AIDS Lifecycle - Ride to end AIDS
     

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103 percent of goal achieved.

Goal: $3,000.00
Achieved: $3,100.00

I'm Riding to End AIDS


In Aug of this year, I sat in Golden Gate Park with an old friend of mine sharing lunch and catching up. Over the last few years she has become a passionate road cyclist.  She has also become passionate about the AIDS ride in particular. While we shared our lunch, she told me how this ride has affect her life in ways that she had never thought possible. It not only has opened the eyes of many in her world to the plight of people with AIDS, it has opened their eyes, and hearts, to people they never thought they would. It has helped them understand different cultures and ways of doing things, which I feel, makes them better citizens of the world. That seems to be the power of this ride. I was intrigued.

As I thought about it, I realized that this disease has also come into my life in many ways. I have several friends in the Bay Area that are afflicted with this disease, I have worked with groups supporting AIDS in my life as a river guide, and I have seen the toll on the body and the mind in my work as a RN for 12 years. Riding for them, as with my old friend from SF, would be a wonderful way to show more support for them. But mostly, I think riding with Eleanor will be a blast!! :)

So I signed up, but I will need your help. I will be attempting to raise $3000 by June 2010. From June 6-12, 2010, I'm bicycling in AIDS/LifeCycle. It's a 7-day, 545-mile bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles to make a world of difference in the lives of people living with HIV and AIDS. I will be spending the next 8 months getting a bike and equipment, training and fundraising. I feel it will be a very rewarding experience and something that I will carry with me for the rest of my life.

Help me support the San Francisco AIDS Foundation by giving what you can. We'll keep riding until AIDS and HIV are a thing of the past.

 

Thanks for your support!!

Peace and Health

Sue

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Comments

The training has begun!
I figured once I bought a nice road bike and it snowed, I'd be ready to train. Who would of thought we'd have snow here in mid Oct? But there you are. The earliest ski season in years! Yahoo!
But I haven't let that deter me from begining my training. I finally bought myself a great road bike with the help of a bike fanatic at work (thanks Greg!) and boy, I'm enjoying that bike! I bought a 2006 Wilier Evasion and it's the first road bike I've ever owned. It's so light and fast. I'm also finding it very comfortable on the longer rides I've been taking.
First ride I was able to take her on was about a beautiful, fall color 27 mile ride from Frisco up to Vail pass. This was a 1500+/- elevation thigh burner that I didn't complete in one continuous ride! Breaks were needed, but the payoff is a really fun coast all the way back to Frisco. Didn't realize how much uphill I had done until I rode down. Total fun!
Last week was the week I finally got serious and started training more local. Goal is to get out several time a week, El Nino allowing! I did 2 training rides last week.
First ride was the Evergreen Lake loop, and while it was only a 22mile ride, it has a little over 2000ft +/- elevation! It was luckily a beautiful fall day and most of the ride is lovely mountain roads with little traffic. I was caught by surprise though when I discovered one of the roads on the ride was dirt! I rode down this steep scree road on my skinny tires and it made for an interesting downhill. No carnage, but I came close! The end of this ride bikes through a neighborhood with absolutely stunning houses!! They were unbelievable!! What was even more unbelieveable were the heard of Elk that had seemed to invade Evergreen. They were everywhere and I had to be careful not to run into them on the road after the guy on the golfcourse tried to chase them off the fairway. All and all, a great ride!
My second ride this week was with a bunch of friend from patrol around the lovely area of Lakewood/Morrison. We did about a 20-25 mile ride that was relatively flat, but went through one area that was overrun with prairie dogs! It was like moving speedbumps. They are awefully cute though. We ended the day by having lunch in Morrison. I happily rode my full belly home.
So now the snow has really started to fall and I have to put my outdoor training on hold. I have started cross training with running, and skining on my skis when snow allows, to get me in shape. I am also entering in several Randonee races over the winter that should help with my stamina and training.
But so far so good! Thanks everyone for the continued support and we'll see you on the road... :)
Sue

by Susan Demars on Thu, Oct 22, 2009 @ 2:33 AM

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