AIDS LifeCycle Series!

hey guys, this is the long awaited post. it'll be the first of three that i have planned, maybe some of you will be inspired to send in your stories too.

this post has been delayed because our lovely first person featured, kristen ("klaw"), broke her arm the day before the post was going to go up. she was on her bike and a pedestrian suddenly walked out in front of her.

but she's feeling better now, and we decided that showing that she's ready to get back on the bike might be just as inspirational as her ALC ride! now...on to the post! be sure to check out her "addendum."



This is your first time riding Aids LifeCycle. Why did you want to do this ride?

Yes! It's my first time! I've wanted to do it for a long time but was in graduate school out of state or starting a new job and could not put in the time. The primary reason that I am riding is because there are few opportunities in life to challenge yourself physically and emotionally for purely selfless reasons, I am so excited to be a part of this! Many people believe that HIV/AIDS are no longer an issue. Contrary to popular belief, HIV/AIDS has not gone away. Many continue to die of AIDS related illness and those who are lucky enough to afford antivirals are reminded each day about their communicable disease. HIV/Aids is a social justice issue effecting a disproportionate number of people of color and low-income people. As Stephen Colbert says the vaccine to HIV/AIDS is to be white and rich. I hope that the money I raise and the knowledge people gain because of LifeCycle will foster prevention and treatment for ALL people. Plus how cool is it that I get to spend my 31st bday (June 9) with 3,000 other people riding to end AIDS! Someday I hope we can all ride in celebration of ending AIDS!

photo by joel muller

Before you started training, did you consider yourself a long-distance cyclist? Why or why not? If no, what prompted you to start training?

I've always had pretty good endurance but never considered myself a long distance rider and I NEVER thought I'd be peddling around in spandex. LifeCycle prompted me to cycle more and the support and encouragement from my family and friends has helped a lot!

How is your training going? Do you train by yourself, with friends or with trainings provided by LifeCycle?

My training is pretty mixed. I like to do the training rides supported by LifeCycle. I've done a few rides with friends and will be doing my first long-distance ride alone this weekend. I'll let you know how it goes. I'll be riding from my dad's to Hornitos and back, it's about 60 miles roundtrip. Hornitos is a old mining/ghost town, can't wait to take photos!

Over the course of my training I have seen some amazing parts of the North and East Bay. I am feeling pretty lucky to be able to live here! Oh! And riding around the city is great training. I rode against the wind last night and avoided my "granny gears" to help train my quads. Oh and I do a spin class one to two times a week. My legs are getting HUGE!

$3,000 seems like a lot of money to raise in this economy. How has it been fundraising? Any special events?

I had three fundraising events. The first was at Mission Workshop. Together, Shannon Hinkle and I raised over $2,000! Thanks MWS and everyone who donated raffle/auction prizes and more importantly the people who came to support us! The second fundraiser was a wine pairing dinner party at Dadsky KLAW's house. My dear friend Mary Burroughs killed it with her amazing culinary skills and food donations. Attendees donated $20 a plate and brought wine to pair with an assigned course. This was a ton of fun and I raised $400! The last event I did was bar tending at Tonic Bar in San Francisco. This bar is amazing and so generous - they let us keep all the tips we made. Go there and support them, they support so many charitable causes! I raised close to $300 in three-hours of bar tending. Other than that my friends and family donated generous amounts! It is amazing to me how generous people are, many came out of the woodwork to donate money and others (Gwen Lutz, Alison Barahona, Patty Barahona, Kim Johnson, Darius Pearson and many others) donated time and raffle prizes to help us out! Thank you everyone!!!

Have you met any fun or interesting characters in the course of your fundraising?

MING! Through the lovely Caltexican (ed note: oh hai) I met Ming, my new tentmate and gemini twin! Although this wasn't through fundraising I am super excited about this new friendship, and we will be doing some foodie fundraising soon! I'm really excited to eat cake with him on our birthdays too! I also became closer to Amy Powell who helped me so much! I owe her tons!!! Without her dedication I would not have raised the money I did. Thanks Amy, drinks on me!

photo by volker neumann

Addendum: So it looks like I will not be riding this year. Unfortunately I have fractured the radius in my left arm. It is close to the elbow and not the wrist, which is better. I am still training in spin classes and raising money in the chance that I am healed and my orthopedic doc tells me I can ride. The silver lining is that all of the money I raise can be rolled over to next year when I will be riding with the CYLRAB ladies ;)

I would like to thank everyone for their support! This has been super life changing already. Look for me in the bike lanes in about 2-4 weeks! ding ding

Thanks so much klaw for sharing your story! hope you all enjoyed it! happy friday!

disconcerting

this morning i rolled up on this scene. i went upstairs very saddened. i saw 3 police cars, one ambulance, one fire truck, one bent bike, one stretcher and an interview in progress.

needless to say, it was a very disconcerting to encounter this virtually first thing in the morning.

this year has been full of many bikey friends and loved ones getting hurt while riding. some seriously hurt, some not so seriously. be careful out there people. please. we can't have 2011 be the year of the battered bikey badass. :( you will read one of the stories here on this blog tomorrow.

how do you guys feel when you roll past a scene like that?

Ooops!

Riding home from dinner on Saturday night, I looked like this.

Despite it being July in California, I am wearing a cashmere sweater dress under my jacket and that hat is wool (as were the socks inside my knee high boots). At this point I was pedaling pretty fast to get warmed up when I noticed a throbbing in my legs.

Why? I'll show you.

Yep. That is a big, lumpy bruise (pictured three days after I got it). I have three more just like it. All my own fault, no room to share the blame.

I was riding on Wednesday night, hell bent for leather to get to the bar before everyone else so I could get my hamburger order in before the hoards (I was hungry, what can I say?). I miscalculated a driveway and slammed the curb almost head on. Over the bars I went, or rather, straight through the bars I went bending light mounts, bells and brake levers alike. Fortunately, I know how to fall and landed on my back instead of my hands and face, with no other injuries than some bruised thighs that throb when the blood gets pumping through them.

The poor guys that saw me make a complete fool of myself came flying to my aide and were amazed when, from my back on the ground, I threw up my hands and yelled "I'm all right!" I was declared "bad ass" by those who witnessed my folly (James does not agree with the title and forbids me to fall off my bicycle anymore) and went in to get my food (priorities).

Moral of the story- When you are in a hurry, do not take the driveway : ) If you do manage to throw yourself off your bicycle, patterned tights do a great job of camouflaging your ignominy.

update on mayor villaraigosa

an update on los angeles mayor antonio villaraigosa's bike accident from the mayor himself:

If there's one thing everyone now knows after my recent accident, it's that I like to bike in Los Angeles. The City's landscape, climate, and neighborhoods offer a cyclist's paradise. Biking in Los Angeles should be a natural.

Unfortunately most of our City was built with cars in mind. It's time to recognize that bicycles also belong on L.A.'s streets.

We're working on enforcement of traffic laws and improving the City's bicycle infrastructure. LAPD Chief Charlie Beck has reached out to the cycling community and is actively working to make the streets safer.

Last month the Planning Department released its latest draft of the City's bicycle plan update. While it's still a draft, it includes a citywide network and neighborhood network, to provide safe and convenient routes for both serious and casual cyclists. ...

Thanks for all the good wishes since my accident. I will be back on my bike as soon as I'm able, and I hope to see more Angelenos out there with me.

it's nice to hear that the mayor is not going to let his accident be a platform for the bicycles are dangerous crew, but rather for one that brings out into the open his plans for bicycle infrastructure improvements throughout los angeles.

imagine los angeles as a bikey city. i LOVE it. let's make this into the new l.a. story.

article via here.

silver lining perhaps?

the mama texican alerted me to a latimes blog post that states the mayor of l.a., antonio villaraigosa, was in a bicycle accident.

from the article:

The mayor was riding in the bicycle lane on Venice Boulevard in Mid-City at about 6:50 p.m. when a taxi abruptly pulled in front of him. The mayor hit his brakes and fell off the bike.

He was transported to Ronald Reagan/UCLA Medical Center, where he was treated for [his] broken [elbow].

By 10 p.m. he had been released and was resting comfortably at Getty House, the mayor's official residence.

The mayor's accident comes as bicyclists in the city have increasingly been complaining about safety issues and pressing city officials to do more to make cycling safe.

now i hate to speculate on the unfortunate events of another, BUT, i wonder if this will bring about change to bicycling infrastructure in los angeles? one can only hope that if it would, if it can soften the blow literally brought upon the mayor.

do any of our los angeles readers have any insight as to what is going on down there?

get well mayor villaraigosa!!

article found here.