207 Recap

For those of you not following us over the weekend on Facebook and Twitter here is an update on the ride.

We started Friday morning at 730AM. It was a chilly 42 degrees, but we were soon warmed up and on our way for the first 107 miles. It was a glorious day or riding with the wind at our back and short of a small saddle problem for Kevin it went off without a hitch. You can checkout the GPS details online at http://bit.ly/92vfkR .
The synopsis is: 6 riders 107 miles,5:41 ride time, 18.8mph average, 6284 calories burned.
We then enjoyed the fabulous food of Little Italy in Gila Bend and spent the night in the Knights Inn Motor Lodge!


Saturday we decided to start a bit later due to our success on Friday and to gain some benefit from the increased temperature.

Day 2 started with about 50 miles of gentle climbing and in no time it was 70 degrees. I got the only flat of the trip one mile out from the international border. We crossed the border at mid-day and it was smooth sailing from that point.
We had a bit of a head wind for a few miles, but the last 25 miles we had an average of about 24MPH. We pulled into camp at about 3PM to a crowd of cheering supporters. GPS details on day 2 are here; http://bit.ly/8Kq5K4
The synopsis is: 4 riders 105 miles,5:31 ride time, 19mph average, 5796 calories burned.

As if the writing of this blog we have raised $5,156 for The Swartzentrubers, One Mission and for Mission Trip Scholarships to Mexico. Thanks everyone for you support, donations and encouragement on this journey. Stay tuned for more pictures, new blogs and info on nest years ride!
-Ian

Today we Ride.

I only have a few moments this morning, but I wanted to share where my head is a few hours before we ride. I think we end this journey where we started. With a desire to open our eyes to an opportunity to make a difference so close to home. To bridge the gap between poverty and hope. To take just a slice of our comfort and wealth to a place that is all to uncomfortable and poor.

Two things have hit me in the past two weeks.
1. I have been stressed and a mess preparing for this trip. It makes me think of Scott and his family and what they must have been going through the last few months as they decided to give up everything that life north of the border holds to head south to change lives. I realize I did not pray and encourage them enough. That will change. Scott, Shannon and Ashley, I am proud of you and the whole OneMission Team.
2. I have been also excited about what this day brings. The fun, the adrenaline and the joy of accomplishing something bigger than myself. I am reminded of how the family who is getting a house this weekend from OneMission must be feeling. Man it feels good to feel good.

I pray for God's will, a safe journey and that the mission of 207 will be served this weekend.
thanks for joining us on this journey and keep up to speed on our progress through http://www.facebook.com/207miles and http://twitter.com/207miles

Pre-rode the first 30 miles of the ride

A couple of things I learned while Tim and I pre-rode the first 30 miles out the 303, down to bell, over to cotton lane and down to the I-10.

1. I am pretty sure its going to be cold. It was barley 40 degrees when we started and it took me about 1.5 hours to warm up on the bike. You need to make sure you have some warm weather gear. I have a few items like an extra pair of gloves I can let people borrow, but make sure you are dressed properly.

2. If the wind is blowing its normal speed out of the north, the ride will be very nice. We were sailing at 23mph down Cotton Lane and not working that hard at it.

3. Cotton Lane Review.

• I give it a B-/C for road conditions. It has a 1-2' shoulder all the way down and the road in not in great shape, slightly bumpy.
• I give it a A- for safety. In the 10 miles we were on the road we maybe had 10 cars pass us. There are no stop lights and all the traffic controls are 4 or 2 way stop signs.
• I give it a B for smell :) There are a few farms on the way.

207 Fundraiser at Dos Amigos Fresh Mex-Grill

We are doing a fundraiser for 207 at Dos Amigos Fresh Mex-Grill.
20% of all purchases go to benefit 207 when presenting this flier.

Dos Amigos is located at 59th and the 101 and they have great fresh Mexican food. Come join us for a good cause and great food.

About 207

There are 207 miles between my church home in Peoria, AZ and the barrios of Rocky Point, Mexico. 207 was born out of a desire to increase awareness of the poverty in Rocky Point and to raise funds for the people and organizations battling that poverty.

On January 1st and 2nd, I am going to be riding my bicycle from Peoria, AZ to Rocky Point, MX. It is my desire that many people would take notice and ask me why I am doing this and others would donate to the cause. Four riders have signed up to do the ride with me and I am excited to have their company on the journey. For the full story of how 207 came about and the people who have inspired me to do this, please visit the Why Ride Page.

I will be continuing to keep everyone up to date on the planning, training and the ride through this Blog, Facebook and Twitter, so please visit often, give generously and join the experience. If you want more information on how you can support 207, please visit us on our support page.

October Giving Update

Sorry this is late coming. Life has been a bit crazy with training and, well just life. October was a good month. Even thought we only picked up one new donor, we increased the giving and additional $207 (good number). That raises the pledge/giving total to $900. We are nearly half way to our goal.

November will be here and gone before you know it, so if you are planning on giving please take a moment as do this. I have had a number of people mention that they are confused on how to give. The easiest way to give is to go directly to the OneMission donation website, https://www.onemission.us/donate.php, and give online. Please remember to put "207" in the "I would like me donation to go for" field. Remember this is a fully secure website and OneMision is a qualified charitable organization with a tax id number so all your giving is tax deductible. Thanks again for you generosity.

A quick update on training. I am in week 5 of my training and I have amassed roughly 1,835 minutes on the bike and roughly 519 miles. I feel good and am trying to find the balance between riding and rest.

Pre Ride Notes

We headed down to Mexico this last weekend to build some houses, The trip was great as usual and filled with memorable experiences. check out the Facebook page for updates and pictures.
The trip also allowed me to take my GPS along and get some photos of the ride. I will break down the ride best I can in this post.

I am still trying to figure out how we are going to get down to Highway 85 in Buckeye, AZ so I don't have anything mapped for the first ~40 miles yet. As soon as I do I will ride it and share. I do know it drops about 500 Ft in elevation over the 40 miles starting at about 1400 ft and ending about 900ft.

The Elevation Map below is the remaining 160 miles of the ride, with the entrance to Mexico coming at about the 100 mile mark.

From Buckeye, AZ to Gila Bend:
~35Miles, Flat, Broad Wide shoulder and divided 4 lane highway.












From to Gila Bend to Ajo:
~40Miles, slightly uphill, rough small shoulder. 2 lane non divided highway.
***We would be stopping somewhere between these two towns for the first day












From to Ajo, AZ to Lukeville, AZ (the border):
~38 Miles, level, rough small shoulder. 2 lane non divided highway.













From to Lukeville, AZ to Rocky Point:
~54 Miles (5 to get through Sonyota, the border town), downhill, large shoulder. 2 lane non divided highway.












That concludes the trip. You can find the interactive gps data here

I am pretty happy with the details. All in all there is about 80 miles of junky road, but it will be split between days.

If you have more questions on the ride just let me know. Fro now I am back to training.