The Ride to Conquer Cancer has come and gone.
Imagine my shock and all my feelings when I found myself at the start line with 3,000 plus other cyclists. Each and every cyclist had to raise $2,500.00 in order to qualify to be there! (Chuck and I raised $600 over and above our goal). This event raised $10.4 million dollars in total for the BC Cancer Agency…and we were all part of that.
Even with a training injury, the energy of the cyclists and fantastic volunteers keep me so motived I rode my ride from the start line to the finish line without missing one kilometre. And what a ride. My average speed was 21 kilometres per hour, (which was my original goal for the ride). This average placed me in and about the middle of the event. Which meant, my riding time, in the saddle each day, was about six hours.
I travelled from Vancouver to Seattle on a scenic route taking me along the oceanside, through small communities, along farmlands and mile after mile of a wonderful bike trail. Each and every kilometre brought me an unforgettable view, sometimes a challenging hill, (one being seven miles long), fellow cyclists sharing their story, and an overall feeling of “I can’t believe I’m actually doing this.”
I loved it! And there was a part of me who was sorry to see the finish line!
I could not have completed this challenge without you. This was ‘our’ ride. Thank-you to my wonderful husband who was beside me campaigning, organizing our fund-raisers, training with me whenever possible, and believing in me all the way. Also a special thank- you to Fiesta Greenhouses for featuring my cookies at their farmer’s roadside stand; Save-On-Foods; Quality Foods and Thrifty’s for donating the supplies to bake cookies, and DTK Farm Market for featuring my cookies too. A thank- you to all the consumers who purchased my cookies, Rona for supplying us with Coroplast sheets for making signs, Home Depot for wood to build our “Cookie Stand”; 99.7 The Rock and the Campbell River Mirror for the publicity, The Campbell River British Car Club for organizing a Car Wash and assisting with our Yard Sale; and the friends who donated to our yard sale. Also, I want to thank those of you who gave a donation, in my name, for The Ride to Conquer Cancer.
I could not have done it without you, and this was our ride from start to finish.
I crossed the finish line wondering what our next great adventure would be!
Thank you everyone, for helping me contribution to the cause for the Ride to Conquer Cancer.
Sharon Easton