Day 9, January 13, 2002
JEFF'S
UPDATE
Today in a word: struggle!! Both Kevin and I did not have proper expectations in our mind for what the day would bring, and hence, were unprepared for the massive amount of climbing we did [9,800 feet; the second largest day of the trip] and the Texas head winds that we fought for about 60 miles of the trip.
I personally was also impacted again by the altitude as we were between 4,500-6,500 feet in elevation for most of the day. At one point I had to stop for a few minutes fearing I was going to black out. Another day of stretching and growing personally!
The good news was the last 30 miles of the day were downhill getting us down to about 3,800 feet in elevation and allowing us to spin out the legs before the end of the ride.
On a personally level, I asked Kevin to share with me is story about Eco-challenge 2000 that he was in; the most intense race in the world. It was both fascinating and quite frankly inspiring for me later in the day as I struggled up the mountains at high altitudes. He truly is an inspirational person to spend a month with; I am learning a lot about my self though him.
I also got inspiration from today's ride was dedicated to. Rita Lietz, passed away from cancer and was the grandmother of Jennifer Smith, a good friend of mine. Andrew Battistessa battled and won his battle with cancer a nd is 3.5 years cancer free.
I thought a lot about my family who I miss deeply. To my little girl Brooklyn, I thought of you everytime I saw horses today as I know they are your favorite animal. When I get back you and I will spend a day at a horse farm taking you on some rides. To Skylar, we went by the McDonald observatory which has a huge telescope to look at the Texas night sky. I got you something I think you will like for your telescope at the cottage!
To Diane thanks again for your daily inspirational messages; they all seem to be well suited to the specific struggles we have had. Love and miss you dearly.
To my friends who have been following us keep those daily messages coming; they give us energy for the ride!!
Wish us well tomorrow; at 180 miles our longest day of the trip! Jeff
KEVIN'S UPDATE
Whew, we did it! The last of the big climbing days. We were faced this morning with fierce headwinds riding into today's mountains. I talked Jeff's ear off for the first two hours about my experiences in Borneo competing in the eco-challenge 2000.
Jeff is an amazing rider and it really shows how much he cares about all the people we are riding for by how deep he is digging to climb mountain after mountain. It's quite the display of courage, commitment, integrity and dedication. He's fueling me to keep strong so we can finish the ride for cancer.
We are feeling good, getting along, and getting stronger. We have and will get to our daily miles no miles no matter what because we sincerely care about the cause we are riding for. Today was tough and tomorrow maybe tougher given we are trying to ride 180 miles. We will finish no matter what especially if we have the continued support of our friends, family, and community. Look forward to keep reading your messages.
As a special note to Mark Bonham, I was thinking today how this would never have happened for me personally without your support. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to help other people.
Rose, Jonathan & Andrew, I'll be home before you know it. Love Kevin