MS 150 Report

Dear Friends and Family:
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It was Saturday morning at 5:30AM when I arrived at Tully Stadium, the sta=
rt=20
for the MS 150.? The weather was the warmest of any of the 3 previous MS=
=20
150=01,s I road.? By 6:30AM, 9,000+ riders were lined up looking forward t=
o our=20
100-mile journey for the day.? This year there was a lot of press coverage=
=20
as the ride was dedicated to Maxine Mesinger.? Maxine, a long time sufferer=
=20
of MS, and society columnist for the Houston Chronicle, died this past yea=
r=20
of complications from MS.? British Petroleum had 580 riders edging out=20
Enron as the first corporate team to go out.? Enron had the second start =
=20
with 450 riders and I was among one of the first people out along with the=
=20
other Enron top fundraisers including Jeff Skilling, CEO of Enron and two=
=20
riders with MS.? Enron was the top fundraising team from the 2000 MS 150.=
? =20
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The cannon went off and I kicked into high gear.? I flew with the fastest=
=20
riders and after about=20
a mile I could not keep up with them.? I was able=20
to maintain a speed of 22 miles an hour, crossing the Katy prairie while t=
he=20
race teams that started behind us were passing me.? My first stop was bre=
ak=20
point three, 39 miles into the ride, and 1 hour and 45 minutes later.? The=
=20
weather was already feeling hot and humid.? I replenished my water supply=
=20
and continued the next 15 miles to lunch.? It was hilly but we still had a=
=20
tail wind.? I arrived at lunch at 10AM in Bellville, TX, 55 miles from th=
e=20
start.? I found the Enron lunch spot with our catered lunch.?=20
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After a quick lunch I headed up to Industry, TX, population 475, which doe=
s=20
not appreciate 9,000+ riders going though their small town.? You need to=
=20
make sure you stop at the one stop sign in town or you will get a ticket.?=
=20
Luckily there was a police officer directing traffic, as there was at almo=
st=20
all intersections along the route of country roads.? I made my third stop =
=20
of the day in Industry at breakpoint five, where I had to stretch.?? The=20
hills were getting harder and the tail wind was now a crosswind.? Coming =
up=20
on breakpoint seven 90 miles on route, a truck and crosswind almost blew t=
he=20
bikes off the road.? The sign said it was now 7.6 miles to the finish of t=
he=20
day.? The next 7.6 miles were fine, but it was an additional 3 miles to th=
e=20
finish with hills and a strong head wind
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Last year I upgraded to a new bike with a triple.? I was able to keep a sl=
ow=20
but steady pace up the hills by getting into the granny gear.? I arrived i=
n=20
La Grange, TX at 2:20PM, 7 hours and 20 minutes later to many cheering=20
supporters.?? I was done for Day 1!
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I headed over to the Enron tent, the largest tent in La Grange.? After=20
checking in, I gulped two large bottles of ice water, and signed-in for a=
=20
massage.? Enron had 30 massage therapists working to sooth the tired and=
=20
weary riders.? After my massage I felt totally relaxed.? Ilene found me in=
=20
the Enron tent having a beer.? It took Ilene about an hour to find me sin=
ce=20
our cell phones did not work well in La Grange due to limited cell=20
capacity.? Every year Enron has a large barbeque in the Enron tent and thi=
s=20
year the food was even better.? While in the tent I was talking to some =20
other Enron riders and I learned that some came in as early as 10:45AM!
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The next morning at 4:45AM, it was time to get up.? Ilene and I arrived at=
=20
the fairgrounds at 5:30AM.? I headed over to hydration station to refill =
my=20
water bottles and stretched before the 7:00AM start.? I was one of the fir=
st=20
50 people in line.? At exactly 7AM, we were let out; normally we are=20
delayed for fog.? It was warmer than the day before and we had more hills=
=20
ahead of us.
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The first 20 miles were relatively uneventful except I was able to carry o=
n=20
20-minute conversation with Jeff Skilling, CEO of Enron.? Then came the=
=20
downhill where you can reach speeds over 40 mph without trying, the park i=
s=20
now only 3 miles away.? The park has a very hilly, curvy, and dangerous=20
route lasting 10 miles.? I stopped right inside the park to refill water=
=20
and get some snacks.? I was really glad that I had the new bike with the=
=20
triple, as I was able to get up hills with little effort while others were=
=20
struggling or walking their bikes.? That was until killer hill, which I d=
id=20
not remember being too difficult.? After the downhill there was the uphill=
.?=20
I tried to shift into that wonderful granny gear but it was too late.? I=
=20
noticed the pedaling was extremely easy and I was slowing almost to a stop=
.?=20
I looked down at my chain and it jumped off the gear.? I yelled =01&oh no=
!=018? I=20
was able to get my foot out and prevent myself from falling.? The hill I=
=20
fell on years past was easy.? I headed out of the park to lunch at the =20
50-mile point, it was 10AM.? When I pulled into lunch I saw Ilene who was=
=20
working the lunch, she was very happy to see me and I was happy to see her=
.?=20
I took a short break and headed out to Austin.
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After lunch, the cloud cover was gone and it was hot.? I stopped twice in=
=20
the remaining 35 miles for water.? The last 15 miles were into the wind or=
=20
with a very strong cross wind.? At approximately 12:30PM, five hours and=
=20
thirty minutes later, I pulled into the finish line with many supporters=
=20
cheering the riders on.? I saw Ilene several minutes after I arrived.? I w=
as=20
elated that I completed the 175-mile ride from Houston to Austin for the 4=
th=20
time and now I was ready for a beer or two and some lunch.
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This year=01,s ride was magnificent!?? It was a real pleasure to see seve=
ral=20
people with MS ride the bike tour.? The law enforcement personnel directing=
=20
traffic was helpful as they kept safe and us moving.? The support staff and=
=20
volunteers that provided water and food at breakpoints and lunch were=20
awesome.? Not to mention Ilene supporting me all the way to Austin!? I wou=
ld=20
also like to thank my donors that have helped me raise over $21,000 for MS=
=20
and I am still counting.? I would like to see this number reach $30,000=
=20
towards a cure for MS.=20
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If you still would like your contribution to help send a check by May 11 i=
t=20
should be made out to the National MS Society and sent to the address belo=
w=20
or drop it by 2604A in the Enron building.
?
John Norden
4459 Castle Ct Pl
Houston, TX? 77006
(713) 853-3240

Thanks again for your support!

John Norden