WAHOOOOO!

I'm back and despite a very rocky start to the ride and some miserable weather for the first 60kms yesterday, I had a great time and can't wait to do it again next year. First off, let me say.....I couldn't have done it without the amazing support I received from family & friends! I love you all and am so grateful for your neverending words of encouragement. I not only met my $1000 goal - I exceeded it!

#416 - ready to ride!

And so here I am, finished and in my back yard....a new derailleur, dropout and chain on my relatively new bike, which is completely covered in mud (not that you can see unless you get close up) and a backside spray from mucky water that makes an impressive 'poop your pants' look to end the day, scabbed up right knee...and a big ol' smile on my face.

The knee? That was from Sunday morning - when I repeated my first ever fall off my bike. Unclip one side, shift weight to look at tires, fall on face like a crumbling mountain.

So this was my team....Hot Wheels! There was over 20 of us, cheering each other on and maybe even most important, encouraging beer at the end of a rough Day 1.

I am grateful for an amazing husband who bought parts and brought them out so the support crew could install them (who then drove me to the lunch point, skipping 27kms of riding so I could catch up to my awesome roomie who waited for me there, ensuring I was no longer the very last tour rider of the day). I'm grateful for my friends & family who emailed & texted during the ride to give some encouragement (especially at the first checkstop when I was near tears with frustration, but knew that crying wouldn't solve anything so I sucked it up and called MrP) I'm also grateful that I'm able to ride and enjoy the weekend in such a manner. My best friend's aunt, who was one of the initial reasons for me doing the ride, passed away a few days before last year's ride so I hope to continue doing the ride in Linda's honour.

Thanks for letting me share - enjoy your Monday!