The Countdown Starts!

4! 15! 29! 30!

It's The Final Countdown!!!! (Cue guitar solo)

What does that mean????
1. I have 4 weekends left to make the most out of (and one of them will be up in NY with family).
2. I have 15 days left of work before my Bike & Build adventure starts!
3. I have 29 days left before I hit the road on a road trip down to Jacksonville, FL.
4. I have 30 days (1 month!) left before this Bike & Build business gets real.

How much do I have left to do?  Lots of course.  I still have 40 thank you cards to hand-write, many training miles to put on, a room to clean up, tasks at work to finish, and a theater to get ready for the summer.  How will I do all of this in my little time left?  I don't know!!!!

Regardless, what I don't have to worry about anymore are donations!  You guys have come through in a fantastic manner and have really blown me away. To everyone who has helped and donated, I am super stoked to say

THANK YOU!!!!!!

How much have I raised?  $1? $4500? $5000?  Nope, I have raised $6440 for affordable housing already and there's still another month left to go!  I cannot believe the generosity of everyone and the amount of support that you have shown for me in this endeavor, so thank you all from the bottom of my heart!

On a final note, to those of you whom I have not thanked yet, I sincerely apologize.  I have had so little time at home in the past few months with trying to juggle everything on my plate that I have fallen severely behind on thank you cards and follow-up correspondence.  As long as I have your name and your address, I do promise that there will be one on its way to you before I leave on this trip, and that everyone can expect a postcard from me from some point along my journey :)

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By the way, I had the chance to go on a nice bike ride on the B&OD trail with a mix of B&B alumni and newbies two weekends ago.  What an awesome group of people!  Next up is my 65-mile training ride this weekend with JoBeth.  I'm definitely looking forward to it!!!

Bicycle Tuesday - 11

We can all remember how just a year ago, the Boston Marathon was interrupted by a series of bombs that changed a happy occasion to one of sadness, grief, and anger.  As an amateur athlete, I was very shaken by the news of the bombings.  No, no one that I know was there or was injured by the blasts, but it still struck a deep chord within my heart.  Runners rarely mean any harm to others, because they are most often racing against themselves and not against the people around them.  Even on race day, I personally strive to give a wave or a quick 'thanks' to everyone there helping out along the course.  I take risks and occasionally get accidentally injured doing things that I love, but no person should have to be scared of personal danger when pursuing their own interests.  Let us never forget what happened, work together to keep similar events from happening again, and keep those affected by these travesties in our thoughts.

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With regards to biking and Boston, I just saw this article: 
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/boston-doctors-write-prescriptions-for-bike-share-program/

How about that?  The implementation seems a bit odd to me, but I do appreciate that they are doing their best to encourage low-income families to make use of their expanding bike share program.

When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking. 

~ Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Bicycle Tuesday - X, Diez, Dime, 2x5

As a kid I had a dream - I wanted to own my own bicycle. When I got the bike I must have been the happiest boy in Liverpool, maybe the world. I lived for that bike. Most kids left their bike in the backyard at night. Not me. I insisted on taking mine indoors and the first night I even kept it in my bed.

~ John Lennon

 

Bicycle Tuesday - 9

 Life is like a ten speed bicycle. Most of us have gears we never use.

~ Charles M. Schulz

Bicycles are almost as good as guitars for meeting girls.

~ Bob Weir

"I see here that you're a cyclist?"