This will probably be my last entry in this blog as I wanted to personally thank those who not only contributed to my fundraising but also helped Diane Sawyer, Bobbie and myself along the way.
We have to start with Alicia O'Neill and Betsy Parker from the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF). They are a pair of beauts for sure.
Thank you Alicia for having people join us in seven of the 13 states we rode through on our 1,348 mile journey. From the time we had Betsy's sister and her friends join us at the starting line in Jacksonville on Father's Day to the finish line in Maine some 16 days later, your presence was felt.
Her sidekick -- Betsy -- not only helped plan a portion of the ride, but actually followed our exact location live on the computer thanks to Bobbie and her Geek Squad ability to maximize our smart phones. One day, as Betsy was watching while we were in South Carolina, we made a change in the route because of advice we had received from a local fire chief we met at a post office. Betsy immediately texted Bobbie and told her emphatically that we missed the turn, which was a short cut to our day's destination.
What can I tell you about Andy McVey from Wilmington, North Carolina. Not only did he call Bobbie while we were approaching the hotel in that city, but he said to be ready at 6:30 because he was taking the three of us to dinner. He showed up with a bag full of energy groceries as a welcoming gift. We have to get back to his town so we can repay the favor.
In New Jersey, my brother Bruce joined us for the segment leading to his house in Red Bank and, along with my sister-in-law Jill opened their home to Diane as well. The day sailing was theraputic for all involved as we had gone hard for 11 straight days.
The last Friday of the ride, Carmen Phaneuf, who lives in my old home town of Little Silver, made it a point to show up at Bruce's house at O-Dark-30 so she could ride a couple of miles with us. Carmen was bald at the time after undergoing treatment for the multiple myeloma and she wanted to be a part of what we were doing. I will tell you, after meeting her and another lady I will mention shortly, my life has changed for the better.
On the ferry to Manhattan, we met Neill Groom who wanted to know what Bruce, Diane and I were up to as we were all wearing MMRF shirts and he saw us come on board with our bicycles. Neill heard the story and within an hour donated $500 to the cause. (And then Bruce ran into him a week or so later in Red Bank when Neill was walking his dog and Bruce his).
In Manhattan, there were Diane and Dolores who led us around the island before handing us off to Tom Holland, who works with the MMRF on its endurance programs. Tom recently completed the Ironman in Hawaii so he knows a thing or two about cycling. I never did get Diane and Dolores last names.
At the beach in Connecticut, we finally met Alicia and Betsy and the people who work at the MMRF as they had a party for us Floridians. Then it was on to a massage they arranged as well as dinner in one of their local places.
The next day, we met four more riders at the train station who the dynamic duo (Alicia and Betsy) had arranged for us to ride with into New Haven, where Alicia joined us on her bike for a short distance.
Finally it was the last day and the minute I started packing the car for the last day of riding, I met Mike and Jean Dreyer who, along with their two sets of twins, wanted to be a part of this nonsense we started. Mike rode and guided us the last day to the finish line while Jean, herself a multiple myeloma patient, was there at the lighthouse to welcome us along with Alicia and what seemed like dozens of others.
Jean and Carmen are not really multiple myeloma patients -- they are multiple myeloma dominators as both are fighting this disease with everything they have.
We were invited to the MMRF gala in Connecticut in October and when we saw both of them at our table, it took me a couple of minutes to get my emotions in check.
I also have to tell Diane Sawyer, who did the ride with us, how much I appreciated having her along. While I didn't enjoy riding at a slower pace than what I had planned, she did force me to stop more often and that probably was why I never got dehydrated or got weak from not eating enough. Those were two major concerns of mine while training.
I know I probably left out a couple of people's names and I apologize for that. But you have to understand as you get older, you tend to forget. And today I am another year older. December 30 is also the birthday of LeBron James, Sandy Koufax, Tiger Woods, Matt Lauer and Michael Nesmith of the Monkees. Can you guess which one doesn't belong? Of course -- Koufax, he is lefthanded.
It's hard to believe that at age 61 I rode my bike from Florida to Maine. The facial reactions I get from people when I tell them of that ride are funny. I get this a lot: "You did what?"
Looking back now, I ask the same thing, "I did what?" But not once along the way did I ask to spend more time in bed -- I was always the first one up, dressed and at breakfast everyday. I guess people get that way when you have something to do, something to accomplish.
I wanted desperately not to do the ride because it would have meant that the Putz, my buddy Roy Gross, beat the multiple myeloma. But when we got the news on March 10th that he had passed the night before, the ride was set in stone.
So thank you to everyone who came in to my life, who donated to the cause, who prayed for our safety along the way and who continues to be a part of my life (read Carmen, Jean, Alicia & Betsy to name just four).
Let's hope for a healthy 2013 and that I won't have to do another long distance bicycle ride in memory of anyone else.
Marty
