Dear Kids at Sankey Samaritan Home in Lucena City, Philippines,
(And to all the other readers, too!)
Magandang araw sa inyong lahat mga anak ko! (Good day to all my many kids!)
Today your Uncle Tom rode from the mountains to the desert. When I started this morning it was only 38 degrees which is very cold for this time of year but it was because we were at a high elevation. We started with lots of warm clothes on then dropped them with our leader in the truck as it gets warmer.
To begin we had a 20 kl. climb with snow around us before heading down to the high desert of Oregon where it was 80 degrees! It can snow 1 meter in a day in the mountains. (Uncle Toto will explain snow to you!) The air is thinner on top of the mountains and many riders suffer from altitude headaches in the evenings after big climbs.
I saw some elk and deer today. When I got to the desert I saw at least 20 wild horses running near the isolated road I was riding on. Our country is beautiful and I enjoy the time with Jesus as I ride along hours at a time praying for each one of you. Because I am riding for you and other Filipino kids my legs don’t seem to get tired even though matanda na ako! (I am old!)
I you want to imagine what it is like to ride a bike so far go and sit on top of a fence post, lean forward for six hours, move your feet in circles, and eat things like raisons, bananas, and a liter or two of Gatorade each hour! Masakit any puit ko! (My butt hurts!)
Remember the verse in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 in your Bible? It talks about discipline and training and sacrificing to prepare yourself to perform your best not only in athletics but in school, music, and most importantly in your Christian life! I began training for this adventure with Jesus in January and six months of practice has at least given me a chance to succeed. You can do the same and are doing it now! Keep listening to Uncle Toto and Ate Bebs and God will make you strong Christians and you can accomplish great things for God.
I love you and am so very proud of you!
Uncle Tom
Keep praying for me because we are going to help lots more Filipino kids after my ride!
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Day 2, St. Helens, OR to Welches, OR, 75 miles
It was a beautiful ride through orchards, nurseries, and a view of the magnificent 11,239 foot high Mt. Hood which has a base that spreads for 92 miles. The glaciers of Mt Hood had my total attention the last 25 miles!
The last 30 miles today was lots of climbing up to a mountain resort with a great hot tub and pool! My legs are feeling good enough that I am enjoying the incredible beauty of the NW USA and socialize with everyone I meet.
My morning quiet time is a highlight and I continue to request strength, energy, and safety from injuries and crashes. It reminds me of the day to day dependence on Christ we experienced in the Philippines going from province to province and village to village playing basketball all day every day! I am enjoying this wonderful adventure with the Lord and His creation.
I have room for more prayer requests so keep them coming.
Love, Tom
The last 30 miles today was lots of climbing up to a mountain resort with a great hot tub and pool! My legs are feeling good enough that I am enjoying the incredible beauty of the NW USA and socialize with everyone I meet.
My morning quiet time is a highlight and I continue to request strength, energy, and safety from injuries and crashes. It reminds me of the day to day dependence on Christ we experienced in the Philippines going from province to province and village to village playing basketball all day every day! I am enjoying this wonderful adventure with the Lord and His creation.
I have room for more prayer requests so keep them coming.
Love, Tom
Monday, June 16, 2008
Day 1, Astoria, OR to St. Helens, OR, 75 miles
My first day was great! We left Astoria, OR around 7:30 AM and I rolled into my hotel for tonight in St. Helen, OR after 3 ½ hours of riding time after 75 beautiful miles. When we started out this morning it was pretty cool… around 49 degrees! Brr. But I had my cold weather gear on in layers. Every 20 to 30 miles I peeled off another layer!
I felt great even on the two big climbs. One was a five mile climb that was much more fun coming down than going up. I was going 45 miles per hour on the last of the down slope. A guy my size can get up some speed on the down sides of the hills! I felt good tackling the hills today. I felt pumped up!
We had a couple of things happen today that were unusual. Most people are very careful of riders on the road. Some will wave at us or yell something encouraging. But today some guys went by and threw some bottles out of the windows at some of our riders. One guy got hit by one of the bottles and ended up in the ditch. Thankfully, he just had a few bruises. A driver coming along saw it all and called 911. The police came by to check on our group and said they would do what they could to find the bad guys. Turns out the policemen were bikers, too, and were upset about what had happened. Another thing that we heard about was to the most experienced rider with us. He is with America by Bicycle and was riding around 30 feet behind another rider and going 40 miles an hour downhill when that man’s windbreaker jacket, which was tucked into his back shirt pocket, came flying out. It wrapped itself around our leader’s face! Thankfully, he was able to keep control of the bike and peel the jacket off his head, too! There were a couple of flat tires and one guy’s wheel had to have some spokes replaced.
The group in charge of the ride is taking good care of us. We had a couple of stops today where they were able to refill our water bottles, give us snacks to keep up our energy, and check on our bikes. I’m starting to meet some of the other riders. I’ve met two men in the Air Force and one policeman. Jesus happened to come up twice already! In fact, I spent 30 minutes with someone after dinner tonight talking about Jesus.
I prayed through my list of names twice today. I found it was easier on the flat areas to pray because I was too tired going up the hills! I’ll have the list memorized soon.
Today we had Mt. St. Helens in our view with Mt. Hood looming large on the horizon. Tomorrow we get closer to Mt. Hood and spend the night in Welches, Or. Our miles will be about the same.
Thanks for praying. I feel inspired and appreciate your prayers and calls. I can’t get back to everyone but I love the messages!
I felt great even on the two big climbs. One was a five mile climb that was much more fun coming down than going up. I was going 45 miles per hour on the last of the down slope. A guy my size can get up some speed on the down sides of the hills! I felt good tackling the hills today. I felt pumped up!
We had a couple of things happen today that were unusual. Most people are very careful of riders on the road. Some will wave at us or yell something encouraging. But today some guys went by and threw some bottles out of the windows at some of our riders. One guy got hit by one of the bottles and ended up in the ditch. Thankfully, he just had a few bruises. A driver coming along saw it all and called 911. The police came by to check on our group and said they would do what they could to find the bad guys. Turns out the policemen were bikers, too, and were upset about what had happened. Another thing that we heard about was to the most experienced rider with us. He is with America by Bicycle and was riding around 30 feet behind another rider and going 40 miles an hour downhill when that man’s windbreaker jacket, which was tucked into his back shirt pocket, came flying out. It wrapped itself around our leader’s face! Thankfully, he was able to keep control of the bike and peel the jacket off his head, too! There were a couple of flat tires and one guy’s wheel had to have some spokes replaced.
The group in charge of the ride is taking good care of us. We had a couple of stops today where they were able to refill our water bottles, give us snacks to keep up our energy, and check on our bikes. I’m starting to meet some of the other riders. I’ve met two men in the Air Force and one policeman. Jesus happened to come up twice already! In fact, I spent 30 minutes with someone after dinner tonight talking about Jesus.
I prayed through my list of names twice today. I found it was easier on the flat areas to pray because I was too tired going up the hills! I’ll have the list memorized soon.
Today we had Mt. St. Helens in our view with Mt. Hood looming large on the horizon. Tomorrow we get closer to Mt. Hood and spend the night in Welches, Or. Our miles will be about the same.
Thanks for praying. I feel inspired and appreciate your prayers and calls. I can’t get back to everyone but I love the messages!
Day 0, Astoria, OR
Today Tom begins his ride across America! I dropped him off at his hotel yesterday afternoon where he was meeting the rest of the riders and the group leaders. He was excited and maybe a little nervous about the whole thing! But he is ready to go. He has put in lots of hard work getting ready and now it is here.
We flew to California last week to attend a 50th Wedding Anniversary party for Jerry and Arlene Hitchman. Tom also spoke at Westgate Church in San Jose. We had a great time visiting with friends. Tom continued to ride each day he could. One day he tackled the mountains between Los Gatos and Santa Cruz. He said that he was surprised because he hadn’t remembered that ride being easy before. Goes to show you how good his biking is going! He also took one nice ride with the pastor of Westgate, Steve Clifford. We also spent an afternoon in San Francisco with my brother, Don, his wife, Diane, and my two nephews, Konrad and Evan. Tom couldn’t imagine climbing some of those hills on his bike. The mountains of Santa Cruz were easier looking!
Our next stop was at Bob and Peggy Gilder’s in Corvallis, Oregon. Tom took two beautiful rides there and just had a great time. The air was cool and we had beautiful sunny days. The ride there was over rolling hills and alongside stands of huge fir trees. Mt Hood was beautiful!
Then finally on Sunday Al and Andy Egg of Portland drove us to the coast where Tom would be dropped off. We drove to the ocean and saw the famous landmark, Haystack. Then on to Astoria where the Column is. It’s a tall column you can normally walk up a spiral staircase in and see the view of the Columbia River and into the state of Washington from the top. Breathtaking views!
We dropped Tom and all his gear at the hotel in Astoria, said a few tearful farewells (me) and waved goodbye. The next time I see Tom will be when he rides into Rochester, MN! Al and Andy took me back to Portland where I caught an afternoon flight to Oklahoma City. The route we followed back was exactly where Tom will be riding today. It follows the Columbia River all day just about. Parts are quite hilly with lots of trees on both sides of the road. At one point the road opens up and you see Mt. St. Helens just in front of you and just to the side is Mt. Hood, both still snow covered.
Thank you so much for praying for Tom! Pray for the whole group while you are at it, ok? Pray for strength to make each day’s ride, for alertness on the road, for the new friends he will make, and for his safety. He is praying for you. He has around 80 3 x 5 cards hooked together with information about you that he will carry each day so he can be reminded to pray for you and your family.
Karen, for Tom
We flew to California last week to attend a 50th Wedding Anniversary party for Jerry and Arlene Hitchman. Tom also spoke at Westgate Church in San Jose. We had a great time visiting with friends. Tom continued to ride each day he could. One day he tackled the mountains between Los Gatos and Santa Cruz. He said that he was surprised because he hadn’t remembered that ride being easy before. Goes to show you how good his biking is going! He also took one nice ride with the pastor of Westgate, Steve Clifford. We also spent an afternoon in San Francisco with my brother, Don, his wife, Diane, and my two nephews, Konrad and Evan. Tom couldn’t imagine climbing some of those hills on his bike. The mountains of Santa Cruz were easier looking!
Our next stop was at Bob and Peggy Gilder’s in Corvallis, Oregon. Tom took two beautiful rides there and just had a great time. The air was cool and we had beautiful sunny days. The ride there was over rolling hills and alongside stands of huge fir trees. Mt Hood was beautiful!
Then finally on Sunday Al and Andy Egg of Portland drove us to the coast where Tom would be dropped off. We drove to the ocean and saw the famous landmark, Haystack. Then on to Astoria where the Column is. It’s a tall column you can normally walk up a spiral staircase in and see the view of the Columbia River and into the state of Washington from the top. Breathtaking views!
We dropped Tom and all his gear at the hotel in Astoria, said a few tearful farewells (me) and waved goodbye. The next time I see Tom will be when he rides into Rochester, MN! Al and Andy took me back to Portland where I caught an afternoon flight to Oklahoma City. The route we followed back was exactly where Tom will be riding today. It follows the Columbia River all day just about. Parts are quite hilly with lots of trees on both sides of the road. At one point the road opens up and you see Mt. St. Helens just in front of you and just to the side is Mt. Hood, both still snow covered.
Thank you so much for praying for Tom! Pray for the whole group while you are at it, ok? Pray for strength to make each day’s ride, for alertness on the road, for the new friends he will make, and for his safety. He is praying for you. He has around 80 3 x 5 cards hooked together with information about you that he will carry each day so he can be reminded to pray for you and your family.
Karen, for Tom
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Tom, Jeanette, and Tracy in their new Bike4Kids jerseys designed by Kevin Larson.
What are the odds that on my last group ride with 70 riders on Tuesday evening I would be wheel to wheel with the one bike that suddenly cracks a frame and the derailer and skewer snaps?
The accident mangled both Art’s bike and my bike but incredibly both of us were unhurt! I sat in the ditch and said a prayer of thankfulness!
One fall so close to the Ride Across America and I could be a scratch. The bike is repairable, just like the car was repairable in our recent car wreck.
The accident mangled both Art’s bike and my bike but incredibly both of us were unhurt! I sat in the ditch and said a prayer of thankfulness!
One fall so close to the Ride Across America and I could be a scratch. The bike is repairable, just like the car was repairable in our recent car wreck.
Since Christmas I have logged 4,334 miles in 240 hours of riding in preparation for the June 16th start. I thank God for His protection and encouragement during each mile and hour.
“I publicly praise the Lord for keeping me from slipping and falling.” Psalm 26:12
“I publicly praise the Lord for keeping me from slipping and falling.” Psalm 26:12
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Tracey tells about Sunday's ride!
Wow, what a site! On my way to work this morning at 5:00 AM I saw a full moon in the southwest, a storm rolling and bubbling in from the northwest, and the sun trying to push its first rays of the day through from the east. A little reminder of the pure power of nature and how things can change in an instant.
Sunday was a great day for a ride. Sunny, light wind from the NW and a group of six riders all experienced and seasoned in the ways of the road. At this stage of the America by Bike event we cannot let Tom have any kind of incident. His body will simply not take it. In the pack were Tom, Donnie, James, Sey, Jeanette, and myself.
We started out headed NW traveling through Cashion and then on to Kingfisher where we took a break at the Love's Country Store. We all consumed some energy food and drink (no pizza or Cherry Coke) before hitting the road again. After being on the road for a short mile our energized leader, Tom, discovered he had forgotten to go to the bathroom so off the road again to McDonald's for another short break. Brought back memories of traveling to grandma's house in a car with young kids in the back seat. When are we going to get there? I have to go to the bathroom! Yada, yada, yada!
On the road again we headed for Okarche with the wind at our backs. James immediately jumped out front to push the pace and Sey quickly responded by pulling us all up to the front where James was consumed by the peleton and spit out the back. Once in Okarche we turned back east and spun past the world famous Eischen's Chicken House as fast as possible. The smell of greasy fried chicken and beer may have been too much temptation for some of us to handle. Once that obstacle was overcome then it was on to Rosies's Convenience Store in Deer Creek where we paused to take care of James' case of HOT foot. Back on the road again with just six miles to go.
What is it about the last mile with the last hill that makes cyclists moan and groan? You would think we were climbing Pikes' Peak or something. Thanks to Jeanette who took the lead and pulled us that entire last mile or we may still be sitting at Western and Covell Rds. Back to the house where my wonderful wife, Lynn, had shown up and made post ride stawberry smoothies and burgers. What a ride! 75 miles. Great weather and great friends. What more could you ask for on a Sunday afternoon?
Sunday was a great day for a ride. Sunny, light wind from the NW and a group of six riders all experienced and seasoned in the ways of the road. At this stage of the America by Bike event we cannot let Tom have any kind of incident. His body will simply not take it. In the pack were Tom, Donnie, James, Sey, Jeanette, and myself.
We started out headed NW traveling through Cashion and then on to Kingfisher where we took a break at the Love's Country Store. We all consumed some energy food and drink (no pizza or Cherry Coke) before hitting the road again. After being on the road for a short mile our energized leader, Tom, discovered he had forgotten to go to the bathroom so off the road again to McDonald's for another short break. Brought back memories of traveling to grandma's house in a car with young kids in the back seat. When are we going to get there? I have to go to the bathroom! Yada, yada, yada!
On the road again we headed for Okarche with the wind at our backs. James immediately jumped out front to push the pace and Sey quickly responded by pulling us all up to the front where James was consumed by the peleton and spit out the back. Once in Okarche we turned back east and spun past the world famous Eischen's Chicken House as fast as possible. The smell of greasy fried chicken and beer may have been too much temptation for some of us to handle. Once that obstacle was overcome then it was on to Rosies's Convenience Store in Deer Creek where we paused to take care of James' case of HOT foot. Back on the road again with just six miles to go.
What is it about the last mile with the last hill that makes cyclists moan and groan? You would think we were climbing Pikes' Peak or something. Thanks to Jeanette who took the lead and pulled us that entire last mile or we may still be sitting at Western and Covell Rds. Back to the house where my wonderful wife, Lynn, had shown up and made post ride stawberry smoothies and burgers. What a ride! 75 miles. Great weather and great friends. What more could you ask for on a Sunday afternoon?
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
This is a picture of Tracy and me before our 100 mile ride from Edmond to Blackwell, OK on Saturday. Nobody wants to see the pictures of us after the 100 mile ride to Blackwell!
Tracy is more serious and quiet... sometimes riding 30 miles before talking. Tom, who can't let 30 seconds pass before talking says, "That's okay. I'll do all the talking, Tracy. You just have to listen!"
Training for a cross country ride is similar to the Christian life. Your train and prepare yourself physically to accomplish the goal of finishing the distance. We train ourselves spiritually to persevere through difficulties and prepare for the next opportunity to serve Christ.
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