Rhode Island

Today I rode my bike 100 miles for 11.5 hours. Today I rode a ferry across a river for $1.00. Today I rode with Katie up and down (but mostly up) every steep hill in the United States of America crammed into the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island. Katie and I thought of the Ride's new slogan, "RAA 2012: Forever Uphill." We stopped for ice cream on the top of the hill, and biked through a Rhode Island sunset. This morning I woke up to a sunrise over the Long Island Sound and said goodbye to two more wonderful host families.

Today was one of my best days of the entire summer, and tomorrow we ride the last 40 miles of this Ride.

Boston, here I come!

New Haven, Madison, and Guilford, CT

I have two pieces of exciting news. First, I have met my $5,000 fundraising goal! Thank you to everyone who has donated to support my efforts and FACE AIDS. The team is still working towards its $100,000 goal, however, so if you haven't had a chance to contribute yet please do so at http://www.citizeneffect.org/projects/face-aids-ride-against-aids-2012-nina. Second, only two days left to Boston! And only twelve days until I finally fly home.

Today we rode 60+ miles from Greenwich, CT to Madison, CT. The ride along Route 1, of course, necessitated a stop in New Haven for a bike tour of Yale University and a serving of fro-yo at Froyo World on High Street (best chocolate fro-yo I've had in quite awhile). New Haven was nothing like I expected, which was a quiet, all-white, peaceful town. Alas, it was no such thing. It was larger, had several run-down neighborhoods, lots of annoying stoplights, a ton of construction and congestion, many noisy trucks and crummy New England drivers, and way too many busy one-way streets. Not that we haven't dealt with these road conditions before (and not that New Haven or any of its realities were bad), but it's just that Gilmore Girls and other various pop culture/media sources had led me to a certain perception. Gabi tried to go to the Peabody Museum but they were rude to her and wouldn't let her in. We also got a lot of weird looks while walking through the area...why doesn't the general Ivy League public approve of us walking around in our cycling gear? I don't know.

After New Haven we killed some rolling hills and continued along Route 80 to Madison, CT, where we showered and ate at a homestay. Then three of us, myself included, relocated to a cottage right on the Long Island Sound (SUCH a beautiful view) to stay the night with a different family, and here I am, inside a cute rustic Connecticut cottage with excellent Wi-Fi.

90+ miles tomorrow to a town north of Providence, RI, and then 50 miles and a ride-along with folks from Partners in Health on Thursday to Boston. I can't believe that I can think of much of this journey in retrospect. We're almost done!

Harlem

The team spent the night in Greenwich, CT last night. This morning I woke up and went for a ride around the very affluent area and then ate a delicious breakfast on the deck of our homestay house that overlooks the Long Island Sound. Then Pat, Gabi, and I trained into NYC again and walked through Harlem down 125th St. to make our way towards Riverside Church, an interracial, interdenominational, and international faith community. There we had a great conversation with a group of kids aged 6th-12th grade at a vacation Bible school. From there we continued up the hill to Columbia University, walked around campus, and then walked down the hill, back through a different part of Harlem, and then trained back to Greenwich. I absolutely loved the atmosphere of the Harlem area and was happy to have the opportunity to see yet another part of New York City. When I got back I went for another short ride out to Tod's Point (a small island in the Sound that we can see from our homestay) to decompress everything I saw this afternoon. The change in environment between the bottom of the hill (part of Harlem) and the top of the hill (Columbia U area) was abrupt. This summer biking has become my way of processing all the conversations I've had and the places I've visited. While at Tod's I saw the Manhattan skyline and touched the Atlantic Ocean water (which is warm in comparison with the Pacific's).

A Multitude of States, Cities, and People (DE, PA, NJ, NY, CT)

So much has happened in the last several days that it's difficult to remember it all, but I'll try. Since my last post we rode from Baltimore to Newark, DE where we stayed at a church near University of Delaware. The ride that day was a good 70-80 miles with lots of rolling hills on scenic back-country roads in very rural Maryland-we saw lots of mansions and rode through tiny, winding roads in the morning but in the afternoon switched onto a highway to get to Delaware faster.

The following day we rode to a suburb north of Philadelphia. While an afternoon lightning and thunderstorm necessitated that I get in the van in the afternoon, I enjoyed riding through inner Philadelphia in the late morning. Some of my favorite riding moments this summer have been through inner cities. I enjoy the change in environment when we ride through an area with crappy road quality, heavy traffic, narrow roads, run-down buildings, and an almost all-black population. I don't enjoy it because of what some people refer to as a cultural experience. I enjoy riding through urban and impoverished parts of the U.S. because it feels more honest than it would be to ride around them. It would be disingenuous to pretend that certain neighborhoods don't exist. I am grateful to be able to ride my bike across America for many reasons; one of those reasons is that I am able to acknowledge, of my own volition and with my own strength, side of this country that the media usually chooses to ignore except to report violent crimes related to gangs. But the communities I've ridden through are filled with more than what you read on your smartphone or listen to on NPR. Yes, I definitely rode over syringes the other day, but I also rode past blocks and blocks of people socializing with one another on their front stoops. No matter how much you know about a place or person, there's always another side to every story.

This trip is crazy in part because a day's worth of RAA experiences is equivalent to at least one week's experiences in real/normal life. While en route to Philadelphia, I was at a stoplight in Wilmington with Sydney and Gabi and a car stopped next to me rolled down its window. After the man in the passenger seat asked me what we were up to, I got a very positive and enthusiastic response. Later on we got lost, but then when we got back on track we rode past the skyline. Then I lost my sunglasses and was pissed about that, but then I chatted up a woman while standing next to a mini famers' market and she bought us six cider doughnuts. Then after lunch a thunderstorm rolled in and I wasn't able to ride my bike anymore, which was upsetting, but then we got to our homestay, which was comfortable, warm, and had food, so I felt better. I also felt less spiritually tired when I got a call from my friend Nancy, who I met at Lake Johnson in Nebraska.

See what I mean? And that day was slightly uneventful compared to some of the days we've had.

The next day I drove the van while the team rode to Princeton, NJ. The day was 20 miles (the shortest day in RAA history by far) and I had time in the afternoon to wander the campus of Princeton University and to call home (which helped re-energize me for the remainder of the Ride).

The next day I woke up at 4:30 a.m. and was on the bike riding by 5:45. We rode 35 miles to Keansburg, NJ, in time to catch the 9:30 a.m. ferry to Manhattan with 30 minutes to spare. I met a nice man who worked on Wall Street named Elliott on the ferry and gave him advice about how to complete a century (his goal for the upcoming year) by telling him hydration tips from my rides. We passed by all the Manhattan skylines and the statue of Liberty on the ferry, and then got off and rode to find lunch in the nearby city. Then we rode along the Hudson on the path on west Manhattan, and then rode another 35 miles through the Bronx and along Route 1 to Greenwich, CT. While stopped at a Wendy's in West Chester after riding through the crazy and aggressive traffic of the Bronx, a man I started talking with outside the eatery told me he was HIV-positive and we talked about bikes. After dropping my bike and extra luggage off at our Monday and Tuesday night homestay in Greenwich, I rode the commuter rail to Grand Central Station, and then took the subway with a teammate to navigate our way to our apartment for two nights in the West Village. On Saturday morning I woke up again at 4:30 a.m. to go to Rockefeller Center to wait outside the Today Show studios with the team (we ended up being featured for a very short bit on the Today Show). I walked around the city for several hours and took my laptop to the NYPL for some free Wi-Fi to write e-mails, and then navigated to the Great Lawn in Central Park to meet the team and folks affiliated with Partners in Health for a picnic. Then I crashed at 9:30 pm, and woke up today to take the commuter rail to Greenwich again for a church service and picnic fundraising event organized by our host. Now I am writing, reflecting on the unbelievable amount of people I've seen, met, talked to, and/or made friends with in the past several days (and weeks).

Only three riding days left--Tuesday we ride to Madison, CT, the next day Providence, RI, and then Boston on Thursday.

Some thoughts on what people have told me/what I've listened to/what I've learned:
1) Every day is a new day, a gift, and can create new opportunities.
2) Being able to do this Ride is a privilege.
3) I don't like rest days anymore, so how am I going to function in normal life when I don't have time to ride my bike everyday?
4) It's ok if what inspires you is unique.
5) I can do anything and talk to anyone, and I feel empowered by this summer's experiences.

East Coast Update

Fact: I'm terrible at blogging while traveling. But the lack of recent posts is really a testament to how much exploring of the east coast I've done since arriving in this time zone. I've been in Chicago (although that's technically still Central time), South Bend, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Washington, D.C., and Baltimore. I went to my first baseball game at Wrigley Field and learned what the Gulf Stream was from someone who worked at law firm where we had an event. I, of course, talked to lots of strangers everywhere we went (I'm known on the team for being extremely sociable and for talking to strangers often and easily). I've ridden through rural Pennsylvania and Maryland, amidst both thunderstorms and sunshine. I met welcoming, warm, and absolutely wonderful families during host stays (which are always difficult to ride away from in the early morning). I am trying to savor every moment of these last 9 days as much as possible.        

Some more stories:    

The team took a rest day in Pittsburgh. Four generous families hosted us and made our stay there very comfortable. We found housing through a friend of mine from Pittsburgh. It’s always hard to leave the families we stay with on rest days, because by then I’ve had two nights to chat with wonderful people and two nights to get to know very warm and welcoming families.

This past week as been an adventure—the day we rode on the Great Allegheny Passage path from Pittsburgh to Cumberland, MD was one of my best days of the Ride so far. The second half of the day was awesome. During lunch in Rockwood, I walked into a bargain clothing store and chatted with the owner, her daughter, and her granddaughter. I learned a lot about the area from the owner, including the fact that at the time I was standing only 15 miles from where Flight 93 crashed on September 11. The family then proceeded to give me fresh peaches and grapes grown by nearby Amish. The rest of the day’s 90-mile ride was fantastic. I rode with Gabi and we stopped every couple of miles to take pictures of rural Pennsylvania wilderness, the “Welcome to Maryland” sign, and of the Eastern Continental Divide. The last 20 miles was smooth, scenic, and best of all, downhill. I felt connected with nature, peaceful, and happy on the bike for the first time in a few days.

Then next day was an adventure as well—we rode out of Cumberland that morning with the intention to ride 90 miles to Williamsport, MD but encountered very rough trail on the C & O Canal Towpath and lots of thunderstorms. All of us had to stop riding in Hancock, and after we learned that our campground in Williamsport was closed due to flash floods and that more were expected for the following day, we decided to shuttle to Washington, D.C. a day early.

I had three rest days for my first visit to D.C. and did plenty of sightseeing; yesterday we rode to Flannery’s home in Baltimore. The 50-mile ride was gorgeous, hilly, and short. During lunch I met Angela, who stopped her car when she saw our red van parked with “Ride Against AIDS” painted on the side. Angela told me that she was proud of the team, and that it made her happy to see a group of young people trying to start a conversation about HIV/AIDS because so many members of her family are affected by the disease. We also had a well-attended and productive event at a law firm in downtown Baltimore yesterday evening.

Today is August 14, and we roll into Boston on August 23. That means I only have a very surreal 9 days left of this journey with my teammates. While it’s healthiest for this adventure to end at some point, transitioning to normal life without my friends will be difficult at times and I expect to be nostalgic when I’m back at school for the routine we’ve settled into.

                                                              

Quad Cities

Greetings from Bettendorf, Iowa! The team is resting today in one of the Quad Cities--Davenport and Bettendorf are on the Iowa side of the Mississippi River, while Moline, East Moline, and Rock Island are on the Illinois side of the Mississippi River. Yesterday I arrived to our host's house amid 110 degree heat plus humidity--whenever we stopped at a red light I thought I was going to melt. Tomorrow we ride to Peru, Illinois, and the next day we ride to Lauren's family's house in a suburb of Chicago. We'll rest for two days there, which will be awesome because a) it's Chicago and b) we have to do back-to-back 100+ mile centuries to get there.

The Midwest

Hello! To those of you who took my promise to update this blog more often seriously, I apologize. I really have been trying, but I've had infrequent access to internet and blogging energy this past week. I do have some stories to tell, though. I am writing this while sitting in a Mexican restaurant with free Wi-Fi in the small town of Atlantic, IA. Yesterday the team crossed over the Nebraskan border into Iowa, and today we continued our journey to Atlantic. Today’s ride was a rather arduous one, as we all woke up to humidity, heat, and a 50-mile ride up and down the rolling hills (which of course felt like mountains)of Southern Iowa. As an Oregonian, I find myself suffering in the extreme humidity—I’m from a place where the only moisture in the air is in the form of raindrops. The hills, however, do lend a certain charm to the farming landscape of Iowa when compared with the flatness of Nebraska scenery west of Lincoln. I rode with Sydney earlier this week for most of the century from Lake Johnson, NE to Grand Island. That afternoon Sydney and I, melting under the extreme heat, stopped at a gas station in every small town we went through to fill our Camelbaks with free ice and water (which were spaced out about every 7-10 miles). The irony of the convenience of the locations of those towns was that the path to every town along Highway appeared the EXACT SAME—grain silo barely visible straight ahead, train tracks 10 yards to the right with a train going by every 15 minutes, corn fields to the left and right (although sometimes soybeans varied the picture a bit) . . . and bumps in the shoulder of the road every ten feet. Needless to say, the similarity in scenery for an entire 90-mile stretch drove us crazy.

Despite all the flaws causing me discomfort that I could point out about the Midwest, this region’s reputation of hospitality and friendliness has lived up to my expectations. Cashiers and customers at every gas station I’ve stopped at in Nebraska and Illinois with my friends express interest and support in the Ride. Today, a kind stranger bought me Gatorade, trail mix, and donated to the Ride after we chatted about FACE AIDS, the Ride, and how hot it was outside. Just before entering this restaurant I stopped by a Salvation Army thrift shop a half mile from our campground in Atlantic, found myself a sundress, and then met  two employees there who were enthusiastic about the Ride, one of whom told me that her friend had AIDS and then surprised me with an impromptu half-off discount. Earlier this week at the Lake Johnson State Recreation Area, I walked the wrong way back to our campsite after swimming in the lake and ended up detouring through a series of RV sites. While holding my wet and dirty clothes, I met and talked at length with Nancy, Deb, and Tom about the Ride and FACE AIDS. They expressed interest in making a donation, and after a while the conversation turned to other topics. They later invited me to join them for dinner, dessert, a walk to see the sunset over the lake, and finally a few rounds a card game called Shanghai by the light of a camping lantern. Their familial presence comforted me and uplifted me.

America is a strange place—the same chain restaurants and stores are in almost every single sizeable town we roll through. And while some of my country’s residents may be incompetent drivers around bicyclists or may foolishly reside in an area where I feel like I’m swimming through the air because it’s so humid, I am currently convinced that Americans are good people on the whole. My recent encounters with Americans occupying restaurants, rest stops, gas stations, and campgrounds have given me a good impression. It helps to have so many positive interactions with strangers while on the road, because the process of sleeping in a different place every single night can be tiring and draining.

General notes about America:
1) Outside of every town we went through in Nevada there was a sign posted with a list of all the service clubs and churches in the town.
2) City limit signs in Colorado display the name of the city and its elevation.
3) City limit signs in Nebraska display the name of the city and its population.
4) Iowa is not completely flat as I was led to believe while growing up.

I'm sorry for the lack of pictures--I haven't seen my camera since Lake Johnson, and so for the near future I wont' be able to upload any to the blog. I'll do my best to provide vivid descriptions of the hot and humid American landscape for the foreseeable future to help your imagination get a sense of what I'm seeing as the team pedals along. The team bikes to Des Moines tomorrow. Cheers!

Colorado

Since my last post, the team has crossed from Utah and into Colorado. I’m writing this from Edwards, CO (near Vail), where the team is staying with long-time RAA supporter Lulu. The days from this past week have been a blur—as I have gotten to know my teammates better and as we have grown more comfortable with our daily routine of early wake-up times and hard riding, changing the location where I sleep every night makes it hard to keep track of what date it is and what state we’re in. But that feeling of disconnect from any one physical place also makes this adventure exhilarating. There are new and different storefronts, restaurants, streets, highways, faces, names, and towns to experience (as well as new challenges) every single day

Since my last post, the team has traveled far and wide. We have done three more centuries! Here are some notes from a few of the past days:

·         July 3: 100+ miles from Vernal, UT to Meeker, CO –The team’s third century ride of the week had lots of climbs, but a lovely lunch was spent jumping into the beautiful Kenney Reservoir. Thankfully, we had a nice campground with showers (the first ones in four days for some of the riders!) and chocolate milk waiting for us when we finished the day and arrived at camp, courtesy of our wonderful housing coordinators and van drivers for the day!

·         July 4: 50+ miles from Meeker to Glenwood Springs, CO—The team ended the week’s riding cycle with an easier ride to the friendly and scenic town of Glenwood Springs. We also took a rest day there, and many of us spent the day exploring Glenwood, fixing our bikes at MG Cycle and Sport with the help and generosity of owner Mike, or healing our bodies (some visited sports medicine doctors in Aspen to get answers about how to address knee and other pains).

·         July 6: 50+ miles to Edwards, CO: The team started off the day’s incredibly beautiful ride with a jaunt down a stretch of bike path that paralleled the I-70 freeway through breathtaking Glenwood Canyon and White River National Forest.

One of my favorite moments from the last week was during the day when the team rode from Strawberry, UT to Vernal, UT. I will always remember climbing a very steep hill and then being rewarded by the sight of one of the support vans, driven by Katrina. I was re-energized for the rest of the day’s century when Katrina played one of my favorite songs through the van’s speakers, and she and I danced to one of my favorite songs on the side of Highway 40.

Thanks for reading! We journey on to Silverthorne tomorrow, up and over Vail pass—the beginning of our ascents through the Rockies. Wish me luck! 

Gabi, Flannery, and I in Glenwood Canyon during a team water break this morning. Below are views of Glenwood Canyon, the Colorado River, and the White River National Forest. This is my first time in Colorado, and it is as rugged of a landscape as I imagined!

Thanks for reading! 

Pictures!

Below are some pictures of the team's journey thus far. If you want to see more pictures and have access to the Instagram app on your smart phone, feel free to check out the team's Instagram account "Ride Against AIDS."

Katrina (left) and I with Lake Tahoe in the background.

We stopped towards the end of the descent from Tahoe into Carson City, NV to take pictures.

Signs on the wall of the building of the bar in Middlegate--one of only two stops during our first century day. 

The Border Inn RV Park was directly to the right of the van. 

Group Blog

In addition to reading this blog, you can visit blog.faceaids.org to access the collective FACE AIDS blog, which contains posts from other riders on the team. The team tries to post stories at least several times a week from other riders. Visiting that site will give you great exposure to the stories and perspectives of my teammates!

Delta, UT

I made it through all five riding days this past week to Delta, Utah! Yesterday I woke up at 5:00 a.m. (as I do every morning) to a gorgeous sunrise over the Nevada mountains. After taking down the tent I share with fellow rider Audrey, packing my things, readying my bike for the day, and eating a quick breakfast out of one of the support vans, I started riding with another rider, Flannery. Since the Border Inn RV park was literally on the border between Nevada and Utah, the "Welcome to Utah: Life Elevated" road sign was the first landmark of our ride. Flannery and I were scared of the “life elevated” part because we were wary of having to do any more climbing. The second landmark road sign was the one declaring that we had entered into a new time zone--very exciting for the both of us! Flannery and I stopped after only the 7th mile marker to stretch and rest because we both felt stiff and tired, and mentally drained from the very long valley we were riding through towards the sight of a huge summit climb. After the climb was the best descent I have experienced thus far on the Ride. Utah is beautiful; the descent carried us down sharp curves through a mountain pass filled with dramatic rock ravines. After the epic descent, however, the day became a slog through the miles because of the extreme heat. Only Valerie’s ipod shuffle (Valerie, another rider, was driving the van and let me borrow her music) and Utah’s ever-dramatic landscapes helped me continue pedaling through the hot wind.

There wasn’t a single gas station or sign of civilization for the first 80 miles of our ride yesterday. Arriving in Delta was incredibly satisfying because it signaled the end of the riding week and the beginning of another blessed rest day. Delta was also a long-awaited oasis for the team because rest days have become designated team organization days—rest days are when we have time to clean out the vans, take care of group business, and have group meetings.

When I was about to write in my journal this morning, I suddenly remembered another anecdote from last Sunday, the team’s first century day. About 40 or so miles into the day, after a series of sustained, gradual climbs, Valerie and I reached the tiny and historic community of Middlegate—the only sign of civilization between Fallon (where we departed from that morning) and Austin (our end destination). Middlegate consisted of a bar that felt straight out of the Old West, a few mobile homes, and a few ancient relics of the olden days (there was a skeleton of an old carriage outside the bar). Valerie and I went into the bar and met a few hitchhikers, one of whom told us that you can cure HIV by drinking water laced with traces of gold metal. Towards the end of our conversation with him, however, a woman sitting nearby took a drag of her cigarette, exhaled, and then turned around and thanked us for what we were doing because her brother died of AIDS.

The further the Ride travels, the more convinced I become of how few degrees of separation there are between a healthy individual and someone affected by HIV/AIDS. 

First Century Ride

It's only Day Ten, and I'm already exhausted. I'm still able to move, but I'm definitely more sore and tan than I've ever been in my life. We rode just under 120 miles on Sunday, 70 miles on Monday, 80 miles on Tuesday, and about 60 miles today--and we still have 90 miles to go tomorrow before our rest day in Delta, Utah. I've finished every day this week (meaning I've completed every ride day this week and have gotten through the miles), but this amount of biking and intense activity is unlike anything I've ever experienced.

This past Sunday the team rode just under 120 miles from Fallon to Austin, and I completed my first century ride. We left early in the morning from the homes of the families where we stayed during our rest day in Fallon, and 7 people out of the 15 of us that rode finished the day. I ended up riding the last 45 miles alone, and in the midst of desert wind and heat conditions as well as the insanity that results from riding a bike alone through Route 50 (a.k.a. "The Loneliest Road in America"), I motivated myself to finish and not call the support van for a pick-up rescue by doing the following things:

1) Saying a few Hail Mary's

2) Listening to the same song, Pitbull's "Bring it Back" on repeat for upwards of two hours to get through the ridiculous amount of climbing required by the route for the day

3) Thinking of the names of everyone who donated to the Ride to support me, who told me their personal stories of friends or family who are/were HIV-positive, who went on training rides with me, and who texted or called me in the past two weeks to cheer me on

4) Thinking of Eden

And that's how I finished my first century (plus almost 20 extra miles)!

Reflections on Day Five (Friday, June 22)

I’m writing to tell you a story from Day Five, when the team rode from Carson City, Nevada to Fallon, Nevada.

After pulling into the parking lot of a Sonic restaurant on the main street of Fallon and grabbing a quick sandwich-and-apple lunch out of the van, I decided I wanted to explore Fallon and its community. I walked a block down the road to Walgreens, and after picking up some groceries, talked to three store employees about HIV/AIDS. I hadn’t planned on doing so when I walked into the store, but after buying snacks I asked them about their perception of the culture surrounding HIV/AIDS in their community. I spoke with a pharmacist and a pharmaceutical technician, both of which had different things to say about HIV/AIDS than one of the other store employees. After leaving Walgreens, I stopped by a coffee shop called The Daily Grind because I saw a sign advertising a live band performance for Friday night. As I was heading into the shop, a woman asked me how long I had been riding for—the perfect opportunity to strike up a conversation about the Ride Against AIDS and the team’s mission. The most powerful conversation I had Friday, though, was with a woman (I’ll call her Mary) I met in an antique shop. After hopping off my bike and leaning it against the side of her shop’s building, I introduced myself and asked her how she was. The next thing I knew, we were inside the store exchanging information about our perspectives of how stigma surrounding HIV-positive individuals has evolved since the 80’s. I was privileged as well to hear her personal story. Mary gave birth in the early 80’s in a hospital in Reno and had to have several transfusions. During that same year, her friend (I’ll call her Rebecca) also gave birth and had to have many blood transfusions. There weren’t the same kind of regulations about screening donated blood for diseases back then as there are now. While Mary did not get sick from her transfusions, Rebecca learned soon after her stay in the hospital that she was HIV-positive. Rebecca’s husband filed for divorce, and Rebecca and her son moved in with her parents. Her parents were afraid to tell anyone that she was sick with AIDS as she grew sick over time, and lied to those they knew. Rebecca eventually died, with her illness kept secret.

            It was an honor, and a humbling experience, to be privilege to such a personal story of Mary’s. I left the antique shop mid-afternoon filled with a renewed sense of purposefulness. I felt invigorated by a motivation to to reach out to people in the communities we are visiting, even after long days of biking, because there are opportunities in every place we pedal through to learn about the culture of HIV/AIDS in America and to raise awareness. I can give dignity to those who did not have a voice in society during their fight to survive HIV/AIDS simply by listening to the stories their friends and family choose to share. 

Ride Update

It's the tenth day of the Ride Against AIDS, and I am sitting in a building of an RV park on top of the Nevada/Utah border. We are at the Border Inn RV park, which is the ONLY sign of civilization for miles. The building I'm in has a restaurant, bar, casino, and convenience store inside of it--and, most importantly, air conditioning. Nevada, as it turns out, is incredibly beautiful (it has mountains an dramatic landscapes galore) but is also hot, dusty, and windy.

I apologize to those who have been checking this site for updates for not maintaining the blog better. I have been wanting to blog, but the first week of the Ride was so hectic that I was always too exhausted by the end of the day to write much of anything. Our camping sites the past few days have also lacked cell phone service and internet access. And, as I've recently discovered, strenuous, daily physical activity and constant interaction with a large group of teammates results in a reluctance to interact with the outside world. But I want everyone who has supported me either by donating to FACE AIDS or by encouraging me to know how the Ride is going and how I'm doing, so I will work harder to establish a routine of updating this blog at least a few times a week from now on.

I'll continue to post reflections about the past ten days the rest of the afternoon. Thanks for reading!

Eden

I am equal parts scared and excited that The Ride Against AIDS officially begins in less than 48 hours--we will depart from Ocean Beach on Monday morning at 8:00 a.m. I am writing this post from the third floor (where the best Wi-Fi is) of the building in downtown San Francisco that houses the headquarters of FACE AIDS. I arrived in SF on Friday afternoon for orientation, which will continue until our departure on Monday morning. I want to give a special thank-you to my first host family of the summer, Bill and Roberta, who welcomed my dad and I into their home Thursday evening while we traveled through California. They were the most gracious hosts I could ask for while making the quick 24-hour transition between finishing finals and beginning this journey.

The weekend has been incredibly powerful so far--I have not only met my 18 amazing teammates but also heard their personal testimonies of why they are doing the Ride. We also had the incredible privilege of speaking with Gabo, who had the grace, poise, and wisdom to make me cry and laugh through just his spoken word in the course of only a half hour. Gabo is HIV+, but he is also an avid cyclist, caring friend, and caring community member of San Francisco. He is also part of a group called Positive Pedalers in San Francisco, a group of HIV+ men and women that cycle together regularly to support one another and to show the world that they are more than their diagnosis. Visit http://www.pospeds.org/ to learn more about them.

Gabo came to speak to us yesterday evening at the beginning of our orientation and told us his story. I am so grateful to him for sharing his painful, yet hopeful and ultimately inspiring story with us--our team couldn't have asked for a better person to remind us of why we are doing this Ride. We've all worked so hard to fundraise and train these past months. I've poured my heart and soul into preparing for this summer. But this journey is bigger than ourselves--we're showing every person living with HIV, no matter where he or she lives, that we care about them. We care, and we're biking this summer not just to support FACE AIDS programs but to show our solidarity with everyone affected by this disease that is still, after so many years of arduous research and advocacy, surrounded by stigma. Why is it socially acceptable to have cancer, but not be HIV+? Why is this issue not talked about more? I am humbled to be a part of a movement to continue to change the trend of silence about HIV/AIDS, but I am also happy to be biking across the country for a purpose because if I was doing this for myself, I wouldn't have made it this far (and the Ride hasn't even started yet).

Gabo also moved me because he strengthened my resolve in the more personal reason for doing the Ride. My family member, Eden, is very young and HIV+. I have always imagined myself to be helping Eden through my involvement in the Ride, but now I imagine myself and the team to be warriors defending her future as an HIV+ individual in the United States as an adult. I want her to feel comfortable enough to be open about her status, without fear of rejection or prejudice. I want her to have every opportunity available to HIV- individuals. I want her to be healthy, and to be happy and safe while being healthy.

I'll try to post again before we hit the road on Monday!

How To Donate

Hello! Here's a friendly reminder of how to support the Ride and my fundraising goal of $5,000:

You can donate either on-line or by writing a check to FACE AIDS.

• To donate on-line, visit my Citizen Effect page to donate on a secure website that helps me track my donations and gives information about me, FACE AIDS, and the Ride.

• Checks should be made out to "FACE AIDS" with my full name ("Nina Sobotka") in the Memo line. This ensures that your generosity counts towards my fundraising quota. Checks should be mailed to:

FACE AIDS

P.O. Box 46

Palo Alto, CA 94302

Thank you!

Oakshire Brewing

I am happy to be able to write that I have yet another generous local Eugene business to thank for supporting the cause of the Ride Against AIDS: Oakshire Brewing. Thank you to Amanda for speaking with me on the phone, asking me questions about the Ride, and talking about the Ride with her colleagues at Oakshire!

This isn't the first time Oakshire has allocated its resources to support the greater Eugene community. Check out the website at http://oakbrew.com/ and click on the link "Community" under the tab "The Brewery" to learn more about how Oakshire continually gives back to the Eugene community. Also, be sure to let your eyes wander to the right of this page to see their logo!

Oakshire, take note: you all will be on my mind when I'm climbing the Rockies this summer! When I need inspiration during hard rides this summer I'll think of everyone who has donated to support me and the individuals whose lives we are trying to save by fighting the spread of HIV/AIDS in Rwandan communities.

Cheers!

Nina

The Duck Store!

I'd like to write about another one of my most recent and supportive business sponsors, the University of Oregon book and supply company, the Duck Store! The current managers of the Duck Store generously gave me time to present to them about the Ride and have helped me continue progressing towards my fundraising goal. Their logo is to the right of this post. Having the support of a business that's such an active part of the UO community has given me the drive to continue to work hard for the sake of others. Thank you, Duck Store!

Cheers!

Nina

Montana Cycling and Timing!

A HUGE thanks to my most recent donor, the amazing company Montana Cycling and Timing! Their very generous donation to the Ride Against AIDS has brought my fundraising tally up to over $2,000! Please be sure to notice their logo to the right of this post, and visit their website: http://montanacycling.com/.

I still have a long ways to go before I reach my goal of $5,000 to impact the lives of HIV-affected individuals in Rwandan communities. Please show your solidarity with their struggles and my efforts to help them by donating now! Visit http://www.citizeneffect.org/projects/face-aids-ride-against-aids-2012-nina or click on the "You Can Help!" tab to find out where to send a check.

Thank you for your support!

Nina :)

Wildwood Falls!

This weekend I completed my very first bike tour! I went with a group through the University of Outdoor Program. On Saturday we biked 70 miles to a campground near Wildwood Falls (see point B on the map below), camped overnight, and then biked back to Eugene today to total 120 miles over the course of the weekend. Although I'm sore and exhausted, I got to know 7 wonderful people and had good, old-fashioned, out-of-doors fun. I LOVED bike touring--the camping and campfire s'mores, the stopping for lunch and breakfast in Creswell and Cottage Grove, respectively. I also loved making new friends and almost falling off my bike while climbing a hill because I was laughing so hard.

I learned so much this weekend about what to expect during this summer and how it feels to do back-to-back days of long riding (except this summer we will have 68 days of back-to-back rides, not two)! Here are some pictures:

 

Map from Eugene to Wildwood Falls. We biked from point A to point B--this isn't the route we took, but you can see the relative distance!

The view of Dorena Lake from the bike path we took along the lake towards Wildwood Falls.

My bike, along with the trailer that I pulled all 120 miles! 

A Well-Loved Machine

I felt strongly today that the Ride is something that I'm meant to complete, that my emotional and physical investments are worthy, and that the Ride has made me a part of something much larger than myself. Margo, the amazing Programs and Operations Director of FACE AIDS, reminded me today that this summer, I will be out on the road with my teammates, sore from days of biking, and I will see another hill to climb. There will be moments when I want to quit. But then I will think of every person who supported me, who believed in my cause enough to make a donation to symbolize his or her solidarity with those living with HIV/AIDS. So I will not quit, because I will remember that there are people other than myself who know that my generation CAN and WILL create an AIDS-free world. The 4,000 miles in front of me are scary, but my goal is to inspire others with my commitment to a future without HIV/AIDS—a commitment that declares that we must fight this pandemic, no matter how scary, widespread and complex it seems.

Another moment of affirmation occurred when I went to a Pre-Trip meeting today for my very first bike tour that I'm taking this weekend! The University of Outdoor Program coordinates amazing trips for students and this weekend I'm biking with a group to Wildwood Falls--60 miles there on Saturday, camping overnight, and 60 miles back. There are eight of us going, and the 7 people that I met at tonight's meeting made me love the Ride for introducing me to a fantastic, friendly, and open community of biking fiends that I never would have known if it weren't for the fact that I have had to search high and low around Eugene for folks that want to go on very long training rides with me. Luckily for me, I haven't had to search very hard--bikes are well-loved machines in Eugene and especially at the U of O.

I also learned the latest fundraising tally this afternoon, and I have some exciting news: I have raised nearly $1500! Thank you for those of you that have supported me through donating and through encouragement. In the past weeks, there have been moments (particularly yesterday afternoon) in which I doubted whether or not I would be able to achieve what is expected of me as a rider this summer. I have found that moral support from people that care about me is what has sustained my energy, inspiration, and capability. I sent a donation request message to a friend today and her reply back to me contained the MOST loving, encouraging, and supportive words that I have received all week--I LOVE YOU KIM!

If you want to support me, show your solidarity with those living with HIV/AIDS, and help me make a difference, please help me make a positive change in Rwandans' lives. (Click the "You Can Help!" tab at the top of this page to find out how to donate--it's simple and easy!)

And so today, like any bike in Eugene, life was a well-loved machine. Somewhere, somehow, some stars aligned or some gears shifted (I can't decide how I want to phrase it) and I convinced myself that managing school, training, and fundraising WILL be possible over the next month. Because in two hours, that's exactly how much time I have left before the Ride starts--one month!

If you're reading this and have questions or comments for me, but feel hesitant to contact me because you don't know me very well, or we haven't spoken in a while--please disregard those feelings! I encourage you to comment on my posts or e-mail me.

Gratefully,
Nina

My Week By Bike

Greetings!

Training is going great. Last week I biked a total of 250 miles! I love cycling more every day that I go for a long ride. Nothing compares to the feeling of finishing a 60-mile ride and being able to get off the bike, shower, and then eat some of the several thousand calories that were just burned!

My first 60-mile ride was last Sunday, and I took a loop around Wolf Creek Rd.--a very tough route that had more hills that I expected. A gracious bystander named Don, however, saved the day when he refilled my water bottle for me at his house! Monday was a rest day and I went for a short run. Tuesday was the best day of biking of the week: I biked back to Corvallis, my hometown, with my friend Elle to surprise my Mom as an early Mother's Day gift! That trip totaled about 55 miles. Wednesday and Friday I did my favorite 18-mile loop up Lorane Highway and Bailey Hill in Eugene. Then came Saturday, when I traveled back to Corvallis for a family event that evening and spent the afternoon biking 60 miles through Kings Valley with my awesome friend Signe! I forgot my camera, so I don't have pictures of the gorgeous Mid-Willamette Valley scenery in 85-degree weather, but take my word for it when I say that the exhaustion was worth it! Another piece of good news is that I feel like I'm improving my performance on hills. I still don't feel comfortable on extremely steep inclines, but my endurance on sustained climbs is better every week. Irritated at me for not taking pictures on my rides this week? Don't worry, so am I. In lieu of providing you with photographs, I have created another visual for you:

My Week By Bike:

Yesterday I went to a free "Yoga for Cyclists" class and it helped my muscles recover from the week's exertion. My training plan for this week is very scary and is as follows (my friend Kurt, a professional trainer, made it for me):


Monday 20 recovery day
Tues 35-50. Moderate pace
Weds 35-50 use intensity
Thur 35-50 fri use intensity
Fri day off or make up miles at recovery pace, use fri if rain or life has kept you off the bike during the week
Saturday 50 +++
Sunday 50+++. Try to get as many miles as possible.


Note that I have been told to redefine "rest days" as including what are called "recovery rides"--basically, more biking. The schedule above, which I'm supposed to also repeat for next week, scared me when I first looked at it this morning. And then I looked again at the route and schedule for this summer. And then I decided that I'll just need some really, really good workout music this week! I feel ready to power through the miles.  


Thank you for your support!


Cheers,


Nina

Western Regional International Health Conference

Two weekends ago I traveled to Seattle, WA with my fellow members of Students for Global Health, University of Oregon's chapter of FACE AIDS.

I enjoyed the conference because of the emphasis the key note speaker, Kavita Ramdas, placed on the fact that the concept of "Global Health" included the United States. Kavita quoted the amazing Eleanor Roosevelt to further develop her argument:

"Where after all do universal human rights begin? In small places, closes to home - so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any map of the world. Yet they are the world of the individual person: The neighborhood he lives in; the school or college he attends; the factory, farm or office where he works. Such are the places where every man, woman, and child seeks equal justice, equal opportunity, equal dignity without discrimination. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world."

Remarks at the United Nations, March 27, 1958

Kavita's speech reminded me to be mindful of the health inequities that are present in my local community of Eugene, OR (of which there are many) in addition to the ones that exist abroad. 


And to everyone who came to my Yogurt Extreme fundraiser, thank you! We raised $125 that night. Woohoo! I'm about 1/5 of the way towards my fundraising goal of $5,000!

Cheers!

Nina

104.7 KDUK Interview

Happy Thursday!

My week got off to a great start! I was lucky enough to be able to be interviewed on 104.7 KDUK Tuesday morning on the Morning House Party radio show--a HUGE thanks to host Chino for having me on the air! It was a wonderful opportunity to be able to spread the word about my Yogurt Extreme fundraiser Wednesday night and my goal for the Ride Against AIDS.

I couldn't have done the interview without the help and moral support of Sarra and Violet, two of my friends from Students for Global Health, University of Oregon's chapter of FACE AIDS. Also, a big shout-out to my friend Ellen, who recorded the interview for me and uploaded it on Youtube. Feel free to watch and listen to it below.

Thank you for listening and for supporting me!

Cheers,

Nina

Yogurt Extreme Fundraiser!

Greetings!

If you live in the Eugene area, love frozen yogurt, AND want to help me reach my fundraising goal, then you have something to do this Wednesday night! This Wednesday, May 2nd, from 7-11 pm, drop by either Yogurt Extreme location and bring in a hardcopy of this flyer, and 25% of your purchase will go directly towards FACE AIDS programs in Rwanda! A picture of the flyer is below--print it out, and I hope to see you there!

Here's the link to the Facebook event for the fundraiser. Invite your friends and spread the word! https://www.facebook.com/events/206485416135847/

Thank you!

RAA 2012 Route!

Today is a beautiful, sunny day in Eugene. I'm not sure there's anything better than a sunny Oregon day. I am planning to go for a 33 mile, hilly training ride! I'm very excited. Below is the route for the Ride this summer, as it currently stands. Happy reading!

Cheers,
Nina

2012 Ride Against AIDS Route

Date	Day	Start	Stop	State	Mileage
6/18/12	1	Ocean Beach, San Francisco	Fairfield	CA	90
6/19/12	2	Fairfield	Folsom	CA	79
6/20/12	3	Folsom	South Lake Tahoe	CA	86
6/21/12	4	South Lake Tahoe	Carson City	CA-NV	31
6/22/12	5	Carson City	Fallon	NV	64
6/23/12	6	REST DAY	REST DAY	NV	0
6/24/12	7	Fallon	Austin	NV	112
6/25/12	8	Austin	Eureka	NV	69
6/26/12	9	Eureka	Ely	NV	78
6/27/12	10	Ely	Border Inn (NV/UT)	NV-UT	60
6/28/12	11	Border Inn (NV/UT)	Delta	UT	90
6/29/12	12	REST DAY	REST DAY	UT	0
6/30/12	13	Delta	Provo	UT	98
7/1/12	14	Provo	Strawberry	UT	57
7/2/12	15	Strawberry	Duchesne		40
7/3/12	16	Duchesne	Dinosaur	UT	92
7/4/12	17	Dinosaur	Meeker	CO	70
7/5/12	18	REST DAY	REST DAY	CO	0
7/6/12	19	Meeker	Steamboat Springs	CO	90
7/7/12	20	Steamboat Springs	Granby	CO	81
7/8/12	21	Granby	Denver		104
7/9/12	22	REST DAY	REST DAY	CO	0
7/10/12	23	Denver	Wiggins	CO	80
7/11/12	24	Wiggins	Sterling	CO	61
7/12/12	25	Sterling	Ogallala	CO-NE	91
7/13/12	26	Ogallala	North Platte	NE	57
7/14/12	27	North Platte	Lexington	NE	63
7/15/12	28	Lexington	Grand Island	NE	82
7/16/12	29	Grand Island	Lincoln	NE	96
7/17/12	30	REST DAY	REST DAY	NE	0
7/18/12	31	Lincoln	Council Bluffs	NE-IA	68
7/19/12	32	Council Bluffs	Exira	IA	65
7/20/12	33	Exira	Des Moines	IA	79
7/21/12	34	Des Moines	Grinnell	IA	55
7/22/12	35	Grinnell	Iowa City	IA	71
Date	Day	Start	Stop	State	Mileage
7/23/12	36	Iowa City	Davenport	IA	59
7/24/12	37	REST DAY	REST DAY	IA	0
7/25/12	38	Davenport	Peru	IA-IL	90
7/26/12	39	Peru	Batavia	IL	80
7/27/12	40	Batavia	Chicago	IL	42
7/28/12	41	REST DAY	REST DAY	IL	0
7/29/12	42	Chicago	South Bend	IL-IN	100
7/30/12	43	South Bend	Bryan	IN-OH	106
7/31/12	44	Bryan	Toledo	OH	68
8/1/12	45	Toledo	Sandusky	OH	61
8/2/12	46	Sandusky	Cleveland	OH	59
8/3/12	47	REST DAY	REST DAY	OH	0
8/4/12	48	Cleveland	Youngstown	OH	71
8/5/12	49	Youngstown	Pittsburgh	OH-PA	66
8/6/12	50	REST DAY	REST DAY	PA	0
8/7/12	51	Pittsburgh	Connellsville	PA	59
8/8/12	52	Connellsville	Cumberland	PA-MD	90
8/9/12	53	Cumberland	Williamsport	MD	86
8/10/12	54	Williamsport	DC	MD-DC	95
8/11/12	55	REST DAY	REST DAY	DC	0
8/12/12	56	REST DAY	REST DAY	DC	0
8/13/12	57	DC	Baltimore	DC-MD	50
8/14/12	58	Baltimore	Wilmington	MD-DE	80
8/15/12	59	Wilmington	Philadelphia	DE-PA	30
8/16/12	60	Philadelphia	Princeton	PA-NJ	44
8/17/12	61	Princeton	New York City	NJ-NY	60
8/18/12	62	REST DAY	REST DAY	NY	0
8/19/12	63	REST DAY	REST DAY	NY	0
8/20/12	64	New York City	Riverside	NY-CT	44
8/21/12	65	Riverside	Madison	CT	71
8/22/12	66	Madison	Providence	CT-RI	96
8/23/12	67	Providence	Boston	RI-MA	49
				TOTAL	3915