American Heart Association blog

The AHA just put a link up to this blog on their main web page:  http://blog.heart.org/stories-from-the-heart-tech-execs-response-to-devastating-stroke-a-cross-country-fundraising-bike-ride/

It's very well done and I actually learned a bit more about Sean's ordeal after reading it.

I feel more motivated than  ever to join him on this adventure despite feeling overwhelmed with all the stuff that needs to happen between now and March 22 to make this a success!

Cheers, Dave

Why I'm riding...

I think this short video explains why I'm joining Sean on his 5,000 mile quest to help prevent stroke and heart failure.

If you would consider helping me help Sean, check out my fundraising page:

http://www.heartacrossamerica.kintera.org/davidfisch

Hard to Cross America

Too funny. We had to modify our route slightly today upon discovering that the only hotel in Aguila, AZ is booked solid with migrant workers for the next 3 months!

So we found a place in Salome, AZ and the only downside is a 110 mile ride the next day to reach Phoenix.

But the funny part is the confirmation we received from the hotel shows our ride as "Hard to Cross America" , not "Heart Across America".

Maybe we should rename the ride!

Dave

Recovery day

Really feeling yesterday's ride. Time for a day of no riding despite the great weather!

Big day for all of us. Hard to believe it was February. Winters in California are not too bad.

We got a bit of a late start as Sean took a few wrong turns and added some miles to his route. But all was well. We made it to the summit and got some photos with #getthescan and #ridewithSean displayed proudly. 

The descent was perfect and Olympian George Mount coached Sean giving him great descending tips. 

For me, it felt great. 102 mile out and back with enough climbing to write home about. Legs felt good and I was able to keep it challenging for  young buck Bumha and his brand new BMC bike!

Ken joins Sean!

Here's Sean

John hamming it up with Sean

Sean and me

Bumha

George

All of us

Getting ready for the ride..

It’s hard to believe the ride starts in 5 weeks!

We are still working on the base miles but with work it’s hard to get more than 300 miles a week. Tomorrow we will be riding up Mount Hamilton and hopefully we will have a good group of riders join us. For me, it will be a 100 mile out and back ride with over 9,000 feet of climbing. That will wake me up!

Looking at my bike though this morning I realized I am focused too much on riding and not enough on the condition of my bike. All these miles have taken a toll on my bike so despite having a warm sunny day, I spent most of it replacing brakes, shift cables, cable housing, my chain, and rear cassette and gently straightening my rear derailleur hanger…What a day! Now   I’ve got a good pile of stuff ready for recycling!

 But my bike is looking and riding much better, so it was worth it.  Even had time for a quick 20 mile spin.

So it looks like both the bike and I are  ready for tomorrow’s ride!

Cheers, Dave

Finally figured out how to create Google Earth views of the route. Fascinating but scary to zoom in on some of the paths.

route

The Route

Here's a snapshot of the route we are planning to take. I expect there will still be changes but hopefully nothing too major. Each colored segment represents the route covered in any given day:

Getting Started

After some encouragement from friends and family, I've decided to start a blog and chronicle my experience supporting Sean Maloney, a stroke survivor and former senior executive at Intel, as he and I ride 5,000 miles around and across the USA.

This is going to be quite the adventure. For me it's been much more than  working with Sean as we both physically and mentally  train for the back to back grueling rides. Managing logistics, planning the route, making packing lists,  trying to find accommodations  at convenient spots, handling schedule changes, and trying to get a jersey and vest design for the ride have been all consuming. But also rewarding.

I know that the more effort we put into the planning, the better off we will be. But hoping for a breather soon!

Here's are some shots  from an early morning ride with fellow commuters. My 30 mile one way commute to work has proven to be a great way to get in some base miles!

Wednesday morning's commute added one new 'rider':

Coming up on Sunday, Sean and I along with hopefully many supporters will be riding up Mount Hamilton in San Jose.  Here's a link to the route: Hamilton out and back



Cheers, Dave