The Ride: Update 7 - Bout time I wrote on here!

Well sorry it's been so long people, I've got no legitimate excuses for you. But I'm back now, and that's all that matters right? ;)

Donate the ride here and help make a difference!

Fundraising has gone amazingly since the last update, as we're currently sitting at $2500!! Tons more sponsors and some huge donations have climbed this hill quickly, I couldn't be more appreciative. The pressure of fundraising is off, and now the pressure of actually being in shape enough to ride this course is taking over.  It's such an awesome challenge to take on though, I'm more excited every day.

We went on our first group ride this weekend, a group of 5 of us went from downtown Vancouver out to the Burnaby/Coquitlam border and back. Took us a little over two hours and was great fun! It's very enjoyable to ride with a few more people, you have a great mass as a group and can't help but get noticed more by other vehicles and pedestrians alike. It's a very nice safe feeling, and I look forward to more group rides in the future.

This week I'll be looking to keep the two hour training rides going, maybe even try and push for a 3 hour ride at some point. My body is responding to the bike nicely so far, so I think I can push a bit more and see how it goes.

The bike is amazing to ride. It's so fast and capable. You can ride for an hour and feel like you've barely started, so I want to get out and push and really wear myself out, find that line right now. :)

The next update I will post a picture or two of the new bike, maybe even a shot or two from a ride I get out for this week.  Is there a spot in Vancouver you'd like to see a picture of? It would give me a destination! Send me your requests here, and I'll take it on as a personal challenge! :)

Til next week, happy riding!

The Ride: Update 6 - Tis the Season

We head into the first weekend of December, and it's time for my weekly update! Another exciting week for my fundraising goals, as we've passed the $1000 mark, thank you all again! We're doing some kick ass work together I must say ;)

Click here to donate and help further the cause!

Our next rider meeting is coming up this Tuesday, so I will pass any juicy tidbits along from there as well. Hopefully it will get us one step closer to getting on the bikes, and I can start updating you all on my training rides and such. As well as it will allow me to hopefully start a few of the other fundraising ideas I have.

Training has been going better and better I think! I've been really enjoying the gym days, getting more and more comfortable. I've even gone on my own a few times now and seem to be doing pretty well on my own too, which is very exciting. I also got out for a good 15k run this week, and mixed in a bunch of hills along the way. Even with all the hills my time was as fast as I've ever been, so that's  positive as well! I really need to get on the bike so I can see how much of that will convert into the saddle.

I'm also doing some "cross training" up on Grouse over the winter on the ole snowboard, I figure that's a great treat for myself to call it training, and I have access to the mountain this winter, so I might as well take advantage! Let me know if you're heading up sometime, I'd love to meet some new faces out there! Shoot me an email here if you like.

I have to do another special thank you to all my personal donors so far, Paulo Almeida, Derek Snider, Dee Girdler, Jeff Lawrence, Steve Colterman, Jordan Cunningham, Justine and Craig, Erin Glazier, Cheryl Bloxham, Tyver Wilhelm, Thayne Gilliatt, Megan Hamilton, Erin Barker, Bob Gray, Delores Laszuk, Jason Hallman, Melissa Leib, Jill Constantine, Tony Ambrogio, Paige Clarke, Mark Stephenson, Roger Lafleur, Dan Lorimer, Steph Scott, Aunt Denise and all you anonymous donors! You guys rock, this is so amazing, thank you!

That's about it for this week, thanks for stopping by, hit me up with anything you'd like to see! See you all next week :)

Happy Riding!

 

A great Shad jam from his new album that I've been digging so much :)

The Ride: Update 5 - Approaching a New Millenium

Another week down, the time goes so fast! Can you believe Sunday is December 1? Hope you've got your Christmas shopping started. Not this guy, but I thrive in the last minute of play. ;)

Fundraising has gone great again over the last week. I'm proud to update the totals at $935 from 23 different donors! How amazing is that?!?! Every donation gets me excited, I love feeling the support as we push towards the ride. Thank you all so very much.

I've got an idea for a fundraising campaign as well, hoping to get up to Hastings Street this week and talk to our friends at Wheelhouse Seafoods. I'm hoping to do a little stationary riding outside their shop for a few times over a couple of weeks, and use that time to collect donations, but also advertise a day where customers can have their Seafood dinner delivered by bicycle for donations. A chance to get out in the community and meet some peeps and hopefully shed some weight from peoples wallets ;).

We're one step closer to getting our hands on the bicycles now. Every day the anticipation grows within. The butterflies grow with each donation as well, so many people to represent, and such a long bike ride to take on. I just want to get on the bike and start training for some peace of mind haha. I know I can do it, and will make you all proud, but it's still a little intimidating I have to say. Who doesn't like a little pressure anyways though, right? Bring it on I say!

Training has been going well still. Still meeting with my trainer once a week. My legs are completely dead today from yesterday. I think that's a good sign. So my trainer says anyway! I have only been on one run in the last week, so I need to get a few of those going this coming week. Tomorrow will be a great time to start!

I did manage to get out and snowboard at Grouse Mountain this week. My first time on a snowboard in 12 years! It was lots of fun, and I think it will help my legs as well. Even with the working out I've been doing, and the running I have been keeping up with, my legs were still toast at the end of each lap. I forgot how much that board can kick your ass down the hill. It felt soooooo good to get out though, very happy to be back on the board.

That's it for this week, thanks again for stopping by, hit me up with any ideas/questions/comments/concerns/million dollar ideas you may have!

Happy Riding.

The Ride: Update 4 - Another Milestone!

I'm a little behind on this latest post, so my apologies. Good news is, it's been an amazing stretch for fundraising! We're currently sitting at $655 from 20 different donors! It's been absolutely incredible so far.  My vocabulary can't match my gratitude. I'm so thankful for all your amazing support. You guys are amazing. Thank you.

...As for training, I've been staying on the runs which is great.  I've also been to the gym 4 weeks now with my trainer, and I'm starting to get pretty comfortable there, that's a great feeling too! I've never liked the gym, or been comfortable there in the the past. But having a trainer is such a great tool, I would suggest it to anyone who is maybe nervous about joining. I can honestly say I'm already looking forward to the next session.

I should also be getting some more information on our bikes very soon. Our contact will be back and I'm hoping it will mean we can get moving forward, so I can start riding! The first route I thought of was heading out to Horseshoe Bay from Second Narrows. Marine drive would be a nice ride I think, though I'm not sure how the road is there for riding, any one have any idea? I'm thinking the longer rides I do, I'll have to find a good coffee joint as a half way spot. Sounds like a delicious treat for the halfway mark!

I've got some fundraising ideas brewing, but I'm still looking for any you might have!  I've been contacted by the ride from a person who helps with exactly this, so I'm hoping she will have some helpful tips for me as well.  I'm trying to think of more unique things too, maybe a record swap or something? This is why I need you to just come up with the genius ideas for me! Seriously. Leave a comment or shoot me an email.

That's all for this week, next week hopefully I'll be able to expand on my fundraising idea a bit and see if it would be something worth pursuing. An interest gauge of sorts! Thanks for stopping by everyone.

Happy Riding!

The Ride: Update 3 - Stalled

Well another week down, another night in the gym in the books. It's only been three workouts, but I'm starting to hit a bit of a groove with my trainer. Things are feeling more natural, and the next day hasn't been completely miserable, so I think we're headed in the right direction!

I only managed to get out for two runs in between workouts this week. I ran a 5K faster than I ever have before, so that was great! Though I haven't got out for a good long run in a while though, so I'll be looking to do that this week. Get out and really stretch myself out and push it. Feel free to share in the comments section where some of your favourite runs or rides are!

Fundraising has gone the opposite way for me so far though.  The ride is a long way off, so I'm not panicking or worried yet, but it's making me a bit anxious for sure. I'm still at the $195 mark, so I haven't managed to coax any money out of anyone else this week. I've got some good leads for donations in the new year, so that's great. It's just a bit intimidating knowing how much further I have to get.

I've got some ideas for fundraising ideas out in the community, perhaps a store or two that I frequent up on Hastings wouldn't mind me doing some stationary riding outside their shops. It would be a good chance to see many people in the day, and I'm sure a few would be happy to give :)  I've also been told about using a bar and grill for a Beer/Burger combo which sounds like a good idea. Problem with that for me though is I don't know a ton of people here in Vancouver, so I'm not sure how many people I could get out. Do you have any fundraising ideas you'd like to share?

That's pretty much it for this week. I'm also looking to hear what some of your favourite workout music is? Whether you're going for a run/ride/workout, what do you listen to really get you ramped up? My favourite album right now is "Flying Colours" by Shad, check out the single Stylin, one of the best on the album in my humble opinion of course :)

Happy Riding all!

The Ride: Update 2 - November Rain

Well I've decided that a good time for writing my updates each week will be the day after I meet with my trainer for good ole "Leg Day". That was yesterday, my legs are dead, so here we are!

Its been another great week for my fundraising goal. Last week I wrote as I hit the $100 mark, and this week I'm sitting at $195, so that's pretty sweet. I've been amazed at all the support already, it's pretty awesome people are willing to help out already, so far from the ride date. Thank you so much for all the mentions and retweets on twitter, the word has spread around. And a great big special thanks to all the donors so far, Jason Hallman, Melissa Leib, Jill Constantine, Tony Ambrogio, Paige Clarke, Mark Stephenson, Roger Lafleur, Dan Lorimer, Steph Scott, and Aunt Denise! You guys rock :)

I've been keeping up on the runs and the training in between gym nights, been hurting a bit on the longer runs lately, just gassed. So lots of work to do still, and a long way to go. But it's nice to have such a great goal to work towards. When the workouts hurt or the runs/rides are in the pouring rain, it's an easy event to think of and stay motivated.

We're in the process of getting the team up and running right now. Very excited for our bike fittings coming up. We've got great sponsors and they're taking care of us 100%. It's still going to be a bit before I get my bike and get start accumulating saddle time, so in the meanwhile I'll keep up the training and be as ready as possible for the day I get my sweet ride!

I'm super pumped for my first decent distance training ride, I've already got it planned out. I just need my sweet new wheels to get it going :)

Thanks for stopping in, come back next week!

 

The Ride: Update 1 - Fundraising Milestone and Training Day

Well I'm feeling pretty excited at this very moment. I just received my 7th donation for the ride and hit the $100 mark! Not bad for a week in I say :)

I have even gone as far as to get myself a trainer for the gym. Setting Wednesday nights aside for an ass kicking, and hopefully prepping myself properly physically for this crazy journey!

I'm about to go for a short run tonight, thought it might be a neat way to see some Halloween decorations in all their glory before they're taken down for another year.

And I'm looking for ideas or suggestions on how to fundraise for my ride, besides pestering you fine folk online :) Feel free to send me anything you think I could use, I need all the help I can get!

I've got butterflies just thinking about this ride, these coming months are going to be crazy! Thanks for stopping by.

This of course is my mountain bike, "The Ride" will
feature a slightly more streamlined setup ;)