Thank you to all my sponsors, supportive friends, and family! You guys rock. The ride was great. We were blessed with wonderful weather (like last year). Thank you Hurricane Earl for not breezing through our neck of the woods. Shabbat (Friday and Saturday) was really nice-and this year I helped a bit with some ice breakers and shmoozing early on during the weekend. I even gave a D'var Torah Saturday morning and hopped around and tried some new minyans this year. It's wonderful that the weekend is an inclusive event and everyone can feel comfortable wherever they fall on the observance spectrum. It was fun to meet new people and it was nice coming back to old friends. The ride itself started early Sunday morning. We started at Camp Kinder Ring in Hopewell Junction, NY. It was a new route this year, which I enjoyed. Picturesque and well designed. Some other things I learned before the ride was how to change a tire as well as Hazon has a mechanic who answered a whole bunch of my bicyling questions that I have pondered all summer :-)
My Day 1: Add an extra loop to the north explore the Dutchess County farmland, with an additional rest stop at an park which used to be an old dairy farm. End at Eden Village Camp.
Gorgeous views especially of a few lakes. Had a great time biking with my girls Lauren and Sarah most of the day (see my pics). We ended at Camp Eden Village and I opted to stay in the hotel overnight...as did 100 other riders. The bed, the shower, felt wonderful after biking so many miles.
My Day 2: Ride south from Eden Village Camp through various Westchester County towns, including Yorktown Heights, Chappaqua, and Yonkers. We end by entering the Bronx, crossing the Broadway Bridge into Manhattan and ending at the JCC Manhattan.
A longer day--and many inclines. By mile 40 I was like, umm I don't think this is fun anymore, but I rallied and finished strong. Ben and Jerry's ice cream truck was waiting for us at the end. Yum..Then we gathered and rode a block to the JCC, where the Columbia University marching band greeted us. What a huge commotion on Amsterdam/76th St! I am thankful to live on the UWS this year, as getting all my stuff home wasn't hard at all.
I am amazed at the families that come on the weekend every year. The messages they are teaching their children about health, sustainability and community -- It's wonderful. As my family and extended family knows I was just saying over Rosh Hashanah, you know you should think about doing the ride... Thank you again to all who sponsored me, encouraged me, trained with me, and texted me during my ride. I am thrilled to say I raised $1609 so far and after the weekend I have hopes of raising $191 more to make $1800. I am amazed at all the good work Hazon does, especially around programming that is encouraging children and the next generation to think about being responsible for our planet, and connecting to our food sources. Again, any amount you give is extremely generous of you! Donate here.
Before my bicycle turns into a snowbird and heads south to Mom and Dad's garage this winter; I am biking the MS Bike Tour on Sunday! Another 60 miles after you could getting there & back. We go through the Lincoln tunnel up NJ side over GW Bridge and back down to the starting point. Hello Bridge and Tunnel. Looking forward!
Below I have left a link to my album where you can see captioned photos from my ride.
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