On the last day before leaving for my ride, I visited my mom to say goodbye and show her how to access my blog. My instructions to her were to stay well. At age 91, she is an active senior and enjoying life at Bedford Court, a near-by retirement community.
I visited my grandchildren in New Hampshire this past weekend and showed them the route of the bike ride.
The youngest child could not figure out how I could ride across one of the Great Lakes! Their eyes bulged with awe as they followed the map from city to city and state to state.
A 50-mile, hilly bike ride was scrubbed when Ziva's bike malfunctioned on our first major climb in hilly Howard County.
Fortunately, we were about ten miles from a new bike shop in Laytonsville. Travis repaired the derailleur and we pedaled home completing only a 44 mile ride in intense heat. End result, not too shabby.
On my upcoming cross country ride you will find many photos of Ziva Schuchman, my biking partner and long time friend. Twelve years ago, she cheered for me as I completed my first charity ride for AIDS, 450 miles from Raleigh, NC, to Washington, DC. She was determined to join me the following year on this ride. The only catch was that I had to teach her how to ride a bike! She was a very fast learner and today is a much stronger hill climber than I.
When Ziva's brother died of acute leukemia ten years ago, we started cycling together to help mend the pain of his death and to raise funds to find a cure so others would not have to experience such a loss. Both of us want to thank all of you for your many donations over the last ten years.
Small Comforts Bake Shop is a new stand at the Olney Framer's Market. Binni, the owner and primary baker, is a TNT teammate of mine when I rode for leukemia in the past. I loved the raspberry scones I purchased. For my mom for Mother's Day, I purchased an incredible mini-apple pie. I'm sure I burned off any calories I consumed that day by cycling home with winds gusting to 30 miles per hour.
Today our logo arrived in the mail. The original logo, 5-2 OVER and UNDER, was created 11 years ago when our team cycled for AIDS. The original five cyclists were all under 5'2" in height and over 52 years in age! Ziva and I will ride with pride, displaying our logo and talking about our charity rides over the years.
Matt at All American Bikes in Damascus has nursed my Serrotta for 8 years. For this trip I have had a new cassette added in the rear to increase my climbing power on those mountains out west. I hope this works!
