My Name is Bear and I'm Here to Recruit You

As I look through all the wonderful pictures and comments about AIDS/LifeCycle 2013, I find myself getting excited about AIDS/LifeCycle 2014 already. My fundraising goal is $12,000. I also want to recruit at least one virgin to the ride. And what are the best tools we can use to create donors and future riders and roadies? I think it is probably each other and our stories.

Me and Jim Akers. Photo from Chris Eisenberg.

The hands-down most wonderful part about the ride is the love-bubble. We meet new friends united by a common cause. Each friend has stories and opinions which compliment and enhance our own. One such new friend for me is Jim Akers, a fellow rider and blogger from Las Vegas. In the ramp up for 2013, he blogged about how your donor's dollars are saving one particular life:

Four days without treatment means there's a chance I developed resistance to one or more of the drugs in the pill I take (there are three medications total in that pill). If I develop resistance, I may have to go on what they call a "salvage regimen." Less effective medications. More difficult to manage undetectable viral loads. More side-effects. And greater chance of developing resistance.

*   *   *   *

They deal with nasty side effects and a low, but still detectable, viral load. Until one day, that virus which can still replicate because it's not fully suppressed finds a way around those salvage meds and the patient develops resistance. 

Another salvage plan is chosen. 

Then another. 

And maybe another. 

Until no options are left. 

Then... well, the virus does exactly what it did back in the early days before we had any medications. It runs its course. 

*   *   *   *
You're donations also go to help cover the gap - those who fall through the cracks of the system. Many of which, like me, fall in the middle class. My medication costs about $2,000 a month. Even for those who donate $50 and think it's too little to make a difference, it can cover one pill for one day - and like I mentioned above, I only missed four days. 

That is how you're saving lives. 

And I can't thank you enough for that.

So when you're deciding where to set your fundraising goal, whether to recruit a new rider, or struggling with training, remember: you are saving lives. Thanks, Jim!

Love,

Your Bear

Become a Public Example

From June 2 to June 8, 2013, I repeated an amazing experience for the second year in a row. I rode my bicycle from San Francisco to Los Angeles, California. I was a fortunate participant in the AIDS/LifeCycle 2013, rider number 1483. Join me.

I traveled 545 miles on my bicycle and I cycled every mile. Together with my donors, I raised $6,482 — my portion of the total $14,200,000 raised to support California AIDS charities.

I did this with 3000 friends — riders and roadies, men and women, gay, straight, transgendered, all ages and races, from nearly every state and many foreign countries. I slept in a tent. I got up at 4:00 a.m. every day and went to bed at 9:00. Most nights, I couldn't sleep. I was, occasionally, irritable. Take a look at what this was like through the eyes of thousands of participants:

That's what happened, but it hardly scratches the surface of the depth of the experience. To accomplish this seemingly straightforward feat involved months and miles of training. Hours spent transmogrifying friends and acquaintances into donors. Hundreds of my own dollars in preparation, transportation, and gear. And so many tears: tears of sadness remembering those we've lost to the scourge — tears of joy in comprehension that these efforts are directly impacting our communities and those we love.

All this combined to make me a better person. Not living solely for my own benefit, but for the benefit of my community. Increasing my cardiovascular health and helping me to make better choices for myself and my loved ones. Becoming a public example of the best the LGBT community has to offer for youth, latent allies, and even entrenched homophobes. Getting one more car off the road.

In 2014, I'll repeat this experience. I'll be riding my bike from San Francisco to Los Angeles in the AIDS/LifeCycle 2014. My rider number for the event is 1399.

Change your life. Change the world. You belong here, so join me on the ride.

Love,
Your Bear

Day Three Lunch

If you're not riding the AIDS/LifeCycle, you're missing the charming school children and townsfolk from Bradley, California. The sell burgers to hungry cyclists to support us and to raise money for the local school district. There's not much here, but lots of love.

Some pics from today.

May is Bike Month

My new tattoo! Unaffiliated with MiBM.

I just wanted to give a plug to a local organization doing good by promoting cycling in the Sacramento region: May is Bike Month. (Like the page on Facebook.) The promoters say:

May is Bike Month is a campaign that takes place in the six-county Sacramento Region each year.  The focus of our campaign is to promote bicycle use as a mode of transportation whether for running errands, commuting, riding recreationally, or working.  We encourage people to get out of their cars and on their bikes year-round, but we make it a big deal every May so that as more people become energized and comfortable on their bicycles they will be more likely to replace a car trip with a bicycle trip year round.  Fewer cars on the road improves air quality and reduce traffic congestion; and as more bike trips replace car trips, we expect to see a greater demand for investment in bicycling infrastructure and facilities.  

Cyclists register for the month-long event, log miles ridden each day, and join teams (workplace related or otherwise) to compete for honors. Cyclists are awarded with regular badges (riding one day, riding in the rain, riding in the wind, riding more than 100 miles, riding all week, and the like) and with actual prizes:

Weekly Prizes:

• 25 cyclists will win May is Bike Month socks.
• Twenty-five $20 gift certificates to a bike shop. (The Transportation Management Organization in your area will contact you about bike shop selection).

Grand Prizes:

Cyclists that log miles (commute, errand, recreation) all 5 weeks are entered to win.

• 2 cyclists will be randomly selected to win a 3 day bike vacation on Sept 6-8 2013, on the Emigrant Trails Bike Trek in Emigrant Trails Bike Trek in South Lake Tahoe, valued at $450, sponsored by Breathe California of Sacramento. For more info, see www.sacbreathe.org/trek
• 2 cyclists will be randomly selected to win $100 gift certificates to area bike shops
• 100 cyclists will be randomly selected to win May is Bike Month socks.

Two years ago, I won a pair of socks!

So, if you ride in the area, its not too late to register, help the environment, and win! If you live elsewhere, this is a program to emulate.

Love, 

Your Bear

The Perfect Ride

A friend called cycling "a cult" today on Facebook. I said, "no, no, its not a cult, its a drug!" And its like a drug in that its addictive, you want to sell it to your friends, and if you miss a day you totally feel it. The difference, of course, is that cycling can do little but improve your life. This weekend many of my friends were out riding for fun or commuting, training for the AIDS/LifeCycle and just riding in events and on their own for fun and recreation.

For instance: my boyfriend rode 7 miles to a party from our house; another friend rode 30 miles on the American River Bike Trail; my training buddies and I rode 100 miles in the Wine Country Century — after a two hour car commute; other ALC mates rode 125 miles on Saturday near their hometown; and the luckiest rode 200+ miles for a full weekend of cycling in totally different counties. The thing about it is, they all report the same thing: "that was the perfect ride."

Not to say that there aren't problems. From time to time, all cyclists have troubles and doubts. But few committed cyclists fail to solve them and move on. I've blogged about these in the past:

Image from http://ryansdream.com.

1. Mechanical issues. If you want a great ride, you have to learn to change a flat and when to take your bike in for service. (Or when to learn how to service it yourself!)
2. Safety issues. Riding without a helmet, in the wrong lane, and disobeying traffic laws is a sure path toward organ donor-ship.
3. Skill issues. "Am I doing this right?" "Can my bike handle that descent?" "Can my body handle that climb?"
4. Time issues. Distance riding takes a big bite out of every weekend.
5. Self-consiciousness issues. There are always riders better than you.

Oh, and weather! Saturday the temperature averaged 90º under the hot sun in most of Northern California. But on Sunday, the temperature plummeted and it rained in the coastal counties. A smart cyclist is prepared for these things!

Cycling is one of the few sports you can accomplish despite the weather, leaving from your front door or starting hundreds of miles away, alone or with friends, recreationally or with a purpose. Every mile ridden is a mile you weren't driving! And because you're not in a car, every ride is a perfect ride! So keep up the good work and don't let the doubts be a barrier!

Love,

Your Bear

50 Miles? You Must be Mad!

If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things. — Ernst Straus (orig. French), cited by Einstein: A Centenary Volume at 32

I'm 46, yet I still feel like a kid. Maybe its because I'm gay, no kids, and live happily with my partner. Maybe its because when I set my goals, I set them properly. Among my goals are: put my health first, learn to be an athlete, make sure my husband is happy, and not live for money. Sometimes, I think that these are weak goals and that I could do more. But then I get on my bike.

I ride my bike every weekend. I rarely ride less than 60 miles in a weekend, or less than 100 miles in a week. I usually ride at least 200 miles per week. I never set this as a goal, it just happened.

When I tell people I'm going for a bike ride, they often brighten and smile and ask me how long I'm going. When I respond "30," "40," "50" miles or more, their faces darken and they ask: "Why?" To which I never seem to have an answer that I think sounds satisfying. But really, I know why: cycling helps me achieve all of my goals.

Danny and I on an ALC Training Ride 1/26/13

When I bicycle so much, I feel more fit and happier. Being more fit, I look younger and have more energy. Having more energy makes training easier and more comfortable, so I'm more likely to get back on my bike next time. By focusing on riding, I can clear my mind of worries about all the little things that causes anxiety, which reduces fear about money issues. All this helps my relationship, though I do think that Davey feels like a widow sometimes...especially as the AIDS/LifeCycle approaches and I'm riding back-to-back 60 mile days on the weekends.

Plus, each ride is an adventure. There's always something amazing to see — things you cannot see from your car. Every time I go out there, I learn something new about Northern California, human nature, and the world in general. And learning is the most important thing we can do.

What better goals could I possibly have on this mote of dust we call home? There are more grandiose goals which I consider vital — helping others, learning about the cosmos, dispelling ignorance — but one must start those personally. Hopefully, I'm doing my part with these goals, too, however amorphous they may seem in my day-to-day life. And that is one reason I ride in the AIDS/LifeCycle: to help others and dispel ignorance.

So, please donate to my ride!

Your,
Bear