Day -114 (Feb 20, 1999)
I finally called the local ALA office, to introduce myself and find out if there are any other Big Riders from Kern County. I spoke with Sharon Borradori and she was extremely friendly and helpful. There were two Kern County Big Riders last year, in the 1998 Big Ride sponsored by GTE. Neither of them, however, were from Bakersfield. She said that she would see if there were any people planning on participate this year (there weren't).
Sharon mentioned that the
local American Lung Association puts on an annual 3-day bike ride along the
central California coast, during May. Because of my commitment to the Big Ride, she said that they might be able to waive the $350 pledge minimum for this local ride. She is sending over a packet of information about their "Big Ride". (I'll refer to this coastal charity ride as the "Little Big Ride", to avoid confusion with the real Big Ride!) Apparently, this local ride is really more of a boondongle and made up of riders with a huge variety of cycling ability. (I later found out that Joni, who lives a few houses down the street from me, has been going on these rides for the past several years. She never rides a bike, except to train for this ride, and doesn't even do that diligently). I wonder if my girlfriend, Pat, would be interested in going? Sounds like this ride might be right up her alley. It would be a great way for her to be involved with my cycling, without having to spend an entire spring, training, or an entire summer, cycling.
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