Rosa and Leslie, I read your blogs last night and was so touched! I only got around to replying this morning considering I was trying to get into bed as early as possible last night having to be up at 5 AM this morning to train for the RIDE! It’s definitely crunch time now!!! With a little bit over 2 weeks left before the Ride, I will be training every Thursday morning for an hour at my gym, with a trainer (yes, trainers also get trained by trainers hehe) and I will be running, biking and doing everyyyything possible to get my stamina up a notch and into shape!! Last week, I was jolted into reality – my legs felt like jello, my lungs were on fire, it hurt to breathe the next day – I thought to myself, “Girl, you gotta get your act together!!!” With a very busy schedule, it’s been hard to train as intensely as I’ve wanted but I have finally worked out a schedule. The morning is the best time for me to train because not only does it PUMP UP THE JAM for the rest of the day, but it also doesn’t get in the way of my busy schedule after work hours.

Anyways enough about me. Rosa, you are a sweetheart! Thank you for being so supportive and encouraging! Our little talk in the cafeteria is close to me and I will always remember your motivating words and spirit. I know for sure you will be with us in spirit, I have no doubts! Just keep doing what you’re doing – keep shining your rays of hope on us and we will flourish, I believe it!

Leslie, thank you for your beautiful blog. You won’t believe how encouraging it was to me to read your words and I am so happy you would like to be part of our fundraising event. I really look forward to meeting you! I love how we have the opportunity to connect like this through the blog. Cancer is devastating but like you said, “cancer can actually shine a light on living!” It’s the choice we decide to make – do we let the devastating effects of cancer dampen our spirits? Or do we stand up to this injustice by trying our best to make a difference? I can see that all of us in this blog have made the choice! And I am honoured to be amongst people like you!

Don’t worry for those of you who can’t participate in the actual Ride. What you don’t realize is that you *will* be with us on the Ride, riding alongside us in spirit with your words echoing in our ears giving us the strength to continue pedaling on. You can and already have helped us in so many other ways! I’m looking forward to seeing all you ladies at the UBU Oh la la Boutique! It shall be a fun event and it’ll be up to us to make it a “talk of the town event” as Tara says!

Gosh you guys when I was in my early 20’s(apparently I was, there are rumours to that effect) I remember biking up a very long hill and getting my shoelace caught in the spokes….and the rest, well let’s just say I will be fund raising in an alternative form from the biking.

What strikes me is how cancer can actually shine a light on living! the stories about us and our loved ones are about the connections we embrace. Makes us hug longer, love broader and feel deeper.

Tara, Lynda and I were recently and very graciously escorted out of a restaurant. We were so DEEP in laughter and in the moment time had left the building. We spilled out onto the sidewalk in giggles(enthusiasm not glam-tini induced) and were still engrossed in conversation. The restaurant owner, a charming man, came outside and laughed with us as he suggested we could just keep chatting till he re-opened the next day.

And that is what it is isn’t it? As Tara says really being in the In Between in life-really being here now. So as much as I love planning for the event I also look forward to being in the moment when we all meet.

If however any one asks me to ride a bike, I only wear high heels-no collateral shoelace damage that way!

Your posting is a tribute to all that feel the challenge, excitement, hesitation and power when it comes to taking on a commitment of such grandeur. Now, please I am going to be with you in spirit and in heart only-why? Because the bike pedals have not seen these feet in a very long time. So my support will be in the form of helping you raise enough dollars, raising awareness to your cause and to continue to applaud you.
Shannon, you know I love you for this -you are a trooper and a spot of sunshine to me everyday.

Farhad, do not be afraid of all the words you have written…it is very refreshing and interesting to have your point of view on this blog. In case you haven’t noticed I tend to blog on and on as well. It is fun – remember a five paragraph comment is like having a face to face 2 minute conversation without interruptions. So continue with your stories and your writing because we are all reading.

Once again, I’ll try to put in some male insight on this blog . I want to begin by saying WOW! It is absolutely wonderful to see that people out there are so passionate and caring about this cause. All of your support, your stories and your enthusiasm is so inspiring. Thank you all sincerely for your motivation. Tara, hats off to you and UBU for hosting

Tara, thank you for giving us the opportunity to introduce ourselves. We have formed as a team sometime around late October. Ashshita and I are childhood friends and hence have known each other practically for ever. Shannon and I met through Ashshita early last year. I had participated in the ride last year and I must say that it was one of the most memorable experiences of my life. When I asked Ashshita to take part in the event with me this year to experience the thrill, not only was she excited herself, she felt that Shannon would also be interested in taking part. When she asked Shannon, her excitement was unprecedented. Thereafter, we soon collaborated and started planning various events for our fundraising efforts.

As a bonus, not only did I get two wonderful teammates who have vividly demonstrated the magnitude of Strength in Numbers, I also got a chance to get close to two of my very dear friends. Hence my participation in this event has already given me much more then I ever expected. And I would definitely recommend that all of you somehow

In terms of training, we really have not been able to focus much on our training due to time limitations, but now as the whether is getting better we definitely will be increasing our training efforts. We will soon be hosting many training rides open to everyone and riders of all categories. All of you are more then welcome to join. Please feel free to inquire about the training rides with either Shannon, Ashshita or myself.

In terms of hobbies and self interests I love playing sports. Basketball is one my biggest passions in life. I also love tennis, football, and pretty much all other sports. Oh yeah, not to be mention biking. I’m also working towards acquiring my flying license, so that is also an exhilarating experience.

If you have just read through all of that information above, thank you for taking interest in our stories, please blink a few times to give your eyes some rest. Apparently when I start writing, I go on forever and end up writing a story book……………

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Ok good, thats enough resting. Now please provide your feedback as I will be looking forward to hearing from you. Thank you in advance…

As you may have already noticed, Tara has put up my personal blog on the main page, called “Shannon’s Blog”. I would like to invite you to take a few minutes to read it. I’d be delighted if any of you would like to add your stories to my blog and share your life experiences.

Tara, thanks for taking the initiative to learn more about our team!

I know Ashshita from university and met Farhad through her. Last summer when we were roaming around downtown, we saw an ad for the Ride to Conquer Cancer. At that time, my coworker was going through treatment and things were looking grim. When they suggested that we do the Ride to Conquer Cancer, I felt like it was a chance for me to embrace life and make a difference. So I agreed to it. We all enjoy doing outdoor activities and we thought why not invest our energy into outdoor fun for a great cause! Ashshita has always been a very enthusiastic and lively person – I was excited to do the Ride to Conquer Cancer with her because I knew that she would be a great partner. Over the last few months, I have gotten to know Farhad better and he’s also a super enthusiastic person who always has great ideas and is willing to take the time and make the effort to make things happen! I believe that all three of us have lots of enthusiasm and together, we complement each other and make a great team!

Training for this event is imperative…the first biking fundraising event that I have ever done was last June for the National Kids Cancer Ride. I road 25 km and that too, through a hilly terrain. A small group of the riders were “trans-Canada” riders…meaning that they rode all the way across Canada from Vancouver to Halifax…in 19 days! It was exhilarating and an honour to ride my bike alongside these warriors and I thought…25 km should be NOTHING! However, even that was a challenge!! Keeping that in mind, I realize that training for this ride will be MUCH more intense. I will be running, biking and training with a personal trainer in order to get into gear and get into shape! As a team, we will be hosting training rides…if any of you ladies enjoy biking, you are more than welcome to join us! We are eager to take advantage of the spring weather and get our training on the go!!

My hobbies and interests are doing outdoor activities such as horseback riding, biking, canoeing, hiking, skiing and running. I also enjoy personal training, mostly because it’s rewarding to see my clients achieve their goals! I also really enjoy kickboxing – nothing better than having every muscle in your body aching the next day, especially ones you didn’t know even existed! I love listening to music (way to go Tara for adding soundtracks to the blog!), shopping for shoes! and clothes, watching movies whether it’s in the theater or snuggling up on the couch with a big blanky, watching theatricals, and spending quality time with my family and friends. When I have the time to just sit down and relax, I enjoy playing the piano, reading or even writing. I absolutely love getting together with an old-time friend and catching up over coffee or dessert. I am an energetic person and am always finding ways to fill my time.

I hope you enjoyed reading this. I would be interested to learn more about you ladies so please blog away!

I thought it might be nice if we all learned a bit more about you and your team mates.

How do you know each other?

How and what are you doing to train for this event?

Do you train together or individually?

What are your interests and hobbies?

Have you done much travelling?

We’d love to learn more .