dealt with cancer. So many, many names! Just out of these five riders, dozens of names were mentioned and many lives were talked about as each of these cyclists took their turn “pulling” the pace-line. Each name represented an individual, with a family, holding plenty of memories; and some of them were re-lived by the riders as they rode in their name. And those mentioned are only the tip of the iceberg. There are countless people who are fighting this disease that we don’t even know about; families that are changed by the daily struggle of doctor’s visits, medications, and all of the medical bills.

One of the riders on the Green Team said something that really caught my attention. Well, it wasn’t necessarily what he said; it was the pattern of what he said. As all of the cyclists on this team rehearsed the names of family, friends, and even some strangers that they met, this rider kept naming members of his family who had to cope with this disease. Father, uncles, aunts, grandparents, cousins- all of them diagnosed with some form of cancer. Any person who had this list of family members would be greatly concerned for their own personal health, and their chances of being diagnosed with cancer. And this rider may have that concern. But this man does everything he can to stay in shape, eat right, and then goes the extra mile by raising money to donate to cancer research… but is that enough? Are we all just beating the wind as we work together as a team in this cause?

Then an astonishing thought struck me. While this rider may appear to have all of the hereditary indications of a fatal disease, and one would only think that his days are numbered, we all need to remember that each person’s days will come to an end. It could come in the form of seventeen years of fighting a battle against brain cancer, only to have your body succumb to the disease; of maybe something as sudden as an aneurysm in the brain, or a car accident. The truth remains, we are not guaranteed tomorrow, so we should focus on a cause, on a mission, on a goal, that will remain past our death, and always live each day as if it were our last.

Anyone, and everyone, has been reminded of this truth in what way or another. My heaven-sent reminder came through the family memories of a loving cyclist on a secluded Louisiana road in the middle of the night.

On to the serious side of the ride to Austin.  We are constantly reminded of why were here by the presence of Scott’s bike, by my teammate Chase and by Lauren’s reoccurence of cancer. It’s not about the bike.  It’s about trying to understand why it happens to those we love and to so many others in our lifetime.  I thank Ron Jerina for his dream of the ride and it becoming bigger than we ever expected.  We are having so much fun but we never forget why we’re here.  Those who are stricken with this terrible disease are much stronger that I could ever attempt to be.  I will try to use their strength on my rides and keep my focus on the reason why we’re cycling to Austin,TX.

Noon to six today.  May rain.  It doesn’t matter. We are joyful.  God is with us and we are happy.

I am so proud to be part of such a great team.  I will never forget the hardest ride of my life.

It’s interesting how things progress. On the road you feel for yourself , cold and damp. Then, like a beacon, you look ahead and see Scott’s bike up front leading the way, driving the vision of why we ride. I’m getting to old to worry for me, but I ride for the younger people and their children so that they may see the day where cancer does not exist any longer.

As those thoughts were float through my mind, the sun came out showing its warmth and beauty. Our shillouttes drawn across the fields painted by a master artist inspired the team onward. It was a glorious day.

Part 1:

Hooray for awesome hotel staff!

Our first night (Sunday) due to the good heart of the general manager at the Doubletree in Chattanooga, TN we were offered rooms at the employee rate of $29/night.  It may not seem like a big deal, but every $ we save on the overhead of this trip is another $ that goes to cancer research and survivor advocacy!

Today was no different… The Hampton Inn we found last night in Tupelo, MS was nice enough to offer us the federal rate but could not go any cheaper without a manager on site.  So, this morning after we’d already been charged $70/room, I spoke to the front desk receptionist, Bridgette and explained to her what we were doing and asked if there was any way to get a further discount.  She proceeded to call the general manager to ask if that would be possible.  30 minutes later we received a call to our room saying they had already adjusted our rooms down to the employee rate of $29/night.

TeamAwesome with the awesome Hampton Inn Tupelo staff

And tonight… we had a very good idea of where we’d end up, Natchez, MS… so who did we call? No… not ghostbusters, but the Hampton Inn.  I spoke to the manager, explained what we were doing and she didn’t hesitate to offer us rooms for the employee rate, $29/room.

I look at the generosity of these folks as a testament to the fact that cancer touches everyone, and if you’re just willing to ask, people want to be involved and help out in any way they can!  So thank you Bill Mish, Stephanie Browning (& Bridgette), and Janelle.  I’ve always been loyal to Hilton properties and this has only reaffirmed my reasons for sticking with them.

Part 2:

Hooray for awesome Team Awesome teammates!

First things first… today aside from riding the priority was laundry… Loren, Megan, & Jerry got up early and headed to the local laundromat to wash our stinky riding gear… It was not only nice to have clean clothes again… but riding in the van was no longer filled with the stench of dirty cyclists.  You three rock!

Our shift today ran from 6 pm to Midnight.  We had a smooth transition with the Polka-Dot team close to 6 pm… Transitions are such great times to catch up with the other teams and cheer them on… you cheer for them as they arrive and they do the same when you depart… and the Polka-Dot crew absolutely killed it today… riding more than a century during the “Happy Shift” (noon-6) which got our hopes up.  After all, Megan, Bo & I had never completed a full century.

We rolled out to cheers from Keith, Reuben, Rene and Dennis (towel boy), along with the entire Polka Dot crew and our support folks… it was exciting and I was more than pleased to be starting my first full shift!!  We headed off into Jackson, MS commuter traffic… Bob Kramer started out riding with us as well to help pull in the daylight… which turned out to be a great thing since in the first few miles… Jerry’s rear wheel went “soft”.  Bob took a look at it, pumped it with CO2 and we were off again… for another 1/2 mile when it decided to no longer hold air… aside: if you’ve read about the polka-dot outlaws you know that for this shift we couldn’t have a lead or follow vehicle… so no NASCAR wheel changes… and at times no radio and no other cars for miles around us.  Bob thankfully had another CO2 cartridge and Jerry had a spare tube… in less than 5 minutes he had the tube changed out… and we were off… for real this time!

This slow start was a bit of a downer for the group, along with the fact the support vehicles had to leap-frog us… our goal of hitting a century was in jeopardy.  Traffic was steady for the first hour or so but man… the Natchez Trace Parkway is smooth… clean… and has little wind.  Animals were everywhere… and when I say animals, I mean deer… lots and lots of deer.  We saw a few cross the road ahead of us… and it was at first kind of neat… then there were more deer… and then… out of no where, no more than 10 feet in front of Jonathan 1 deer jumped in front of him and crossed the road, then another!  I thought we were going to have a Matt Lauer moment on our hands.  Alas, Jonathan is a great rider and wasn’t phased… He just kept pulling.  Everyone kept pulling.  Which brings me to how awesome my teammates are.  They pulled me through this shift… without them I definitely would not have made it.  We paced it out on the road and I hugged wheels… pulling some… but really relying on my teammates for support and strength.  Negative thoughts would pop into my head regarding how I couldn’t keep up with them and wouldn’t make it… but Megan, Jonathan, Jerry, & Bo were there… when I was gapped, they’d slow up for me to catch onto someone’s wheel.  I thought of my list and why we were riding.  I thought of Scott Shuey’s bike on our support van and his rear light leading the way… and kept going.

Our goal was to make it over the Mississippi River into Louisiana to complete our full century… and with an hour to go we were getting close to the end of the Natchez Trace Parkway… our goal was in sight… it was as if we acquired new legs and everyone kicked it up a notch.  The mile markers on the Parkway continued to decrease until before we knew it we were exiting… 5 miles to go to the Mississippi River!  News was coming over the radio that we’d be transitioning before the river and we said no way!  We needed that extra push… a full century has been a goal for Bo & I for a long time and what better time, place, and cause to accomplish it… plus we knew we could do it with time to spare!

As we approached the river there was a huge parking lot and I thought some of my teammates we telling me to turn off… thinking that was the transition point I slowed up… only to hear, “No… go… sprint zone… go!!!” from my hubby.  So I took off and started climbing up to the bridge… I reached our support van and was yelling “Go! Go! Go!” as I was about to overtake them.  My legs were so exhausted but I looked up and could see the sign, “Louisiana”.  We did it… we made the state line… my teammates could have easily caught me… they could have jumped ahead and made it to the other side of the river while I was still making it to the top of the bridge, but they pushed me, they cheered me on… they were that extra strength in my legs pushing me to make it.  On the descent Bo joined me and we rode into the transition point with 101 miles behind us.  Our first century and we did it together with our Team Awesome on the Ride to Austin. Team Yellow was there cheering for us as we arrived. It was amazing and I know I was grinning from ear to ear.

So thank you to my awesome teammates.  Without your help and support, there’s no way I would have been able to complete this 6 hour shift, much less a full century!  I am truly blessed to be riding with each of you for this amazing cause!!

-Polka Dot WILL meet and exceed expectations…even if they have a run-in with the law.

-Just when you think nothing else can possibly go wrong with Jerry’s bike…it does.

-Natchez Trace farmers again remind me WHY I’m doing this…(see earlier post)

-It’s awfully lonely in the dark with ZERO radio communication…

-Deer are equal opportunity…they also like to sprint in front of bicycles.

-Jonathan Pait can pull for miles and miles….

-Bo Z. “heads to the barn” around 4.5 hrs in…(ie: starts pickin’ up the pace!)

-Nikki Z. only needs one good arm to ride 100 miles!!

-No turns, flat terrain & very little traffic makes for a kick-ass ride…Green Team knocked out 101 miles in 6 hrs!! 

-The Mississippi River is W-I-D-E!!  Louisiana, the Green Team has arrived!!

-The Yellow Team, even with Ron’s glowey-eyed tights, is a sight for sore legs

Until tomorrow…and the midnight – 6 AM shift!!

2. The theme from “The Natural” is very dramatic and inspiring when you crank it in the middle of the bayou at mile 70… in fact… right now… somewhere just outside of Natchez, MS some deer is busy carving a bat out of a lightning struck tree trunk with its teeth.

3. If you use the restroom at the rear of the bus… make sure a little old lady isn’t checking her mail.

4. Ice is free to P3 in French Camp, MS…  home of a very special warrior.

5. Bob Jones University is not exclusively Baptist… and I won’t get smited by a lightning bolt if I visit.

6. Jerry knows how to sweet talk the best Burger King burgers you’ve ever had out of Burger King’s finest… even after they have closed for the night.

7.  Polka Dot Team… Breakin the law, breaking the law…. breakin the law.. breaking the law!

8.  Big Joe Sullivans Hot Pink Shorts… Breakin the law, breaking the law…. breakin the law.. breaking the law!

9. 95 miles on the Nantchez Trail.  70 deer, 2 armadillos, 1 snake.  73/95=0.76 critters/mile

10. Reuban is the Obiwan of PB&J… 

11. If you ever need a super hero… call Polka Dot’s Sally.  She’s our hero!

12. Johnathan does tricks… there’s the arm pinwheel back stroke at 30 mph on the downhill, the put your let up on your seat mobile stretch, the low riding litter snag, butt wiggle, and my personal favorite… disco Johnny.

13. Team awesome graced the trace faster than a greased pig with a rocket in high gear tied to its tails flying down an icy roller coaster track tryin’ to get home for supper to its mama!

The Natchez trace is a very beautiful road and very flat!  Team Polka Dot rocked a strong pace for 88 miles before we got pulled over by a Park Ranger!  It was unbelievable that the P3C3 crew traveled along the Natchez trace for our 88 miles plus the 90 miles covered by Team Pink, plus however many miles covered by Team White before getting enough attention to warrant a stop by the Park service. 

The guy was a nice enough guy, but he started out a little gruff.  I think part of it was because the riders thought he was pulling over the bus, so we (ok, it was really Ed) decided to keep riding.  The Park Ranger had to get on his PA system to tell us to pull over.  It surprised the heck out of Jeni, so she stopped while the rest of us continued to ride on.  By the time the rest of us stopped, He had to yell at Jeni to “Come up here!”. 

First thing he asked was if we had a permit!  A permit?  We don’t need no stinkin’ permit (do we?????).  He was mostly concerned by the fact that we were using both a front and rear support vehicle.  His concern was that we were entering a very high traffic zone and the folks headed in our direction would not be able to pass with the very high volume of traffic that would be making their evening commute along the trace. 

Mr Park Ranger’s first suggestion was that we pull over and stop until the evening commute was over.  Team Polka Dot would not let this happen – that is when we started asking what we could do.  Of course, as riders, we were primarily concerned about keeping the wheels rolling.  He explained to us that we could (against his better judgment) continue riding, but we would have to send the support vehicles forward and leapfrog with them from stop to stop.  There was two pull outs nearby – one at 6 miles and one at 13 miles.

He had stopped us at about 445pm and we were scheduled to hand off to Team Awesome (aka Team Green) at 6pm.  We were hoping that we would be able to get at least 110 miles in during this shift, but he put a bit of a damper on that goal.  We stopped for about 15 minutes dealing with Johnny Law, so we considered the turnoff at 13 miles to be a possible transition area. 

Dawn and the Hincapie Bus rolled to the 13 mile turnoff while Sally drove the van to the 6 mile turnoff.  We had plenty of time left in our shift when we passed Sally, so we continued to rock on towards the 13 mile turnoff. 

Traffic was definitely getting heavy – thankfully most of it in the opposite direction.  This did seem to work against us a little as it did make passing us more difficult for those traveling in our direction.  We picked the pace back up a little because it’s just what we do. 

We pulled into the 13 mile turnoff at about 540pm.  We had a choice it seemed – another 10 miles or another 5 (maybe 6) before the next good opportunity for transition.  10 miles in 20 minutes wasn’t going to happen, so we opted for the 5-6 miles.  We kicked it up again and did our best to make good time to the transition area. 

When we pulled in, we were obviously pleased to see Team Awesome (aka Team Green) getting suited up for their ride.  Team Polka Dot rocked 105 miles along the Natchez trace today. 

With the strong results from each team on the Natchez trace, plus our good showing, we made up some miles to get closer to our planned itinerary.  Seeing Bo’s facebook post, it looks like Team Awesome rocked a century (plus?) as well, so that puts us right back on schedule.  AWESOME!!!

Thanks to Sally and Dawn for all of their excellent Support.  They are really taking care of us as we make this journey.

Nikki, Meggan and I just completed our first ever Century. We hit mile 100 as we crossed the Mississippi River into Louisiana. For me personally, it’s a goal I tried to hit earlier in the year and missed out on. I’ll keep this short and say that there is no other way that would want to complete any such milestone, in the company of such amazing people, in the name of such a worthy cause, and in honor of so many who have fought and are fighting this horrible disease.

Thanks to my Team Awesome crew who pulled me down the Natchez Trace on a gorgeous fall night:

Jonathan: for your calm leadership on the road, keeping us together, and keeping me calm when things aren’t going right

Meggan: for being the diesel engine that drives the Team Green Train down the road with your maniacal pulls off the front

Jerry: for keeping it light, singing good old rock ‘n roll tunes in the paceline and having the largest slipstream this side of John Siddens

Loren: for being insanely detail oriented and getting us to where we need to be

Betsy: for unbridled enthusiasm and willingness to make things easier on all of us spoiled riders

Nikki: for being the toughest chick I know, banging out the miles like a champ on only one shoulder

Team Awesome is truly awesome. I can’t think of a group of people I’d rather be riding with.

As for me, this Century’s for the ones I lost in the past year: David Beadles, Roger Mitterling, Jim Williams, and my Uncle Buddy. I miss you guys.

As we passed thru the dark, wet, fog in the freezing cold on Monday I saw it…..”come on…I will pull you….you stay on my wheel and I will get you there…..don’t give in let me help you….I will come back for you and keep you going…..don’t go to far ahead of us……we will pull you back into the pocket to keep you safe…..if you are shivering we will get your warm….” T-E-A-M……I have been shown over and over in the past 2 days what that REALLY means! It touches my heart. It makes me realize that it may take a village to raise a child as they say……but it takes a TEAM to get to get thru 20 degree weather and up huge mountains……it takes a team to get you to Austin, TX ….it takes a TEAM to get you thru Cancer. So far so WONDERFUL!

Being a support person is WORK, but it is a labor of love for the riders that punish their bodies to raise money for this cause! I feel so so lucky to be here!
Nite!

sally
Polka Dots

Our second ride was from 6:00pm to midnight, we actually saw the light for one hour and then tucked into the darkness for the next 5 hours. We continued to cruise and Ron cues us to turn left and I looked left and yelled nooooo, it was the darkest road ever and we were heading in. This is called something Trace, whatever it’s called the middle of no where to me but trees, us and our Angels woods. Needless to say, I got a little crazy in the head being away from civilization, I am not a fan of the woods, Tedd was trying hard to tell me a ghost story and I would take off from the pack. One time an animal came running out of the woods and I screamed and took off and one time I thought there was a creek in the ditch but no creek just trees, trees and more trees!! Just when I thought my mind was gone the white came hauling past me on the left with the biggest and whitest moon ever and it wasn’t in the sky. Now I know why they are called the “white team” and for the next hour to the finish it was on…..!! I sure do love me some “Miltshakes”!!

We are all having a great time and loving the support from all of our family and friends. I want to thank everyone that donated, it is you that helped make this possible (thank you Ken Smith, Smiley’s). I want to acknowledge everyone we are riding in honor of especially Laurens Flanagan whom is with our team and I found myself wanting to see her on that country road to keep me focused of why we are riding and I find myself missing Dustin and Jeni terribly, hugs to you both! I love to ride, it is riding that I am with my Angels – Deena and Stephanie whom are two of my best friends that have lost the battle. It is on the road that i am one with them and I know they are always with me guiding and protecting me.  Last night was extra special because we had Scott Shuey’s bike on top of our van (Scott lost the battle to cancer a couple weeks ago and he was supposed to be our warrior this year) in his memory and it was awesome and very inspirational.

Got to get some ride before our moonlighting ride!  Love you all!

Beth

  Then the sun came up and it was like the green flag was waved.  The pink team (plus Arthur from the Great Escape) hit 21 mph and never let out.  We came together in a perfect pace, communicated well, and had a great time. The warmer the temp the faster we rode.  I felt stronger at the end of this ride than I have ever felt at the end of any ride.

 We loaded our bikes, got our massage (thanks Renee and towel boy) and went to find food after we realized it had been 24 hours since we sat down to eat.  We drove 45 miniutes to crap hole mississippi, and ate ate the mexican restaurnt that was the towns namesake.  And of all the places on earth the yellow team walks in just long enough to take advantage of our clean van windows by covering them with window marker. 

Everyones mood is great, the weather is fantastic, and we have brought alot of attention to our ride.  We are 40 people who are showing the world how to  liveSTRONG.

please excuse the scattered thoughts no sleep and tight quarters dont make interesting stories.

Also shout out to Arthur for pulling me back into the group after I faded on a few hills and all my teammates.  I did a few ceremonial pulls at the beginning of ride and then snapped back to reality and safely tucked myself into the center of the pack.

Now for our team round up:  Keri did the entire ride hammering in the big ring, Coach Barry made sure our form was excellent, Dustin blocked the wind for a 2 mile radius, Ray was a work horse pulling, Jeff was the silent stealth rider, Kim and Jessica kept us in line and for goodness sake would Joe please open up and tell us what he is really thinking instead of making us read his mind.

Ok for those of you shocked at the amount of emotion and thought that I am spewing in these posts – I blame it on sleep deprivation, hypoxia and lactic acid build-up – doubt it was the Corona I just drank!

Pink out!!!!!!!

(Damn, Yellow Team just vandalized our van with yellow paint – revenge is in the air!!!!)

Our team is in Tupelo, MS this morning and we are heading to Winnfield, LA where our team will ride again in the morning from 6am until noon. Last night they rode the Natchez Trace from midnight to 6am in 40 degree weather.

Your class might get a kick out of tracking our progress. We sould be in Austin on Thursday so look fast.

Love you and looking forward to seeing you at Thanksgiving.

Obviously at 70 years old I must admit I was a little apprehensive about having to ride 6-hours, midnight to 6AM. 

Riding through the night down the Natchez Trace Parkway, along woth Milt, Judy and Kathy we rode  in three states. (Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi)

Other members of my team will undoubtedly give you many of the ride’s details, I just want to simply say again, ”Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, it is about learbning to dance in the rain.”  Although the weather wes dry by cold, I did “Dance in the rain”.  It was an exhilariting experience and my apprehension was quickly overcome with the passing of each hour. For those that I honor and those that I memorialize, “This Joe’s for you”.

As we rode into the transition point with the Pink team, I was overcome with emotion by the well wishes from their entire team. Thank you for the continued support and encouragement that you give me. 

As I finished I prayed and thought, “Surely 6 hours on my bike, in the darkness of night, is much easier than chemo and/or radiation.”

Now it’s off to Louisiana for our first daylight ride, tomorrow, 6Am to noon.

Thank you Jeni, I know the Polka Dot ribbions you put on our van had me in mind.  Love Ya!!

JOE J.

Now we are on the way to do some need laundry before we begin our Midnight shift. Tedd – tell Grandma we are on our way.

Relentless Forward Motion
Robin Blackburn – Team Yellow

White team started out yesterday morning in Chattanooga TN.  We stopped by a bike shop to get something to keep our heads warm.  If you are in Chattanooga check out the new Trek shop.  Ask for Kim… she will take great care of you….  we spent a lot of time inthe van.  Mike and Don took great care of us and made sure we were where we need to be and fed when we got there.  We had both lunch and dinner at buffets.  A first and a second for me.  We rolled out and hit the Nachez Trace.  We spent a couple hours at THE gas station in Collinwood, TN.  Great people.  We had a great time chatting and sharing stories.  We pulled the kits on and headed out to meet TEAM YELLOW!!  Rumor had it that they were cold and tired so we thought we would spice things up a bit.  We drove East to find them onthe Trace.  We saw their headlights coming at us and the next thing I know Milt has his window open and suddenly it was no longer a moonless night!!!!  Yikes…. butt ( hehehe) that wasn’t the end of the light show.. nope we pulled over for a quick change of seats and rolled west to pass them again!!!  Yup you guessed right the window wasn’t the only thing to go down as we passed them a second time!!!  OH MILT!!! ( we have photos).  With everyone laughing we rolled onto our transistion point and waited for Yellow to get in.   We put Scott’s bike up on our van and it was a quick reminder of why we are riding.  My very tired bones were suddenly ready to ride.,  Yellow pulled up in great spirits and gave us a warm send off.   With in a few minutes we were greeted by a possium and a couple of deer.  The wild life seemed like a welcome guest.  A few miles that all changed.  As rolled along we saw a young SKUNK cross in frint of us.  Judy and I realized that it was about to do its best Milt impression and we started to sprint in a style and with the strength that would make Big George proud….. I was off my saddle and leaning over the handle bars like there was a green jersey at stake!!  Luckily everyone made it clear and our Support staff didn’t have to change the locks on the vans… Mike made it very clear that he would leave us in TN if we got sprayed!!!   I can’t say I would blame him.    I got too cold and spent some time onthe bus warming up.  Keith and I talked about how much we missed Kim and then we quickly realized that the skunk might not have been so random!!  Seemed like something she would pull!!!  I rejoined the team amd before we even started peddling a star shot across the sky.  Thanks Kim  I needed that. 

So it was cold, we were tired, we were attacked by wildlife.  A HUGE THANKS to The Pink Tide ( we are in Alabama) for the Hotel rooms…. oh that was the best hotel bed I have ever slept in!!  

So all an all we had a great day… Oh yeah when I talked to Jack yesterday he told me that Miley Syrus lived in TN… he said she had a white house and that I should tell her he said hi!!!   I saw a couple white houses and waved to everyone!!!!

We are getting ready to roll again. 

love the comments   keep them coming!!!

Thanks to Loren Snyder.  I have done better than survive the first 24 hours with his encouragement.

Thank you to LINDA PAGE for several tips and inviting to meet the group prior to traveling.  You forgot to tell me not to slam door closed before Jerry had his hand inside.  He is fine and was a very good sport about what he regarded as a minor injury.

Pink out early!

1. You can lock the wheels up on a 10,000 lb bus… and it won’t produce excrement in Jerry’s shorts.

2.  Broken speedometers have friends… broken odometers, missing road signs, and roads that don’t exist on GPS.

3. Missing bikes create coaching opportunites for team members that wouldn’t have been possible otherwise.

4. Inside every Mercedes Benz, is a monster truck trying to get out… we have proof!

5. Cancer survivors are everywhere… there’s a very special one in Spencer, TN.

6. Stops at state lines are more beautiful with “moon” light.

7. K,k,k,Kia…

8. Sunscreen is essential… even for driving the bus.

9. Thoughts of the spaces ukuleles will fit into, enter your mind at the oddest times…

10. Super awesome performances spew pink polka dots in Food Lion parking lots…

The ‘planned’ itinerary called for the transition to be in Dayton, Tn, but we’re glad it was not.  As cold as it was, we needed that ‘extra’ 14 miles to just start to warm up our muscles – unfortunately, our hands, feet and faces didn’t necessarily get all that warm.  We pulled through Dayton and the Bus stopped for fuel.  Sally and Team Polka Dot continued up the climb.  This was the first of three climbs for us today.  In fact, this shift is what we have been training for when we did all of those Paris Mt repeats over the last couple of months!

As we made our first ascent, the sun was starting to rise.  What an amazing site to see that orange line forming on the horizon.  Unfortunately, the temperature was not rising with the sun (not yet anyway).  The climb was awesome (hey, I love climbing, so no matter what, I’m going to have positive thoughts about any climb)!  It was the longest of the three and we gained something on the order of 1000’.  It wasn’t really over at the top of the main climb – we had some great rollers as we crossed the plateau. 

The sun was up as we rode those rollers, but still, the temperature was working against us.  As we started our descent, we were rewarded with incredible views of the valley below socked in with fog.  Awesome.  By the time I thought about getting my camera out to snap a photo, the views were obscured by trees.  I think Keith may have snapped some good photos. 

The descent was brutal.  I actually love descending as much as I love climbing, however, this descent was just not fun.  My hands became little bricks that just could not work the brakes.  I pulled a gap on the rest of the crew because of it.  Ed was not far behind, so we stopped before we descended into the fog.  He was frozen as well and he looked like he was not happy. 

Shortly, Jeni and Perry pulled up, and a few minutes later we started rolling again.  I looked back to check for everyone, and Jeni was not to be seen.  I asked Perry what was up and he told me she had gotten on the bus.  I was worried, but knew she was in good hands with Keith, Rueben and Dawn. 

We stopped just a short ways up the road at a McDonald’s to allow everyone a chance to re-gain some blood flow.  Ed and Perry climbed into the van, while I paced in circles around the van.  It turned into quite a long stop.  I checked once on Jeni and was told she was ok, just very cold.

I was looking at our mileage on the day so far – we had covered only about 25 miles in about 2.5 hours.  Then we took this quite long warming break.  I was very concerned that we weren’t going to get 50 miles on the day.  We had a lot of climbing left to go.

After some hot chocolate and more heater time, Perry, Ed and myself re-started our trek.  As we pulled out of the parking lot, I saw that Jeni was still shaking terribly – this after more than 30 minutes in a heated environment with dry clothing and blankets – She was obviously borderline hypothermic.  I am so happy she and the Medics made the choice to put her in the bus.  She now was riding with Sally in our support van. 

So, the remaining members of Team Polka Dot tackled the second climb of the day on their own, with Jeni ‘holla’ing encouragement through the radio to the team.  I did my best to relay that encouragement to Perry and Ed. 

We pushed pretty hard up this second climb.  It too was something close to 1000’ elevation gain, but not as long or as much as the first climb.  We stayed together throughout the climb and pulled to the side at the top of the main climb to allow the traffic to pass.  We were all feeling pretty good at that point and like the first climb, this one rewarded us with several miles of rollers before making the 2^nd descent.  Thankfully, the temperatures were coming up and this second descent was not quite brutal – just tough and again, that is due to the cold. 

A short stop at the base of the descent to allow more cars to pass and we began the third climb of the day.  Authur had gotten suited up and joined us for this next part of the ride.  Really cool that we have been able to share our stages with both Bob and Arthur – the mechanics from The Great Escape in Greenville. 

Arthur helped in pacins us up the climb, but we were definitely slower on this climb than the last.  Team Polka Dot was beginning to feel the effects of the ride.  Once again, at the summit, we entered a series of rolling hills through some incredibly beautiful countryside.  We set ourselves up in a paceline and started knocking out some miles. 

Arthur helped out greatly by giving us some great pulls to allow the three of us some recovery time.  On the radio, I could hear Sally and the Bus talking about our transition with the Green team.  I was a little concerned when I heard that they were still quite a ways behind us at 1140am. 

We discussed our plan of action should they not make it to the transition point on time.  I chatted with Perry and Ed.  Ed said ‘I’m spent’.  Perry and I talked about letting Ed get on the bus while he and I continued, but Keith put his foot down;  “If Ed is spent, everyone is stopping”. 

Turns out we neededn’t have worried.  Team Green came flying by us at about 1150 to set up the transition area.  They were a sight for sore …. legs?  Yes, we were very happy to see them.  They moved forward a few miles and we continued our ride.  We met them at a local grocery store and handed off the baton. 

That was our 2^nd Stage experience.  I really want to say Thanks to all of the other teams for doing such a great job through the night.  It was rough conditions and you all showed your strength. 

One other comment that I think is important.  Seeing Scott’s bike on the roof of the support van really does make a big difference.  I didn’t know him, but the outpouring of support for him and his family by this group of incredible people is very heartwarming.  Having his daughter escort and his Father ride his bike the first few miles at the head of the P3C3 peloton was a very emotional experience. 

RideStrong P3C3!!!

JD – Team Polka Dot

With only 2 weeks to go, Cannondale was notified of the problem. I let them know about the ride, the cause and the problems. In that matter of two weeks, Cannondale delivered me a new frame, and Bike Worx of Spartanburg had me on the road the day before our ride. What fantastic support! Thanks to Eric and Kevin from Bike Worx, because the first night riding it was flawless.

Those that know me understand that I don’t ride when the temperature is below 70F. Well, I really broke that rule this morning! In the early morning hours of 0300 hrs, team pink took to the road, and it was cold. Bone chilling cold! Temperature hovered around 28F ( not 28C),I put on every bit of clothing that I had. The major body parts stayed warm but the feet and hands were frozen. After our 3 hour ride, it seemed to take another 3 hours to thaw out.

Once off our tour of duty, we piled in the van and drove to our destination for the next transition arriving at 1400 hrs. Looking forward to some good sleep.

Our team consists of a total of 9 people. We were instructed to pack “light”. I guess the definition of light packing defined by a male or a female is quite different. Guys packed one bag – females ? Tight is an understatement in our van.

Looking forward to a little sun tomorrow, even though we are starting out again in the early morn and cooler (read cold, but not freezing) tempetures.

Team pink is a great group to know, be with and ride.

So the White team had a great night and everyone is rested and ready to hit the road again.  I am so proud of Judy!  She road like a champion last night.  Our SAG crew is terrific.   We are packing up the hotel room and getting ready to search Chattanooga TN for some warm clothes.   My friends up north will make fun of me for saying 32 degrees is really cold but when you are descending an 8% grade at 34+miles an hour   32 is REALLY COLD!

Soon we will be Back in the Saddle again!

Mum, Dad and Leah… If the phone doesn’t ring you will know that it it me….

Roll out!

Kathy

We were all bundled up to brave the 30 degree temperature. Of we went into the darkness of night in honor of and in memory of our fridns
and relatives. This is truly a great experinece. With my feet getting colder with each pedal stroke and my fingers freezing I kept on. Saying Saying prayers along the way for each of those I honored and memorialzed, I kept reminding myself that since God has thus far spared me from this dreaded disease, this was my tribute to them.

I never realized how cold 30 degrees could be at 10 o’clock in the evening. The bus finally caught up to us and I decided that since wisdom comes with age, I should put on my shoie covers top prevent my feet from getting frostbite.

A little refresyment, a potty break and we were off again. We slid through Hiawassee, GA and on into Hayesville, NC. With each turn of the crank we were getting closer to the witching hour of midnight the end of our first shift. Team Yellow flew by us in thier van shouting words of encouragement and they sped to our transition. The flasing light of our trusty van drive Don was kept in constant sight. Another mile and we are there. Here they are in Murphy, NC. We’ve finished the first leg. I’m little “Tipsy” but Ruben, our trusted EMT, helps me to the vsan gives me a couple of cookies and some candy anmd I’m back to full strength. This was for Chris Force our warrior
Tonight we ride from midnight to 6AM tomorrow. Hopefully the good Lord will give us a little warmer weather.

Joe Julian- Team White ,..ALL IN FOR THE CANCER FIGHT.

Chasse  said on our ride last year that a bad day on the bike is better than a good day getting chemo.  That has always stuck with me and although our ride was cold and not the best one I have had, we were out there pedaling.  Thank you Scott and Dale for the push on our ride.

Thank you Julie for the goodies.  They are fantastic and I don’t see them lasting all week.

Miss my boys.  Love you guys.  Write me and call me (and mommy).

ScottStong RideStrong LiveStrong

Over and out.

As we rode away, through the lines of friends and family who came to show their support, those emotions came on very strong.  What did I say – repeated exposure is going to teach me how to understand and deal with these emotions.  There is no problem there – they keep coming up.

I was very bummed that I didn’t have enough time to get a photo with one of my warriors.  I only met him today for the very first time – He’s a cute little guy only 8 years old.  I think he liked that his name was on both my arm warmer and our team van.  He wanted to take the magnet with him.  It was very touching. 

I hoped to spend more time with my friends who came to see me off.  I’m not even sure I was able to thank all of them.  Time rushes by so quickly – both in life and in this journey on which we have embarked.  Thanks to Yukie for the chocolate chip cookies, to Silvia, Elise, Steve, Hoot and Janet, Gavin, Courtney, Debbie, James, Savannah – you guys made our departure very special for me today.  Sometimes I forget how many friends I really have.  Thanks for reminding me. 

Special Thank you to Gavin for the excellent surprise we found in the team van when we got off the bikes – you’re the man.  Perry says the 2nd tuesday of February will now be considered a national holiday to Celebrate GAFranks day. 

Our first shift on the bike was pretty interesting.  We had to stop many times to allow traffic to pass while we traveled along Hwy 88 and we got a little turned around during our tour of the Clemson campus.  As we turned on to Hwy 76, the wind seemed to kick up a little. 

Thanks to Bob Kramer for riding along with Team Polka Dot today.  He pulled us along at a great pace for a good number of miles. 

We traveled a little over 47 miles in our first 3 hour shift.  That is about what our route planners mapped out for us, so we met our goal.  I thought it would have been easier to cover more miles.  It’s the stops that kill our average pace.  We’ll have to continue to work on that. 

Tonight we are headed to Cleveland, Tn to find a hotel.  Tomorrow starts the first of our 6 hour shifts.  We’ll ride from 6am to noon.  I think it’s going to be cold in the morning, so I’ll definitely be bundled up. 

Good luck to all of the teams out there tonight – Yellow, White, Pink, and Green.

jd Team Polka Dot

On our way to Murphy we saw a bear, a lynx, and a cougar. Ok, not really, but we have to entertain ourselves somehow.
Gotta go, Ron says it is time to get ready. Think warm thoughts for us!

Our team has 8 members this year. Ron Jerina, Beth Rusch, Tedd Garner, Joey Sullivan, Robin Blackburn, and me, Laurens Flanagan. We have two incredible support ladies- Jennifer Jerina and Anne Garner. This ride doesn’t happen without the support personel. Thanks to Hertz, we are riding in style, a Ford Expedition.
As a repeat participant (more on that later), I must say we have a great team. We already have a few inside jokes (Beth) and Ron and Joey already want a McDonald’s ice cream.

Thanks for checking in on us. We will update often. You can also follow me on twitter- laurensflanagan.

AND- may the challenges begin- I think we are the first team to blog!

I want to thank each person who saw my goal of $8,000 and not only said its possible but laughed as we flew by it….nearly $13,000  I am humbled and forever grateful. 

This will probably be my last nice blog because looking at the weather the rest of my post will be filled with tons of colorfull language.

Thank you, thank you, thank you

Dustin Retherford

First all the individuals who have contributed to our ride. With the economy in the state it is in, I was very concerned with people reaching their fundraising goals but with so many generous people giving to our cause everyone has reached their goals and many even surpassed them. 

Second, our sponsors and companies who gave us items or great deals to help us save on operating cost.  I am sure I am going to forget some but I want to mention a few of them.  The Spa at West End – for the second year Stacy has been a major sponsor.  Hincapie Sports – Rich, Drew and all the gang for the design and deals on our awesome jerseys and for the use of the bus.  Centec for being a major sponsor. The Great Escape – Year two for them also, for sending a mobile bike shop with us in case we have any bike issues and for some great fundraising rides. Dewayne and Will at Hertz for incredible deals on our support vehicles and allowing us to leave them in Austin, Josephine at Thrifty / Dollar Rentals for finding us a super sized van to carry the Team Pink and for a great deal. 

Third, Kevin Dunn and the Palmetto Peloton Project  team for allowing this vision to become a reality.  This ride would never happen without you guys.

Fourth, those who are participating in the ride who help me with so many details.  Nikki, Dustin, Jessica, Renee, Linda, Joe J, Joe S and Tedd.  You guys rock and I appreciate your help.  There are two people I especially want to thank who went above and beyond anything I asked them to do.  That is Laurens Flanagan and Joey Sullivan.  Without you two this ride would never happen.

My family – Jennifer, RJ, Reed and Ridge for you love and support and allowing me to train for and plan this ride.  I am sorry for my grumpiness especially as this ride drew closer.  My mom who made sure the money that was donated went to the correct rider.  I love you guys.

Finally, our warriors, cancer survivors and all those affected by cancer, thank you.  You guys are the inspiration for this ride and will be our tailwind that pushes us to Austin.  We will win this battle one day.

Now it is time to finish backing and spend a few more hours with the family before we push off.

ScottStrong, RideStrong, LiveStrong

Always know that there are those whose love and understanding will always be there, even when you feel most alone.
May you discover enough goodness in others to believe in a world of peace.
May a kind word, a reassuring touch, a warm smile be yours every day of your life, and may you give these gifts as well as receive them.

Remember the sunshine when the storm seems unending.

Teach love to those who know hate, and let that love embrace you as you go into the world.

May the teaching of those you admire become part of you, so that you may call upon them.

Remember, those whose lives you have touched and who have touched yours are always a part of you, even if the encounters were less than you would have wished.

May you not become too concerned with material matters, but instead place immeasurable value on the goodness in your heart.

Find time in each day to see the beauty and love in the world around you.

Realize that each person has limitless abilities, but each of us is different in our own way.

What you may feel you lack in one regard may be more than compensated for in another.

What you feel you lack in the present may become one of your strengths in the future.

May you see your future as one filled with promise and possibility.

Learn to view everything as a worthwhile experience.

May you find enough inner strength to determine your own worth by yourself, and not be dependent on an other’s judgments of your accomplishments.

May you always feel loved.

– Author Unknown

For those of you who are local, I hope that you will come see us off Sunday afternoon.  We’ll be rolling away from the GHS Cancer Center at 3:00 pm this Sunday afternoon.  We’ll be there around 1:30, so come see us & witness this incredible event!  I think I can promise that it will be a moving experience.

Our team of 42 fantastic people is picking a fight with cancer and we want to win.  Thanks to all of our family & friends who have supported us, financially & with your thoughts and prayers.  We wouldn’t be able to do this without you.

LiveSTRONG!!!

Anne

As the senior citizen ambassador of the riders (for those I haven’t told…I’m 70) I dedicated this past year to getting in both mental and physical condition to be a rider. Last year I volunteered as a support driver and did the Ride for the Roses in Austin. The entire week-long experience was truly one of the most inspirational experiences I’ve had since our children were born.

Although I’m not the fastest or strongest rider (most could be my sons or daughters) I’m inspired by the passion, dedication and enthusiasm consistently demonstrated by the entire team.

We’re are all riding for individual reasons and for the same reason………..to honor and memorialize relatives and friends and further develop an awareness of this dreaded disease and in the words of the late Jimmy Valvano, “Never Give up”.

Last year, when we arrived in Austin, I met Rob Dempsey who, with the help of Jeni Schumacher achieved a physical condition and weight loss that was incredible. At that time I was 69 years old and weighed close to 280 pounds. I mentioned to Jeni that if she could do what she did for Rob, she could sure help me. I was determined to make the effort and condition myself to be an integral part of this year’s C3 riders’ team. With Jeni’s counsel, as a “Y” employee, and her encouragement, I’ve been participating in a physical fitness program, including three spinner classes a week, since last November. I’ve lost 45 pounds and have significantly increased my cycling efficiency.

I’m repeatedly asked by our friends, why at 70 I choose to do this. I simply respond, “I can because there but for the grace of God go I and to honor and memorialze my many relatives and friends whose pain and suffering gives me the inspiration to make the effort.”

It’s my honor and privilege to be able to participate with this dedicated group of individuals in this week long event.

I extend a word of personal gratitude to Ron & Jennifer Jerina for their tireless efforts in making this event a reality and of course to my “personal inspiration”, Jeni Schumacher.

Thank you all for allowing me to participate.

I’m confident that God will watch over us and ensure us of a safe and trouble-free week. GODSPEED

JOE JULIAN

Can you imagine what the world would be like if we didn’t have people who believed in change?   Just let the world pass by without noticing all that we have?  Or all that we could potentially have? 

A friend of mine facebooked the other day that her child that had curly hair wanted straight hair and the child that had straight hair braided hers to make it curly.  Funny how we want things we cant have.  I want a bigger house in the country but not the payment to go withit.  BUT I am satisfied with the one that I have. 

I am also satisfied with the path that God has led me on.  This journey of cancer.  This journey of fighting and meeting fellow survivors.  I am not happy that I have cancer but I know that God has a plan for me.  I am so blessed.  I am so lucky. I am so faithful to HIM.  For those reasons I am satisfied. 

Being apart of this group means sharing, learning, growing, understanding others, helping, caring, and being satisfied with the God has Chosen.

If you have never been apart of this blog or followed us this will be the most interested blog.  I hope that you find the time to check us out each morning. Follow us on our journey.  Understand why we all are giving up our own lives for 8 days to make a difference for people that are effected by Cancer. 

The tears, the laughter, the jokes, the sore bottoms, the tired legs, the bonding is 100% worth it.  We want you to know why we are making a difference.  Why we are making this journey.  So I hope you join us. Comment cause we need to see that people Believe in what we are doing.

Ron and Jennifer Jerina thanks for making this happen.  Thank You.  I cant wait till Sunday. 

Love Jeni Schu…Polka Dot Team

When I began, it was another grand adventure – with a pretty serious commitment to raise some money for this cause.  As I sit here tonight, just 5 days before we make our departure, it has become something else.

I don’t have anyone who is very close to me that has experienced the horrible effects of cancer or treatments related to cancer.  I sit in my little insulated world without any real clue how difficult it is for those engaged in the battle and the loved ones of those engaged.

What has changed?  Obviously, this experience has directly exposed me to people who are survivors, to people who are currently battling and to those who have lost a loved one.

Still, I find myself avoiding the real emotional expression of what I am seeing around me.  In the last several weeks, a number of emails have circulated amongst the P3C3 crew about warriors who have fought their final battle and of others who have been called to fight again.

I’m afraid of the emotions associated with this news.

I want to believe that everyone in the world has it as good as I do.  I want to believe that cancer doesn’t really affect as many people as it really does.  I want to believe that people don’t really suffer through their battles…

Obviously, I’m still not coming face to face with reality.  I am still in the denial phase  of my relationship with cancer.  I’m still afraid of the reality of it.

I only hope I am as strong as our Warriors when it comes time for me to face the reality.

jd – team polka dot

A few weeks ago Bo and I had not raised $5000 of our $10000 goal.  We were trying to figure out which one of us would stay home.  We made this commitment to honor the memory of our friend David and it was absolutely killing us to think that we wouldn’t be able to fulfill it… and now we sit $500 away from our goal… and we are going to fulfill our commitment!

If not for the Grace of God… the goodness of those around us… our fellow riders helping us out… family, friends, friends of friends of friends donating… We are going to Ride for David… and Jerry… and Laurens… and Jan… and Aunt Mary… and Pat… and Crystal… and Janeen… and Maura… and Uncle Bud… and Uncle Buddy… and John… and Helen… and Jim … and Betty … and Roger… and Scott… and the list goes on.  That’s what sucks… the list goes on… like it never ends… every person we talk to has more people to add to the list… We need to shorten the list!  You in?

I have no idea what the next couple weeks will look like but I want to thank everyone who has helped me get here… oh and Scottie and Kim if you are watching a TAIL wind would be nice!!

Woo-Hoo…

In just a matter of days we will leave Greenville headed for Austin, TX.    I am forever changed.  With every mile that we cover we are that much closer to a true miracle in finding a cure for even the meanest cancer.

Robin Blackburn – Team Yellow

While I am support this year, I WILL RIDE NEXT YEAR!  This year I hope to take good care of my Polka Dot team…making sure to have them at transitions on time, and keep them happy while in the van (I’ll try not to sing too much!), etc etc.

I had a tough time deciding on what to have added to my arm warmers.  I could’ve put  Jane Pate on my arm warmers…but people wouldn’t quite get that….so I simply put   “My MoM”, “My Sis”, “My Sis in Law”……I think people will then understand how cancer has affected my life.  Simply put…I am going on this trip  for them, and for me….for the breasts, lymph nodes, ovaries that have been lost in my family alone!

I cry when I think of leaving Sunday!  Thank you to all that have donated and I hope everyone will send messages along the way.  If the blogs affect you even half as much as they affected me last year….we will see YOU next year as support or as a rider!!!!!

With dedication,

sally dunn

Why?  Why is that I can be so lucky?  Why am I given more chances then others? 

What is it that drives my heart into the ground everytime I find out someone has been taken to a better place because of Cancer?  Cancer.  Its just never certian. A sure thing. A done deal.  It keeps us guessing.  Wondering. And sharing.  It tells a story, it brings us together. 

How can it be so cruel and so good at the same time?  I think of all these people with the P3C3 group.  We are all so different.  Ages, Abilities, Health, and yet we are so close.  Close because of Cancer.  That nasty little booger.   I would never have met such awesome people if I didn’t have cancer.  

I am very lucky.  Not sure why I am chosen to do this but I plan on making this Cause Known. Because of people like Scott, Kim, Laurens, Sally, Barb, My Dad.  Cancer is very bitter sweet isn’t it.  I wondered why God would even have a thing such as Cancer in this world.  Then I realized….He didn’t create it.  He just allows us the opportunity to come together in faith, hope, and love.  He gives us the strength when our family and friends suffer from it.  He offers his arms to those who struggle and can’t anymore.  He makes it sweet with the friendships and the bonds that come from the clutches.  He makes it possible to endure all things.  Riding, Educating, Struggling, Defining, Awareness, and Hope. 

Riders, Warriors, Support and Friends…. we have 11 days to go before the big day.  Ron said it best in an email….Stay focused and remember WHY we are doing this.  It is not to be the fastest group or the group that covers the most miles. It is not to be the first one up the mountain top or to cross the border into the next state….. It is for those people that we love and care about that we ride….into the day and into the night. 

Stay focused!  11 more days to go.  Can you feel the excitment in the air?  The glorious chills, knowing we are all making a difference for others and defining for ourselves what cancer is all about…..

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This site is being updated right now with more current information. Please be patient with us!

Sponsors and archived posts from last year are in the area to the right >>

I ride to remember the friends, family members and colleagues I have lost to cancer. I lost my grandmother to cancer and my mother is a breast cancer survivor.

I am doing this years ride in memory of a special friend that I grew up with. Her name is Lisa McAlister Smith. She was taken earlier this year and entirely too soon. She left behind a husband and two daughters, on daughter in high school and one in college. I am raising money and doing this ride so that those who are surviving cancer can live longer.