207 About 207

2010-11-13T21:30:00.000-08:00

The 207 Miles charity ride was launched out of a desire to increase awareness of the poverty in Puerto Peñasco, Mexico (Rocky Point) and to raise funds for the people and organizations battling that poverty. The ride is a two day, 207 mile, cycling event traveling from Peoria Arizona to Puerto Peñasco, Mexico. In February of 2011, 207 Miles is again organizing the two day century ride and this year we plan to have 30+ riders and are working to raise $25,000 through corporate sponsorships and individual donors. Join us.

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, Twitter and a new webpage to be release shortly 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.

Exhausting Joy

2010-11-13T20:54:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I returned from another 3 day trip to northern Mexico to build a house for an impoverished family. Now i have done this trip over 12 times, and each time I return home I feel the emotional and physical drain that comes from 3 hard days of physical service. For some reason this trip was different. I was so exhausted I struggled to focus as i returned to work and I think Erin and I went to bed at like 830 that first night back. In addition to the exhaustion I noticed was that my heart was overwhelmed with joy and contentment.

As I reflected on this I noticed a trend between service projects to another passion of mine, endurance athletics. This feeling of immense joy and exhaustion that only comes from accomplishing something bigger than yourself. I can't think of too many things that can wreck you physically and yet elevate your spirit at the same moment.

Another observation, these opportunities don't just happen in our daily lives. You have to manufacture them, you have to put yourself out there to experience what I now call exhaustive joy.

So here is the question. When is the last time you manufactured Exhaustive Joy in your life?

If you need an idea to jump start you on this I have two opportunities for you. We are ramping the planning and marketing for this years 207 ride, in February we will again be taking the two day 200 mile cycling journey to rocky point. We raised nearly $6,000 last year and we are looking to quadruple that this next year. Also OneMission.us continues to have weekend mission trips changing lives weekly.

I encourage you to shed your inhibitions and experience the only kind of joy and contentment you can get from sheer exhaustion. Wreck yourself to change lives... not just yours.

Join The Ride

2010-11-13T20:30:00.000-08:00

Registration

We are still working out the specifics on registraion, but if you are interested in riding please emails us at 207miles(at)gmail(dot)com

The Ride

On February 11th/12th , 2011, join us for a flat course and perfect cycling weather at the second annual 207 Ride. Ride from Peoria Arizona to Puerto Peñasco, Mexico over two days and enjoy the amazing scenery and culture as you ride. Course details will be posted on the ride website soon.

Details

Date/Times: Ride Friday February 11th and Saturday the 12th. We will be returning to Phoenix Sunday February 13th. Both days are tentatively set to start at 8AM.
Location: Peoria, Arizona to Rocky Point, Mexico.
Lodging: Friday night we will be camping , working out the details on where. You will need to provide your own camping gear that will be transported for you to the campsite. Saturday night we will be camping on the One Mission RV park property.
Transportation Home to Phoenix: We will be returning to Phoenix on Sunday, February 13th. The 207 ride will provide transportation home for all riders. If you prefer to go home after the ride Saturday or Sunday, providing your own transportation, please note that on your registration.
Registration Fees: TBD

Donate to the Event

2010-11-13T20:00:00.000-08:00

Ways to donate:

We are in the final stages of launching a new website that will support donations. If you want to donate before the launch, see below.
You can donate (via credit card or directly draft from you bank account) to the event online by going to One Mission's donation page. Please note "207" in the "I would like my donation to go toward:" field so we can track what has been given toward the ride.
If you prefer not to give online you can mail us a check made out to One Mission. If you need our mailing address, please email us at 207miles (at) gmail (dot) com and we will forward it to you.

**Please note One Mission is a Non-Profit organization and will provide tax statements at the end of the tax year for all donations.

Thanks for your generosity, your gift will change lives.

207 Recap

2010-01-05T21:10:00.000-08:00

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.

2010-01-01T04:43:00.000-08:00

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

2009-12-28T13:07:00.001-08:00

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

2009-12-14T21:27:00.000-08:00

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.

October Giving Update

2009-11-18T05:11:00.000-08:00

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

2009-10-14T23:07:00.000-07:00

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 Bu ckeye, 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.

207 Business Cards are Here.

2009-10-06T22:54:00.000-07:00

A big shout out to my friend Cameron. Not only has he gone with me to Mexico to build a house, but he is a very gifted graphic artist. He has a knack to making clean, high impact media. I gave him very little direction and asked him to design a business card I could hand out to share what we are doing with 207. Here is what he came up with and now I carry them everywhere and hand them out like crazy.

Thanks Cameron for sharing your gift with 207 generously

Giving Update for September

2009-10-06T22:42:00.000-07:00

We picked up 2 more donors in September and they came up big @ $270 dollars between them. That brings the total amount raised to date for the impoverished in Mexico to $662! Keep praying, keep being generous.

Tour de Scottsdale=3 Chipolte Burritos!

2009-10-06T22:05:00.001-07:00

As I began to plan my training program to prepare for my 207 miles in January I decided to sign up for the ~70 mile Tour de Scottsdale. I figured I would use it as a benchmark to see where my endurance fitness level is at currently. My goal going in was two fold. First was to see how my body held up over 4 hours on the bike (last century I rode, my back/core was such a mess that when I finished the race I could care less about pedaling, I just wanted to be off the bike). Second was to finish in 4 hours. I am happy to say my official time was 4hrs 6min for the 68 mile course, 2750ft in climbing and wind gusts up to 24 mph! My body did well and except for some soreness between my traps, I felt good at the finish. I could have done without the wind, but was still happy with the result. Most of all I am learning I can hang with just about anyone for about 2hrs, but where I am lacking is the deep endurance needed to maintain this into 4 to 5 hours. I figure we will be on the bike for 5-6 hours on our back to back days heading down to Mexico.

You can check out my GPS details on the link below. I burned 3,600 calories in 4 hours and for those of you counting that is the equivalent to 3 fully loaded Chipolte Burritos!
Garmin Connect - Activity Details for Tour de Scottsdale
Watch the blog later this week or next as I will be posting my training program. Momentum is building and we are have more people get involved every week.

Your Hobby for a House

2009-09-18T20:49:00.000-07:00

I am sitting here working on my training plan for the ride in January as I look through websites and in bicycling mags for research. The problem is that Cycling magazines and websites have way too much bicycle "eye candy" to keep me focused and before long I am rationalizing why I need a new bike in the midst of trying to raise money for the impoverished.

This begs the question. How much is my cycling habit worth? I would say I am a modest rider. I buy my bikes used, I buy what I can on sale and I don't have top of the line anything (except my watch) :) So I start doing the math...On a typical Saturday how much money do I have invested in my ride? Bike ($800 used/$1500 new) Helmet and Glasses ($130) Jersey, Shorts, Shoes ($170) GPS Watch ($275) Lighting system ($90) Water Bottles/Recovery Drink/Gu ($25) Spare Tube, Frame Pump, Tail light, patch kit, tools ($50), Banana ($0.5)

So this hobby of mine that basically keeps me fit and helps with my sanity a bit runs a tab of about $2,000, remember I consider myself modest. We trickle these purchases over time in the name of recreation and before we know it we have invested in something.

Two questions. Is it worth the investment? What's the global worth of that investment?

The first question I have to wrestle with myself (as I will leave you as well to privately wrestle with rationalizing your Wii, golf game, Starbucks habit or your Macbook). The second I can answer for you. 207 miles from your front door my habit would build a house for a homeless family in Mexico. I am not preaching against the things that God has blessed us with in the US, heck without my bike this idea would not exist, but what I am saying is if we can put that much cash into a part time hobby, think of what we could accomplish putting at least an equal part into a cause beyond ourselves.

So tomorrow when you log-on, tee-up or plug-in, pause for a minute. In that moment do me a favor and thank God for your affluence and then when he tells you to do something with it, listen to him.

Donation Update for August

2009-09-06T13:47:00.001-07:00

Thanks everyone for getting the word out about 207. We had a great August. The Blog had 537 hits and we have 244 people following us on Facebook. As for donations we have had 6 people donate for $395 in total contributions. This is $400 more than the fight against poverty in Mexico had going for it a month ago.
One of the coolest things about the donations is not the quantity, but to me its where they are coming from. If the goal is to raise awareness I think the range of where we are getting donations is an indication that we are getting the job done. My goal was to reach out to the circles we run in and hope that it extends beyond our short reach. Here is a breakdown so far:
>Family - This is to be expected, but is always appreciated.
>The work friend - The donation was nice, but the really cool thing is that he is asking for more information on how to take his family on a trip!
>The out of state/old friend - Its always a blessing, when friends from the past support you even though you probably have not invested as much as you should have recently in the relationship.
>The Athletic Friend - I was hoping some of the people I ride and run with would see my passion for the ride and join in at one level or another. Well after a weekend ride a buddy of mine was reaching for his wallet. I thought it was to give me a buck for the water I bought for him. I was pleasantly surprised when he handed me a wad of cash and said that he thought what we were doing was honorable.
>The facebook friend - One of Erin's old classmates from high school saw the facebook fan page and felt the need to give. This was especially cool to me, because her really had no connection to me or One Mission. He just saw a need and gave.

I will leave you with one random thought. If 1 in 10 people who visited us at the Blog or became a fan on facebook gave $20 we would double our giving in no time. 1 in 10 people to give up Starbucks for a week or not go to the movies or the bar on Friday night. This is not much of a sacrifice individually, but collectively can amount to changed lives in Mexico.

Thanks for you continued generosity and prayers.

Join The Ride: Update

2009-08-24T21:47:00.000-07:00

Well the interest in the ride has been amazing thus far. We already have about 5-7 people inquiring about riding the event with me. I wanted to update this post to get more details out there and to share my excitement for those who have signed on. If your interested, please let me know ASAP as we are trying to keep the number of riders to a manageable number for this first event. If interested I would love to meet with you 1:1 to talk over the commitment and also set up a time that we could go on a weekend ride together.

We have set the ride date for Friday, January 1st. What a way to kick off the New Year.
We will be riding 2, 100 mile legs Friday and Saturday and plan to stay the night Saturday at the One Mission Camp. This will give us an opportunity to visit the families of Rocky Point and also visit with the teams that will be down there building houses that weekend.

So far we have a fluent Spanish speaker who has lived in Mexico interested, a Missionary from across the globe interested, One of the guys who helped start One Mission on board and a few others.

Again we will be doing 2 - 100+ mile legs back to back.
We will leave from CCV in Peoria, AZ and arrive at One Mission's base camp. Most likely staying in Gila Bend or Ajo for the nights we are traveling.
The course will mostly be on AZ HWY 85. I will be mapping it as we get further into planning and plan to pre-ride a number of sections of the course. I will also be taking my GPS next time I drive to get a elevation map as well.
This is not your typical "race" put on by a organizer. There will not be police support or road closures, etc. Cycling experience is a must.

Build a House

2009-08-01T22:50:00.002-07:00

Making an impact in a third world country is easier than you think. All you need is a three day weekend, a hammer and a sleeping bag.

Starting in October One Mission has 3 day mission trips planned nearly twice a month. You can join other groups or organize your own group, I personally will be going down at least 2-3 times this fall and would love to have you join me. As soon as we have the dates nailed down for our trips I will post them here.

To get a better idea of what the trip and the construction is like, check out One Mission's building page. Also, Erin wrote a great blog about the last house we built in Mexico here.

Think you're too old? You're not, last year my 86 year old grandfather joined us on a trip. Think you're not good enough with construction? Not a problem, for 7 years we have been going on trips with high school students. If we can build a house (that's still standing today BTW) with 14 year old students, you will add value to a trip too.

It is far too easy to make excuses why not to go, but please don't rob yourself of the opportunity to change someone's life and your perception of the blessings you have.

If I picked one desire for 207; it would be that more people travel to Mexico to build these houses. I know once you go, you will be changed.

Contact 207

2009-08-01T22:43:00.000-07:00

Web: www.207miles.com
Email: 207miles(at)gmail(d0t)com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/207miles
Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/207miles

Why RIde

2009-07-31T23:25:00.000-07:00

To fully understand how I arrived at a place where I decided to ride my bike to Mexico we need to rewind about 9 months. 9 Months ago I was unemployed and through that experience God used a number of experiences to impress on Erin and I how blessed we are even in the midst of our silly 1st world "poverty". One of those experiences was the opportunity for me to hang out with cool people more. Scott Swartzentruber was one of those cool guys. We had a lot in common, even though Scott still had is reality business, business was hard. We shared a lot about how God was shaping our opinions of worldly wealth and generosity. The other thing we shared, was we both loved traveling to Rocky Point, Mexico to build houses for the impoverished. That October we headed down to Mexico feeling sorry about our current lot in life and we returned 3 days later renewed with the fresh perspective that we are so blessed here in the states.

Fast forward 6 months, I had return to the workforce and Scott had taken a job at UPS to make ends meet but God was doing something cool inside him. When he told me he was going to sell most of what he owned to go live in Mexico as a missionary with his family I was ecstatic. From that day forward Erin and I began to think what we could do for Scott and Shannon. Though I know they needed it, money did not seem like it was enough. When we talked about heading down to help build him a house in Mexico, again if felt like is was a given, not a gift. God had placed in us the desire to bless them, but nothing seemed to fit.

In July Erin and I were on our annual trip with the high school students to CIY. Its a massive youth conference centered around spiritual development. On the second day they had a special video about normal people using normal talents to do extraordinary things. It got me thinking... What talent do I possess? And that's when God began to plant the idea of 207 in my head. You see, I like working out, cycling, running, etc. But if I do not sign up for a race I can only convince myself to do it half hearted, half the time. So as a form of forced motivation I sign up for races. The idea started that I would do a 100 mile ride in November, a Marathon in January and a ultra distance relay in February. All the while when people asked me what I was doing I would say that it was to raise awareness for One Mission and Scott and Shannon. But then I thought, why would I pay hundreds of dollars in entry fees, hotel fees, etc and then ask some one to give... it seemed backwards to me. The next day it hit me, I should ride to Mexico! People would think I am crazy, people would ask why, people would be inspired. I immediately told Erin and she affirmed the idea, but worry began to creep in immediately. Would it be safe? Is it legal? I would need a train a ton. Need less to say God affirmed the idea over the next few days and squashed my excuses. Its a bit of a long story so I will spare you the details, but it was clear, God was in it, I just needed to decide if I was.

When we got home I presented it to Scott and he was humbled and blown away. His quote was that the idea was "sheer genius." If you asking me, sheer genius was the idea that One Mission had a few years ago to impact Rocky Point and its people in a way it had never seen. And humility? Humility is a man willing to forgo worldly gratification and comfort for heavenly reward as he sells all he has and packs up family to go to the needy and never look back. If you ask me, Why ride? I will point you at One Mission and the Swartzentrubers, and if you look long enough you will see the hands and feet of Christ. I just want to be a part of that. That's why I will ride.