Early morning wake up in the fraternity house lodging that the 3 of us have to ourselves on campus. We are about a 10 minute walk across campus from the Medical School building where we'll meet for breakfast, last minute ride updates and ride-out, so we push our bikes while lugging our gear bags for the overnight in the early dawn light up the sidewalk, across the campus roads - park our bikes at the bike rack, then drop our gear bags near the gear truck, followed by breakfast inside, filling water bottles, stretching, chatting and taking photos. After breakfast, I return outside and see all of the activities...over 200 riders with bikes and assorted family and friends to see them off, a local band arriving to pump us all up before ride out, crew members tagging and stowing bags on the gear truck, SAG vehicles affixing magnetic signs, filling water coolers, packing 1st aid bags, reviewing their route sheets and riders using all available railings, walls, bike racks to stretch out their legs and bags for the long day of pedaling ahead.
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| Emory Medical School - Sat morning - pre ride |
7:30AM and the 1st riders are pedaling away, heading off-campus through Decatur to link up with the bike trail going out towards Stone Mountain Park. I'm about in the middle of the pack and enjoy the cool morning ride through the neighborhoods near the Emory campus over to the trail. The weather forecast was great so, while I did pack a rain jacket as well as arm warmers and a vest for the overall trip, they aren't needed on the ride, so I'm glad to leave them.
Alarmingly (to me) my right knee has me wincing in pain even when I'm pedaling on the flats...so I quickly try to adapt on the hills by using my lower gears and push my left leg more in order to take some pressure off of my right. As the sun gets higher in the sky and the temps rise, my lungs join the struggle, so seek some easier breathing by using my inhaler.
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| pre ride out photo (Mary, Jon, Tracy are right center front behind peace sign jersey) |
I am enjoying the rest stop themes and they are a great distraction whenever I'm tired, in pain, hungry, hot or all of the above! The rest stop crews try to out-do each other in their costumes and rider welcome and each is great in eliciting smiles and providing minutes of respite to all. The donated lunches are the yummiest for any ride that I can remember...lovely fresh deli sandwich variety, fresh fruit, orzo salad with sun-dried tomatoes and pesto, brownies - oh my!
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| Tracy, Jon and Mary before ride out on Sat |
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| first riders leaving Emory, as the band plays us off campus |
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| arriving at a rest stop |
As I ride, I both chat with other riders as well as have some solo reflection time. I've been riding for the same reason since 1997, when I rode in my 1st AIDS fundraising ride, [I note the details of my ride origins in an earlier post here: "Let's start at the Very Beginning"] and so I've had many thousands of miles (both while training as well as on the event) in all sorts of weather and traffic conditions, road surfaces to have lots of reflection time.
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| my brother, Peter Harding |
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| Tracy, Mary and Jon (aka Puget Sound Riders team) at a rest stop |
I was recently surprised by a comment made by a bike mechanic (20-something): "I thought AIDS was cured?" While there have been many improvements in the medications used to treat HIV/AIDS over the years, there isn't a vaccine or cure yet so, with your help and trust in me to continue to find the best breakthrough research for all of us to support.
The research scientists at Emory Vaccine Center are committed to a world without AIDS too!
Thank you all!
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