The Stop Sign

I love to ride my bicycle. But I can’t go on.


I’m redlining. I’m losing the wheel in front of me. I want to stop. I can’t go on.

Head down, pedal, catch the wheel. How high above my max heart rate can I go? When does my heart explode?

I want to stop. I can’t go on. My vision is narrowing. I can’t pedal any harder. I’m done.

Head down, pedal, pedal, catch the wheel. How much longer can I hang on? I’m in so much pain I can’t feel anything.

I look up. Up ahead. A stop sign. I love stop signs. We’ll slow, we’ll stop, we’ll regroup. I’ll get a breathe of air. I can do this. If only they’ll stop at the stop sign. I can do this.

I love to ride my bicycle. I hate cancer. I ride Pelotonia first and foremost in the memory of my Dad. But I’ve found I ride for so, so many. For my cousin who fought so bravely, for so long, but couldn’t hang on. And my other cousin, and her son. For Hayden. For Carole going through her 2nd bout of cancer so bravely. For Kathy K. For you. For your loved ones. For my sisters kids, and their kids. So they don’t have to ride.

But no matter how much it hurts, no matter how much we want to STOP, we can’t. Because cancer won’t stop. And we won’t either.

Would you help?

There are two ways you can help.

1. Donate. For all my Columbus area donors, The Coach’s Club Café at the Fawcett Center has donated a 20% off coupon to help thank you for your support (good for the month of August).

https://www.mypelotonia.org/donate_cart.jsp?MemberID=4240

2. Whether you can donate or not -- Remind me why I’m out there, struggling to stay on a wheel, in the heat, riding 180 miles over two days (August 11 and 12). Please let me ride for you, your family, your friend, your loved one. I’d love for you to send me a name and a photo, and your favorite story. Each one is like a giant cheer, a friend on the side of the road ringing a bell, cheering me on. Each name, each story drives me forward.

Thank You.

We want to find a cure. We want to find treatments that stop cancer. We want to explore ways to help survivors.

Together, we can do this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjP1cYuVMFI