Day Zero- $500 million!!

Day Zero of the PMC was a fabulous day- 97 miles, over 6000 feet of climbing made as easy as possible by a tail wind, sunny weather in the 80's, lovely white cloud cover at just the right time, and a fair amount of shade on the route.

We started out from our usual motel in West Stockbridge with a pretty good sized crew (cycling buddies and other PMC cycling friends) then biked 4 miles to the NY border.

The day zero ride takes us through western Mass and the Berkshires, with lovely mountain views and bucolic scenery. We passed through pretty towns like Stockbridge, Lee, Beckett, Chester, Northampton. And of course, on your way, if your bike needs any frame work, you can always stop by Carlson Auto Body- I am sure they work on bikes if they are indeed my relatives.

I am lucky to be riding with my good friends Linda, John and Paul. We were also joined by Linda's nephew Max and his girlfriend Kelly, who is a new road cyclist this year and biked all 97 miles in sneakers. Pretty impressive!

And a big shout out to Paul's Father-in-Law Lyle who sagged for us all day. It is awsome to have SAG support out there. Thanks Lyle!!

Now this ride is all about raising money to fight cancer. I ride in memory of loved ones I've lost to cancer and several friends and loved ones who have recently battled and beaten cancer. My friends, Adam, Zach and Matt ride in memory of Adam's Mom, Effie who passed away 7 years ago from cancer. Go Team Effie!

We learned tonight that the PMC is shooting to raise $500 million cumulative since 1980, when 36 riders road and raised $10,000. This year our target is $45 million (we've raised $28 million so far) and to accomplish this there are 6200 riders and 4000 amazing volunteers. This is such a well oiled machine! They even had Pedro tell us how much we have to raise- 45 million. Of course he was number 45!

Here are some fun photos from the day, including a well timed ice cream and snack break by Paul and me, 10 miles from the end of the ride (I was starting to bonk so good timing). Also a random meet up with the amazing Galen Mook, one of my favorite Boston bike advocates and the man reponsible for getting Mayor Marty Walsh on a bike this year. Marty Walsh is doing the ride as is Governor Charlie Baker. John Kerry, a 12 year rider, admonished us by video to be careful out there and not break a leg like he did!

 

 

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Ready to ride the Pan Mass!!

West Stockbridge to Provincetown- 3 days, 280 miles

Tonight we drive out to West Stockbridge, and tomorrow morning we'll bike to the NY State border to start the Pan Mass Challenge ride- 280 miles over three days across this lovely state of ours. This will be my fourth PMC, and my third starting from the NY border (the traditional ride starts from Sturbridge but my crazy friends and I like to start on the NY state border to cross the entire state). Getting stoked! The weather looks great- 80's and sunny for all three days. It might get toasty mid-day, but hey, I'm riding my bike with my good friends, and riding for a great cause. I'll be riding with the memories of loved ones who have passed away from cancer, and riding with the strength from loved ones and friends who have successfully fought off cancer, and riding alongside friends who are cancer survivors- living proof that you can beat cancer and live a normal life. There are more and more of such success stories thanks to the continued progress in cancer research. But there is still so much to do....

I am once again blown away by the generosity of my friends and family. I reached my goal of raising $7500- funding that has come from 109 incredible individuals. Your money will be part of a target of $45 million dollars that will go towards the fight against cancer. Thank you all!  Also thanks to everyone who contributed to my Anchor House ride and helped me raise over $2000 for this very worthwhile cause. The next blog post will be from Sturbridge, after 97 miles of pedaling on Day Zero.

Interested in contributing if you haven't had the chance?  See: www2.pmc.org/profile/KC0258

Day 7 Bethlehem to Trenton- it poured but we stayed dry

We woke up on day 7 to a huge thunderstorm. A front was coming through the area, and most of the riders camped out at the hotel for an extra hour and waited out the storm. We got rolling late, around 8:30, but luckily day 7 is a short day- just 54 miles to our picnic lunch at 1 pm in Pennington but we would need to bike efficiently to get in. The skies were cloudy, but there was no rain in the morning forecast and a threat of thunderstorms later. We made sure to vocally remind ourselves to be extra careful today, as day 7 on the Anchor House ride has had its share of biking accidents, some of them very serious. And the roads were very wet.

Before we knew it, we were biking across the Delaware River into Phillipsburg NJ. What gave you the first sign that we were approaching a bridge??

We rolled through the lovely northwest NJ countryside, over very familar roads from previous rides.

All was going well as we cruised south along the Delaware River approaching Stockton, when one of our cycling buddies went down real hard as he crossed a really slick set of railroad tracks. It was clear to us that he had likely suffered a concussion and a separated shoulder, but since none of us were doctors, we could not know the full extent of his injuries. As any of us would do, our friend insisted that he was fine to keep biking. My friends DJ, Chrissie and I stuck to our guns, pointing out the cracked helmet and his lack of memory of anything since before the fall, and we initiated a 911 call for an ambulance. Our logic and insistence prevailed, and within the hour, our friend was on his way to the hospital, still not convinced that he needed to go (turns out he did- more later). High praise to Chrissie and DJ for loyally staying with our friend as the three of us negotiated our way through this potentially dicey situation with our good friend. Turns out another rider had fallen at an earlier railroad crossing and suffered a broken hip.

Having lost an hour on an otherwise shortened riding day, Chrissie, DJ and I put our heads down and worked together to pound out the remaining 34 miles to the picnic. We got there with 30 minutes to spare and quickly wolfed down lunch.

At the picnic, we learned that the House had raised over $460,000, well on our way to our $500,000 plus goal. If you'd like to give but haven't had a chance, it's not too late (www.anchorhouseride.org/donate). At the picnic, awards were also given out, including a Spirit award to "Team Youts". So proud of our Youts!!

Before leaving the picnic, we heard from our friend that he indeed had a concussion and a separated shoulder but that he was being released and would see us at the mall. That made us very happy of course, and the parade route to the finish at Quakerbridge Mall was festive as we biked the last ten miles with a police escort.

The mall ceremony was short and sweet, with hundreds of family and friends cheering us on.

We saw our friend, his arm in a sling and smile on his face, as we picked up our bags and bikes and said our goodbyes. All in all, it was a wonderful week of cycling, camaraderie, and caring for one another and for the kids of Anchor House. Incredibly, not a drop of rain and lovely cycling temperatures all week in what had promised to be a wet week. Clearly someone was smiling down on us. This ride makes me appreciate my close friends and Anchor House riding buddies, the amazing volunteers who make this ride happen, and my favorite Anchor House cycling partner, my son, Adam.

Stay tuned for charity ride number two- the Pan Mass Challenge starting July 31. I hope my ravenous appetite subsides before then, otherwise I'll be carrying some extra weight up those Berkshire mountains...

 

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Day 6- Hazelton to Bethlehem- really workin it

Okay, today was hard work! I'm the kind of masochist who loves to climb hills, but today was the first day where the ride felt like hard work. We had our highest elevation total today- 4500 feet over 76 miles. And as opposed to yesterday's very steep grades with amazing views, today the climbs kept coming, without the payoff of an amazing view. That and the 80 miles and 4300 feet of climbing yesterday made today, in my opinion, even tougher than yesterday. Fitting with this hilly theme, we saw a lot of these squiggly signs today, which usually signifies climbs or descents, although the steep descents get their own special sign.

But once again, the route was spectacular, with lovely views along the way. We again followed the east-west PA Bicycle Route V. I highly recommend this route to my local PA cycling friends. One highlight was riding through Hickory Run State Park. Really lovely.

We had a large group of cyclists to start, with the usual cycling posse plus a large group of "youts" (the youngings). We eventually broke up into different groups, and I had a chance to bike with everyone, including just me and Adam for a very long stretch and myself for a sprint at the end of the day. Adam finished the day with the youts.

When I was cycling on my own later in the day, after a spurt of energy got me quickly up the final series of hills, I had the honor of cycling with Anchor House lgend Ken Sharples. Ken is biking in his 27th consecutive Anchor House, and has biked every mile of very year (which means he has never crashed or had a ride-ending mechanical failure). No one has biked in more Anchor House rides. But close on his tail is his wife Barb Keener, who has completed 26 rides. It took me until this ride to understand that Ken and Barb are husband and wife. Which is kinda funny, since I am also part of a Ken and Barbie duo. Below is a photo of the three of us.

I have to say though that my favorite part of the day came as Ken Sharples and I were cycling together. We got passed by "Team Red Eye", a group of very serious and fast cyclists who only ride in quick pacelines and pride themselves in finishing early and in not being passed. Once they passed me, I picked up my pace and stalked them for a mile and decided, what the hell, with 6 miles to go after 70 hard miles, maybe I'll try to beat them in. I picked my spot and sped past them. I had to stop at a four way stop and they pulled in right behind me. I crossed the intersection first and started up a moderate climb, and put my head down and pedaled at or above 20 mph for the next five miles, keeping an eye out for theIr paceline in my mirror and fueling myself with bites of my power bard and sips of gatorade. I kept the hammer on made it in a few minutes ahead of them. The Anchor House is not a race, and I never treat is as such, but I must say it felt great for once to pass Team Red Eye and beat them to the finish, especially as a solitary rider. It was a two beer finish, shared with my friends (who were not very far behind either!)

 

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Day 5- Williamsport to Hazelton- A great hill climbed

Day 5 was a challenging but fun day. Our longest day- 80 miles and our hilliest with 4300 feet of climbing. But the real story of the day are the great personal hills climbed by individuals every day. I took the photo below of Bernie McClean and Gabriel Hayon at the first SAG stop as I was interested in the contrast in their Anchor House experiences. Gabriel is the son of my good friend Jack Hayon and on his first Anchor House ride. Gabe lives in California and bought his first bike four months ago, trained over 1200 miles, and is riding like a pro. Bernie is riding in his 24th Anchor House, and has biked countless miles over his life. Bernie had life threatening cancer last year and missed the 2014 ride and was told he wouldn't even be around in 2015. Not only did he beat his cancer, through the use of innovative new cancer drugs, but he is riding 500 miles this week and promises to be riding next year in his 25th! This had special significance to me as I'll be riding in two weeks to help fight cancer in the Pan Mass Challenge ride.

And tonight at the Awards banquet, we learned that Anchor House is reaching its lofty goal of raising over $500,000 for the House. Anchor House provides shelter and counseling to many at risk children and young adults who face countless struggles every day. Today we learned that we have raised over $450,000 (and counting) for the house. Please visit www.anchorhousenj.org if you're interested to donate or help in any way.

Other observations from the day. We were blessed with sunny skies and temps in the low 80's. The Penssylvania countryside was again beautiful and our route was fantastic, often on marked bicycling routes.

The hill climbing was intense at times, with one climb topping out at a 19% grade and a few others in the 15% range. Luckily many of love a good hill, and there was nothing we couldn't overcome, even the long climb to the "Top of the 80's (intersection of Rt 80 and 81) in Hazelton. The constant mantra when the going is tough is "it's for the kids" which really helps to motivate.

We passed through our first covered bridge on the ride, which is always a timeless experience. As was passing by an actual Opera House that was for sale.

Also special today was stopping today outside of Hazelton at DJ's sister's house, which was on our route. She had ice tea, fruit and water for the whole gang, and DJ and I hung out with her for a little while. Nice to meet DJ's big sister and to hear some fun stories about her baby brother. DJ grew up in Hazelton and told me a lot about the mining history and the geology of the area. I was impressed by the beauty of the mountains and valleys in the region, although DJ pointed out that coal mining has devestated adjoining valleys and pointed out reddish acid run-off in what looked like pristine streams.

I'll leave you with one final photo from the Awards Banquet, to show you that we don't always wear spandex and cycling gear. This is a shot of the three boys- Adam and Jack's sons Ben and Gabriel. The next generation of Anchor House riders who will take us over many hills to come.

 

 

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