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How can I thank all of you enough for your gracious & generous support of the AIDS Ride?
Especially with the volatile economy right now, we're all given choices to make about how
we spend our money and which charitable causes to support. Thank you for choosing to support
me in my quest to raise $25,000 for California AIDS Ride 8! |
| Training News |
Ah, February! A month with so much unrealized
potential. I guess I can blame it on Mother Nature.
The month started out amazing with two awesome rides in the first weekend -- an incredible
Tiburon Loop with my Schwab teammate, Phil Wood, and a great Woodside Loop with my
friend, Larry. My climbing was better than ever (hills are my real challenge), so much so that I
couldn't believe I was the same rider. Okay, so maybe the fact that I'd just put on an amazing
new wheelset had some impact on this, but I was still really happy with my riding.
But the real news of the month was the weather. The first weekend in February was filled
with summer-like temperatures in the 70s and 80s and beautiful sunshine. Yes, I actually rode in
shorts (instead of tights) and started working on my funky cycling tan lines (a true social
hazard of the sport). But then, all the weather craziness began in earnest.
Rain, rain, rain, rain, rain, cold, 50 mph wind, thunder & lightening (which we never see in
Northern California), snow, a tornado, an earthquake, and did I mention the rain? Not
that I'm a prima donna or anything. I really don't mind getting a little wet & dirty, but I
just HATE riding in the rain. My excuse is that it's bad for the bike. But the truth is,
even though I've ridden my race bike in the rain a half dozen or so times, I still get scared
on the slippery pavement. Now you know my deep, dark secret.
So, I cleaned the bike (several times), read Lance Armstrong's inspirational book,
"It's Not About the Bike," filed my income taxes, and worked on my AIDS Ride web
pages. Check out my on-line Valentine's Day fundraising card.
On the last Sunday of the month, I finally gave in. It was raining, then the sun was
shining, then it would rain again. My friend Kerry and I decided to just get out there
and ride! The first five miles were dry, then it rained a little. "Okay, we're out
here now & the bikes are dirty, so let's just keep going." Made it to Woodside and it looked
pretty darn clear. "Okay, let's do The Palo Alto Loop." Feeling pretty good, the sun's
shining, "let's head down to Los Altos." Well, at mile 40, it started hailing. We ducked
for quick cover and waited it out -- only 15 miles to go -- "we can do this!" Cold, wet &
happy we finally made it home, 55 miles later. And you know what? It wasn't that scary
afterall. Guess I'd beter not use that excuse again. |
| Fundraising News |
Wow! That's almost all I can say. Everyday, I'm amazed
at the generosity of my friends, family, Schwab co-workers, and even complete strangers.
To date, I've raised $10,660 to benefit the San Francisco AIDS Foundation,
with promises for another $4,000 or so.
I was having an on-line conversation with another AIDS Rider recently. He is a
spokebuster
and a
vaccinator, which means that he's registered to participate in all four American AIDS
Rides and all three AIDS Vaccine Rides this year. In order to do this, he must raise a minimum
of $25,000. He wanted to know why, if my goal is to raise $25,000, I didn't do all the rides?
I explained that my goal was to raise as much money as possible for the San Francisco AIDS
Foundation; I felt that would be the greatest impact I could make this year. I don't
think he understood that my goal was to have a positive effect on my community, not just raise
enough money to participate in every ride. But, we all ride for different reasons, don't we?
| Team Schwab |
Lots of energy, but not a lot of activity this month.
Team Schwab had a couple of group rides planned, but alas, it rained! Did I mention how much
it rained in February?
In team fundraising news, our first official fundraising count is $128,248. Still a
long way to go in order to reach our $1 Million goal, but still pretty incredible. | |
| The Road Ahead |
Two words -- century season! For those of you unfamiliar
with cycling, a century is a 100-mile ride (not a race). And spring in Northern California is
filled with centuries almost every weekend. I'll admit, I don't feel particularly prepared at
this point to do a century, but then again, I've been surprised at how quickly I could hop back
on the bike and ride 50 or 60 miles, so I might just be okay.
There are two real highlights for March. The first will be a weekend AIDS Training Ride in
San Luis Obispo (about four hours south of San Francisco). We've got a pretty big Schwab
contingent participating, including some of our Southern California Riders (who we normally
wouldn't meet until the AIDS Ride in June). Hopefully, the weather will hold since we're
camping on this ride. The second is one of my favorite rides in the Bay Area -- the
Cinderella Classic in Dublin. This is a chick century (only girls and women ride) even
though it's sponsored by a men's cycling club. All the guys serve as crew, waiting on the
women hand and foot (as they really should!). |
| And most importantly
........thank you to all my sponsors. Every day I'm simply amazed
at your generous and gracious support.� Your donations are invaluable to the
San Francisco AIDS Foundation. |
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