I enjoy looking back at the weekend and sharing my musings with my supporters. It was interesting to look at last year’s post and see how much in common the two years had.

The biggest difference is the hole left by a dear friend who lived with MS for 38 years. Rainey Fahey was such an inspiration to so many, calling MS “her blessing” because it forced her to slow down in life, and as a result enabled her to more often “stop and smell the roses” along the way. Rainey passed away this summer, and while her loss has been deeply felt, she went peacefully. Rainey’s joy and boundless love always felt like she had one foot in heaven, anyway. While I ride for a number of very special people in my life with MS, and have met so many people during my 24 years in riding in this event that have loved ones living with MS, Rainey’s encouragement and gratitude has always brought a smile to my face and joy to my heart. And when I learned somewhere along the way Rainey is the godmother of one of my United By Design teammates, Jason McGaughey, we immediately bonded over the love and admiration of this remarkable woman.

Team UBD also bonded over the loss of one the founding members of the team, Troy Guzman. Troy made his transition earlier this year after a long battle with cancer, leaving a deep hole for both his partner Benjamin and the team as a whole. An incredible graphics designer for Arcturis, Troy designed all of the team jerseys since the inception of the team, and continues to be sorely missed and lovingly celebrated.

Saturday morning was brisk and beautiful, and after an early breakfast we assembled for the team photo, with most of the team of 71 making it in time for the shot.

As always, the top teams line up in order of funds raised the previous year, and the top two teams maintained their position above #3 ranked UBD. But UBD got a special shout-out this year, currently in first place with over $117K raised! This is primarily due to our top fundraiser, Sheila Miranda, who received a nearly $50K donation from her top donor this year. So she will undoubtedly be wearing Bib #1 next year, and hopefully Team UBD will maintain their slip lead over Mighty Maritz to have the honor of lining up first in 2025!

Not sure how much the temperature dropped from Godfrey down to the Mississippi river to Elsah, but I was glad to have brought a jacket and gloves with fingers! However, by the time we reached that first rest stop, I realized that I’d worked up a bit of a sweat, and quickly dropped the jacket for the climb back out of the river valley. Due to some recent road-resurfacing work, the MS Staff had to make some last-minute changes to the route this year.

After a great day of riding, team members continued to return to camp in small numbers, with different groups riding different routes (25, 50, 75 & 100 miles) and speeds. There’s such camaraderie in the Team UBD tent, including a significant number of couples that ride together. Everyone seems to find a party or partner to ride with, and I’m blessed to have a great friend and cycling partner for all these years.

We woke up Sunday morning to even more brisk temperatures. 42° F doesn’t sound very cold until you’re about to climb onto a bike! We were offered the opportunity to “strip and ship” layers from rest stop #2, so I decided to wear my cycling jacket atop the two layers I’d planned to wear, and leggings as well. We chose to leave at the latest time allowed (8 AM) but it was still only 48° when we left. Again, once you get pedaling, you warm up pretty quickly, and I dropped the jacket at the first rest stop and the leggings at the second rest stop. We decided to just do ~30 miles to complement the ~70 miles from Saturday to make it a 100+ mile weekend. Here’s Sunday’s route:

As you might imagine, this year’s ride was bittersweet with the loss of Rainey, and I committed to stopping to smell some flowers along the way. While I can’t say that any of them were particularly fragrant, it was in the simple act of stopping to admire the beauty of nature along the way that I felt Rainey’s presence. Here are a few shots of some out in the wild, along with some lovingly planted and maintained.

I’m honored to ride for so many people, and always ride with my favorite Pedal Partner bandana. If you would like me to add the name of one of your loved ones living with MS, I’ve got room to add names!

Finally, I rode with a couple keepsakes that my wife Maria gave me from among her treasured mementos of Rainey. I had the Angel of Protection in one pocket, and the Angel of Friendship in the other pocket. Unfortunately, the Angel of Friendship slipped out, hopefully to be retrieved by someone who will treasure it as a serendipitous gift. Or perhaps conclude that it may be particularly meaningful to someone and turn it in to the MS staff’s Lost & Found. In any case, I’ll continue to hold the Angel of Protection as a dear reminder of my angelic friend.

Thank you again for your continued support of this important fundraising event. The money we raise each year (over $1M) funds important research and programs that have made living with MS so much more manageable. We heard real stories that strengthen our resolve to beat MS. Your donations help! Here’s a link to my fundraising page.

https://events.nationalmssociety.org/participant/sro24

Warmly,