Tour of Hope 2005 Recap

2005 Tour of Hope Charity ride

The weekend began with heather Radcliffe and me driving down to Washington DC on Friday night during rush hour. Not our brightest moment, but we did what we had to do. Taking in to account the torrential down pour of rain and the waves of traffic, we actually made decent time. We arrived at the JW Marriott at 10:30 when Heather dashed in to pick up our ride packets from the front desk. Then we were off to our hotel .5miles away. After checking in and setting up our gear we were off to sleep….until 3:15am when 3 alarms went off with the hopes of waking us up. Once downstairs we grabbed the car and dragged our bikes out onto the pouring rain. There were 3 other riders at the front of the hotel with us at this time. They asked to borrow our bike pump which we of course said yes to. After they finished pumping up all their tires they then did ours with out even a hesitation. (we didn’t ask) They tried to ask us in English/Spanish to wait for them and their 2 other friends before leaving to go to the Marriott. We decided this was a good idea since it was still raining heavily and it was very dark. A pack ride sounded wise. So off we went in to the dark cold morning with 5 fellow riders.

Once we arrived at the Marriott we blended in with the other 350-400 riders waiting to pack into the Maryland bound buses. We all lined up and then handed our bikes onto the Budget rent a trucks and then jumped on a bus. Heather and I had the special seats which came with interior leaking, so we didn’t need to take off our rain gear. The hotel had put together breakfast bags for us so we began to eat while waiting to drive away. During the drive to MD we had the opportunity to listen to some of the other passengers who ended up being 2004 National Tour of Hope team members. They entertained us for the next hour and a half with various stories of Lance, Sheryl, and the ride from LA to DC. And then it happened….we arrived at the Howard College campus where the ride was to start from. Instantly the bus was filled with sounds of excitement and anticipation. Then the doors opened and a woman boarded. She spoke but no one really heard what she had said due to our overwhelming amount of exuberance until she commented on how well we all took the news. Apparently the other buses were rather upset with her when she had finished talking to them. Then she walked off the bus. Now the confusion set in and we are all trying to piece back together the words which she had just spoken. Then it hit us, the ride was cancelled. A few counties had pulled their permits due to road flooding and hazardous conditions. The fun festival at the Ellipse was cancelled as well due to it being submerged under 5 inches of water. It was as if we had all eaten a large chocolate cake and was crashing from the sugar rush. There wasn’t any anger just true disappointment from not fulfilling our promise to ourselves and to those who supported us financially. The ride home was much longer or so it seemed but we still enjoyed the stories that others were telling.

The question now was what we were going to do next? After 3 hours on a bus with various gels, tubes and other accessories shoved in your back pockets the only thing you could do was stretch and walk around looking for our promised shirts. At this point that was all we were going to get. The ride was gone, the party at the ellipse was gone but we still had our shirt. The light at the end of our dark tunnel. Rumors started flying about a ‘something’ at 1pm in the hotel ballroom for people who were registered to ride and family members of the National Team. Unfortunately the hotel could not guarantee space for all of the riders so it was going to be on a first come first serve basis. The question was space for what? So Heather and I had 4 hours to kill, so we changed into our jeans and went to breakfast. We had been up for over 6hrs with only 3hrs of sleep so any food would have looked and tasted amazing but we the hotel did have a nice restaurant for us. Here we met some guy from California who flew out just for the Tour and although it didn’t work out for him the way he thought, he still plans to be back again next year. Everyone that we spoke with had the same sentiment, disappointment for the day but anticipation for the upcoming years Tour of Hope. Breakfast really didn’t take as long as we had hoped so we decided to slither back into our wet and cold bike shorts and socks and go for a ride over to our hotel where we will check out and grab the car so we can return once more to the Marriott, change back into our jean and wait for whatever they are in the midst of planning.

So our adventure continues with us sort of misplacing our hotel. The sad thing is the hotel was up 3 blocks and over 5 and I somehow messed that up. I have an excellent sense of direction! So as we pull up the driveway a piece of Heathers equipment pops off and the valet attendant starts flailing his arms around and screaming while running towards me. Keep in mind that since the ‘accident’ I am a bit more sensitive, so this is making me nervous to say the least. Then you hear a crunch……a car ran over Heathers equipment. (Nothing that can’t be replaced but lame none the less) We finally make our way down to the bottom of the hotel where we stake out a nice area to wait with some new friends. Then it happens, the doors open but not for us. The family members of the National Team are allowed in first. Heather and I have never seen so many family members! Each NT rider had at least 20 family members enter the ballroom. So now I am calculating that we have just lost at least 480 places in the ballroom. But luckily Heather had scoped out the best area to wait in because we were right in front of the open doors. Then it was our turn to enter and I swear it was like a concert for the most popular band of the year. The old, the young, the big and tall all began to push and rush into this room which only contained a stage and 2 large flat screens. So now we are blindly waiting and rushing for what? Well they successfully put on a really nice show and presentation which included Lance and the National Tour of Hope Team. It was so exciting to see so many amazing and strong people and to hear their stories while being surrounded by other people who have some understanding of what they have gone through as well as have a deep passion for cycling. Once the presentation was over we had the opportunity to meet 3 of the Discovery Team members and get their autographs. Then it was over. Heather and I packed back in the car and headed home after making a quick stop at my uncles for a brief visit. At this point we are basically slap happy but at least we were having a good time. Rain or shine we will be back next year for another run at the ride to help the cause and fight the fight!