Here we are in Fallon after a grand day of bike riding. What a difference a year makes. Last year it was long two layers, a wind breaker, arm warmers and rain showers. This year it was sun and heat and lots of sun block. In spite of the sun block we all have red faces, especially where the block was not applied. The wind was quite variable, at times in was in our faces, or from the side, or from behind. When the later it made for some fast pace cycling. It was nice to have Jason Bleak along this year as he provide lots of help out front but was hard to keep up with going down hill. He said it was all payback because I was hard to keep up with going up hill. Jeff was his usual cherry self, what fun it is to be considered a friend. But Jeff’s dad is the hero for the day – he was there with food and water (we each drank at least 2 gallons) when ever we needed it. The group was rounded out with Jason’s dad who managed to get lost trying to find his way to Virginia city, but all is well that ends well and this day has certainly ended well.
The official stats for the day:
132 miles, 17.7 MPH, 4858 feet of climbing and 7 hrs and 26 min in the saddle.

Each year Jeff Warren and a select group of volunteers set out for a week long cycling fest 667 miles from Reno to Huntsman Cancer institute in Salt Lake City.  Each year new hope for finding better cancer treatments and a cure is reborn.

The Ride from Reno, a 667 mile bike ride across the Nevada and Utah deserts, begins Monday, June 15th and concludes Saturday, June 20th at Huntsman Cancer Institute in Salt Lake City.  Most of the route is on US Highway 50 which has the moniker as “The Loneliest Road in America”.  The Loneliest Road well describes the road traveled by every cancer patient.

The following is the day-to-day itinerary.

Day One

From Reno to approximately 65 miles east of Fallon, Nevada.  US 395 South to
Nevada Highway 341 to US Highway 50 (The Loneliest Road in America).
Distance=140 miles Elevation Gain=6339′

Day Two

From 65 miles east of Fallon, Nevada to Eureka, Nevada.  All US Highway 50 (The Loneliest Road in America).
Distance=112 miles Elevation Gain=5963′

Day Three

From Eureka, Nevada to approximately 35 miles east of Ely, Nevada.  All US
Highway 50 (The Loneliest Road in America).
Distance=110 miles Elevation Gain=8216′

Day Four

From 35 miles east of Ely, Nevada to Delta, Utah.  All US Highway 50 (The
Loneliest Road in America).
Distance=115 miles Elevation Gain=4011′

Day Five

Recovery day in Delta, Utah.  Our bodies will need the break but Jeff and anyone else who wants will be doing a 50 mile light spin to flush out the lactic acid that builds up and to keep old, tired muscles, working.

Day Six

From Delta, Utah, to Huntsman Cancer Institute in Salt Lake City, Utah.  US
Highway 50 to US 6 to Utah SR 68 to Utah SR 73.
Distance=140 Miles Elevation Gain=5018′

Got that?

This marks the 9th running of the Ride from Reno.  Before anything else we would like to thank our sponsors for this year here is a short list:

Miche Bag

Reynolds Cycling

Bountiful Bicycle Center

Bountiful Mazda

Nate Wade Subaru

Droubay Chevrolet Pontiac Buick

Epic Biking

Thank you!

Several times this week the subject of adversity has been addressed by Larry, Don, Mike, or Taylor.  Today seemed to aggregate those separate thoughts into a singular practical application.  The day dawned with dark clouds, threatening to rain and blow at any moment.  This was to be the “final push” to Salt Lake City and the conclusion of the 2009 Ride From Reno at Huntsman Cancer Institute; we planned to arrive around 4 o’clock in the afternoon and Paul Berg, along with his sweetheart, Tiffany, were to meet us in their Shelby Cobra and lead us up to HCI.

My wonderful brother, Coleman, who has completed 4 previous Rides From Reno with me arrived Friday night with his wife Ann and children, JJ, Isable, and Gabby in tow.  Coleman rode Day 1 and then had to return to his duties at Microsoft for the week before rejoining us for the final push on Saturday.

On Friday, Don, Mike, and Taylor all rode from Delta to Eureka (50 miles) in order to shorten the distance they had to ride on Saturday (Delta to Salt Lake City is approximately 140 miles).  A little before 8 a.m. Saturday morning, the Shock Troops from the Bountiful Mazda/Bountiful Bicycle Center Cycling Club showed up.  All was set, the ball tee’d up, everything in its order in the queue.

And then Mother Nature stepped in.

The 50 miles to Eureka were moderate in their pace and only Bountiful Mazda accompanied Larry and I, out of the 6 riders who started in Reno, on this distance.  We arrived in Eureka, picked-up Mike and Taylor, along with 4 members of their Utah County cycling club, and Don and Coleman.  We flew down an 8 to 10 mile descent and then turned north on Utah Highway 68.  That’s where things got ramped-up.

The riders from Bountiful Mazda were:  Russ Thompson, John & Alison Lauck, Allan Johnson, Todd Handy, Mike Petroff, and Loren Roundy.  I love each of them and consider them the dearest of friends (my thanks to each of you for making this day possible!).  John and Alison were out in front on their tandem, with Russ beside them and I was tucked in beside the Lauck’s with Russ in front of me.  We had a bit of a tailwind and it didn’t take more than a few minutes for them to ramp the speed up to 26 to 28 mph.  Game on.

One of the funniest things said all week actually came out of my mouth as we were flying along Highway 68 at what could only be called a “spirited” pace.  I looked over at Alison and shouted over the wind, “I’m not sure if this is supposed to happen, but I’m seeing stars.”  Alison smiled knowingly, and both John and Russ looked back smiling as well.  “There’s Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter,” I shouted out.  And then I said,  “there’s something I didn’t expect to see, Russ.  Uranus!”  I could see Russ bouncing up and down, laughing in the saddle, and John and Alison laughing as well.  But they didn’t miss a beat as we rode on at breakneck speed.

We stopped at Mark and Kathy McGregor’s home for a quick lunch break, and it was a tender time for all.  Mark passed away nearly 4 years ago from what started as colon cancer (he was diagnosed about the same time I was).  After beating back the colon cancer, the disease returned over the next several years to the liver, lungs, and brain.  Mark was one of the most genuinely kind and gracious people you’d ever meet and everyone who spent any time with him was a better person for the experience.  Kathy and the children have hosted us on our ride in to Huntsman Cancer Institute for at least the last 4 years, and if my memory is still working clearly, Mark was part of the hosting party the year before he passed away.  Kathy, thank you for being such an inspiration, and for continuing to so graciously open your home and share it with us.

No sooner had we left the McGregor’s than the weather turned to what I can only describe as awful.  Headwinds hard out of the north which slowed our pace at times to only 8 or 9 mph.  Road signs were bent over in the wind, the temperature was falling, and then to add to the fun, the rain started.  My daughters Megan and Heidi, and Heidi’s children William and Hailey, met us in Lehi to guide us through to Draper.  As we were making our way north, lightening started and we made a beeline for the first available building we could find.  It turned out to be a building which was still under construction and the front doors and windows had yet to be installed.  We waited for the most severe part of the storm to pass from inside this partially completed structure and, after about half an hour, continued our journey in a continuous downpour.

John Lauck was our navigator and had picked out the most safe and bike friendly route across the valley but it required numerous twists and turns.  The rain was incessant, to the point I told several of my companions I felt as though I was riding by Braille.  I simply couldn’t see in front of me.  As if the rain wasn’t challenging enough, a cold front moved through and I noticed when we stopped at traffic lights it was cold enough to steam our breath.  Oh, the love just continued!  Cold is one of those things with which we cannot control how our bodies deal with it.  We were all soaked to the bone and I saw Alison just shivering uncontrollably.  Not a thing in the world she could do about it other than get into one of the vehicles following us and get her core temperature warmed-up before she got hypothermic.  I noticed the tandem pass by me with the stoker’s seat empty but it wasn’t more than a couple of miles before Alison was back in the saddle.

At 6:30 in the evening we finally made our way up the final climb to Huntsman Cancer Institute for an emotional homecoming and reception.  And Seth had brought my peanut butter cup Blizzard from DQ!

I began this final edition of the blog from this year’s ride with a comment about adversity and need to come back to the topic and include integrity.  You see, conditions today were horrible.  And that word doesn’t even come close to describing it.  Think of the thing you find the most painful and hate doing the most, and then imagine doing it for 10 hours straight simply because you said you would.  If you quit, no one would notice or even care, but you keep going because you made a commitment.  That’s what our entire group did today; every single person.  In Lehi, when the wind was blowing mercilessly, I gave everyone a chance to bail-out and go home no questions asked.  Not a soul left.  I did the same thing again as we crossed the Salt Lake valley with the same result.  We encountered adversity today in spades, but integrity was the order of the day.  Coleman, Mike, Taylor, Don, Larry, the core-group who started with me in Reno; Russ, John, Alison, Allan, Linda, Mike, Loren, and Todd from my Bountiful Mazda Cycling Club; and Mike’s friends from Utah County; all are people of honor and integrity.  As we were rolling through the Salt Lake valley, someone behind me from Bountiful Mazda shouted out, “we’re only doing this because it’s a labor of love!”  It was meant at a joke, because conditions were so deplorable, but it brought tears to my eyes as I realized we were all doing this for the same reason.  To quote Jon Huntsman, Jr., ” It is the goal of Huntsman Cancer Institute to become a symbol of hope and optimism.  We want those carrying the heavy burden of cancer to feel strengthened and hopeful.”  And that’s why we’ve allowed ourselves to suffer this past week as we have and why we’ve suffered even more today.  And, to raise money to find those better tolerated, less toxic treatments for cancer.

This year’s ride is over.  Done.  Completed.  Finished.  History.  If you haven’t yet made a contribution to HCI, please see the “How to Contribute” tab on this website and make a generous donation.  The cause is worthy and honorable and the need without question.

Many thanks for tuning in.  My brother, Derek, suggested we keep the site current and updated throughout the year, so that’s my goal.  Please check back from time-to-time to see what’s happening as we prepare for the 2010 Ride From Reno.  Hopefully by then I’ll be thawed out.

All my best,

Jeff

A half dozen hearty club members join with Jeff in Delta to shuttle the group132 miles to the Huntsman Cancer Institute. A light tail wind and a brief shower favored the ride from Delta to Eureka before ascending into Eureka. A strong tail wind whisked the group at up to 29 mph from Eureka to the lunch stop on the West side of Utah Lake. This all changed after lunch as the south breeze shifted to a stiff north wind and threatening skies. At Thanksgiving point the heavens released a torrent of rain with lightening and thunder and the group took shelter in a partially completed building. Once the worst was past the group continued on facing headwinds and continuous rain all the way to the Huntsman. On arrival cheering support and loving spirits met the group.  All were shivering, wet, cold, ready for a hot bath, but pleased that they had faced the miles, the weather, and the obstacles along the way knowing “it’s a good day to be alive” (Jeff Warren) and in the end it’s all about helping those that suffer from cancer – not about the riders passing discomforts.

Who’s going to join with us next year for the adventure of a life time?

Today was interesting for me. I started off by getting up at 6:15 AM this morning just to wait till 11:45 AM to ride today. Bountiful Mazda Cycling Club showed up at 8:20 AM ready to help us get things rolling. We had our own group come out for support to pull us home. We had a really nice wind today on our way out to my Aunt Kathy’s house. She was very hospitable. While we were eating lunch, the storm front rolled in and we had a really hard headwind. Thanks to Don and everyone else that stuck with us, I made it through that nasty wind. Then we hit the point of the mountain and lightning started to strike. We had to get into some shelter so we found a building that was under construction and waited for the lightning to pass. We started back on our way and made it to Salt Lake City. 10 miles from Huntsman we stopped at a 7-11 and filled up our bottles and got food and all sorts of goodies. Just after I pulled in, the rain decided it wasn’t done with us so it started to pour. We waited for the pouring to stop and went out in just rain. I made it to Huntsman today and that was my one goal.

Today was a very touching day for me. I had my second cousin Aubri come out to support us. She’s not too far off from my age and she picked up a form of cancer. She went through seven weeks of radiation and therapy to heal it. I was fighting back tears today because it was so good to have it over. I’m not sure how cancer feels but I think I got a glimpse of the pain and suffering that they go through each day. I’m very grateful to Don and Larry and Jeff and especially my dad. Without them, I would probably be just pulling into Delta. I also need to thank Judy and Jim for the support that they provided in the vehicles. Thank you’s go out to everyone for their support. It was much appreciated and thank you to Pete for coming out and helping us out yesterday and the riders that pulled us into Salt Lake City today. I don’t know if they realize how much it means to me because I was hurting from riding the past week. I felt strong today because the “horses could smell the barn” but after the ride into HCI, it was too overwhelming to think to move. I’m looking forward to next year and see what adventures come of it. Thanks again to anyone who helped in this whether it be leaving comments, pulling us around, being support vehicles, coming out and following us on our last day of the ride, etc. I hope that someday soon we will find a cure for cancer because it is a nasty disease.

P.S. If anyone is planning on riding next year, they’d better start training now because I went 1,347 miles in 8 months and that still wasn’t enough.

Well, well, well. I don’t quite know where to start. It is over and the emotions poured out as we arrived at HCI. It was truly an amazing trip with too many people to thank. I must thank the Bountiful Mazda team and the work they did. I also need to thank Golden, Kenny, Jeff, and Nate. They are four friends of mine that came out and worked and froze on the road as the rain fell. We had rain, thunder, lightning, and wind. We had tail winds and head winds. I truly believe that Mother Nature saved her best for last. Unbelievable is all that I can say.

My nephew Jordan rode with us from his house to HCI and I could not have been prouder of him. He hung right in there and excelled.

Taylor rode like a champion today. He was ready for the challenge and rose to the occasion. I can’t say enough about how he worked and rode.

To Jeff, Larry, Don, Jim, Judy, and Janet; thank you. That seems shallow, but it is from the heart. You don’t do something so immense alone. Many people were involved. Kathy, thank for the food and your home. Thanks for going to HCI. Thanks to Cami, Mom, and Aunt Janice for coming down and seeing the mayhem. Travis, thank you for following and trying to come over. Family is important to me. Thanks to all of you and the messages that you have sent, texted, voiced, etc. Those keep you going.

I was asked about next year, but I am so mentally and physically wiped out that I can’t even thin about it now. My greatest wish is that money will be raised and this horrible disease can be done away with. That can happen.

Last thing; Lance Armstrong was right: It’s Not About The Bike. It is about better treatments, solutions, and options for cancer victims. I only hope that my little effort contributes to the cause. Thanks for reading and hopefully donating.

Tired, cold, sore, beat up and exhausted.  That’s how I feel tonight in writing this.  But would do it over again for the experience!

Started out in day early in Delta at 5:45am and the group left at 8:40, waiting for those from Bountiful Mazda to come out. That was Russ, John, Allison, Allan, Todd, Lauren and Mike.  Also a special thank you to Russ’s Dad and for the other driver of Todd’s truck. I didn’t start the ride until Eureka (I am VERY glad that I rode that portion yesterday) and headed towards Utah County. We were met by 4-5 riders of Mike and Taylor’s team, which would come in handy later in the day. Had a windy descent, but a beautiful tail wind along Utah Lake. We stopped at Mike’s sister’s place for lunch in Saratoga Springs.  From then on, it was all over. 40+mph extreme windstorm from Saratoga Springs and then the rain of all rains of the entire trip as we headed past Thanksgiving Point in Lehi. We were fortunate enough to find an unfinished construction building that we could hide out in from the fiercest of the rains and thunders and lightenings.   We waited it out the best we could and heading into Salt Lake County at the point of the mountain, brutal fierce winds and then the rain came in around Sandy and then never let up until the end. People were shivering, wet and quite miserable. I have to make a confession to make that during our trek, I had mentioned that I wished for bad weather so that those that came out today could get a glimpse of what we had gone through, but after seeing Allison in Salt Lake get off her bike because of her uncontrollable shivering, I had to re-assess my wishes. The finish was emotional and great, but was overshowered a bit by all of us shivering, cold, wet people. Stats for today: time in saddle: 5:01(hours). total miles: 82; average speed: 16.2mph and max. speed of 39.2 (from descent off of Eureka).

So, I did it! I finished my first goal of riding every inch of the ride and making it home in one piece (there were some close buzz-bys from Utah and Salt Lake County drivers). There is an incredible amount of satisfaction in doing this, but also learned about life and people.

As my final blog update, I need to give a shout-out to several people from today.

1. Bountiful Mazda and Hope-Faith Mapleton cycling teams. Thank you! Your efforts and sacrifice do not go unnoticed.
2. All the drivers, family and people that came to watch us on this terrible weather day.
3. Kathy, Mike’s sister. Her husband Mike died of cancer a few years ago and to have her positive attitude and provide lunch for us is very inspirational.
4. Aubri Mills (not sure on the spelling) and her Mom and Grandma. To see her in the Faith-Hope cycling jersy (which is a sick jersey to say the least. I can be quite fly for a white guy!) and knowing that her cancer is gone for her to have a future life because of HCI makes this entire ride worth it.  They are from Rexburg (ID) and made this drive to be here for this.  Go get’m girl!
5. Jordan, Kathy’s son. This guy hasn’t rode in over 2 years and goes out in basketball shoes and no clip-in pedals and just bike shorts, he made it with all the weather and elements. That was awesome!                                                                                                                                                                                     6.  Coleman.  Jeff’s brother.  He drove out with his family from Reno to be able to ride the last day with us today.  Maybe after seeing the weather we had here, it might have been better to have stayed in Reno!  It was good to have him there.
7. The team. Even though we were diluted and didn’t get to ride together as much as I would have liked today, the bonds were created from this week long before today.  They’re not going to like this, but since I have been unemployed, we felt that we wouldn’t be able to go due to the expense of this trip.  I was able to share a room with Mike and Taylor (which had to sleep in a bed together) so I could go.  Everyone pitched in to help with dinners and gas and such and sincerely wish to thank them for their efforts in truly allowing me to participate.  Not one word of begrugement or making me feel uncomfortable about my situation in doing this.  Truly, tender mercies have been shown to me through these people to allow me to have this experience.  It most certainly won’t be forgotten.
Thank you for your posts, your well-wishes and support.  I was glad to see my family en route today and look forward to catching up with them from last week.