We Made It To Kansas!!! (4/28)
10:30 am
Ellen & Alissa here! We’re sitting in one of the 12 passenger vans right now waiting for riders to arrive for their first rest-stop on the journey from Ordway, CO to Leoti, KS. Yesterday we rode from Pueblo, CO to Ordway, CO. It was about 58 miles, which shouldn’t seem too daunting, however, the headwind made for a challenging ride. We slept last night in the wrestling room of Crowley County High School. Support Team A made a very yummy casserole with chicken (or tofu), cheese, stuffing & cream of mushroom soup. We also had biscuits & brownies! Before we left this morning, we gave a lecture to 150 high school students at Crowley County High School, which went over well. Unfortunately, the riders are still facing a headwind today, but they all seem to be staying in good spirits. Last night the members of Support Team B stayed up late making a special treat for the riders – egg salad for sandwiches. Hopefully, the egg salad will give the riders a little extra energy to help fight the wind today. Hoping the weather stays good for us today – forecast has a 20-30% chance of thunderstorms this afternoon.
12:55 pm
Just headed off from the first rest-stop - definitely a stiff wind that the riders were fighting all morning – mostly head-wind but coming a little from the side as well making it hard to pace line. Riders all said they were hanging-out in their climbing gears the last 2 hours despite the flat terrain, and feeling like they weren’t moving anywhere! They all seem to be hanging in there though and are back on the road now fighting the wind again. Clear blue sky at least at this point with no storms in sight!
3:15pm
Waiting at the last rest stop after lunch. This is a very tough day on the riders, but spirits are staying relatively high. We had a great egg-salad lunch & busted out some Nutella, which is a big hit with everyone. We’ll likely have to rack the bikes after this stop, as we have about an hour’s drive to Leoti, Kansas. Tonight we’re planning to eat Mexi-Mac (macaroni & cheese with sour cream, guacamole & salsa) and cinnamon rolls as dessert. Hope this gets all our riders ready for another day tomorrow (hopefully minus the headwinds)!
Living it up a mile high
Entering Colorado last Saturday
At the top of Monarch Pass
At the bottom after the descent from Monarch Pass
Hey all. Jeff Jenks here. We are currently kicking back in Denver, Colorado after an epic week with some really great rides!
We left Telluride, Colorado on Tuesday. Although it was a bit tough leaving the posh living quarters that we had called home for two days, the ride out of Telluride brightened the mood. We had a really good descent at first, and the rest of the ride was relatively flat and a nice ride.
We made it into Montrose, Colorado relatively early, with enough time to hit up Coldstone for some ice cream before dinner. After dinner some of us went up to Black Canyon National Park, which had some amazing views of the canyons below. Unfortunately I left my camera back at the school, so have no pictures to show for the trip.
The next morning I was on support. The riders woke up to "Where the Streets Have No Name" by U2, and had a breakfast consisting of cold cereal, scrambled eggs, pineapple chunks, and hot oatmeal (Yum!).
The beginning of the ride looked to be a bit tough, with two pretty steep ascents at the very beginning. The rest of the day looked to be relatively downhill, with some nasty crosswinds to contend with at a couple points.
I mailed a postcard along the way in a town with a population of 4. Yes 4 people. I could literally throw a baseball from the "entering" sign to the "leaving" sign of that town.
That evening we stayed in Gunnison, Colorado at Western State College. We pretty-much had the entire top floor of the Student Union to ourselves. Many of us went out to dinner for burgers, and were lulled to sleep by some freestyle rapping at Western College not far from our sleeping quarters.
We woke up early the next morning in an attempt to get an early jump on a 90 mile day. The morning was a bit chilly, but most of us quickly warmed up on our bikes. We rode about 25 miles to the first rest stop, which averaged out to be a slight climb. We rode another 5 miles, than began an 8 or 9 mile ascent to the top of Monarch Pass, which at 11,312 feet is the highest point on our trip. We climbed about 3000 ft over those 9 miles - it was challenging but fun and well worth it at the top.
We were awarded with lunch at the top of the pass, and a quick descent which I took painfully slow. At the bottom it warmed up about 30 degrees, and we shed most of our heavy clothing.
The rest of the day was a beautiful ride through Colorado along a winding river, and we ended up at a high school in Cotopaxi, CO. Dinner was great, with Team D coming through with a terrific pasta meal that managed to fill everyone up. We were a bit surprised that Ryan did not go back for a third helping, but than he admitted that he had hit up some fast food a couple hours earlier.
Yesterday we woke up early and had a great ride to the first rest stop. There were plenty of wildlife afoot, and the entire first part of the ride was framed by the snow-capped Rockies in the distance. After the first rest stop the group split in half and some of us drove to Denver to attend an educational event at a Rotary Club.
Last night we had Journal Club, where we talked about a Paul Farmer article, which was very exciting for me! The group was also kind enough to buy a chocolate cake for my 30 birthday, which was delicious. Thanks everybody!
This morning was another early wake-up. We drove back down to Colorado Springs for our first Solidarity Ride. It was a bit damp and chilly, but the ride ended up being a great success.
Tomorrow is an off day, and Monday we drive back down to Pueblo and ride to Eads, Colorado.
Unfortunately, there have been some recent challenges to overcome. Yesterday an anonymous tip led the Recycling Committee to find two Coke cans in the garbage, far from the confines of the recycling bag which they belong.
The Recycling Commitee quickly convened (Renee- President, Jeff- Vice President, Leah - Enforcer) and quickly issued an edict declaring that all recyclable items must be put in the correct recepticles. No names will be named, but it appears that two riders may be rebel insurgents and planning to overthrow The Commitee. There has been some complaints that democracy has been sacrificed during this crisis, but The Commitee feels that this is a time where some liberties must be sacrificed for the common good. They insurgents will be dealt with harshly.
In all seriousness, we are having a good time and enjoying the rides and company of eachother. Keep following the blog and take care everyone!
Ride for World Health - Clubs and Committees
Hello everyone! Renee Nason here, writing from Colorado College where we’re having our first solidarity ride through the Garden of the Gods. The weather is a little rainy and cold but that hasn’t stopped our riders from enjoying an easy Saturday morning stroll on their bikes.
Last night we enjoyed another Friday evening Journal Club sesh, where Ryan Walsh, Diana Ortiz, Sebastian “Sea Bass” Brooke, and I led a discussion about a chapter from the book Infections and Inequalities by Paul Farmer. Simultaneously, we celebrated rider Jeff Jenks’ 30th birthday! You may not know it but excitingly, Paul Farmer is Jeff Jenks’ man crush. Coincidence or destiny? You decide!
So speaking of Journal Club, I thought I’d blog a bit about some of the clubs and committees that have been established during the first couple of weeks of the 2009 Ride for World Health. Here they are in no particular order:
JOURNAL CLUB – This is one of my favorites; it was organized by Leah Bauer, our Education Chair. At the beginning of the ride we got a packet of journal articles, newspaper articles, and book chapters that center on global health issues. Every Friday we meet and discuss one of the readings, as a means for us to continue learning about the subjects that we discuss in our lectures and foster positive changes in our world and healthcare systems. (Sidebar: To my Vancouver Book Club – Hi guys; can we please start up something like this when I get back to town? Awesome, thanks!)
RECYCLING CLUB – This one was born out of a mutual passion for the environment shared by Jeff Jenks and myself. I am the President and have named Jeff as my Vice. The role of Subcomandante is held by Dan Kim. Our missions include encouraging environmentally sound practices, sequestering recyclables from regular trash and placing them in the appropriate receptacles, and reusing materials whenever possible. We rule with an iron fist. Tyrannical Vice President Jenks asserts, “There is no room for democracy in the Recycling Club”. Because of this, we have named the menacing Leah Bauer as our Enforcer. Rumored to be concocting a coup, rebel insurgents of the Recycling Club include Sebastian Brooke and Ryan Walsh, who on at least one occasion have each been seen throwing plastic bottles in the trash. Sleep with one eye open, you two.
COOKING CLUB – Monica Foley, Ellen Acree, and Alissa Gilbert head up this group, obviously because they are fantastic in the kitchen. Some particularly memorable meals have been Spicy Penne Pasta with Chicken or Tofu in Cotopaxi, and Lasagna, Veggie Pasta, Irish Soda Bread, Chess Pie (a southern delicacy!) and Apple Pie in Telluride. Glorious!
PROM COMMITTEE – When in Dolores Colorado, we riders spent the evening at the local high school, where prom was happening in the adjacent gym, so we decided to have our own prom. I was President of the short lived Prom Committee, Clara Ruiz was my Vice, Kami Teal was the consultant (because she actually was prom queen!), and Clare Kelleher was both the Fashion Director and Logistics Coordinator. We voted in the traditional way: The purpose of the initial voting period was to establish the Prom Court, which consisted of the contenders who were in the running to become Prom King and Prom Queen. By popular vote, the King’s Court included Ryan Walsh (for his famous ranch dressing-peanut butter-tabasco-cheeseits-mac’n’cheese-doritos-jelly-cookies-hummus sandwiches – yes, all those ingredients between two slices of bread!), Ben Meyer (for his beard), Stephen Weinberger (for his dance moves and comedic wit), and Jeff Jenks (for his dance moves and love of Paul Farmer). The Queen’s Court included Clara Ruiz (for her dance moves), Monica Foley (for her fashion sense – a majestic tie-dyed eagle t-shirt, oversized cowboy belt buckle, and skull’n’crossbones bandana are just a few of her gems), Alissa Gilbert (for her cooking and PR skills), and a certain unnamed gentleman rider.
In typical R4WH fashion, we determined King and Queen by holding a dance-off. Decked out in their most outrageous garb, Ryan and Alissa showed off some boot-scootin’, Jeff and Monica featured some 1960s moves, and Stephen and Clara somehow pulled off an epic-but-fictitious “Pamchenko” throw, inspired by the 1992 figure skating movie The Cutting Edge. Ben Meyer and He-Who-Shant-Be-Named lamed out. The final round of voting took place, and it was decided that the 2009 Ride for World Health Prom King and Queen are…Ryan Walsh and Clara Ruiz! Each winner received a giant chocolate Easter egg as their prize.
PUSH UPS AND SIT UPS CLUB – This club was founded by Ryan Walsh, because he needs to get ready for his upcoming military physical test. He sometimes lames out though, so Ben Meyer is the President and time-keeper of the PU/SU Club. Members do two minutes of push ups and two minutes of sit ups at rest stops that are selected by the President. Other members of this club are Monica Foley, Clare Kelleher, and Jeff Jenks.
SIT UPS CLUB – This one was founded by riders who want to participate in callisthenic moves during rest stops, but value abdominal muscles over biceps, triceps, and pecs (upper body strength…who needs it?). Participants include myself, and I think maybe Rachel Riopel.
SITTING AROUND CLUB – The S/A Club was created by Stephen Weinberger and his friend, portion rider Darrick May. I guess they basically play video games and take naps.
MUSTARD CLUB – R4WH’s newest, most exclusive group, the Mustard Club was founded by Monica Foley and myself. Just yesterday, at Jeff Jenks’ birthday, riders ordered a variety of appetizers, which they proceeded to douse in ketchup and nacho cheese. In a fleeting moment of fate, Monica and I both reached for the mustard; with a knowing look, we knew our friendship was sealed because of a shared love for this condiment. One of our first acts of office will be to whip out spicy dijon mustard at rest stops. But not everyone can participate! To be part of this club, you need to successfully write a personal statement, complete a MMI-style interview, and be an existing member of one of the calisthenics clubs.
So there you have it, folks. I hope you enjoyed learning about our clubs and committees as much as we enjoy participating in them; thanks for reading!
The Monarch Pass
Today was another one of those crazy days that turned out to be easier than expected. Support team D (Alissa, Sebastian, Clara, Rachael and I) woke up at 5 A.M. - the earliest of the ride yet. We started in Gunnison, CO at Western State University, where there had been a late rap battle the night before. The riders woke up 30 minutes later because they had a 113 mile day ahead of them, and they all did great! They climbed to the top of Monarch Pass, which is one way to get across the Continental Divide. Afterwards, there was a very steep downhill through Salida into Cotopaxi. The actual trip had been calculated longer than it really was- the riders only had to bike upwards of 87 miles and some even skated into Cotopaxi in time for our lecture.
On top of today's mileage, there was a lecture event at 3 P.M. for 80 some high schoolers at Cotopaxi High where we will be staying tonight in the gym. Some riders decided to come to the event straight from the peak at Monarch Pass, and so eleven of us headed to the school to talk to some curious kids. They were great, and so was the faculty at the school- afterwards, we got to mingle and talk to some of them in a less formal setting.
Good job, R4WH! Denver, here we come!
-Farhaad
Epic speeds with Coco
Hello!! This is Kami and Jess. We are currently sitting in the computer room of the lovely Cotopaxi High school. Yesterday was our support day and we had the pleasure of supporting our riders as they rode from Montrose, CO to Gunnison, CO. The weather was fairly nice with some sun and a tail wind that propelled the riders up the big climbs and down the steep descents. In fact, our first group passed the lunch stop before Jess and I could catch them!! After some quick maneuvering by Jess, we slid into an even nicer lunch spot and enjoyed the delicacies of bologna and turkey. Our portion rider, Scott Elkin from Telluride, joined us for the first half of the day and hit epic speeds going down the last descent. We will definitely miss him and his dog, Coco. The rest of the ride was fairly uneventful and we pulled into the Western State University in Gunnison, CO around 3:00 pm. The accommodations were a nice change, as we had private showers and mattresses to sleep on. We wandered around the tiny downtown, popped into a couple bike shops, and enjoyed dinner at the local brewery. When we returned back to the dorm rooms, a group of us were able to enjoy a free style rap battle; good times were had by all. Overall it was a pretty smooth, easy day!! Lucky for us because the trek up to Monarch Pass loomed ahead the next day..... But more on that later!! :)
P.S. We hope you enjoyed the picture of Clara at the top of our blog flashin' some signs in honor of the free style rap battle!!
Featured Rider Blog: Follow Ben Meyer’s R4WH Experience
Ben Meyer has been documenting his 2009 R4WH journey on his online blog. Please feel free to follow Ben's blog under our Rider Blog link or by visiting http://benmeyersblog.blogspot.com.
Here is an excerpt from Ben's blog from April 18th as the R4WH riders crossed into Colorado.
We wrapped up Utah today. We are currently in Colorado and surprised how fast the ride is going. The entire state of Utah was filled with nonstop scenery. We spent the whole time climbing up this mountain, then riding down through that basin or that canyon in numerous national parks. We were constantly amazed at our scenery. Verizon Wireless officially wins the best cell phone coverage when out in the boonies. We stayed in some pretty small and remote areas. We were unable to ride out from Boulder, Utah because Boulder Mountain was whited out, but picked the ride back up on the other side to then be greeted by a sandstorm in Hanksville. We were supposed to camp, but Hanksville Elementary School allowed us to shelter in their gym for the evening. The next night we did camp at National Bridges National Park, which reportedly is one of the best star gazinwelcome-to-colorful-coloradog locations in the US. We beared it out through 2 snow storms that day with temps down in the 20s. My sleeping bag is only rated for 40 degrees so I was literally wearing every article of clothing that I brought.The sky did clear up though for a midnight star gazing session. We also pretty much ran out of food so ate mac and cheese with hotdogs for breakfast, but didn't really care because it was warm (unlike my fingers and toes).
We road into Dolores, CO today, had a lunch lecture and a dinner lecture at different locations. We ride up and up into Telluride tomorrow. Apparently conditions are more favorable for skiing in Colorado opposed to biking currently as a huge storm system is predicted throughout next week.
Sorry for the technical difficulties!
Hi everyone! Sorry for the technical difficulties we had recently! We had an error in our html code which caused our webpage not to show up in Internet Explorer 7.0. Thanks to a consult to our web page expert and Ride for World Health friend and supporter Dilesh Patel we are now up and running again and working hopefully in all browsers!
Telluride - An Off Day!
High Everyone!
It's Jeff Jenks. We are currently enjoying an off day in Telluride, Colorado. I can't believe it has been over a week since we left Las Vegas. Unfortunately, the days are already starting to blurr together since leaving Las Vegas.
After leaving Las Vegas we stayed in some small towns in Nevada, including Alamo and Panaca. Last Sunday we left Nevada and entered Utah, staying in Cedar City that night. The rides in Utah are beginning to blend together, but they were invariably beautiful. I took lots of pictures, but they don't truly do Utah justice. The topography has lots of inclines and descents, with roads winding through beautiful canyons and national parks.
Monday we left Cedar City and had a tough climb that day, but had some beautiful views of Zion National Park along the way. I think it was the next day that we rode through Bryce Canyon, which was very scenic and a wonderful ride.
On Tuesday I stayed at a couples home in Boulder, Utah, along with three other riders. The ride into Boulder was hard, with some sharp inclines and lots of wind. We were relieved to finally get there. The couple I stayed with live on a farm and have lots of chickens and a pet turkey, dog, and cat. They were great hosts and had a spaghetti meal prepared for us when we arrived. I really enjoyed the food and the great company.
Early last week we had a couple of cold nights and mornings. On Wednesday night we stayed in a school in Hanksville, Utah. We made a trip to Goblin Valley State Park, which was one of the most beautiful and unique places I have ever seen. There are hundreds or thousands of rock formations that look like goblins or mushrooms (depending on your perspective) - it is a wonder that nature could manage to produce such unique rock formations.
The next day we left for Natural Bridges Monument, where we camped out underneath the stars (Natural Bridges Monument is known to have some of the best stargazing in the country), but awoke to find snow all over the ground. We biked anyways, and the temperature eventually warmed up and it managed to be a pretty nice day.
That evening in Monticello we stayed at a Catholic Church, and a wonderful dinner of "Navajo tacos" awaited us when we arrived there that evening. Monticello is a small town in Utah, and our hosts were wonderfully kind and interesting.
The next morning we left for Dolores, where we stayed at a high school. The local Catholic Church again had a wonderful dinner prepared for us when we arrived. It just so happened that the local school was having their high school prom that evening, so we enjoyed our own separate prom in the gym. We attained very cheap clothes from the local Salvation Army store and got dressed up.
Yesterday we left Dolores and had a wonderful ride up a mountain, with our day ending in a descent into Telluride. Telluride, population around 2000, is a ski resort in the winter and a popular tourist destination in the summer. We had an event at the local grade school/high school this morning, but are otherwise relaxing and catching up on trips to the bike store, laundry, etc. this afternoon. We have a contact here who is a real estate agent and avid cyclist, and he attained three condos for us which are being donated. Needless to say, we are enjoying our stay here.
Tomorrow we leave for Montrose, Colorado with some challenging rides coming up this week. Overall, the scenery in Utah and Colorado has been beautiful and worth the hard work on the bikes.
Take care and keep following our progress!
Snow and Karaoke
Our ride from Natural Bridges Monument to Monticello Utah began with a special surprise when we got out of our tents….a smattering of snow! Sleeping on top of a plateau in the middle of canyons and one of the darkest night skies in the country with the brightest stars was a treat. Hadley and Sebastian even helped point out some constellations before we went to bed and for the first time I was actually not just pretending to see some of them.
However, overnight many of us were pretty frozen in our sleeping bags as the temperature plunged!! To go along with our snowy morning surprise we had an unconventional breakfast of mac and cheese and hot dogs provided by our wonderful rider from Vermont Medical School, Scott Davis! Since our provisions were running low we had to get creative.
Fortunately, as the day went on the temperatures climbed. The riders bravely kept on despite tough climbs and fierce winds. We stopped in Blanding for a quick lunch at the A and W root beer stand where we enjoyed delicious root beer floats and my personal favorite…chili cheese fries!!! In the evening we stayed at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church. The generosity of the parishioners was evident not only from the wonderful Navajo tacos they made us but also the great lengths they went to help us all get access to showers. After more than 24 hours without bathing we were all incredibly relieved to feel so fresh and so clean. Some of the parishioners even drove us to their own homes to let us have a shower with warm water!
During dinner the riders chatted with Father Joe and some of the families that helped out to make our food. We displayed our wonderful Global Health care fair posters and answered any questions that emerged. We talked about the mission of the ride and shared some of our stories from the road.
After dinner we participated in a journal club that discussed the benefits and limitations of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Since many of us have had the opportunity to participate in medical electives abroad we were able to compare our experiences of the serious deficiencies in third world countries’ health care systems to those described in the article. Fortunately the restaurant across the street hosted us and after a lively discussion we ended the night with some karaoke. The staff at the restaurant were very hospitable and forgiving of our less than stellar singing talents. We closed down the night with an all team performance of Sweet Caroline. It was an exhausting day and we all crammed into the church to sleep with our bellies full of fry bed and visions of Jeff Jenks's “Safety Dance” in our heads.
Clara Ruiz, 2009 National Team Rider
City of Sin…and Ride for World Health
Due to internet issues, this is a blog entry from two days ago, but you can still enjoy it now!
Hi everyone this is Dan Kim & Ellen Acree. We just wanted to update you on what the past couple of days have been like for the team. On Wednesday we finally arrived in Las Vegas for a much anticipated day off. After a beautiful 79 mile ride in from Tecopa, CA past Red Rocks National Park, we made our way to the Imperial Palace hotel and casino. The hustle and bustle of Las Vegas was definitely a stark contrast from the desert camp grounds that we had been staying at for the past two nights. Check in went relatively smoothly save for a broken elevator and a somewhat convoluted path through the casino floor. Everyone found their way to their room and took full advantage of the hardwired electricity by charging an assortment of electronic devices and the plumbed water by taking badly needed showers. I felt human again after giving myself a haircut and shaving the stubble off of my face. It was almost strange seeing everyone in casual clothing with their hair brushed and their faces clean. I must admit, we looked pretty sharp.
The team gathered again to grab a quick bite to eat before heading out to Treasure Island to see Cirque De Soleil’s show, Mystere. We booked tickets beforehand and got great seats in the center section. The production value of the show was incredible. The actual stage revolved, rotated, elevated, folded, and retracted while what seemed like an endless line of performers in brightly colored costumes simultaneously flung their bodies through the air across it. It was as if the set itself was also one of the performers. The constantly changing light schemes complemented the stage perfectly, and the music, which was all performed live by a fully costumed band, was phenomenal. A few of the more memorable performances included a group of acrobats that used a series of tall metal poles to perform unbelievable feats of strength and balance, a pair of Herculean men who were able to balance themselves on each other in the most impossible series of poses, and a meddling clown who would periodically peruse the crowd and dump popcorn on unsuspecting audience members. Despite the high level of energy surrounding us, most of the team was understandably a wee bit tired and periodically dozed off during the performance. Needless to say, we all slept very soundly that night.
The next day we had two events: one at a medical school where we did an interactive activity on resource allocation and another event at a high school. Both events were successful & filled with inquisitive, interested students. Dan actually volunteered to do the team’s laundry with Brenden. He never realized how bad traffic can get on the strip because he’s never had to drive a car down it, let alone a huge cargo van. It felt like it took as long to get back to the hotel as it did to actually do the laundry! Our last evening in Vegas was free; many of us had dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant, others ate at the Venetian and a few of us saw the amazing Chihuly artwork & fountain show at the Bellagio.
Today (Friday), we took off for Alamo, Nevada – the closest inhabited place to Area 51. We had hoped to see some crashed alien spacecraft along the ride, but sadly we had no such luck. The ride however was nice & smooth with mostly gentle downhills and gorgeous desert scenery. Some of the riders averaged around 23 mph for the entire 70+ mile ride. Those of us on Support Team had a slightly more eventful day. It started with a trip back to the laundry mat to pick up a bag of R4WH clothing that had been accidentally left from yesterday (much to the thrill of those of us who were missing clothes!) and followed with a flat tire on SR-93 between Vegas & Alamo, right where cell phone signals begin to drop out (fantastic!). Fortunately, Dan has changed many tires in his life so it was as simple as figuring out where the scissor jack was and how to get the spare out from under the van. It took about 15 minutes to switch tires and we were back on our way. Our final destination was Paranaghat Valley High School who graciously offered up their gymnasium and multi-purpose room to us for the night. We are also setting up a health fair in the gymnasium for anyone in the town who is interested. All in all we’re glad that we made it out of Vegas in one piece and that we were able to overcome some of the obstacles that got in our way. We’re really looking forward to riding tomorrow since it’s been two days now that we’ve been off our bikes. The ride tomorrow also consists of a lot of climbing, which oddly enough Dan has come to love. Should be a blast!