RFR 2015 Day 4 (Ely to Delta, 112 miles)- The Ministry of Angels

For me, this is always the toughest day.  Sit bones are sore.  Feet are sore.  Legs are sore.  Hands are sore.  Get the picture?  But, we know that the worst day on the bike is still better than the best day of chemo. And, that's why we do this.  So we can help raise funds to relieve pain and suffering and help find a cure to this disease.  So, the soreness will go away, the battle will not.  At least not for now.

Many who know me know that I have cancer.  Not had.  Have.  I was first diagnosed and treated in 2009.  It went away for about a year and a half.  In November, 2011 we learned it had come back.  It's been with me ever since.  Probably always will be.  But, it's "indolent" (medical term for slow growing), and until/unless it transforms to "aggressive" (medical term for aggressive), we just wait.  And watch.

So, for the last two years, I've made it my goal to be the first one up the first pass- Sacramento Pass. The climb itself is a metaphor for life, but also for one's battle with cancer.  No one else can ride my bike up the pass.  No one else can suffer for me. I have to do it on my own, even with people around, cheering me on during the climb, and more waiting for me at the top.  So, I've made it my goal to be the first one up, to show cancer and myself who's in charge, who's ultimately going to win, and who's not backing down.

Well, this year I knew I wouldn't be the first one up.  Pulled it off the last two years, but I'm not as strong this year due to more training for a marathon than in past years.  I knew it.  I owned it.  But, I still left as quickly as I could, hoping I could at least try.  But, I knew it wasn't gonna happen.  And, as I heard my friends closing in on me, I was happy for them they were riding well, but a little bummed that I couldn't pull it off.  Again, it's not about being FASTEST up the hill (though that matters), it's really not even about being first up the hill (though that plays into my metaphor better), it's about me doing all I can to own this summit, and not the other way around.

So, as I'm pedaling my guts out, Ravell pulls up next to me.  I'm not listening to any music, because I want this to be as spiritual of an experience as it can be.  So, I'm focused, and listening to the road and myself breathe.  Ravell gets by me and says, "You're the survivor here, we're going to escort you to the top."  HUH?  I immediately am overcome by emotion.  I say "Ravell, no, you guys are riding strong, go on to the top and crush it."  He says, "No.  I want this."  And that was it.  He dropped back to let Zo, Rich and Larry know, and it was end of story.  So, I turned myself inside out pushing to the top, knowing these four strong riders, and even stronger men were right behind me.  Talk about even more of a metaphor!?!? As I approached the summit and finally could see the sign, I got out of the saddle and sprinted as fast as I could- but at the same time I was beginning to be overcome with emotion and to sob.  Uncontrollably.  Here's the best way anyone who wasn't on that part of the ride right then can visualize it- and this is a perfect memorialization of the moment.

Now that you know the story, this picture comes better into focus.  That's not exertion on my face, it's sheer emotion.  Those aren't cyclists behind me, they're angels.  Four of my best friends, and four angels who were carrying me to the top of a metaphor that means more to me than many might understand.

LDS apostle Elder Jeffrey R. Holland gave a talk entitled "The Ministry of Angels" a few years ago.  It's probably my all-time favorite talk from my all-time favorite apostle.  I now quote him, "And always there are those angels who come and go all around us, seen and unseen, known and unknown, mortal and immortal."  These four angels were seen, known, and mortal. They were my angels, and they are my friends.  Ravell, Zo, Rich and Larry- I love you all, brothers.  I will never be able to repay you for the kindness you showed me, but I hope each of you felt in my embrace and my words my love and gratitude for each of you.

The rest of the story yesterday just doesn't matter as much.  My wheel got out of true again, we trued it back up.  I suspect it will go out again Saturday until I can get it into the shop.  But, for a ride that's all about raising awareness for cancer, and driving fundraising, the real life example of cancer support and love was witnessed on the road yesterday.

Much love.

RFR 2015 Day 3 (Austin to Ely, 121 miles)

Day 3 is always a rude awakening (no pun intended) when we start.  We LITERALLY leave the hotel, turn left, and start climbing Pinto.  So, no warm up time, no stretch the sore legs, just ride, ride, ride.

Somehow I forgot that day 3 is FIVE climbs, not FOUR.  So, I was posting photos of each summit and counting the four off...then realized I wasn't including Robinson Pass, which is the longest of all the climbs.  Maybe I blocked that out?  Actually, I don't mind Robinson, just forgot about it.

Here's the problem.  Somewhere between the bottom and the top of the climb to Robinson, something went haywire with my bike.  I was sprinting the last portion of the climb and hearing some squeaking from my bike.  I thought it was one of the pulleys in my rear derailleur.  Given my new chain and new cassette, that wouldn't have surprised me.  But, when I stopped at the top, my rear wheel was out of true.  REALLY out of true.  It was actually rubbing against the seat stay, hence the squeaking.

So, I took some time to inspect it, and found one spoke that had come completely loose.  Long story short, got the spoke tightened and the wheel fairly trued.  But, here's the issue- now it's a long descent, and a worry about a spoke that might go out and a spill that might occur.  But, I've got a whole group waiting patiently for me, and I want to get them and me on the road.  So, let's do this!

Jeff had told me he thought there was a "bona fide" bike shop in Ely.  So, I planned to find it.  When we hit the bottom of the descent and dropped into Ely, I started scanning all the shops as we passed them at speed.  Jeff pointed it out- a sporting goods store!  I had my doubts, but needed the help, so in I went.  Jeff and Zo, two my best friends, stayed with me to make sure all was well.  The young guy in the bike shop in the back truly did know how to true a wheel, and after an incident where he stuck an opened ended wrench in a vice to size it down (no kidding!), and then broke it off, he was able to get the wheel very trued and all good to go.  Keep this all in mind, it will play in to what happens tomorrow (day 4).

We ate at McDonald's, which I know isn't healthy, and sounds weird for a bunch of cyclists. But, the burger and fries are heaven, and since they didn't have milkshakes for some reason, I made do with a hot fudge sundae.  Yeah, it was a chore, but someone had to do it!

As we left Ely in a pace line, we were stopped by a highway patrolman.  For real!  Some people had called NHP saying we were riding five abreast. He waited for us and as we pulled along side he hit his lights. He was very low key.  A very cool guy.  And, as he talked to us he said, "Look, I'm a cyclist, I get it. In fact, I'm riding the Huntsman 140 on Saturday." Can you believe it?  We get stopped by a guy who's coming to do the very ride we're leading up to on Saturday. 

From there we had a slog out to the bottom of the final pass, Conor Summit.  It's always a west wind, which slows us down, and it just goes and goes and goes.  But, we got to the bottom, watered up, and made the final climb of the day.  This is a climb we all love, because the descent means LITERALLY 10-12 miles of coasting with very little pedaling if you descend right, stay tucked, and let gravity do it's thing.  And, as you make the last left hand turn into the valley, you see literally dozens of windmills turning, giving it all a very "alien" vibe to the valley.

We all gathered together at the bottom, rode the last 8 miles on the rollers (not fun!), racked the bikes and drove back to Ely.

Mexican food for dinner, good company for discussion, and an end to yet another great day to be alive and on the bike!

RFR 2015 Day 2 (Cold Springs to Austin, 120 miles)

Ouch.  Yeah, for sure- OUCH!  Mid-90s today.  I was on top of my game with my nutrition, and drinking water as fast as I could get to it. Still, I think I got dehydrated.  It was crazy out there!  The first climb of the day went really well, as did the descent.  Topped out at 51.5 MPH!  Showed my Mom on my Garmin- not impressed!  She doesn't like when I go more than 20! :-) Then Austin came, and the climb ate my lunch.  Yeah, it owned me.  Bad!

The descent from Austin also went well.  Then the climb- ugh!  We did eat lunch in a little campground with some shade, which helped a bit. But, one we got rolling again, I simply couldn't drink enough water to keep myself hydrated and not bonking.  The food- nailed it.  The liquid, tried, but couldn't get it done.

At one point we were stopped on the side of the road and here comes an RV towing a trailer with a car on it.  Except there's this terrible screeching noise, and the right tire of the trailer is gone.  GONE!  The rim is riding on the asphalt, and it literally was leaving a groove in the road.  I would have loved to have seen the dude's face when he pulled in to get some gas, went back to check on the trailer, and saw the tire gone and the rim toast.  I'm thinking UHaul isn't giving that dude his security deposit back.  As we got about 5 miles from Eureka we saw a fire truck putting out a fire on the side of the road, and some folks were suspecting that the wheel of the trailer sparked and caused a fire on the side of the road.  Who knows, but it plays well for a story.

Western bacon burger with fries for dinner.  Drank water all night.  Still feel like I can't get enough.

The big deal was that my right foot has been "burning" with a hot spot.  So bad that at lunch I put a band aid on it just to try to keep the friction of my shoe from rubbing the spot.  Well, I get to the hotel tonight and pull off my shoe- yeah, that looks like a bunion.  Ugh! That ain't gonna go over well for the next 3 days and 420 miles of riding.  We'll see how this goes.

Well, that's it, I'm gonna call it a night.

Much love!

Todd

RFR 2015 Day 1 (Reno to Cold Springs, 137 miles)

Well, we closed out day 1 of RFR.  A few interesting things happened along the way...

First was my cassette.  It had been skipping a bit as we rolled out of Reno. As we began Geiger Grade climb, it started revolting.  It's an 11 speed cassette, and I wasn't able to access my three biggest gears- the most important ones for climbing!  Yeah, no big deal.  Fortunately we had Rich Staley with us, and he owns Great Basin Bicycles.  After we consulted and he found out what I wanted for a replacement, he made a few calls and got the part and necessary tools ready, and my dear Mom went to pick them all up.  By lunch time Mom had caught back up to us, Rich had replaced the cassette, and I was golden.  Thanks Rich!

Second, on the way to Fallon we had an RV in oncoming traffic throw a hubcap.  It came spinning at us and then actually started to float- right into our path!  Now, here's the thing.  Most inexperienced cyclists would swerve all around, putting the rest of the pace line in jeopardy.  We had 17 people in the pace line, someone should have gone down.  But, no.  Scotty hit it first, and then Ravell, and back through the left side of the pace line.  NO ONE WENT DOWN!  No one was hurt.  No doubt we had some extra protection from above on that, as well as some serious skilled cyclists in the group!

Many thanks to Vicki Linton and her Dad, Bill, for hosting us for lunch at Lattin Farms.

We rode without further mishap or issue all the way to Cold Springs, and then racked our bikes, hopped back in the cars and drove the 60 miles back to Fallon for the night.

We had dinner at Jerry's as usual.  Although their service is/was rather slow, their food is good. And, a burger, fries and milkshake never seems better than after you've ridden 137 miles!

So, Day 1 down.  4 to go. Love this group and this experience, and love spending the week with my dear Mom!

Much love!

670 miles and many reasons to ride...

Let's do this!  The Ride From Reno 2015 kicks off tomorrow morning at 7:00 from the Reno arch.  We'll have 17 riders who will pedal every stroke from Reno tomorrow to Huntsman Cancer Hospital on Saturday.  670 miles.  2 states.  25K+ of vertical climb.  Lots and lots and LOTS of carbs. And, one big focus on kicking cancer to the curb.

You see, it's personal for me.  I was diagnosed with cancer in 2009.  My Mom was diagnosed in 2008.  My Grandma fought cancer a couple of times, and ultimately it's what took her life (that, and she was 99 years old!).  So, yeah, I'm a cyclist.  This is an incredible training ride.  Many of those I ride with are lifelong friends, and others are new but will become friends, as well.  But, this isn't about the ride (well, not JUST about it).  It's about the opportunity to raise awareness of cancer treatment, statistics and funding.  It's about the opportunity to raise funds to help fight this disease.  To seek out more tolerable, humane treatment and find a way to fund and find hope.

So, follow along as we travel from Reno to SLC.  I'll be posting, blogging and sharing via social media.  And, if you feel you could make a donation, no matter the size, please feel free to do so at http://lotoja.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1132346&supid=306528814

We're $1K into my $5K goal for fundraising this year, so anything you can do will be appreciated.

Much love...

Todd

13.4 MILLION!

To be exact, 13,397,159. But, 13.4 MILLION WHAT?  Oh, no big deal, just the estimated number of Americans living with cancer in 2011 [Source: SEER]!  

Estimated new cases of cancer were diagnosed in 2014- 1,665,540.  Estimated deaths from cancer in 2014- 585,720.  Do the math with me.  3X the number of people who died last year from cancer were diagnosed last year with cancer.  And the odds of being diagnosed with cancer in one’s lifetime?  1 in 2 for men, 1 in 3 for women.

“So, what are you getting at, Todd?”  I’m getting at this- more and more people are being diagnosed with cancer.  More than are dying. That means the number of people living with cancer is increasing.  Two more stats:

• The majority of cancer survivors (64%) were diagnosed 5 or more years ago.

• 15% of cancer survivors diagnosed 20 or more years ago.

Take a look at the first bullet point.  That’s me! I was diagnosed in 2009.  I plan to be part of that second bullet point- 15 years to go!

You wanna know why I’m past the five year mark?  I 100% believe it’s because of Dr. Martha Glenn, Dr. Lynn Million, Dr. David Gaffney and the whole team at Huntsman Cancer Hospital.  That, my incredible family, and my faith.  That’s why I’m in the 64% of cancer survivors who are alive and were diagnosed more than 5 years ago.

Family and Friends,

Many of you, if not most, know the story.  In July, 2009, while on a training ride, I was hit by a car.  Due to that accident and what I believe to be divine intervention, I was diagnosed with B cell follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma.  19 radiation treatments and 5 and a half years of regular checkups later, I’m still alive and healthy.  Yeah, I still have cancer.  Yes, it's incurable, and pretty much untreatable (right now).  

Because of my diagnosis, I am an avid cancer fundraiser and advocate of research, prevention and education.  Those are the things that Huntsman Cancer Foundation, Institute and Hospital do so well.  And that's why I e-mail you every year and ask you to help me raise funds.

So, let me cut to the chase.  I COULD USE YOUR HELP.  Actually, to be honest, I could use your money.  Or, said another way, I could use your generosity.

In June of this year (for the fourth year in a row) I will ride my bike 670 miles from Reno, NV to Salt Lake City, UT with a dozen other cyclist friends of mine.  All in five days' worth of riding.  Then, in September of this year, I'll toe the line to race my 11th LOTOJA Classic- 206 miles from Logan, UT to Jackson Hole, WY.  I'll be on the road with over 1,000 racers, but also with 74 other Hometown Heroes who have signed up to raise funds for Huntsman Cancer Foundation.  Last year your generosity allowed me to raise almost $7K.  I’d love to top that this year, but my goal is to simply raise $5K.

So, that’s 900 miles on a bike, pedaling, doing what I love.  As always, I'll do the "hard work”.  I’m only wondering if you’ll do the rest?  Will you help me and consider donating whatever you can to Huntsman Hometown Heroes and the Huntsman Cancer Foundation?  The donation may be tax deductible (talk to a tax expert), but I know that’s not what matters most.

If you feel you can donate (any amount, that's up to you), you can click the link below and go directly to my LOTOJA Hometown Heroes donation page. I choose to roll my Huntsman 140 fundraising into my LOTOJA fundraising so I only have to ask friends and family once, and not pester them over and over (too much).  You can donate via credit card right on the page.  Or, if you'd like to donate via check or cash, you can send them to me and I'll get them to Huntsman.  My home address is:

1597 E. Ridge Rd.

Layton, UT 84040

Please click here if you'd like to donate: http://lotoja.kintera.org/toddjhandy

In closing, let me thank you for reading to this point.  Even if you choose not to donate, or can't at this time, know how much I appreciate your love, support and interest.

I thank you all in advance for anything you feel you can do. I’ll continue to post updates of fundraising progress on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/toddjhandy), my blog (http://www.toddhandy.blogspot.com/), and via Twitter (http://twitter.com/toddhandy). 

Thank you for your relationship with me, and for your love and support! 

Much love,

Todd

It's been nearly five years...

...since I was diagnosed with cancer.  B cell follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma, to be exact.  Oct. 1, 2009.  A date I won't forget.  Nor do I want to.

Family and Friends,

OK.  Most of you know the story.  Riding my bike from Layton, UT to Logan, UT to see the fireworks with my family on July 3, 2009.  Hit by a car.  5 broken ribs and a punctured lung.  Some lymph nodes that were a little larger than they should have been.  Tests.  Scans.  Surgery and a biopsy.  And then, on Oct. 1, 2009 at Huntsman Cancer Hospital in Salt Lake City, UT, Dr. Martha Glenn confirmed what we knew- it was cancer.  But, that day she told us a lot more, and we've learned a lot since.  And, here we are five years later.  I'm still alive and healthy.  I still have cancer.  It's incurable, and pretty much untreatable right now.  It probably won't go away, and most likely will transform from indolent (slow growing) to aggressive one day, but then it can be treated with chemotherapy.

So, I have every reason to care about cancer fundraising and research and prevention and education.  Those are the things that Huntsman Cancer Foundation Institute and Hospital do so well.  And that's why I raise funds for Huntsman every year.  And, yes, that's why I e-mail you every year and ask you to help me raise funds.

5 years ago, before I was diagnosed with cancer, I decided to use my cycling addiction to help me raise funds for Huntsman through their Huntsman Hometown Heroes fundraising program.  My mother had just been diagnosed with uterine cancer.  So, while she was battling cancer, I decided to battle it with my bike and with the funds of those who would be generous enough to donate.  Since that point, I simply have decided I will be a Hometown Hero for the rest of my life.  Cycling.  Fundraising.  Battling.

I know, I know..."what's your point, Todd?"  Well, plain and simple- I NEED YOUR HELP.  More to the point, I need your money.  Actually, what I need, and what I'm asking for, is your generosity.  I need it personally (I'm a Huntsman patient, my next 6 month checkup is in November), and so do all the others that are being treated at Huntsman Cancer Hospital, and all the clinicians and researchers and medical staff at the hospital and Huntsman Cancer Institute.

In June of this year (for the third year in a row) I rode my bike 670 miles from Reno, NV to Salt Lake City, UT with 11 other cyclist friends of mine.  All in five days' worth of riding.  Then, three weeks from tomorrow, I'll be racing my tenth LOTOJA Classic- 206 miles from Logan, UT to Jackson Hole, WY.  I'll be on the road with over 1,000 racers, but also with 74 other Hometown Heroes who have signed up to raise funds for Huntsman Cancer Foundation.

That's 670 miles from Reno to SLC, and then 206 miles from Logan to Jackson.  Almost 900 miles. On a bike. Pedaling.  I'll do the "hard work".  Will you do the rest? Will you help me and consider donating whatever you can to Huntsman Hometown Heroes and the Huntsman Cancer Foundation?  The donation may be tax deductible (talk to a tax expert), but I can tell you it will certainly prolong your life and buy you some blessings in heaven (well, maybe not, but it will buy my eternal love and gratitude, and isn't that almost as good?)  :-)

If you feel you can donate (any amount, that's up to you), you can click the link below and go directly to my LOTOJA Hometown Heroes donation page. I choose to roll my Huntsman 140 fundraising into my LOTOJA fundraising so I only have to ask friends and family once, and not pester them over and over (too much).  You can donate via credit card right on the page.  Or, if you'd like to donate via check or cash, you can send them to me and I'll get them to Huntsman.  My home address is:

1597 E. Ridge Rd.

Layton, UT 84040

Please click here if you'd like to donate: http://lotoja.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1104370&supid=306528814

In closing, let me thank you for reading to this point.  Even if you choose not to donate, or can't at this time, know how much I appreciate your love, support and interest.

I thank you all in advance for anything you feel you can do. I’ll continue to post updates of fundraising progress on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/toddjhandy), my blog (http://www.toddhandy.blogspot.com/), and via Twitter (http://twitter.com/toddhandy).

Thank you for your relationship with me, and for your love and support!

Much love,

Todd

Ride From Reno 2014- Day 3 (Riding Angry)

Today I rode angry.

Here's the deal.  I wanted to send a clear message to cancer, my cancer, that I'm the one in charge here, not it.  No mutant cells in my body get to tell me what to do, how to do it, and when/where to do it.  I'm the one in charge.  I determine what hurts, when, and for how long. And today I wanted to be in charge and send that clear message.

We summited five peaks today.  You can see from the elevation below that we climbed 6,243 feet- some good amounts of climbs.  And, each time we climbed, I rode to the front as quickly as I could and attacked the climbs.  I wanted to hurt. I wanted to leave it all on each climb. I wanted cancer to be scared of me! This disease takes so many people, and hurts so many more.  I've been blessed that I've not been too affected yet, but who knows what the future holds?  There are several with us who've also been affected personally, and who've had radiation, chemo, surgery, etc.  And even more so, there are names on lists that nearly all of us are carrying that honor those who have won their battles, others who've lost theirs, and a whole bunch who are currently battling.

I've been blessed. I'm riding this ride with cancer- but it's not stopping me now, and it's not going to.  So, yeah- I'm angry.  At cancer.  But that's it.  I'm blessed, I recognize the Lord's hand in my life and my family's, and we'll take what comes. I just didn't want cancer to think I wasn't paying attention.  I am.  Got that?  I AM IN CHARGE!

Here are my stats for the day.  A handful of podium finishes and strong times.  Lost a KOM to one of my new friends, Jon Rose, by 36 seconds.  GOOD FOR YOU  JON!

Much love,
Todd

Ride From Reno 2014- Day 2 (This Ride Is A Metaphor For Cancer!)

Well, today was "interesting", to say the least.  We had cold, rain, wind, and even snow (though it didn't stick). We also had some sun, and a pretty difficult day.

As the title of this post states, this ride is a perfect metaphor for cancer.  You can have all kinds of people supporting and cheering you on, but YOU and only YOU can turn the crank time after time, day after day. Only YOU can get from point A to point B.  There's no option to quit, and no option to just coast. You have to work hard, be mentally tough, deal with adversities, enjoy the tailwinds, and just hang on and "get 'er done."

Today's ride was that metaphor to a tee.  We started out with overcast and cold temps, only to get sprinkles and then more full blown rain.  At the top of the first full climb we actually had snow flurries.  We had some folks not feeling well, all of us feeling cold, and a difficult headwind and crosswind at times.

But we also had some tailwinds, some downhills, incredible support and the purpose of this ride- to work hard and raise funds for cancer research.  So, that doesn't afford us the option to quit- we keep riding, keep turning the crank, keep getting back on the bike.

Just before we climbed to the top of Austin, the sun came out. Many of us were taking off arm warmers, gloves, etc.  Then at the top of Austin the wind was blowing into us pretty fiercely, and that just made it incredibly cold.  Most of us ate then then sat in our cars to get warm. When the time came to get out and descend, none of us felt really good about it- we were all shivering uncontrollably and not all that excited to descend and get cold all over again. I personally had to fight "speed wobble" all the way down as I couldn't stop from shivering, and my handlebars were chattering back and forth.  We then climbed Bob Scott and descended again.

We did have some times of tailwind, where we were sitting up riding 25+ MPH with heart rates in the 100-110 range.  I'll take that!

As we flew into Eureka, we realized that we will be starting in 43 degree weather tomorrow morning, in shadow, as we climb Pinto Summit. But, we've had one tough day, we can conquer another.

I love this crew I ride with, and the support folks are the best.  You couldn't ask for higher caliber people, and I'm glad to call them all friends and "family."


I had some podium finishes on Strava, and came oh so close to a KOM!  Check it out...

Day 2 is in the books!

Much love,

Todd

Ride From Reno 2014 Day 1 Recap

OK, so here goes- the 2014 edition of the Ride From Reno is officially on!

For those who aren't familiar, the Ride From Reno was started by my dear friend, Jeff Warren, 13 years ago when he finished his cancer treatment.  He had head and neck, stage IV cancer, and did more courses of chemo than I care to mention.  He wanted to do something to celebrate beating the odds, so being an avid cyclist he decided to ride from his home town of Reno, NV to the steps of Huntsman Cancer Institute/Hospital where he did his treatment.  Since then it's grown, and in 2010 Huntsman Cancer Foundation put their support behind it and we've grown it to a healthy fundraiser- raising $300K this year, with over 400 riders registered across all distances of the Huntsman 140, the event on the last day of the Ride From Reno (140 is the distance from Delta, UT where we take a rest day to Huntsman).  This is my third time riding the RFR, and 8th time riding from Delta to Huntsman.

Mom and I drove to Reno last night. Stopped in Wendover for buffet lunch like we do, 'cuz her cousin Gene is the head chef at the Peppermill, so we get a good meal and get to visit with him.  Lisa and the girls came along, 'cuz they like to do that, and since it was Father's Day we all wanted to be together.

Made good time to Reno, got checked in, set up and caught some ZZZs.  Up early to get ready and drive to the arch.  11 of us today- one who'll swap out tomorrow with one who ode separately due to a family commitment.  Riding were:
Jeff, Brian, Jason, Darcie, Dan, Jon, Rich, Scotty, Larry, Rob and me.  Tomorrow Rob won't be with us and we'll be joined by Joe.

Rode out of Reno and climbed Geiger Grade- hello legs!  Geiger is a long, hard pull, with lots of switchbacks.  But, it's also a beautiful view, and a reminder that we're going to work hard for the next five days- this isn't just a joy ride, it's work!

Dropped down the back side of Geiger to Jeff's Dad's place in Virginia City. What a great little town!  Jeff's Dad and sisters always support him to Delta, so we visited for a few and then dropped down the aptly named "6 Mile Canyon".

When we hit the bottom of 6 Mile, we turned left to head to Fallon, and ended up with a west wind (tailwind)! We were riding around 30 MPH with little effort for many miles, as the tailwind carried us swiftly to Fallon.

In Fallon we always eat lunch at Lattin Farms, owned by Vicki Linton's Dad, Bill.  Bill wasn't there this year, as he's in a long term care facility, but he will come see us in Delta on Friday.  What an incredible man, and his employees are so good to feed and care for us.  Thanks Bill- take care!

Th ride out of Fallon had a lot of crosswind, and was a little more difficult.  However, when we turned due East and headed towards Sand Mountain, the tailwind picked back up and pushed us up Sand Springs Pass.  Last "hard" climb for the day, though still some climb left before we would end.

Dropped down Sand Springs Pass and fought with the wind here and there.  Stopped at the Shoe Tree, then started the 12 mile slog up to Cold Springs where we would end the day.  My Garmin bonked on me at Latin Farms, and I ended up having to reset it and lost the first 75 miles of the day.  Here are my stats for the second half (from Fallon), as well as my stats for the whole Day 1 ride from last year for comparison.

Oh, yeah- and finished the day at Jerry's with the traditional burger, fries, Coke and chocolate shake.  That's what I'm talkin' about!

I'll be detailing the ride here all week.  But, I need to also mention that the purpose for this ride is fundraising for Huntsman Cancer Institute. So, if you're so inclined, you can donate through my Huntsman Cancer Foundation page at Todd Handy's fundraising page

I've not begun my fundraising in earnest, so you'll see there's not much activity there, but I would appreciate anything you think you can donate to help fight cancer and fund research for more tolerable treatment and to try to find a cure for cancer.

Thanks to all, and especially my dear Mom who is supporting me this week of the third time.  I love spending the week with her, and am so grateful for her love and support.  She's a fellow cancer survivor, so this means a lot to her, as well.  I love you, Mom!

Much love,

Todd