Disappointed

Well, friends, I think I will have to be okay with not meeting my cycling goal this year.

Even though my energy was great this time (my last blood test put my ferritin levels at 90, which is fantastic!!), August was so full with working extra hours, fitting in some family camping days, hosting out of town guests, and driving to the lower mainland to spend a couple days helping a friend finalize their move.

With August being so busy, I intended to fulfill my cycling goal in the first week or so of September. However, after watching each member of my family get taken down with illness, my turn has come. One of the guests in our house tested positive for Covid during the last week of August. Other guests got sick while they were here as well. 3 out of 5 of my family (including myself) have now tested positive for Covid, while the other two had been sick, but not tested. Yup. It was probably Covid, too.

I'm very disappointed that I didn't reach my personal distance goal. However, I refuse to see it as a failure. That will lead to shame, guilt, and self-loathing. I've been there many times throughout my life and it is absolutely counter-productive and not at all helpful. Instead, I will focus on what I've learned, or rather, what I've re-learned:

Sometimes things don't go the way you planned

and all you can do is accept where they land.

(I should put that on a t-shirt!)

Even with my unexpectedly shortened cycling time, it wasn't a terrible month! The donations were incredible and put me OVER my fundraising goal!! WhooHoo!!

Thank you everyone!! YOU ARE AMAZING!!

I will be receiving a very special cycling jersey given to any rider who raises over $2,500 and you helped me raise $2,511, so far!! Sadly, they were out of my size and I had to order it two sizes bigger. It will be loose on me, but I will still do a victory ride when it arrives!

Over $2,500 raised, so far!

A donation today topped up my fundraising to meet my $2,500 goal!

Not only that, I will also receive a hero jersey because of my fundraisong efforts. This year, the cycling jersey is themed after Thor from the Avengers movies. So fun!

I'm trying to think positive thoughts, but, realistically, I think I will have to continue riding into September in order to meet my personal distance goal. I have 212km to go and just a few days of August remaining. My energy has been great - the challenge has been making time to ride. Between family camping, guests from out of town, working extra hours, and trying to get some yard work done, it's been a busy month!

I will keep going and ride my pledged distance. I want to honor those who have donated and I want to honor my commitment to this challenge for the kids.

With only 5 days left in August, working 3 of those and traveling to the lower mainland for the other 2, I might be able to achieve another 100km. The rest, I will complete in September.

Thank you so much to everyone who has donated so far! If you haven't donated yet, please consider doing so. We can make a difference to so many little lives! Every dollar counts!

Ugh!

I had a really great ride today. I felt good and I was pushing myself to go a little harder and keep my pace. Something went wrong with recording my ride!! I'm so irritated!! I was looking forward to seeing my speed and personal improvements, but now all I can do is try to manually figure out the distance so it can be counted toward my total for the challenge.

I don't have much time to finish my last 320 or so kms. I'm going to have to push to complete my goal for the month. Thank you for your support. We're making a difference!

Kick Cancer's Butt Day!!

Today is the day when all online donations will be matched! Thank you so much to everyone who has jumped on board and donated today! You're amazing!!

I won't be able to get on my bike for a few days, but will be riding with a big grin on my face when I'm back to it next week!

The encouraging words, the donations, and all of your support keeps me going!

I feel so much better this year then I have the last two. My energy and my mood are both holding steady and I haven't had to worry about any wildfire smoke. We do get more fires in August, but hopefully we won't have a lot of smoke here in the valley this time. Fingers crossed!

If you haven't donated yet, there's still time have your donations matched today!

I will be thrilled for donations throughout the month as well. In fact, I usually start feeling tired and lose some of my fire as the end of the challenge comes near. Donations keep me going, so if you donate later in the month, you can know that you've given me the power-up when I need it most!

Sleep

I don't often feel rested when I get out of bed in the morning. This has been going on for a few years now. Initially, I put it down as low iron and depression, but my mood has since improved with medication and my iron is better (blood test this week will give me a clearer picture of how my levels are doing).

I want my cycling to be a good experience this year. I don't want to deplete my energy and make this harder than it has to be. That means I need to get quality sleep, nutrition and hydration.

Yesterday, I did a 48k (mostly flat terrain) with my husband. It was a great ride and the heat isn't so bad as long as you keep moving. I ate a buttered bagel and banana and drank a giant glass of water before we started. I filled my large water bottle for the road, adding a couple electrolyte tablets for good measure.

My body isn't conditioned yet for the few hills and gentle inclines along the way. I felt the workout, for sure!! 38k into the ride, we stopped and bought gatorade and shared a Cliff Bar (protein and sugar) to give us a power up. Our last 10k was a slight incline the whole way and we were already feeling done.

We rode past some kids, playing in the park. "I'm doing this for you", my smile said. They didn't look at us, deep into their make-believe - something with sticks and looking purposefully in the grass

When we finished, I could feel the grainy dried salt on my skin from my sweat. My butt was sore, legs fatigued, but we both felt good about the ride! All worth it!

I thought I would sleep well after all that. I was careful to hydrate. I had a good dinner and didn't eat after 7pm. I wore earplugs as an extra measure. Yet, I had a restless and unsettled sleep. Woke up with a headache. I guess I didn't drink enough after all.

I'll rest today and hydrate, maybe just have a short ride later this afternoon.

Hoping to sleep better tonight.

Here I go!!

It's August!

That means I'm riding once again to help fight childhood cancer! I'm committed to ride a total of 500km during the month and am hoping to raise $2500 toward the fight! The funds go to SickKids Foundation and are used for research and family support.

I had to make a minor detour on my ride today as a mama bear and her cub blocked my path on the Greenway. I kept my distance and took the road instead until I could safely connect with the path again.

I feel like it was a respectful exchange.