Back in the Saddle
A Story About The 1999 PMC
August 14, 1999
As is often the case, in order to accurately describe this PMC
weekend, we must go back to the previous year. After all, 1998 was
the year of the
Big Crash, which resulted in a major
hip fracture. Although I didn't ride in
the 1998 PMC, I did participate
in the event, and I raised $7000. After returning from the 1998 PMC,
I began the long road back to cycling. At first, I just worked on the
trainer. In early September, I moved up to circling an empty parking
lot for a half hour a day. I slowly worked up to normal rides. The
first road ride was to repeat (and complete) the crash ride. After
successfully completing the infamous left turn from Robleda onto
Purissima, I stopped and stared at the intersection for some time. It
had been 7 months since the crash.
In early May of this year, I tackled my first century, the
Wine Country Century. In
retrospect, I might not have been quite ready. Three days later, I
did a 40 mile ride in the hills near home with long-time friend and
cycling buddy Chris Spear. The next day, I realized I had all the
symptoms of overtraining. After a full week off the bike, I restarted
training with shorter rides. I had about 10 weeks to get ready for
the PMC.
By July, things were starting to line up. I watched every stage of
the Tour de France. How about that Lance Armstrong?! Less than three
years after being diagnosed with cancer, there he was on the podium,
winner of Le Tour. What a comeback. Wow. While Lance was tearing up
the tour, I was doing longer rides - several big climbs, as well as
the Tour Du Jour, an organized century, two weeks before the PMC.
Coincidentally, Chris was once again visiting California three days
after this century. We did my home loop to Big Basin Redwoods State
Park and back, and this time, I felt strong. We had some good laughs
during the final climb, as I did my best impersonation of Phil Liggett
(Tour de France commentator) while we sprinted for the finish. A
great recovery ride followed the next day, and I was ready to tackle
the PMC.
A Tour of Dana Farber
For a long time, I've wanted to tour DFCI to see up-close the purpose
of the PMC. This year, I organized such a tour. Chris, John
Kowaleski, my wife Beth, and I spent Friday morning at DFCI. We
started in the Jimmy Fund gallery, where the 50 year history of the
Jimmy Fund is captured. Next stop was the Jimmy Fund clinic, which
treats children up through teenagers.
Lisa,the fun lady (that is, the activities coordinator), took
us through the facility giving detailed descriptions of a "typical"
day for a patient. The clinic faces the new Smith research building.
Lisa told us about the kindness of the construction workers who built
it. Kids like big construction (I know I sure did - still do). So,
each day, the kids would line the windows, watching the workers
progress. These guys couldn't help but notice their audience. They
decided to do something really special. They got the names of the
kids at the clinic, and spray-painted each name on a beam which was
forming the future research building. Can you think of a more
appropriate gesture?
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| Chris, John, Andy, and Beth on the PMC Bridge |
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| Chris, John, and Andy at the Bridge Collage |
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| The Bridge |
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The PMC Bridge to Progress
The clinic is connected to the Smith building via the PMC Bridge to
Progress, dedicated in 1997. This was our next stop. All of these photos
are from the bridge.
There are a
number of displays and photos which take the PMC from its humble
beginnings in 1980 to the present. This was the first time any of us
had seen the bridge. In the Smith building, we toured one floor of
labs, seeing many researchers at work.
The morning was somewhat overwhelming,
but it was a great tour, and I'm glad we finally made the time to do it.
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Ready, Set, ...
Chris, John, Jon Gordon and I met at Chris' on Fridy afternoon. As
usual, we were driving to Sturbridge in John's car, with the bikes on
the back. Four different bikes, four different pedal systems to
remove, and no pedal wrench. It was quite a scene, but we did manage
to get all of the pedals removed, and the bikes loaded up. We picked
up John's friend Walter, who would be driving the Volvo up to
Provincetown Sunday to pick up everyone but me.
As the PMC grows, the frenzy at the Sturbridge Host grows with it. We
arrived early this year - 5:30. It was clearly more crowded than last
year.
Throughout check-in and dinner, there were reunions right and left.
The Brightman's were there, as well as Barb Asketh; Harvey Jones from
California; Jon Denekamp, with whom I've ridden in previous PMC's. I
also met Charlie Larson, the all-time biggest fund-raiser for the PMC,
also a Californian.
At the opening ceremonies, we found out how much the PMC had grown.
More than 2500 riders were scheduled to start at the various start
points. More than 800 women. More than 800 first year riders. More
than 1700 volunteers. And an important piece of news was that we had
a "title" sponsor this year -
MFS Investment Management. With their help, the
PMC will be able to pass upwards of 95% of every dollar raised
on to the Jimmy Fund. The CEO of MFS addressed the crowd, pledging
his support for the PMC. He has a personal stake in what we do - his
wife is in her second battle with cancer. It was a very moving
presentation. In their first year as title sponsor, MFS fielded a
team of 29 riders.
New England Cable News has covered the PMC for many years. This year,
they went a step further, producing a number of excellent spots (some
30 seconds, some 2 minute features). We don't get NECN in California,
so this was the first time I'd seen the spots. They were great.
After their presentation, there were two
guest speakers:
Larry Lucchino, President of the San Diego Padres, and John Cullen,
who plays for the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning. Both told of how they
were treated at the Dana-Farber as adults, and how they would not be here
today if it were not for the excellent doctors and facilities at DFCI,
made possible in part by the PMC.
I bridged many small gaps with Sam, a rider who finished with me in
1995. Sam is pictured here, on a slight incline on
route 20, barely 5 miles into the ride. I took the picture (folks, don't try this at home!).
Anyway, I realized that in order to catch the lead group, I'd be
exhausted. I gave up, and just cruised with this bunch, including
Chris, averaging 21 through the first 20 miles.
As we passed the
Charlton Police station, we heard the familar sound of bagpipes. This
is a PMC landmark - the bagpiper at dawn.
At around 35 miles, we were in a large group of 20 to 30 riders, and
the line split, with Chris in the front half, and me off the back.
Suddenly, I heard someone shout "NO, it's a RIGHT turn." The last
five of us stopped and made the turn - the rest, including Chris,
were lost. At the 40 mile stop, I was still averaging 21. I nearly
fell over dismounting; I took this as a sign that I should back off a
little. I waited for about 5 minutes to see if Chris would show, but
never saw him again until the finish.
Never a Dull Moment
I was nearing the 65 mile stop in a tight single paceline on a
narrow two lane road (which describes about 80% of the roads of the
PMC). We were being followed by Joe Minivan, who finally decided to
pass. He was barely outpacing us, and was certainly not fast enough
to clear the paceline before a car showed up in the oncoming lane.
Uh oh. He decided to squeeze right. Right next to me. Closer,
closer, closer,
TOO CLOSE!! Yes, I was run off the road. Into someone's
driveway, onto their front lawn, and for good measure, through a
little sand. Somehow, I managed to keep it upright, drawing
congratulatory comments like "Nice recovery!" from the others in the
paceline as I caught up. Yeah.
Mr. Goodwrench - Ode to the PMC mechanics
I pulled into the 65 mile "lunch" stop at around 9AM.
I searched briefly for Chris, then headed out before the pack, knowing
they would eventually catch, which they did. After a brief stop at
traffic light at about 75 miles, I couldn't clip back into the left
pedal. Usually, this is just because of some debris in the cleat.
I pulled into 76 mile stop, and unfortunately, it was clear that the
cleat was broken. Half of it, anyway. The mechanics who volunteer at
the PMC are great, but they're not quite a rolling bike shop. Not
surprising, they did not have Speedplay X cleats in stock! The metal
clip was breaking, but not quite broken. One mechanic took the shoe,
while another volunteer put out a plastic bag for me to stand on (so I
wouldn't get my sock dirty - do these folks take care of us, or
what?). Mr. Goodwrench eventually drilled a screw into the space
behind the broken clip to hold it in place, and I was able to clip
in. Amazing! Off I went. Things would have been fine if:
- I put my right foot down when I stop, which I don't, or
- I never had to stop until the finish.
Well, about 5 minutes out of the stop, I hit a red light and
unclipped. Ping! There goes half the cleat. So, I rode the next 26
miles with half a cleat. To keep the shoe stable, I had to have my
toes pointed down, and I certainly could not pull up on the pedal.
This is tough to get used to when you are accustomed to using the
entire pedal stroke. Aside from that, after a while, my toes were
numb from being jammed into the front of the shoe. Oh well. I moved
between a few packs, staying at the back for safety reasons (how's
that for an excuse?). I popped out of the pedal every few minutes,
which invariably caused me to drop off the back, so I also did quite a
bit of solo riding here.
On With The Show: MMA
There were several route changes this year. One was to avoid the
center of the town of Wareham. There is always a huge amount of
vehicle and people traffic in Wareham, so this was an excellent
change. The next town is Onset, which
has a few short hills. This was one time when I forgot about the
broken cleat. Pulling up was not a good idea. Aside from a little
wobble, though, I recovered quickly.
I made the final turn into the Mass Maritime Academy (MMA) and
finished solo at 12:20. This was better than expected. I had
averaged 19.4 mph for 114 miles with 3200 feet of elevation gain, and
I simply felt great. I had finished my longest ride of the year,
with really only minor technical problems. I ran into Chris, who had
an excellent ride, finishing at 12:05 with 2 bonus miles.
MMA had a few new features (some may have been there last year, but
since I wasn't riding, I didn't notice). The basic setup is layered:
the entrance is for check-in. Next, the football field is for bike
parking. Finally, the quad area is for food and music, with the dorms
to the right, and the good ship "Patriot State" straight ahead. At
the time, it was still pretty quiet, because only about 120 riders are
in. So, drop off the bike with a volunteer, who returns with the
location of your bike so you can find it in the morning. Then, grab
a pair of flip-flops (donated). This is a great idea. You can take
off the cycling shoes and walk in the flip-flops.
I walked straight to the massage tent to get an appointment. Then,
off to the ship to find my room for the night. After a quick shower,
I went in search of the PMC staff to help me figure out where I could
get some Speedplay cleats. We decided that I'd see if some riders or
mechanics could help before driving off in search of a bike
shop. Finally, food!
The food zone was well organized: bbq in the center, and various vans
from companies like Dunkin Donuts, Legal Seafood, Nantucket Nectars.
I spent the early afternoon eating and wandering about.
Were it Not for the PMC mechanics...
Eventually, I was able to find a rider with a spare pair of cleats,
which I conviced him to sell. Relieved, I headed back to the ship at
around 4:00 for a nap. I awoke around 6, ready to go find Chris
et.al. for dinner. I
realized my sunglasses were missing part of the nosepiece.
I carry a few tools with me, but a microscopic screwdriver isn't one
of them. So, off to the mechanics to borrow some tools to install the
cleats, and see if they had micro-tools to fix the glasses. They did!
At about 7 PM,
the last 3 riders were just about to
come in, so John, Chris, Jon and I
joined the massive crowd which welcomed these weary
riders, cheering wildly. I finally got back to the ship to get the
shoes and glasses, then walked back to the mechanics. They fixed
everything. Mechanics are amazing.
It was getting pretty late. I made one more circuit of the quad, and
ran into Harvey who also had an excellent ride. He also had a spare
pair of Speedplay cleats. Next year, I too will have a spare
pair of cleats! By 9:00, I was back on the ship for the night.
It Sure Is Dark
Reveille came at 4AM. The breakfast tent was just outside the ship,
so that was the first stop. Walking down the gangplank is tricky
enough, but with sore muscles, you have to be even more careful. It
was incredibly dark. Well, it was over an hour until sunrise, but it
just seemed extra dark. It was overcast, warm, and slightly humid. I
was happy to have clear lenses for my glasses.
I wanted to be on the road at 5:30, so I took my time getting to the bike.
At 5:15, I arrived at the bike, along with hundreds of others.
Security had only opened one gate. One small gate. Imagine trying
to get 500 bikes out, and 500 people in through a 5 foot opening.
Oops. I saw some people climbing the fence with cycling shoes. I
just wasn't that desperate to be on the road. Eventually, the other
gate was opened. I was on the road by about 5:40. By chance, I
caught up to John just before the Bourne Bridge. We chatted for a
bit, then I got ahead on the Bridge. It was not really raining, but
the roads were wet. I took the descent on the Bridge and the three
turns onto the Cape Cod Canal service road very gently.
Usually, I don't ride as hard on Sunday. Now that I had nice new
cleats, I was spinning along easily through the first 20 miles, under
the Sagamore Bridge, over a set of rolling hills parallel to Route 6,
the main road on Cape Cod. No sunrise today; nothing but clouds.
As usual, there was
excellent police support at key intersections. Just before 40 mile
stop, in Brewster, there is a summer camp. This is my ninth PMC, and
I've never noticed this camp before, but on this day, there was no
avoiding it. Hundreds of kids lined the fence, cheering loudly. Some
held signs urging the PMC riders onward. It's hard to describe how
good it felt to have this kind of support. It was very moving.
I skipped the 40 mile stop, turning onto the Cape Cod Rail Trail, and
spinning along at a slow pace. This would be the last spinning I
would do all day.
Warp Factor Two, Mr. Sulu
I got into some quick pace lines, and the speed increased. The time
from 40 to 60 miles really flew by. Just before the 60 mile stop, I
rode with Mark Brightman briefly. At the 60 mile stop, I ran into one
of the first-year riders from the MFS team. He noticed I was from
California - I get a lot of comments on that. He took my picture, and
we talked briefly about California.
Back on the road, I seemed to
be going only faster. I pushed big big gears in the Truro hills,
flying up Castle Hill. When we turned onto Route 6, there was clearly
a tail wind. I led a few pacelines up Route 6, doing 26 mph uphill.
After a few miles with two of us trading off at the front, I decided
to drop back several positions. As I passed each rider, I heard "Do
you want in?" "Nope. It's your turn to work." As Route 6 leveled off, we
went even faster. I got back to the front of the group as we came up
on another paceline on an uphill grade. I wasn't paying close
attention, and somehow, I dropped everyone and ended up alone on Route 6
entering Provincetown. I was feeling great after 70 miles.
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| Andy takes a break after 60 |
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Two key things happened as I entered Provincetown: it started to rain,
and the wind changed from a tailwind to a headwind. I passed many
first and second year riders, warning them about "white line fever" -
the last time it rained, back in 1996 (?), a number of riders went
down on this section of Route 6, slipping on the painted lines. I
made the right turn towards the Province Lands. Five miles to go,
with four hills. After flying up the first three, the fast pace of
the previous 30 miles and the headwinds caught up with me. The last
hill was a little sluggish - I may have pulled a muscle, but it wasn't
serious. After this hill, it's about 2 miles of flats to the
finish. I was surprised to see another bagpiper! Perhaps the same guy
from Charlton. This was a nice boost for the last mile.
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| Andy manages a final sprint |
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As I made the final turn towards the Provincetown Inn, I could see the
finish line, and I managed a final sprint. Beth and our friend Carol
were on the left, although it didn't register until I had passed them.
There was a HUGE crowd at the finish line. I felt triumphant. It was
about 10:00 on a Sunday morning, and I had completed 79 miles, with
1750 feet of elevation gain; for the weekend, 193 miles and 4950 feet.
The last ten miles in the rain didn't bother me at all. I was just
glad to be there, glad to have been able to make the effort.
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At the Provincetown Inn
After catching up with Beth and Carol, I stashed the bike, showered,
and got some great food. The rain and wind were getting worst. My
hat's off to the volunteers at the Provincetown Inn. Imagine trying
to run a barbeque for 2000+ people in the rain. With a smile. Kudos
to these folks, and to all of the PMC volunteers.
Below, some scenes from the Provincetown Inn.
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| Andy and Barb at P-town |
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| Chris and Andy under the BigTop |
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| Andy, Carol, and Beth - Drenched |
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| Harvey and Andy; another PMC completed |
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Things were getting
chaotic as the weather got worse. Chris, John, and Jon were anxious
to hit the road, so we bid them farewell. By now, we were soaked, and
ready to go. Beth, Carol, and I walked
to the car(s), and loaded the bike in Carol's for the trip back to the
mainland (as Beth and I were staying the night). As we drove out of
Provincetown towards Truro, riders were still making their way up
Route 6 in the driving rain. We felt bad for them; but luckily, they had
only 5 miles to go.
It's Been a Great Year
The 1999 PMC had a lot of significance. For me, it was the pinnacle
of a come-back year of cycling. It was the 20th year for the PMC. It
was the last PMC of the 20th century. It will certainly be a record
fundraising year for the PMC - it already is for me.
I've been getting a lot of questions since the ride. How was the PMC?
How did you do? How does the hip feel? I have answers. The PMC was
great. I did better than I expected, both riding and fundraising. The
hip is a little sore, but this is now the norm. After a few weeks respite
from physical therapy, I've returned to doing the exercises which slowly
increase flexibility in the hip. When will the hip be back to normal?
That, I don't know. What I do know is that it doesn't bother me much
when I'm on the bike.
I plan to do some cross-training this winter - hiking,
mountain biking - and this will certainly help.
I really have no complaints.
And fundraising continues. At this writing, I've raised $8500 this
year,
and I'm not done yet! This is a new record for me, and words cannot
express how proud I am to have such excellent sponsors. In 9 years,
I've raised over $40,000 for the PMC. Now that I've seen - up-close,
and with my own eyes - what the Jimmy Fund and DFCI can do with
our money, I'm even more committed to continuing the fight. The
icon says "End Cancer - 192 miles". I often wonder how many more
PMC's there will be before we are truly 192 miles from the end of
cancer as we know it. I do know that I will ride in every one
until it is no longer necessary.
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| Wahoo! |
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Thank you for your support of the PMC.
