What do I do with this?

A few weeks ago a friend in Baltimore sent me an email asking if I wanted to join her team on a ride against cancer. I laughed. I Thanked her for thinking of me and said, "I'm pretty sure I cannot do that, but appreciate that you thought I could". Now. I own a bike, and I ride it. There is a lot that happened from that moment to this moment and in time I'll catch up on all of the good stories. For now, here is the boiled down version. I haven't been on a bike since high school. When I pass people riding bikes I think, "Poor biker. I wonder if their car doesn't work." I did not own a bike. The only thing I had going for me was that I knew HOW to ride a bike.

So here I am. I have a bike. I'm going to join my friends mid-September on a 2 day, 150 mile bike ride. This is a ride to raise awareness and money in the fight against cancer. Please join me by following my blog. Have you ever wondered what it takes to go from couch potato without a bike, to being able to ride 150 miles on a bike, in 2 days? Wonder no more! Just follow my blog and I'll update from time to time.

 The ride is September 13-14, and on the 13th before the event begins there is a ceremony to pay tribute to those we've lost to cancer, those who are currently battling cancer, and those who have conquered cancer. I know too many people who fall into those categories and will pay tribute to them in the ceremony. If you want me to add a name to my list, please let me know.

 There are 8 people on my team, and together we've pledged to raise a minimum of $20,000 that will go towards cancer research at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center. My individual goal is $2,500. If you are comfortably able to donate, please consider visiting my home page and donating. No amount is too small. Any donations will be appreciated. 

http://dc14.ridetovictory.org/site/TR/Events/2014WashingtonDC?px=1214699&pg=personal&fr_id=1070


 When I purchased the bike I set out to send a text to my two friends that I'm riding with. I took a picture and excitedly sent a text. I wasn't paying attention and sent it to a different friend, who was not aware of what was going on. She wasn't able to pull in the picture so all she received was a cryptic message from me that said, "Oh my goodness! What do I do with this thing? It is now in the back of my car and coming home with me after work!" When I told her it was just a bike she was a little disappointed that it wasn't more interesting. On Saturday I took my first big ride--20 miles. I even had a pair of wild turkeys come out to cheer me on. By cheer me on I mean they came to the road and one ran at me with his wings flapping and beak open as if to kill me. Turkeys are funny in how they emote. As soon as he saw I was 10 times bigger than he was, he backed off. I just thought....who gets attacked by a wild turkey while riding a bike? Just another day in the heartland.

Join me! Cheer me on! (not like the turkey) Support my cause!