I’ve been doing some thinking lately about trying to get involved in some type of charity ride to help raise money for a worthy cause. I’m sure you can think of several of these types of rides off the top of your head such as the MS-150 for Multiple Sclerosis, The Tour de Cure for Diabetes and the Livestrong Challenge for cancer research. These are all big events with many rides throughout the country.

If I did one of these rides I would want it to be a ride that supported fund raising for a disease that directly impacted my family. The Tour de Cure would work since I do have members in my family that are diabetic (I’m not). After thinking about it a little more I thought that riding for something related to heart disease might be a little more appropriate since that’s what I lost my dad to six months ago. My families history of heart problems (and me heading down that path) is the main reason I started this blog so it seems a natural cause to ride for. So I set out trying to find a charity ride/event/group that centered on the heart.

I’ve come up with almost nothing. I did some searching on the Internet and sought advice via Twitter with almost no luck. There’s a ride here or there that raises money for heart disease or stroke awareness but I could find nothing on the level of the MS-150 or the Tour de Cure. I was really surprised to find so little on the American Heart Association’s website. They have specific fund raising activities/events but none of them involve cycling even though they list cycling both as an exercise to fight heart disease and to help those recovering from heart surgery. I found that really amazing.

So, my question is, do any of my readers know of any event out there that benefits the American Heart Association, or heart disease in general, and involves cycling?

This morning I slept in a little and made my way down to White Rock Lake at about 10:30. Because I had ridden barely more than 14 hours earlier I wasn’t sure how far or how good I was going to ride. It actually turned out to be nice.

The weather was overcast with a chance of rain and I did get rained on a couple of times but nothing bad. It was just enough to make the roads slick and dangerous.

About half-way into my first lap I was on a section of the loop where I can pick up my speed to about 20 mph and move along. I realized after several minutes that there was somebody behind me. As I made it to the North end of the lake the rider pulled up next to me and we started talking. His name is Pedro and is a physician here in the Dallas area and is training for the upcoming MS-150 here.

He and I road the next 15 miles together and it was great. It’s so much better riding with somebody else. At least for me it is. It helps keep me honest on the level of effort I’m putting out. Plus being able to talk with someone helps make the time go by.

I will say that the hills here are still killing me. I know it’s going to take time, and a lot of lost weight, to be able to handle them good. I guess I just need to be patient.

Like I said, right at 20 miles at an average speed of 14.7 mph. Decent for me.

Those of you who read my feed or drop into the blog on a regular basis know that I’ve only had a couple of updates this week. That wasn’t by design but life does get in the way. My wife had a surgery this week to correct a problem in both joints in her jaw. She was expected to be in the hospital for three days but it turned out to be only one. That was a good thing. Once home, though, she was still in a lot of pain and being there for her has to take priority over anything I do. Because of that I have found zero time to ride this week except for a ride on Tuesday. I also posted an article on what you should carry in your seat bag that I’ve been working on for a while and only needed some polishing before it was ready to publish. So, that’s about all that’s gone on in my life but there’s still plenty of other biking news. Here’s some of the highlights:

1. Lance Armstrong. Unless you are living under a rock you’ve probably heard about this. There’s been a lot of positive and negative feedback on his decision to return to professional cycling in 2009 and I find myself undecided. Part of me is very happy to see him return because I think the sport needs him. I want him back because he was the one of the first cyclists I remember following. Another part of me doesn’t want to see him ruin the perfect retirement he orchestrated after winning his 7th consecutive Tour de France. Too many other athletes have retired and then decided to make a comeback tour only to leave the sport disgraced or disappointed. I don’t want Lance to do that. I also see another side of his comeback as well. His efforts in the area of cancer awareness and fund raising are legendary and is the main point in his video over on his website. Lots of speculation has been made as to which team he will join. He says he won’t be racing for money, which is admirable, and may make it easier for teams to sign him. Which of the teams will want to make a spot for him though? Only time will tell. I hope it will be one of the American-based squads of Garmin-Chipotle or Team Columbia. I wonder if he’ll ride in a LiveStrong kit? I’d be interested in hearing my readers thoughts on Lance’s return.

2. Mark Cavendish. Can anyone match this guy in a sprint? I think not. Foregoing his native Tour of Britain, he’s been participating in the Tour of Missouri this past week and has won three stages so far. That puts his yearly wins at 15. The man is a monster in the final 1 Km. A big head-nod has to go out to his teammates though because they are the ones positioning him for all these sprint finishes. They maintain such a high pace in the last couple of kilometers that the other teams have a hard time keeping near the front. Mark is always a class-act after the race when he goes to each of his teammates and thanks them for the work they did. I think we’re seeing the birth of the sprinter to beat over the next several years. Maybe we should just call him Speed Racer.

3. 331 Miles LIVESTRONG Challenge. Jeff Contreras of 331 Miles is participating in the 2008 Austin LIVESTRONG Challenge and needs your help in raising money for cancer awareness. He has a fund raising goal of $1,000 and is already more than 25% there. Do what you can to help out. Every little bit helps. You can donate to Jeff’s fund raiser by clicking here.

4. Team Climb On! MS Bike Tour. Arlyn Asch, owner of Adventures On a Bike and member of Team Climb On!, is participating in the 2008 Bay to Bay MS 150 next month. Team Climb On raised over $22,000 last year and have raised over $13,000 so far this year. The riders are doing what they can to get in shape for the 150 mile ride but need your help in reaching their fund raising goals. Here’s the link to make a tax deductible donation: http://www.biketofinishms.com/arlynasch. What I want to know is how to get one of this awesome looking Team Climb On jerseys.

The first two items are big news in the bicycling world while the later two are just as important and deserve recognition as well. I’m hoping that next year I’ll be in shape enough to be able to ride in some of these fund raising/charity events as well. These guys set a good example for all of us.