|
Club Member Spotlight A Phenomenal Experience  Vicki at a BIG Motivational Local This June, I rode my bicycle 7 days, from San Francisco to Los Angeles to help raise money and awareness in the fight against HIV/AIDS by Participating in Aids Lifecycle 11. 2,200 other riders (6 of us FFBC members) joined me as I rode out from the San Francisco Cow Palace on Sunday June 3rd, in a typically chilly, overcast SF morning. I was excited and a bit overwhelmed, wondering what it would be like to cycle ALL THE WAY TO LA… I found that it was a phenomenal experience. I was amazed how well everything was organized – we literally had a city of almost 3,000 people (riders plus over 550 support staff, called “roadies) move our camp from city to city each day. There were food tents, medical tents, sports medicine tents, a camp store, trucks with everyone’s gear, shower trucks, porta potties (can’t forget those), and much more that was packed up each morning, and then unpacked and setup each afternoon in a new location. We awoke to breakfast at 5 am, and rode in to camp with dinner ready at 4 pm (and luckily for us served until 9 pm!) My buddies on this ride were fellow FFBC members Pam Edillon, Teresa Sarlitto, and Joy David. Each morning we would get up, get dressed, break down our tent, pack our bags, and bring our bags and tent to our specific gear truck (there were at least 18 trucks, A – Q). After a (usually too leisurely) breakfast of eggs, oatmeal, coffee and fruit we would head out to our bikes. We typically had air in our tires and water in our bottles and were on the road by around 7:30 am. We tried for 6:30 but never seemed to make our self-imposed deadline...  Vicki, Joy, Teresa, and Pam sporting their Columbus jerseys We averaged around 80 miles per day on the bike, with a rest stop every 10-20 miles (a total of 4 rest stops daily), a lunch stop about ½ way through the day, and sometimes, on the longer days, a water stop too. We were not going to starve or go thirsty! Each rest stop, each day, had a different fun theme, with rest stop # 4 always being the “over the top” entertainment rest stop – the one not to miss – this stop was all about the theme, much more than the snacks (including Pop Tarts, yum!) and water. We would typically arrive in camp between 4 and 6 pm, and no matter what time we arrived, there were ALWAYS volunteers cheering us in with cow bells and good wishes – how amazing is that!?! We would park our bikes, pick up our gear, set up our tents, take an amazing HOT SHOWER (it was really good!), and then sit down to dinner and the evening program. And then the next day, we would get up and do it all over again… Eat, pedal, sleep... On this ride I was overwhelmed by the kindness and awesome spirit of the riders and the roadies. I have never been in such a large group of riders where most everyone calls out when passing, stops at EVERY stop sign, and is generally cheerful and kind. Even on the tough days, when I was wet and cold and a bit grumpy, I found that the general kindness around me made it difficult to act on my feelings, and even a bit ashamed to have them. On day 3, when we tackled the hill named “Quadbusters”, many riders escorted other riders up the hill, whether riding, or walking with those who just couldn’t put the pedal to the metal, and then turned around and came back down to help someone else up the same hill. Amazing! Each night, the after dinner presentation included inspiring stories of courage and hope from AIDS survivors, both on video and in person. It helped us understand how the donations we helped raise are used and how in most cases these people are survivors only because these services were available to them as a result of the funds raised. This year on the ride, there were 250 riders who were HIV positive (known as Positive Pedalers) and 50 roadies. Without the programs provided by the SF Aids Foundation and LA Gay and Lesbian Center, these people would either not be alive, or not have the health and stamina to be able to complete a challenging ride like this. Overall the ride this year raised more than $12.6 million dollars – with our 6 FFBC club members (the 4 of us, and Kevin McDonnell and Danni Mestaz), adding a bit over $23,000 to that pot through our fundraising efforts. 7 days after leaving San Francisco, I pedaled into the Los Angeles VA Center KNOWING what it was like to cycle all the way to LA. It was hard, it was easy, it was long, it was short, there were tough days, and there were great days, overall...it was phenomenal! The experience of this ride; the organization, the people, the training, the miles on the road, and of course, the Pop Tarts (I have been dieting, but I just love Pop Tarts and each rest stop had them!) has been one of the best of my life. If you ever have any desire to cycle from San Francisco to Los Angeles, you should consider this awesome, amazing, ride! So – here are my personal stats from the ride…
I kept a blog during the ride. If you are interested in more photos, daily routes and elevation profiles you can check it out at vickitimmons.blogspot.com |