Tuesday, June 30, 2009

$50,000+!!!

We've exceeded $50,000 ... and the donations are still coming in!

Great work, everyone, and thank you to all of our donors!

First Official Vehicle

Randy's truck tonight became the first official Wheels North vehicle.

Monday, June 29, 2009

Donations Keep Adding Up!

We passed $45,000 in fundraising over the weekend ... and kept on going! (Warren Jones' brother put us over $45K)

Great work, everyone!

P.S. For a reminder about why we are raising funds, scroll down to the post about Kim Hanlin's grandson, Tucker.

Sunday, June 28, 2009

New Routes Posted

Updates for three days of riding have been posted to the Wheels North web site today:
  • July 4, Winters to Santa Rosa, now has a new route for the first few miles to get us safely past the congested parts of downtown Santa Rosa. The big climbs over the Mayacama mountains are still there.
  • July 11, Roseburg to Eugene, has been shortened by about 10 miles, and lost a bit of climbing.
  • July 12, Eugene to Salem, is now about 10 miles longer and includes a nice, steep climb at mile 90. However, it also now includes a trip on the Buena Vista Ferry over the Willamette River, allowing us to recreate that part of the trip as well.
Links to detailed information on each day's riding is available on the Route page at www.wheelsnorth.org

Memories of Tucker

One of our volunteers, Kim Hanlin, lost a grandchild, Tucker, to Histiocytosis. She has shared a video memory book with us. See it here.

Helping save the lives of children like Tucker is why we ride.

Saturday, June 27, 2009

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Wheels North Jerseys

Our jerseys are starting to appear on the roadways of California. Here's one on the back of Wheels North rider Willie Myers. The design features a photo of the 1909 riders moments before they started their epic journey, and serves as a reminder of the history we are recreating with our ride.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Jerseys are here!

Our shipment of Wheels North jerseys arrived today! Groovy Boy, one of our ride mascots, models it for us (don't worry, the riders' jerseys are full-sized).

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

72-year-old Rider Reports from the Road

Wheels North is being preceded by about a month by 72-year-old Bill Harris, a cyclist from Windsor, CA, who is also retracing Vic and Ray's route. Here's his latest report from the road.

Wheels North wishes well to Bill--tailwinds and smooth roads!

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Todays Historical Ride

We were riding today and stopped at the Point Cabrillo lighthouse, where the assistant lighthouse keeper's residence was first occupied in ... 1909.

See the video here.

New Route for Day 3 to Weaverville

The route to Weaverville has been changed slightly to take us up Wildwood Road. Steve S. suggested this route, which is about ten miles shorter and saves 1,000 feet of climbing. Here's the new route info: http://www.bikeroutetoaster.com/Course.aspx?course=57787

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Friday, June 12, 2009

Fundraising Update

The Wheels North riders are on track to raise $50,000 for Histiocytosis research! Our fundraising total is approach $38,000, with three weeks left to go before the start of the ride.

If you'd like to sponsor a rider (or just donate to the Histio Association), go HERE.

Thank you to everyone who has donated so far! Your generosity is making Wheels North possible and helping find a cure for Histiocytosis.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Santa Rosa Cycling Club

Thank you to everyone at the Santa Rosa Cycling Club for listening to our presentation on Wheels North last night! We look forward to meeting SRCC members in downtown Santa Rosa when we start the ride on July 4. (Corner of 4th and B at 9 am).

Preview of Day One

The first part of Day One will be challenging. Check out our video preview of the course. Got gears?

Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Another Commemorative Ride

The Santa Rosa Press Democrat ran a story about 72-year-old Bill Harrison, who set out from Santa Rosa on Saturday to follow Vic and Ray's ride to Seattle. (Wheels North is mentioned toward the end of the article.)

We wish Bill well. Perhaps we'll meet him in Washington!

Thursday, June 04, 2009

Welcome in Washington

We confirmed today that a representative of Washington Governor Christine Gregoire will be on hand to welcome the Wheels North riders when we arrive at Drumheller Fountain on July 16th. Laura Lockard, Deputy Communications Director, said the Governor is very supportive of our event.

Wheels North thanks the Governor for her efforts to help make our event a success.

One Month to Go!

We start riding in one month from today!

Monday, June 01, 2009

Fundraising Update

The total for online fundraising went over $35,000 today. Great work, everyone!