Fall Is Almost Here and YSC Tour de Pink Is Right Around the Corner! (Oh yeah!!!)
With my first year behind me, I am more confident in my ability to train this year on my awesome 2012 Liv/giant YSC Avail Inspire bike, designed by Emily Gresh, a fellow young breast cancer survivor and TdP rider.
This year’s YSC Tour de Pink® (TdP) is extra special for me since my survivor sister and dear friend, Kate McGough, has decided to ride her first TdP with me. I can’t wait to share this journey with Kate and introduce her to the Tour de Pink family!
| TdP is a big commitment — I get it! “I’ll be back,” I promised my new TdP friends last year, and here I am preparing to tackle both the East and West Coasts yet again. My Airavata teams, symbolically named after the warrior elephant, are ready to roll! |
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Training is hard — trust me I know! Finding time to get on my bike, choosing a route and remaining motivated day after day is tough, but I ride for all the women who can’t ride, including my beloved friend Rachel, who we lost to this disease just two days before last year’s East Coast ride.
Fundraising is tough — even for me! I understand that asking friends and family for money can be difficult, but it’s for a good cause and worth it. If you are not already donating to another rider and do happen to have a few extra bucks (even $15 would be fantastic!), I’d be grateful if you’d support me (and, ultimately, YSC). Your money will go directly to YSC, providing free resources, education and support to all young women affected by breast cancer.
In 2012, I chronicled my experiences training for my first TdP as a means of taking my body back from breast cancer. If you read my posts, you know that when I first started out, I didn’t even like bikes, struggled to reach a mere five miles on an exercise bike at my gym, learned the meaning of the term “Car Back!” and pronounced my contempt for those hideous bike shorts!!!
Now, I’m back for more! You can do it too!
There’s still time to register — please sign up today and join me! Each ride has a one-day option. For those of you in the South, our TdP Atlanta event, which happens on September 28, offers several choices of cycling distances, as well as a 5k run or walk option.
Hope to see you on the road … and don’t be alarmed if I holler “Car Back!!!” at you.
Smiles!
About the Author
Jennifer Merschdorf
