Lemon and I had a blast at the company. I gave a 15 minute presentation split between the biology of CF and the story of our little family. Amazingly, throughout the whole presentation, Lemon sat on the floor at my feet, contentedly examining his toys. When I opened things up for questions at the end of the presentation, the first question I got was "How do you get him to sit so quietly like that?" Needless to say, he was a big hit and hopefully a good inspiration to all the generous people there who are taking the time to raise money for CF research.
Speaking of fundraising, how about a tremendous thank you to everyone who supported our Cycle for Life team this year! Thanks to all of you, we were the #3 fundraising team in Madison this year, with Papa Bear and myself in the top 5 individual fundraisers as well. Your generosity means so much to us, since the research you are supporting is the only way that Lemon and all his fellow CF patients can hope for a healthy future.
The ride itself was a great event. Opa and I rode to represent our team, since Papa Bear was at a conference. We checked in at registration, schmoozed with some of our fellow cyclists, and then got ready to ride out behind a fire truck.
The route was just lovely--I feel a little spoiled riding here knowing that back in Boston you'd have to ride all day just to get far enough out of town to experience the glorious rural landscapes that are a mere 10-12 miles from my house. Contrary to popular opinion, Wisconsin is not actually flat--there a couple of hills big enough to draw one's attention!
We also had the support of some great volunteers along the way, including an exceptionally well-staffed rest stop.
Some cool refreshments awaited us at the end.
After enjoying a restorative beverage, we headed home where Lemon was waiting with Nona. It was the perfect end to a great ride.
