The FREEDOM TOUR experienced its first cool weather day in five years on Friday. Thursday we rolled into Rocky Ford in sweltering heat well into triple digits. Friday morning temps were low 60’s…and then they dropped. Not too often you see a 45 degree temperature swing in 12 hours in the middle of June. Folks […]
Continue readingAuthor: Rich
Rich Got To Ride!
I got to ride with the team yesterday. That might sound strange, but I choose my spots carefully to make sure I don’t slow the team down too much. On big-mileage days or days with hills, riding with me would cause the others to be on the road later when it’s hot and there’s increased […]
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Tour Life
Tour life quickly assumes its own rhythm; after just a couple of days it’s like we’ve been doing this together forever. Loading, unloading, sleeping on the floor, eating out of coolers in the back of a support vehicle, grabbing a snack at every opportunity to replace burned calories–those start to seem normal. You learn to […]
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It All Goes To The Kids
Every dollar you contribute, every dollar we raise, goes to the kids at the HOME OF HOPE. We say that, but how does it work? How do we buy jerseys, pay for gas, and feed the team? The answer, quite simply, is generosity. At the very beginning of the process a couple of amazing community […]
Continue readingSnapshots
Amazing stuff happens along the road on a bike tour. At lunch a guy says, “I wanted to ride a day with you for my seven-year-old daughter. I had to leave her with her grandfather while I get my life together.” His voice is shaking. “I’m scared for her, all this social media, I know […]
Continue readingMaybe The Time’s Not Wasted
Ever get frustrated when those train crossing guards come down and you have to wait and it seems like the train takes forever? Our team took off from Cheyenne on Saturday to begin our 500-mile FRONT RANGE Tour. Beautiful day, great ride, everything went about as well as possible–until the lead riders were about 3 […]
Continue readingIt’s Not A Sad Story
This isn’t a sad story though I confess I brushed away some tears as I wrote the words. If you’ve been here a while you know Monte’s my service dog. For 11 years he’s been 80 lb. people magnet, loving companion, and my bike riding buddy. Once he realized I was preparing for a ride, […]
Continue readingIt’s Time For The Theme Song
The theme song tells you the show’s about to start. We’ve got a beautiful theme song, about God and dreams and overcoming adversity. It’s performed by Kristen Orphan and the Finally Home Band. It’s nearly time for the FRONT RANGE FREEDOM TOUR. I hope you’ll enjoy the video and the sound track. Can’t see the […]
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The Prologue–We’re On The Road
Act II of FREEDOM TOUR 2017 is in the books. FREEDOM TOUR Prologue 2017 was a blast! An army of generous, smiling volunteers in bright yellow shirts sent 65 cyclists off into the foothills and trails around Fort Collins on another picture-postcard Colorado day. 60 miles around Horsetooth Reservoir, over Carter Lake, and back through […]
Continue readingWhen Is It Enough?
Nobody cares. Work harder. Texas football coach Tom Herman stamps that motto on his program. Don’t tell us your problems–nobody cares. Want to get better, to win? Work harder. It’s a great bumper sticker slogan. Works well on t-shirts and posters and weight room walls. If you’re an athlete griping about the length of practice […]
Continue readingLook At What We’d Be Missing
FREEDOM TOUR ’17 hit the road for its first event last weekend. Eight cyclists sporting our spiffy new jerseys joined 7,000 of their friends at the Elephant Rock Cycling Festival in Castle Rock.We began with HELMETS UP on a beautiful morning, then they cranked a metric century (62 miles) through absolutely stunning–and difficult–terrain in the […]
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Just One Person
Do you recognize the name Onesimus? I didn’t, either, until a blog post pointed me to the short letter of Paul to his friend Philemon. I’d forgotten about Onesimus, but I suppose that’s what happens to slaves. The letter’s really about Onesimus, but we remember his owner’s name. We sometimes wonder why Paul, or Jesus […]
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