Well friends, it's been a few days since an update... and there are a few things to note.
Last weekend I made an extremely brief (as in sub-forty-eight hour) trip to Kelowna to see the fam-jam and tell my home church about the Sea to Sea and my participation there-in. People keep asking if it was a "successful" trip, and I suppose I would say it was. It was in the sense that I got to spend good times with people I love. It was because I got to ride my bike outside. It was because people at church received me and my story with open arms and much interest and support.
When it comes to donations, I am once again blown away by all of your generosity. As it stands, donations have exceeded $9,600(!!!) and we haven't even tallied the monies collected in Kelowna last week. I am actually speechless. With only $400 to go and more donations promised, I get the sense that my target needs to be increased. So the question becomes... how much do I raise it to? Can we commit to another $2,000? $5,000? What do you all think is reasonable, but still reaching?
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Training is happening. I did back to back 2-hour rides this weekend. And I can feel it. Mostly in the rear end, believe it or not. Still having issues with the new saddle, and I'm getting the sense I need to change the fit of my bike. The reach is off and I'm getting hot-spots on my hands. This is new to me since the change of seats, and needs to be figured out kinda soon. I'll do some tweaking this week - we're supposed to have some good weather, and I'm keen to make the most of it.
Travel plans are coming together... flights should be booked this week. I've 'met' a few people online who are coming on the tour, one of them is Ava Baker, a cyclist from Lethbridge. Plans are in the works to travel from Calgary to LA together - anything to help ease the jitters of the unknown is welcome. And a bunch of friends are planning on meeting me in NY at the end of the tour - pretty cool stuff. The more I talk to people and plans become real, the more excited I get for this summer.
On the home front, another huge answer to prayer came two weeks ago as my home/living situation has been decided for the next little while. I've been living in the same house in Bowness with my friend (and landlord), Luke, for six years, and the time has come to move on from this setup. Luke will be moving to Charlotte, NC this summer and is selling the house. I have since teamed up with two other friends that are becoming homeless around the same time as me, and we have found a house to rent not two blocks from my current place. The new house is kinda small, but has a great yard and is on a great street. It will be tight to fit three of us in this three-bedroom, one-bathroom house. We get possession on April 1st, and have signed a six-month lease. The thing that worries me the most is giving up the space and quiet that I've grown accustomed to over the last while. I am an introvert, and there is not much space in the new house for me to escape to. But when I take a step back and look at the living situation I'll be entering into this summer with the Sea to Sea, I'm encouraged to think I'll pick up a few tricks about living in community and lose a bit of my reclusiveness. Both of which will be awesome training for living with roommates.
The sad part about my schedule for the next few months is that I won't have the free time to join the Bowness soccer club and coach one of their boys teams this year. Coaching has been a huge part of my spring schedule for the past four years, and I'm a little saddened by the thought of not having the time to help out again. However, I think it will be the wise decision given the amount of work that needs to be taken care of before I leave, and how many hours in the saddle that need to be logged before June 20th...
Well, there's a quick update, folks. Please keep me and the organizers and other riders in your prayers as we edge closer to departure.
Also, if you live in Calgary, mark June 14 or 15 on your Calendar as we'll be throwing a fun, fundraising BBQ as somewhat of a send-off party...
