Ania and Kris at the Bristol sign
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Trip Journals
My three major trip journals are now easily located with the links on the right sidebar. Just click on the trip you would like to read about and it will take you to that journal. You can also look at this year's trip journal on this website by clicking on the blog archives for August. Thank you for your interest in reading my journals.
Donations to Hospice are also easily accessed by the links on the sidebar.
Donations to Hospice are also easily accessed by the links on the sidebar.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
A gorgeous weekend!
With Ben being gone since the 31st, it has taken some motivation to ride by myself. However my friends came out in force this weekend and I racked up 90 miles in two days! I rode from my house yesterday and found that the extra 14 miles to the ride start were very nice. It makes me crazy to DRIVE 7 miles to the start of our ride! The route is nice, a good warm-up, and not a bad return home after the ride, provided it is light enough.
Today, two of my friends had 25 and 35 miles each to get to 3000 miles for the year! It was fun to see them make that goal. This has given me lots of motivation to ride the last 200 miles to make it to 4000 miles for me this year. While adding the extra miles to finish, Randy and I rode up the Holston River 6 extra miles and I broke a shifter cable at the far end! Fortunately, the road back to the car had only moderate rollers. I did have to stand on every hill, though, as the chain was stuck in the little ring in the rear! A trip to Boyd's Bicycle in the morning will have me back on the road by tomorrow afternoon when I plan to ride again. Then the prediction is for rain for two days. I volunteer at the hospital on Tuesdays anyway, so wouldn't be riding!
Last night, I went to the Kingsport Bicycle Association pot luck supper as I am now a member. It was a nice evening and Bob and Ellen did a great job on the photo presentation of their bicycle trip in Montana and up to Banff, Lake Louise, and Jasper. The pictures of Glacier were awesome and really brought back memories of the fantastic trip Ben and I made out there in 2005. We hope to cycle there in the near future as our last trip was a hiking adventure!
Today, two of my friends had 25 and 35 miles each to get to 3000 miles for the year! It was fun to see them make that goal. This has given me lots of motivation to ride the last 200 miles to make it to 4000 miles for me this year. While adding the extra miles to finish, Randy and I rode up the Holston River 6 extra miles and I broke a shifter cable at the far end! Fortunately, the road back to the car had only moderate rollers. I did have to stand on every hill, though, as the chain was stuck in the little ring in the rear! A trip to Boyd's Bicycle in the morning will have me back on the road by tomorrow afternoon when I plan to ride again. Then the prediction is for rain for two days. I volunteer at the hospital on Tuesdays anyway, so wouldn't be riding!
Last night, I went to the Kingsport Bicycle Association pot luck supper as I am now a member. It was a nice evening and Bob and Ellen did a great job on the photo presentation of their bicycle trip in Montana and up to Banff, Lake Louise, and Jasper. The pictures of Glacier were awesome and really brought back memories of the fantastic trip Ben and I made out there in 2005. We hope to cycle there in the near future as our last trip was a hiking adventure!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
New Total for this year...
My new total for this ride is now $20,505!!! Many thanks to everyone for their support.
- Posted very slowly using BlogPress from my iTouch.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Totals
I have an updated total for the three ride, three year, 7700 mile bicycle rides for the Wellmont Hospice House....over $88,300!! Wow.
Thank you so much to everyone who has contributed, supported, and otherwise given me encouragement during these rides.
Have a great day!
Oh, and Morgan came to visit for a few days and what fun we had!!!
Thank you so much to everyone who has contributed, supported, and otherwise given me encouragement during these rides.
Have a great day!
Oh, and Morgan came to visit for a few days and what fun we had!!!
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Joining the 21st Century
I bought an iTouch and am now learning how to use it for lots of things, like blogging! Right now it is pretty laborious to type but that will come, I am sure. Never having sent text messages before makes this alot harder!
My favorite part is having music to listen to in the car. Once I get playlists figured out I will be doing well.
- Posted laboriously using BlogPress from my iTouch.
My favorite part is having music to listen to in the car. Once I get playlists figured out I will be doing well.
- Posted laboriously using BlogPress from my iTouch.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
I did it!
Well, I made it over $20,000! Donations are still arriving and I am up to $20,350 and change!!! Thanks so much to everyone who has contributed. The thank yous are done and I am back riding on a regular basis now, having recovered fully from my fall a month ago. It is a nice feeling to be back on the bike.
Ben is going to be fully retired on December 15th. He has had enough of the 24/7 on call schedule and has taken off some time lately...ridden 5 days in South Carolina from State Park to State Park, ridden Cycle North Carolina, all this in between traveling to various locations to judge beer competitions. He took the judges certification exam in May (after his 1000 mile self supported ride) and STILL has not gotten the results. However, he is still allowed to judge and had a great time this weekend doing the judging thing!
Big news is that he is planning to ride the Southern Tier next March. He has had an ad on the ACA and Crazyguy websites and has gotten a nice group of men and women (total of 9) to ride. He is so incredibly excited! I know now first hand how he must have felt as I prepared for my Southern Tier ride. Maps, gear lists, plans, training, and the start is less than five months away! The emails are flying back and forth among the group and the excitement is palpable. This will be an entirely self supported ride, so there are many questions from the group about gear, camping plans, etc. I will plan to train alongside but will not be going as I am going to be the designated home person! Life is like that! Someday we will be able to ride together on the same trip and the Northern Tier is at the top of our list!
While Ben has been beer tasting and visiting with Graham, Sherri, and Morgan, I have been playing with my new toy, an iTouch. After my OLD Palm Zire refused to hold a charge for any usable period of time and all my data was lost (I did have it backed up on the computer) I decided to start looking for a device a bit more up to date. I did not want to have everything in my life, contacts, music, email, etc on a phone so I wanted a separate "thing". My phone is a small simple, make a call kind of device...that is all I want for a phone. The iTouch has all the music I have had on my computer, all my contacts and the biggie for me...my calendar. It also has weather, email (with a wireless connection if available) and a note taker...which I use constantly, as I cannot remember anything for more than a nanosecond these days! It also holds the 3GB of music I own!
Since it was raining yesterday, (no bicycle ride) and I had laundry and other stuff to do, I played with it alot, really alot. I finally got ALL my contacts in one location, with phone numbers, emails, and info, including all my friends from my rides (so Ben can call them on the ST!!!) I hope it will suit my needs and it plugs into the car jack to play music while I am driving. I can download audio books (some free) or music that I used to have when I had my van with a cassette player..remember those? I had a nice little collection of cassettes and I do miss them. My collection of Irish music we bought on our bike trip and tons of other CD's have been loaded on my computer over the past two years and now they have a home on the iTouch. Am I happy about this..you betcha!!
Now I just have to learn how to use all the features, and I have heard that you can use it as a phone with Skype, so I will have to look into that...but I need a wireless connection to use that feature. My little simple phone is fine for me!
Well the sun is trying to peak through and I am going for a ride. :-)
Ben is going to be fully retired on December 15th. He has had enough of the 24/7 on call schedule and has taken off some time lately...ridden 5 days in South Carolina from State Park to State Park, ridden Cycle North Carolina, all this in between traveling to various locations to judge beer competitions. He took the judges certification exam in May (after his 1000 mile self supported ride) and STILL has not gotten the results. However, he is still allowed to judge and had a great time this weekend doing the judging thing!
Big news is that he is planning to ride the Southern Tier next March. He has had an ad on the ACA and Crazyguy websites and has gotten a nice group of men and women (total of 9) to ride. He is so incredibly excited! I know now first hand how he must have felt as I prepared for my Southern Tier ride. Maps, gear lists, plans, training, and the start is less than five months away! The emails are flying back and forth among the group and the excitement is palpable. This will be an entirely self supported ride, so there are many questions from the group about gear, camping plans, etc. I will plan to train alongside but will not be going as I am going to be the designated home person! Life is like that! Someday we will be able to ride together on the same trip and the Northern Tier is at the top of our list!
While Ben has been beer tasting and visiting with Graham, Sherri, and Morgan, I have been playing with my new toy, an iTouch. After my OLD Palm Zire refused to hold a charge for any usable period of time and all my data was lost (I did have it backed up on the computer) I decided to start looking for a device a bit more up to date. I did not want to have everything in my life, contacts, music, email, etc on a phone so I wanted a separate "thing". My phone is a small simple, make a call kind of device...that is all I want for a phone. The iTouch has all the music I have had on my computer, all my contacts and the biggie for me...my calendar. It also has weather, email (with a wireless connection if available) and a note taker...which I use constantly, as I cannot remember anything for more than a nanosecond these days! It also holds the 3GB of music I own!
Since it was raining yesterday, (no bicycle ride) and I had laundry and other stuff to do, I played with it alot, really alot. I finally got ALL my contacts in one location, with phone numbers, emails, and info, including all my friends from my rides (so Ben can call them on the ST!!!) I hope it will suit my needs and it plugs into the car jack to play music while I am driving. I can download audio books (some free) or music that I used to have when I had my van with a cassette player..remember those? I had a nice little collection of cassettes and I do miss them. My collection of Irish music we bought on our bike trip and tons of other CD's have been loaded on my computer over the past two years and now they have a home on the iTouch. Am I happy about this..you betcha!!
Now I just have to learn how to use all the features, and I have heard that you can use it as a phone with Skype, so I will have to look into that...but I need a wireless connection to use that feature. My little simple phone is fine for me!
Well the sun is trying to peak through and I am going for a ride. :-)
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Time flies!!
Well, here it is the 26th of September and I have not posted for a while. So here is an update.
On the weekend of the 12-13 we had a simply fantastic overnight ride from Abingdon, VA on back roads to Marion, VA, through Saltville, where we visited a fascinating local museum, ate lunch, and then rode on for Marion, coming over Little Walker Mountain (very steep for 3 miles!) and into the back of Hungry Mother Park. We stayed overnight at the Francis Marion Hotel which is quite delightful, despite the small rooms. We locked our bikes in a building next door that is under renovation and belonged to the hotel.
There were 10 of us, 8 riders and two spouses driving the SAG/luggage vehicle. After a delightful dinner with the group, some specialty beer tasting, led by Ben, we turned in, ready to sleep after the 56 mile 4,000' climbing day. Sunday was another gorgeous day and we returned to Abingdon via Rt. 16, past the MT. Rogers ranger station, down towards Troutdale, VA, and then 603 past Fox Creek, the horse camps, Konnarock, and down 58 to Damascus where we had lunch at our favorite place, "In the Country". It was then on to Abingdon on back roads I had never been on, just an all around lovely trip, totaling 120 miles.
Thanks to Bob of Kingsport Bicycle Association who put the route together and did a wonderful job on cue sheets, hotel, meals, AND weather! We had a great time and were glad to be invited to join the group.
The next weekend, the 19-20th, Graham and Morgan came to visit and go to Rhythm and Roots Reunion Music Festival here in Bristol. We had a blast and Morgan seemed to love the music! I sure loved going with her.
I am over all my injuries from my fall in Astoria on the next to the last day of my long ride except for the thumb which will only be totally better when the nail grows back. It is still really sensitive but the bone is healed now.
Ben and I have been picking raspberries non-stop and getting a gallon about every other day. We now have over 24 jars of jam and at least 3 quarts of sauce made. It makes the best sauce for ice cream and/or cake and is the most requested dessert at my home!! I will be picking berries and making jam alone until October 4th as Ben has gone to Cycle North Carolina which starts in Blowing Rock, NC tomorrow. It has poured rain, nearly 2", all day so I am totally ready to ride tomorrow if the roads dry out. I wussed out on the half century I was going to do today with a friend in Johnson City as I did not want to ride in the rain, remembering the bad fall I took just three weeks ago on wet roads. I think I made the right decision!
On the weekend of the 12-13 we had a simply fantastic overnight ride from Abingdon, VA on back roads to Marion, VA, through Saltville, where we visited a fascinating local museum, ate lunch, and then rode on for Marion, coming over Little Walker Mountain (very steep for 3 miles!) and into the back of Hungry Mother Park. We stayed overnight at the Francis Marion Hotel which is quite delightful, despite the small rooms. We locked our bikes in a building next door that is under renovation and belonged to the hotel.
There were 10 of us, 8 riders and two spouses driving the SAG/luggage vehicle. After a delightful dinner with the group, some specialty beer tasting, led by Ben, we turned in, ready to sleep after the 56 mile 4,000' climbing day. Sunday was another gorgeous day and we returned to Abingdon via Rt. 16, past the MT. Rogers ranger station, down towards Troutdale, VA, and then 603 past Fox Creek, the horse camps, Konnarock, and down 58 to Damascus where we had lunch at our favorite place, "In the Country". It was then on to Abingdon on back roads I had never been on, just an all around lovely trip, totaling 120 miles.
Thanks to Bob of Kingsport Bicycle Association who put the route together and did a wonderful job on cue sheets, hotel, meals, AND weather! We had a great time and were glad to be invited to join the group.
The next weekend, the 19-20th, Graham and Morgan came to visit and go to Rhythm and Roots Reunion Music Festival here in Bristol. We had a blast and Morgan seemed to love the music! I sure loved going with her.
I am over all my injuries from my fall in Astoria on the next to the last day of my long ride except for the thumb which will only be totally better when the nail grows back. It is still really sensitive but the bone is healed now.
Ben and I have been picking raspberries non-stop and getting a gallon about every other day. We now have over 24 jars of jam and at least 3 quarts of sauce made. It makes the best sauce for ice cream and/or cake and is the most requested dessert at my home!! I will be picking berries and making jam alone until October 4th as Ben has gone to Cycle North Carolina which starts in Blowing Rock, NC tomorrow. It has poured rain, nearly 2", all day so I am totally ready to ride tomorrow if the roads dry out. I wussed out on the half century I was going to do today with a friend in Johnson City as I did not want to ride in the rain, remembering the bad fall I took just three weeks ago on wet roads. I think I made the right decision!
Friday, September 18, 2009
FInished my letters!
Happiness today! I finished writing all the thank yous for my fundraising! That was really a job but I am thankful for all the wonderful donors to Hospice during my ride.
Here is the latest update:
This ride $19,700
The total for the 3 year, 3 ride, 7800 miles is, drumroll, over $87,500
I am so thrilled with the support I have gotten. Thanks again to everyone.
Here is the latest update:
This ride $19,700
The total for the 3 year, 3 ride, 7800 miles is, drumroll, over $87,500
I am so thrilled with the support I have gotten. Thanks again to everyone.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Thank you!
I have received so many calls and emails asking how I am, and I am doing fine! My thumb will just have to heal on its own time and the soreness of my right elbow, shoulder, and leg will go away when it is good and ready. The ding on my head is slowly healing in.
It was back to the real world today as I did a huge grocery order to prepare for the upcoming Labor Day weekend. Graham, Sherri and Morgan are coming tomorrow morning and Ben's sister and one of her sons will arrive tomorrow night. So, I am cooking and getting ready for that.
I visited Hal today, my favorite bike shop owner and let him know of my bike's arrival soon, (I hope), and of its wheel out of true and a bent spoke. Once that is done, I will be good to go and hopefully ready for next weekend's rides. Back to work...
It was back to the real world today as I did a huge grocery order to prepare for the upcoming Labor Day weekend. Graham, Sherri and Morgan are coming tomorrow morning and Ben's sister and one of her sons will arrive tomorrow night. So, I am cooking and getting ready for that.
I visited Hal today, my favorite bike shop owner and let him know of my bike's arrival soon, (I hope), and of its wheel out of true and a bent spoke. Once that is done, I will be good to go and hopefully ready for next weekend's rides. Back to work...
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