Note from Doni: This Q&A features answers from Nick Webb, who works for Shasta County Public Health. On June 1 Webb led a group of 20 north state residents who’d trained for months to prepare for the 17th annual America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride in Lake Tahoe. Credit Laura Gore (daughter of Jim and Darcie Gore, Food for Thought techies) for being part of the team and alerting us to this event.
What inspired you and your team to participate in the 100-mile-long America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride?
When my wife’s father, Bill, was diagnosed with CJD (Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease) we knew we had a very limited time. At the time we were two weeks from riding around Lake Tahoe in support of the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society and were getting married in two months. We were lucky to receive the diagnosis at all, but once we had it time was of the essence. Despite their size (a national, non-profit organization with just a couple paid employees and a volunteer board), the CJD Foundation helped find appropriate care and provided much needed emotional support and information to her family.
Abby’s father’s condition deteriorated rapidly. Within days of her return home to Rhode Island the rapidly progressing dementia was making communication difficult. In a composed moment he charged Abby with raising money to combat the disease in the future. We’ve done our best to honor that commitment.
Over the past two years “Captain Bill’s Cycle Squad” has raised some $38,000. We’ve made great friends and helped a couple dozen people uncover an inner endurance athlete. This year our riders averaged 1,000 miles of training and all raised over $500; some far more. In all that we averaged just over one flat tire in four months!
Tell us about your team.
This was the second year for “Captain Bill’s Cycle Squad.” We had 20 members. I recruited many from Public Health, but there were others, too. The real common bond was a willingness to try train for an endurance event and raise money for a good cause in the process. Otherwise, we’re all over the place, from experienced (not many) to rank beginner (most), from 26 to older than 60.
Can you describe the route?
America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride is aptly named. We started and ended at the state line in South Lake Tahoe. We proceeded clockwise around Lake Tahoe and stayed pretty close to the lake, going up and around Emerald Bay, through King’s Beach on the north shore and over Spooner Junction before returning to the starting line. The only time we deviated from the circumnavigation is for a 30-mile out-and-back to Truckee along the Truckee River. Gorgeous.
What were some of the most challenging parts of the ride?
Training around Redding was great preparation for a century ride. The hills and mountains in our area are longer and steeper than what we encountered on the Tahoe ride. We had a much easier time than those who came from such flat locales as Kansas or central Florida. That said, the 5-mile climb up to Spooner Junction will slow down even the skinniest Lance Armstrong impersonator.
How did your team do?
First I should mention that this was a ride, not a race. Unlike many of the charity “fun runs” which are usually timed events, the real goal is to finish. It’s enough of a challenge without making it more dangerous and nerve-racking by adding the element of competition.
Eighteen of our 20 members started, and all finished. (One had to go to a wedding but did all the training with us. Another had big asthma and allergy issues throughout the training and in Tahoe and decided to have a great day at our team house rather than take risks on the course.)
Our fastest rider (Mike Garcia) finished among the fastest of the day, just after noon. All of our riders were across the line by 4:30 p.m. with a total of some 10 1/2 hours to get around the lake.
Were there areas in which your team had an advantage or disadvantage?
As I mentioned, we had access to great hills for training. We went through most towns within 20 miles of Redding, including Igo, Happy Valley, Cottonwood, Palo Cedro, Whitmore, Shingletown, etc. That gave us a leg up.
Also, it’s hard to slack off when you have so many people supporting you monetarily. The support of a few dozen donors who’ve said they believe in you and your good work can provide pretty good pushes in the hard parts.
Anything unexpected?
We expected to be moved by people’s generosity in our fundraising, and I’m always impressed with the tenacity new riders exhibit when challenged. We also counted on a few people noticing our jerseys and asking about CJD.
Anything else?
What I couldn’t have foreseen was meeting Dr. Michael Geschwind at the finish line. Dr. Geschwind is one of the leading CJD researchers in the country, and there aren’t that many to start with. He was shocked to see a team raising money for CJD, and even more surprised to find that there were 20 of us. We talked to him for well over an hour about his research, our experience and the good work that the CJD Foundation is doing. Turns out he will be a keynote speaker at the CJD Foundation’s annual family conference in Washington DC this July. We’re working on bringing Dr. Geschwind to Redding to present to local neurologists in a “grand rounds” presentation.
I can’t say enough about the great group we ended up with. They were dedicated, selfless, hard-working, and ultimately quite successful in everything they tried. Their tenacity and trust can’t be overstated. I’m so glad they chose to go through this with us.
If we do this little venture again next year we will be looking for new people who would like to tackle a substantial challenge. Are you up for it?
