Want to Know What I Did Last Weekend?

by Bill Paine, Member

On Saturday and Sunday, May 3rd and 4th, as part of a company team, I rode a combined 150+ miles over a two-day event, the SAM’S CLUB MS 150. It was an exhilarating adventure, a humbling learning experience, and a personal inspiration.

Who gets the crazy idea to ride on a bicycle 150 miles?

More than 3,000 cyclists touched by a family member or friend with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) had the same crazy idea; they were touched by a belief that riding 150 miles on a bicycle for donations is worthwhile. Our inspiration came from humble selfless spirits, the Champions Against MS. The MS Champions are not the riders, but the people diagnosed with MS who are not letting MS stop their lives. Read on!

I wanted to thank you for doing this and riding in my honor.

Although I have been blessed with not heavy severe symptoms of M.S. I am starting to feel it as I grow older. I find I write less and type more because I can’t hold a pen that well anymore so my hand gets tense.

I enclosed pictures of my three gifts from God. I wanted you to see what my driving force is behind not letting this disease defeat me. They are what keeps me going, they are my reason for ignoring the symptoms and pushing on. Let’s hope we find a cure before they reach my age.

Thank you

Melanie
Enclosed with her letter were photos of her three young girls.

and

I cannot find the words to fully describe my gratitude and appreciation for your kindness! It is incredibly touching to have a group of people ride in honor of a stranger - a truly selfless act. My family and I thank you so very much. I have always known great things come from Texas ….

Others are not as fortunate as I have been. With people like all of you working hard and contributing in any way they can, maybe on day there will be a cure!

… Therefore, I ask that you ride in honor of my daughter, my nieces, and any other children out there who are vulnerable to this disease. They need you even more than I do!!
Again, thank you for being the people that you are - very caring, considerate, and giving of yourselves. The world is a better place due to people like you all!!!!!

Very sincerely yours,
Mindy

Saturday, DAY 1 began with a cold stiff wind. More than 3,000 riders rode from Frisco—north into the wind, slowly climbing in elevation. Wind breakers were zipped tight. Leg warmers were adjusted and readjusted for maximum warmth. At a rest stop, about 30 miles into the ride, I pulled in behind a recumbent bike. As I eased aching legs off my bike, the recumbent rider in front of me sat patiently waiting for his partner. I saw why. His bike was specially modified because he was a paraplegic and was pedaling with his arms. I forgot about the wind, the cold, forgot about my minor discomforts. Suddenly, the day got bright, warm, and sunny.

With renewed commitment and fervor, I kicked off and averaged 13.8 mph (miles per hour) for the day (much better than the 12 mph I had anticipated). At lunch break in Sanger, I and hundreds of other riders were honored with tears and hugs from a woman confined to a wheelchair with MS. Her complaint? She couldn't hold the blankets necessary for her leg warmth and hug every one of us. Camaraderie was the word of the day. Courtesy was rampant. Throughout the day, I heard rider after rider thanking the police ensuring our safety at intersections and crossings. Was it easy? After 70 miles, cyclist chattering reduced from “Rider passing on your left” to “On your left” until we heard from each other only “Left!” as we rode into the DAY 1 finish at the Texas Motor Speedway.

Sunday, DAY 2, started us earlier and sore. We left the Speedway inspired by shared experiences and stories, and we began conquering our hills. Yesterday’s 81 miles were under my belt, and I was cocky. Yes, muscles and parts of my anatomy were sore, but, there I was as part of the first few hundred riders to start. The wind and terrain were more difficult than the first day.

Before the second rest stop, I passed and then was passed by a rider with one arm and his lower right leg in a brace. He was powered by his left side and riding stronger than I. Ever try riding a bike with just one hand? How about one arm and one of your legs in a brace? Forgetting my cockiness, the wind, the hills, and my minor discomforts, I pushed on once again, humbled and inspired.

Towards the end of the ride, just before a rest stop, I stood resting my knee, and I cheered on the riders crawling uphill past me. One petite young lady pulled out next to me and began crying. She didn’t believe she had any more in her to give and was ready to quit. We were over 130 combined miles into the ride, less than 20 miles to go. We talked quietly and alone as rider after rider climbed past. We shared aches and pains. We shared the inspirations witnessed. After a while, with tears dried, she climbed back on her bike and kicked off.

At the last rest stop, before the finish, I met up with a rider I knew. She and her husband had trained with our team. She was worn, exhausted, and determined to finish another MS 150 ride. We rested, I with ice and a wrap on my knee, and her gulping fluids and energy bars. We paired up and kicked off together. We rode as a team, her telling me about the terrain ahead and I pulling for her (blocking the wind for her). One encouraging the other as we pushed on! Like Little Blue Engines we told ourselves “We can do this, we can do this.” Her courage showed itself many times over in those last 10 miles. Each hill would drain her resources and my knee strength, and we would stop to rest. “We can do this, we can do this.” The last MS 150 mile had a steep uphill into Sundance Square in Fort Worth. Unwilling to stop one more time, she rode it with her front tire going flat. She rode it with courage and pride, and she pedaled across the finish line on her own power.

After the finish, my bike put away, hugs given and received, news traded of others finished and not finished, I walked near a small emotional group. Through the rider’s tears, with family members surrounding the just finished rider, I heard, “I did it, I did it, I did it…” My young rider friend met on the side of the road was there.

I have two MS scarves I carried with me the entire ride. One is going as a gift to a woman with MS who did not know—I was riding in her honor. The other, signed by an MS Champion, will remain as a memento for me. I believe there are multiple inspirational stories like these for every MS 150 rider on that weekend. These were some of mine that deserve telling and retelling.

Know what I am doing next year? You bet! Come ride with me. Ride to the finish of MS.