Newsletter
July 3, 2008
Light the Roman Candles!
Our team has now reached the $125,192 -- 63% of our $200K goal. With less than a month to go till the event, we will really need each and every one of you to heed the call -- PLEASE FUNDRAISE NOW!! The holiday weekend is a great time to get your fundraising started or to send follow-up emails to your contacts letting them know your progress in training and fundraising. Be sure to describe your best rides and the great progress of the team in raising over $125K so far. Remind them, too of the life-saving work being done at Children's. The only barrier to our team achieving its goal is each of us somehow NOT finding the time to do our part -- so please ensure that each of us are personally committed to be the solution! Remember what our fearless fundraising leader, Bradley Scott, told us last week (he's now at $3915):
"As you can see, it took more than one mailing to receive this donation and that stands true for most of the donations. At 8 weeks out I began sending my e-mail, massaging the message each week, to my remaining non-donors with the message "In just X more weeks I will be completing my ride of over .....". With each weeks mailing my donations go up. Most people want to give, they just keep saying "I need to remember to donate"...so send them your reminders. That is the key to my fund raising success....weekly reminders!"
Remember: the kids, families, doctors and nurses at the Children's Hospital Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders are counting on us! Plus imagine the fun we'll have at the Courage Classic if we're celebrating finally reaching our $200K goal while we are still at the event July 26-28.
Wheels of Justice Night at Bicycle Village
A HUGE THANK YOU TO BICYCLE VILLAGE for hosting Wheels of Justice Night this week: Wow, these guys are good! The BV folks were so kind and generous to us on Tuesday. Not only did they give us 40% off on an accessory, they hosted a great presentation on bike fitting and preparation for the Courage Classic. Honestly, their focus was really on giving us the best prep and hospitality possible, not on movin' da merchandise! So if you have questions or issues about your bike, gear, preparation or fit, please stop by any Bicycle Village location, let 'em know you are on the team (use your WoJ discount card!) and these knowledgeable people will help you out in the coolest way. BV will also have a larger presence at the Courage Classic this year -- providing mechanical support and giving away lots of great stuff. BV supports the Courage Classic and the Wheels of Justice in a HUGE way, so let's return the favor by giving them our business, if at all possible. You'll be happy you did. Thanks to Kim Smith, Patrick Mayben and John at BV for hosting us and to all of the Wheels of Justice riders who attended.
Training Ride:
COACHED RIDE THIS SUNDAY JULY 6TH: PLEASE READ THIS and ATTEND!: Gang, we are so fortunate this year to be coached by elite cyclist Megan Hottman of Defined Fitness Training. Megan (who is also a lawyer, lucky us!) has kindly agreed to spend 2 hours of this weekend's training ride coaching WoJ riders on ascending and descending skills. Tripp Lake has created a special 30 mile loop options to optimize our experience in learning these skills (see below). If you are new to riding or just new to riding in the mountains, I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE YOU, NAY I BEG YOU, TO ATTEND MEGAN'S COACHING SESSION THIS SUNDAY. The Courage Classic is a blast -- it's a fun tour and NOT a race. Yet it is also very challenging and includes very steep ascents and descents on some of Colorado's most challenging paved roads. Last year, one of our WoJ riders ended up in the Vail ER after crashing near the bottom of Battle Mountain on Day 1 -- we all know this could happen to any of us, and I'm delighted that this rider has happily joined WoJ again this year. However, the best way to ride safely on these epic roads is to understand the best way to use all of the skills (including weight shifting) that experienced riders use to stay upright and strong on steep winding roads. New riders (including me 3 years ago) often think that the safest way to descend is by staying on your brakes -- this is actually NOT true and can be especially dangerous. I learned how to ride safely (and faster) on a coached WoJ training ride 3 years ago at Lookout Mountain, and am now very relaxed and confident on descents that used to scare the bejeezus out of me. Our goal this year is ZERO WoJ injuries at the Courage Classic and these sessions offered by Megan are going to be a huge part of that. Also, Megan is available for private coaching sessions: see www.definedfitnesstraining.com
Wheels of Justice Training Ride this SUNDAY July 6th -- PLEASE NOTE LOCATION CHANGE
Many thanks to our Ben Lieb of WoJ sponsoring firm Sheridan Ross who hosted last week's epic ride up Deer Creek Canyon ! Now for this week --
Sunday, July 6, 2008, 7:30am SHARP!!
SQUAW PASS LOOP W/ SHORTER COACHED RIDE OPTION (Morrison, Evergreen, Kerr Gulch)
Training Ride Host: Tripp Lake of sponsoring firm Pryor Johnson Carney Karr NixonPlease RSVP by COB Friday to Tripp Lake, dlake@pjckn.com or 720 530 9481
Meeting Location: Ozzi's Coffee Shop is located at 101 Bear Creek Ln, Morrison, CO 80465
Coaching Session before the Ride will start at 730 a.m. sharp. Please arrive early so we can start promptly.
RIDE Information:
Sunday's ride has morphed! It's grown an extra limb at the Squaw Pass turnoff. Since we will have WoJ Coach Megan Hottman with us to discuss and the illustrate the finer points of going up and down around sharp turns on very skinny wheels, we have designed an alternate route for those who want to practice what Megan teaches with Megan. The plan: We all meet at Ozzi's coffee shop in Morrison, though I would park my car just East of the Conoco and ride to Ozzi's which is located at 101 Bear Creek Ln, Morrison, CO 80465. The Conoco is just off C-470 at the Morrison exit and you will undoubtedly see a line of bikes and the cars that brung 'em. From there coast down toward the savory smell of espresso.At 7:30 sharpish, Megan will host a discussion on the finer points of climbing and descending. Wheels turn at 7:45, as the day gets hot and the lightening arrives early in the mountains. We head out as a group, going up 74, Bear Creek Road, to Evergreen Lake where we hang a right and roll along Bergen Parkway North toward I-70. At the intersection between up and not up (Squaw Pass Road) you have a decision to make. You can continue on with Megan to Kerr Gulch Road to descend a twisty road with a professional coach and work on your skills, or you can head up to the top of Squaw with an amateur who, I assure you, will be suffering as much as you. Joking aside, going up and down and around sharp turns in the mountains is a serious thing and, even if you need the miles as much as I do, if you are not comfortable with either then the trip with Megan will be well worth your while.
If you go up at Squaw then you will have climbed more than any one day at the Courage Classic, approximately 5700 feet over 55-60 miles. If you go with Megan the loop is about 30 miles with about 2800 total elevation gain. If you would like more miles either turn around and head back up Kerr Gulch for some nice climbing or turn left at Mt. Vernon Canyon Road (Hwy 93) to 70, then take 40 (parallel to I-70 past Cabrini Shrine) to the top of Lookout Mountain for another 40 miles roundtrip.
Veteran riders will forgive this parental moment, but DO NOT forget to bring lots of calories you can ingest on the bike. It would be very easy to bonk on this ride if you don't take hydration and feeding seriously. I've done that before at the top of a pass and it makes for a very unpleasant rest of the morning. We'll probably stop someplace to refill bottles, etc., but I don't have a place planned just yet.
See you there, and my cell phone is 720-530-9481. If you need a map, the links to the rides follow. PLEASE PRINT OUT A MAP & BRING WITH YOU ON THE RIDE.
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/co/morrison/1159374193 (Shorter ride)
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/co/morrison/457101924321
Party at the Courage Classic
Mark your calendar for the Wheels of Justice Party at the Courage Classic: Our party promises to be the best ever this year and will take place at Zizzo's at Copper Mountain on Sunday July 27 from 2-6pm. We'll have burgers, dogs, brats, beer and soft drinks for all in a lovely patio setting just off Burning Stones Plaza. We'll be thanking our sponsors and all of the folks who have worked so hard to make this year a success. PLUS WE'LL BE AUCTIONING OFF A FRAMED WHEELS OF JUSTICE TRAINING SHIRT SIGNED BY LANCE ARMSTRONG!! Also our team picture will take place near our party at 4pm -- I hope you can all make it in your latest WoJ cycling jerseys!!
Housing:
Housing at the Courage Classic: If you don’t already have housing booked at the Courage Classic -- get on it quick! There is another conference at Copper at the same time, so condos are scarce. If you are looking for housing or have housing to share, please post on the Wheels of Justice bulletin board (there us a special housing section]. Also try the site, www.vrbo.com as condo owners post there available properties there. Good luck to all!!
New Riders
Do you know someone who wants to ride and fundraise for the Wheels of Justice but missed the registration deadline for the Courage Classic? If so, please let me know, as we are hearing of a few WoJ riders who cant make it this year and we may be able to get a limited number of riders off the waitlist to replace them! This week we welcomed 2 new riders aboard through this process. Also Please let me know asap if for any reason you realize that you will not be able to ride the Courage Classic. Last year, 10% of our 206 riders did not ride or fundraise due to injury, illness or change of plans -- as we all know, sometimes this just happens. Unfortunately, this meant that 20 slots could have been filled by riders eager to ride and fundraise for Children's. Now wiser this year, I am asking team members to notify me as soon you know of a change in plans, so that we can possibly accommodate riders on the waitlist. Thanks for your help in maximizing our contribution to Children's Hospital! -- THANKS FOR YOUR GREAT RESPONSE HERE TEAM -- WE ARE MAKING GREAT PROGRESS -- the early heads-up is really helping us.
Transportation
Transportation at the Courage Classic (and to/from): Also please use the bulletin board to post your transportation needs/availability. Some are staying in Vail, Silverthorne, etc. and have expressed interest in carpooling. We'll send info closer to the event about ride sharing to/from the start finish of the CC.
OK, so I hope everyone has a terrific 4th of July! Remember to fundraise!!
All the best,
All the best,
Heather
Heather A. Purcell
Levine + Purcell LLC
600 17th Street, Suite 2800 South
Denver, CO 80202
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