PHOTOS: You know you have 'em!

Hey gang, visit the link to the right --> and edit the page to include a link to your photos, wherever you happen to store them (can be Picasa, Flickr, Snapfish, Facebook, whatever). If it seems like a pain to do, send your link to me in e-mail, and I'll post them for you. Happy viewing!

BIKES ARE HERE!

Greetings and congrats (again!) to the awesome members of the Killington Team! I have your bikes here at the shop and we are trying to get them cleaned up a bit before you pick 'em up. Obviously the sooner that is the better - I've already moved 'em twice since we got back 3 hours ago - but whatever works for y'all.

They all need a little work - call us here if you want us to go farther that a quick wipe-down. (To do more w/out your go-ahead would be presumptous, don'cha think?)

I know lots of words - but I don't know the ones I'd need to describe how proud I am of every one of you guys and in what high regard I hold you all. Thanks again and again!

On to Death Valley!

MC

Where to Start? What to Say?

When I got up @ 4:30 this morning it was raining steadily. For 3 days we'd been watching the weather, talking about the weather and worrying about the weather. Now it was Ride Day and our worst fears were realized - rain, lots of rain and temps in the 50's. Oh - and fog. As I walked to breakfast (and a meeting w/ the other 3 that'd be making the call as to whether we rolled as planned, push back the start or even ride a'tall) I would've given you even odds on any of those 3 options. I wasn't looking forward to taking even a quarter share of the heat if we cancelled the Ride.

But - as we ate and talked the weather cleared (a little) and it warmed up (a little) and I'm pleased to report that we settled for pushing the start back an hour (to 8:00) and then we hit the road.

I'm very tired and have another early morning so lemme give you the high points of the day - Basically......our Team rocked! Everyone rode SO well and once again at the end of a long and very challenging day it was a West Mich -heavy crowd that greeted weary riders @ the finish line. And - the winner of the Best Breakpoint Award went to the one manned by a crowd of West Mich guests.

I know this isn't even coming close to capturing the essence and the power and the emotion of this Ride. This was the biggest Ride to Cure ever and we had the biggest team here. Once again the passion of these riders, volunteers and staff shone bright even on a pretty damn gloomy day. I'm beyond proud of the riders, the coaches, the volunteers and the JDRF staff. It was a
helluva day and I can't wait to tell you more. For you team mates @ home - these folks did you more-than-proud and you're see what I mean when the pix and FB posts start flowing.

Gotta go - you all rock SO HARD that I just can't think of how to say it!

Your very proud and humbled coach - MC

Killington: Days 1 and 2

Eve of Killington Ride to Cure 2009
Team Michigan Great Lakes West

I meant to post something last night...but after a 16 hour bus ride here, dinner, hanging out with friends for a while, etc...it was just too late to put any coherent thoughts together.

Killington is gorgeous--crisp air, lush trees, rolling hills (will those seem so 'beautiful' tomorrow? I'm guessing not), and an indescribable energy and buzz of having 218 riders, 28 coaches, and dozens of volunteers ready to take on the challenge that awaits us tomorrow.

Today, we had a nice breakfast, some safety meetings, and a chance to take our bikes out for a little tune up ride before tomorrow. How about those bike room guys, eh? That place is unreal in how smoothly it's running--and the biggest props in my bag 'o tricks go to MC, Berger, and Sam for leading the way and making the bike room work really, REALLY well for the biggest JDRF ride to date. You guys rock.

In the afternoon, a bunch of people did all sorts of cool stuff today like alpine slides, gondola rides, hiking, a few extra cycling miles, and clearance shopping.

Tonight, our program included the pasta dinner, and lots of really cool, motivating stuff from all corners of the JDRF and Ride worlds. We also had our usual helmet decorating party...the ugly proof of which you can sort of see in the team photo above.

Right now, I should be sleeping, but I just can't yet. I have my usual pre-ride butterflies (the good kind), and also, maybe, just a hint of apprehension about the forecast for tomorrow. We've got some good plans in place to keep everyone safe, sound, and smiling for the day...send good thoughts our way, and we'll share lots of awesome stories with you when we return.

Killington

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Great Lakes West Chapter:
As Tuesday rolls into Wednesday, it’s now here and there’s no avoiding it…we’re going to Killington. I haven’t slept well for over a week in anticipation of this trip. Sure, riding 100 miles always presents a challenge, but the actual ride is the least of my worries.
Those of you who have ridden with me or Sarah know that she is the emotional one. Sure, I cried after completing my first JDRF century, but does anyone remember Sarah’s last trip to the desert…she was bawling at the start line while I just wanted to ride. So where am I leading with all of this…well, let’s just say that I may not be myself this weekend.
I would be lying if I said that I never hoped that all of these rides might lead to an advance that would allow my Dad to hang around a little longer. Something to give him a chance to watch his grand kids grow up, to share another golden year with Mom, or another opportunity to help mold me into the kind of man he turned out to be. Needless to say, that advance didn’t get here in time. So I am riding this weekend with a heavy heart and my father on my mind. He was a great man who did what he could for this cause and to fight this disease, so continuing to ride is the best way I know to keep his legacy alive. I know there’s video evidence to the contrary, but I will never stop participating in these rides.
So before I call it a night, let me once again thank the greatest teammates anyone could ever ask for. Despite my lack of participation this summer, I never once felt left out or uninformed. It is an honor to be a part of your pace line.

Rob

Wednesday night Sendoff!

Just another reminder that we'll be meeting at San Marcos, 9740 Cherry Valley Ave SE (AKA Broadmoor), Caledonia - 9:00-9:30ish tomorrow night.

Margaritas are buy 1, get 2nd for a penny. Come thirsty, or bring a friend. :)

Kitchen is open until 9:30pm only. We'll try to get there and get a few snacks ordered before that...if you're counting on dinner, be sure you're there by 9:30 to place your order.

Riders, family, friends, all are welcome. We've never really had a send off party before...should be cool.

We'll arrive at the Park and Ride lot at 60th and Broadmoor by 11:15pm to start loading up the bus.

DON'T FORGET YOUR PASSPORT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Excited yet?

Post Ride Report: 8/23

If you're gonna have a cool-down ride just a few days before several folks head off to Vermont, the training ride we had Sunday is exactly how you want it to happen.

So many things went juuuuuust right yesterday...

Weather: Cool temps, no rain, a few peeks of sun. Pretty much awesome.

Location: Thanks so much to the Fischers for hosting us yesterday at their gorgeous home on Mona Lake. Thanks to the Fishers and Williamsons for putting on an awesome spread!

Riding STRONG: This group kept up a clip around 18-19 mph for the duration of our 45 mile ride yesterday. Everyone pushed themselves hard, and rode really, REALLY well.

Riding SMART: We sent a ridiculously long letter (sorry 'bout that) to the Killington folks last week with tons of detail about our trip, but also wrapped it up with some friendly reminders about what it means to be good cycle citizens and to ride smart. Yesterday, we were (pretty much) that cycling team that drivers don't mind sharing the road with. Cool.

Great Peeps: 21 riders (including our first ride with Pablo! Welcome!!), one stopper-byer (Jack Clark), and one puttin' on the party-er (Amy F to the F):

Kathy Hesch
Derek "Still a bit fuzzy" Dykstra
Katie Clark
Scott & Melanie "I make a perfect s'more" Williamson
Maggie DeBoer
Cindy Aley
Tom Miller
Dawn Andersen
Linda Clark
Nathen Kooi
John "Stop calling me that nickname" Jasker
Brenda Baushke
Lynne Gallagher
Ken Thorne
Nick Murphy
Pablo Peschiera
Kevin Carnes
SGS Dawn Riccomini
Coaches MC & N2

So, the bikes are being loaded onto the trailer as we type, and our mobile bike room and rockin' coach MC leave tomorrow night for Killington. Can you believe it's here?

Don't forget the pre-bus-loading gathering at San Marcos in Caledonia on Wednesday night, 9:00ish. Join us!

You guys rock more each time we write these post-ride reports. Cool.

PS. Even with all those things going super right on Sunday, it's hard to forget that things went really darn WRONG for Cathy P to the T last week. Send some good vibes her way on Tuesday as she has a bit 'o surgery to fix her mountain-biking-broken wrist, eh? Love you, Cath!