April 2011
0 posts
June 2010
2 posts
ALC Day 1: San Francisco to Santa Cruz
Good day overall, but tiring. I probably will have no voice by midweek. I can see why people say that being a roadie is more challenging than being a cyclist. But I am liking everyone on the Moto crew, most of them are very friendly and helpful. I like the butch image that moto has ;) Tomorrow is a 107-mile day, and it’ll be warm so we’ll all have to deal with challenges. My first...
Experiece the Event →
See what we’re doing out here!
May 2010
1 post
Nine Days til AIDS LifeCycle 9
The anticipation is building! I’m getting my BMW conditioned for the ride, and getting all my stuff together to pack. This I my first year as a Roadie for this event. The last two years, I was a cyclist.
This is more of a test post. Just making sure Tumblr for iPhone works because I’m gonna be blogging from the road.
Until next time…
June 2009
20 posts
Day 7: Ventura to Los Angeles
61.0 miles, 4:00:07 pedaling, 15.2mph avg. (Another above-15mph average day!)
I felt like racing today. I sprinted up hills. I was so excited! Not that I wanted the Ride to be over, because I would miss my friends greatly, but I was done with the super-early mornings. For me, the hardest part of the ride was waking up in the morning and getting moving. I’m less of a morning person than...
Rain in June?
What is up with this? I princessed it last night at Brian’s house, and woke up to heavy rain in the middle of the night. I prayed that it would stop by the time I had to wake up, but it hasn’t. Ugh…..
This sucks big time. As long as it’s raining, this is not going to be fun for a lot of people. We ride out at 6:30, so let’s hope it doesn’t continue on for...
Day 6: Lompoc to Ventura
We woke up to rain this morning. Luckily I “princessed” at Brian’s house in Lompoc last night, so I was fortunate to not be one of the many who woke up with a lake inside their tents. I was whining about riding in the rain, and was slow to get moving, but I put on my rain jacket and went out to ride in the pouring rain anyhow. Not much would stop me from riding every single...
Day 5: Santa Maria to Lompoc
68.7 miles, 5:00:49 pedaling, 13.6mph avg, 31.5mph max.
Red Dress Day! Lots of guys were looking mighty fierce today in their slinky prom dresses or tartan kilts. There was a team dressed as firefighters, one as Santas, and there was even a complete wedding party dressed in red. The old frock I wore was from last year, but I don’t think anyone noticed.
The route was changed from last...
Day 4: Paso Robles to Santa Maria
94 miles, 6:30:44 pedaling, 14.3mph avg, 35.6mph max
Let’s hear it for Santa Barbara County! We crossed into it today. I finally feel more “at home” now. Each following day is just going to get better as I get closer to home. I called Brian and asked if I can “princess” it with him tomorrow night in Lompoc. That means stay in a hotel (or house) instead of camp. ...
“Do this ride before you die, so that others may live.”
– Doug, an LA rider
http://www.reststop4.com →
See why ALC Rest Stop 4 Rocks!
http://aidslifecycle.typepad.com →
Check out the official photos and videos. Very good stuff here.
Day 3: King City to Paso Robles
63 miles, 4:16:57 pedaling, 14.4mph avg, 36.7mph max.
Wow, what a day! I never thought I’d say that 63 miles is a ‘short’ ride, but it is this week. I got back to camp at an early 2pm! Then I had plenty of time for a luxurious shower in a truck, and I used my one 15-minute massage from LMT Bradley for my lower back. Apparently I’m not stretching enough.
...
David Driscoll is officially my number one ALC fan and cheerleader!
Day 2: Santa Cruz to King City
106.3 miles, 6:58:30 pedaling, 15.2mph avg, 38.8mph max
Personal Record! I have NEVER before reached above 15mph average speed on any ride - short or long, hilly or flat. I’m kinda proud of myself! Normally I’m in the low 14’s.
Today was a very fun day of riding. The distance was long (longest of the week) but it as relatively flat. That made it fast too.
It’s...
The H.E.R.O Creed
HIV Endeavor for Reaching Out
I met a new friend at lunch last Friday at a Thai restaurant in the Castro. We started talking because I noticed he was wearing an ALC shirt. His name is Tommy, and today he gave me a handkerchief that he designed. Here is what it says:
I have risen before dawn in this fight against AIDS * I’ve rallied family, friends, and strangers to support me in this...
“Doing this ride five times is like watching your favorite movie over and over...”
– Dan England, my rider friend
Photos status
I apologize for there not being many photos on here or on Facebook. The reason is because I have a first generation iPhone which takes poor-quality photos. For scenery photos, I can take a picture with both my iPhone and Canon and post the iPhone version online instantly. For photos of me where I have to bother someone to hold my camera for me, it’s gonna for sure be with the Canon. ...
Day 1: San Francisco to Santa Cruz.
81.4 miles, 5:48:57 pedaling, 13.9mph avg, 38.1mph max.
Besides the SF morning chill and ‘fog’ (should be called drizzle or even rain), it was a fine day. The miles seemed to go by quickly as we rode through some of the most stunning landscapes. I really liked the lakes, the beach near Big Basin Redwoods (California’s very first state park), and riding though a small forest...
May 2009
12 posts
“They’re here! They’re here. You can stop shaking now.”
– The snack guy said to me as I made my way to get some peanut butter jelly graham cracker sandwiches. People are fiending for them!
Testing 1, 2, 3
Day 0: Orientation/Reunion
It was great to see the familiar faces that I haven’t seen since the ride last year. And there my old friends like Larry, Troy, and Thom who are doing ALC this year for the first time. Good for them!
Orientation, AKA Day 0, went very smoothly today. The lines seemed shorter and I felt less confused than last year. I’m sure it was because I’d done this before.
In a few...
Mmmmm… All these friendly, fit, sexy people here! Having a great time already.
Another year of AIDS LifeCycle
I’m up here in San Francisco, about to set out upon yet another bicycle adventure - I had to do this thing one more time. Last year’s ride was such an awesomely sublime and powerful experience for me and I just had to do it once more. I’m riding this year thinking that it will be my last ride, at least for a while. I’d still like to be involved with it next year, but I...
September 2008
24 posts
We Made It To Eugene!
We got past the ‘Welcome to Eugene’ sign, then Kyle promptly got a flat tire. We took the bus the rest of the way to downtown, LOL. Just today, I had two flats and Kyle had three. We ran out of repair supplies, hence the bus ride. It feels so good to be here! Eating dinner in a jazzy Italian restaurant, then meeting a local friend at the bar later. On the train home tomorrow...
This Is It
Last leg of the bike tour! Florence to Eugene. Please let us make it there quickly and safely. I’ll write from the B&B :) Posted with LifeCast
It Doesn't Matter How Slow You Go...
…so long as you don’t stop. Kyle showed me a bookmark today that had that old Chinese proverb on it (and a turtle illustration too). He thought it fit my riding style. Compared to him, yeah I ride more slowly, but I always make it up the hills and don’t quit. And considering that I’ve ridden my bike only three times since the AIDS LifeCycle early last June, I think...
Slurping Down Them Oysters
“Can you move those over there, please?” Kyle asked when my oysters on the half-shell came to the table. He tried Halibut, shrimp, and clam chowder for the first time tonight, but wasn’t ready for what he described as giant skinned slugs. My friend Brian says they resemble giant bird droppings. Gee, when you put it like that, they don’t seem so appetizing. They tasted good,...
Just Entering Reedsport.
Cute little town. Riding to the lighthouse where our campground is. Posted with LifeCast
I'm Pooped! (Wednesday)
Today was all about the rolling hills. We rode 70 miles along the North Umpqua River, through Steamboat, Idleyld, Glide, Wilbur, Sutherlin, and ending up at Tyee Campground for the night. In Glide, we saw Colliding Rivers, where two rivers actually collide head-on, kind of a special thing, I guess. At that viewpoint, some dude in a pickup truck asked us where we’re from… turns out...
Monday at Crater Lake
Today was a good day. A relatively relaxed day at Crater Lake. We arrived here last night, but too late to see the Lake (it’s also seven miles from our campground). We used today to explore the area. Our initial plan was to ride around the perimeter of the lake today, but after yesterday’s tough ride, I felt like relaxing today. So Kyle and I biked the seven switchback uphill miles to...
