So it Begins

Johan from Holand, Gerhard from South Africa, the international contingent of my team. Tim and our support crew Bob & Patty from Sacramento. We set out from Sacremento at 4:30 A.M. drove to Saint Francis yacht club in San Frisco, road over the Golden Gate Bridge and then on to Dixon Ca, to start our Leg to Auburn.

Reunion and warm up ride

This was posted on twitter

Check out @hdadcb's Tweet: https://twitter.com/hdadcb/status/608774552374542336?s=09

Ride for Hope Prolog

Often during a cycling Stage Race the first event is a prolog, a short event to establish the race leaders.  I was going to wite about the next couple of days and a little bit about the reason I am riding.  But I just had my Cousin Bill Foley post this in www.redsoxlife.com the best Prolog I could imagine.

Article by Bill Foley "Time for Red Sox Nation to Join Ride for Hope"

Pre Ride Update - Why We Ride!

In just two weeks I start of Ride for Hope Coast to Coast 2015.  When I talk to people about the ride, most comment about the difficulty of bicycling so many miles in so few days.  How uncomfortable and painful it must be on a certain part of the anatomy! They may question where will I be staying on this journey, do I stay in a hotel, or they have questions about ride support, nutrition and water.

Certainly a ride like this is a daunting task, the physical effort, pain and logistics can seem overwhelming, but overcome by training and good planning.  Fortunately, I have got the training in and the organization does a good job putting the event together. I have to admit most all of the riders, including myself, love the challenge, camaraderie, and adventure of the riding. But I undertake this challenge because I want help make a change in the lives of these desperate children. This video is why I ride.

Why We Ride for Hope Coast to Coast!

This ride is about children that every day live without an education, continually endure difficulty, pain and hunger.  I am so blessed to use my God given passion to help these children. Would you please consider supporting these children... Would you consider a gift of $5, $10, $20 or more to help. Small  or large any gift will go a long way to provide a loving home, daily food, education and health care for the children of Christ's Hope.  Click here now to  donate.

Please check the blog; I'll be updating weekly now, and when the ride starts I'll be posting daily route, photos and videos.

God bless

Ride For Hope 2015 Getting Started

Well today I thought I had better get going on raising support for Ride for Hope Coast to Coast 2015. This time we will be riding from San Francisco to Boston. Starting on June 14th and ending in Boston on June 24th, approximately 3,409 miles later.  It will be an international affair as well we will ride into Toronto Canada and riders from Europe and Africa will be joining along.  The Ride for Hope's primary purpose is to raise support for orphaned abandoned, vulnerable and forgotten children due to the AIDS epidemic in Africa.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNYBN-lQmSI


Since the ride in 2013 Laura and I have sponsored an orphan in Kenya and I am planning to ride in her honor.  I'd like you to meet Rosemary Atieno Ondiek, her dream job when she grow up is to be a nurse.  For some perspective her favorite activities are sewing, fetching water and washing utensils. She lives in a Carepoint ministry supported by Christ's Hope.  There she receives daily food, support for her education, and any medical attention.  Our hope is that Rosemary and other children like her will  have an opportunity to realize their dream of become a contributing member of her village and country.

 

This is why I will particpate in Ride for Hope, to see that children like Rosemary don't end up abused  in some work camp or worse.  Please consider supporting Christ Hope's ministry you can contribute on my Ride for Hope page on the link to the right you can also click on this link https://rideforhopectc.org/rides/893john-leeming/profile

Day two St. John's Arizona to Grant New Mexico.

Day two, on our way to Albuquerque, our leg started in St. John's, Arizona and wet to Grant ,New Mexico. The previous day was body draining. Three of us including myself were overcome by heat sickness for a portion of the ride. Even Ray who road well and seemed to handle the heat OK was feeling unusually fatigued by the previous days effort. Because of the strain of the previous day needing rest to recover from heat exhaustion and having to meet an event deadline in Albuquerque at 5:00 PM we split the days ride with team 4 they did the first half of the leg and we did the second half. We road through saguaro cactus forests, deserts and ended at the Continental Divide in New Mexico.  It was funny we had come to the end point for the days ride, loaded up the bikes and off we went just to find the sign indicating we had come to the Continental Divide a 1/4 of a mile beyond where we had stopped.  Never shy about a photo opportunity we tried to ham it up a little and look like we had exhausted ourselves getting there, but as you can see we need to take some acting lessons...

 

What a blessing it was to join everyone in Albuquerque.  We met at the Orphan Exchange Thrift Store (https://www.facebook.com/OrphansExchangeThriftStore). Amazingly, the owner and his family support over 700 orphans world wide from that one store.  He has recently partnered with Christ's Hope International and began supporting a Care Point in Africa.  Team 3, the all girl team road the last leg to the thrift store that day.  the day before Alicia (standing, on the team right, in the picture below) had crashed and suffered some severe bruising and what she would find out a few days later at least one cracked rib.  We would ride with them the next day, in what turned out to be one of the best rides of the ten days.  See tomorrows post for an update.