Newsletter Oct 5 2006

By: Joseph Flanigan

Day 1 of MS Global 2009

This year the group is 33 people. 18  are fund raising riders,  8 are ride leaders, and 7 support. Today we started at the Best Western in CorteMadra, which is small town north-east of the San Francisco Bay Bridge.  This ride was a little over 25 miles.  Here is a link to the ride map:  http://www.mapmyride.com/add_route_to_blog.php?r=279125112817167982

The people here are wonderful.  Most of the riders are very experienced and can ride like the wind. I cannot ride fast yet. After leaving the motel, the route goes through the town of Sausalito. I was there once in about 1969.  I have no memory of the buildings or the like, but sea smell and atmosphere are the same. What a rush those times. I remember driving through the Haight-Ashbury then too. That was another Trip. “Where have all the flowers gone?  Gone to war, everyone.”  While pedaling through Sausalito, I found a little bit of that lost flower child spirit.

I was the last one up the hill overlooking the San Fransico Bay Bride, but at the top everyone else was there cheering. That was quite a climb, sea level to 800 feet. I fell once because the gears failed to change and I was going too slow, and I just sorta tipped over. Because of the MS I did not have enough coordination to mount the bike on an uphill incline. The only means to get up the hill is to walk until there is a small level area. It wasn’t far, and after getting on the bike I pedaled to the top of the hill.

Today the MS hurt only a little bit and I pedaled up a hill. A couple of nice donations came in today. We still need a lot  more. Please go to  http://www.firstgiving.com/happyheart and become a sponsor of the Accelerated Cure Project.

Some people asked how I lost a 100 lbs in the last year an a half,  I have to work on answering that one.

Tomorrow is another ride.

Head up. Chest out. Breathe.

Joseph