Canadian Charity

Quick shout out to my Canadian coworkers and vendor/partners.  I made a last minute request for donations to this weekend's event in Calgary and have already raised $3,300.  Great job Calgarians!

Brief History of My Events

2012:  Calgary, Seattle, San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego

2011:  Calgary, Seattle, San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego

2010:  Seattle, San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego

2009:  Denver, San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego

2008:  San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego

2007:  Cleveland, Dallas/Ft Worth, Phoenix, San Diego

2006:  Chicago (Volunteer), Dallas, Phoenix, San Diego

2005:  Boston (Walker), Seattle, Phoenix, San Diego

2004:  San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Phoenix

2003:  San Diego

Breast Cancer, eh?

OK, so once again I have been, shall we say, lax in my updating of my blog.  Primarily, this is because Facebook has become my "update from the field" communication of choice.  If you want to stay connected with images and status updates from the seven, yes 7, cancer events I am doing this year, please friend me on Facebook (just click this link).  Yes, there is other junk there but, hey, it is who I am.


So, the title, "Breast Cancer, eh?"  Yes, I am now in Canada.  I moved to Calgary last year and did my first Cancer event with the Boobs on Bikes here in Calgary in July 2011.  In 2012, I am supporting three events here and four back in the US.  In Calgary, we have the Underwear Affair for cancers below the waist, the Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer, a 200km bicycle ride for the Alberta Cancer Foundation and the big one, the Weekend to End Women's Cancers which is a 60km, 2 day "stroll" through Calgary.


The ACF has announced that this may be the last year of the Weekend to End due to declining turn out and the reduced fundraising from the community.  We are doing our best not to lose this vital stream of communication for Calgarians and the valuable money raised for research and treatment.  So far, my loyal family, friends and coworkers have helped me raise nearly $1,500 for this year's Weekend which I hope will convince the organizers to leave the event in Calgary for future years.

2011 Breast Cancer 3-Day Season

I seem to be really good at posting when I start a season, then sort of fall off the pace.

The 2010 was a spectacularly wet season for my events.  Seattle, San Francisco and San Diego were the wettest 3-Day's I've ever done on Route Safety (my walk in Boston was wetter still, but walking in it was easier for me than riding and crewing).  The one thing I learned from my beautiful walkers in 2010 is that there spirit cannot be washed away.  No matter how wet we got, the smiles, singing and cheering continued.  We had a blast in every city.

Now I am building my donation pages for 2011.  So far, I have confirmed San Francisco, Phoenix and San Diego.  I will select a fourth city but I don't want to decide which one just yet.

As always, I greatly appreciate all donations made to this quality organization fighting this horrific disease.  This year will mark the 10 year anniversary of Sally's passing.  That is hard for me to believe.  She lived almost 40 years and has already been gone 10 years.  That is just wrong.  Perhaps this year will be the medical breakthrough year.  Perhaps this year we fund the right projects at the right times to find the silver bullet.  Fingers crossed.

And so it begins...

The bike is packed and I am getting into my rain gear.  It is wet in Seattle.  I mean REALLY wet.  Wettest September they have had in a long time.  We are hoping for a good Friday and maybe, just maybe Saturday.  Wish all of the walkers luck in this event -- I think they may need it.

Welcome to 2010!

Happy new year everyone!  Towards the end of the 2009 3-Day season (cool that we have our own season, isn't it) I made my selections for 2010.  As of now, I am registered for and intend to MotoCrew (Route Safety) in Seattle, San Francisco, Phoenix and San Diego.

I say "as of now" because if I don't find work pretty soon, that may change.  You got it, MORE events, not less.  If I am not working, why not ride around and crew more cities?  Perhaps back to Denver, Dallas, Cleveland, Chicago or even further east and north.  Who knows.  My cross-country trip in 2009 made me want for more riding time.
 

So, here is my history and 2010 plan:

2010:   Seattle, San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego

2009: Denver, San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego

2008:   San Francisco, Phoenix, San Diego

2007:   Cleveland, Dallas/Ft Worth, Phoenix, San Diego

2006:   Chicago (Volunteer), Dallas, Phoenix, San Diego

2005:   Boston (Walker), Seattle, Phoenix, San Diego

2004:   San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Phoenix

2003:   San Diego

Each year I pick one event for which I fund-raise.  The rest I self-fund to augment the random friend who donates.  As with last year, my donation link on this blog and in my emails will point to the Arizona walk where I support Team THRIVR, Greg and Jen Hoffmann's team.  Read back through this blog and you will find out all about the Hoffmann's and Team THRIVR.

So, if you have some spare change and need a safe place to invest it, please click on my link above!  Thank you and see you on the route!

San Diego 2009

As usual, the San Diego event was amazing, awesome, huge and successful. The group raised over $9,000,000 for breast cancer research in a time when the economy was down, travel was challenging and our healthcare system is revising rules that many of us feel are dangerous and backwards thinking. The walkers, crew and community came out to show support and create a truly wonderful weekend.

I have many great memories of this event, not the least of which is the celebration of my birthday on Sunday -- by 4,000+ close friends! Who could ask for a better birthday party?

I saw friends that I have known for many years and from many cities around our country. I met new friends who promise to be be back next year and become old friends. I returned to a Route Safety Crew who has been together for many, many years.

I look forward to seeing you all again in 2010. I have registered for Seattle, San Francisco, Phoenix and San Diego. Who knows, if I am not working, maybe I will registerer for more.

Arizona 3-Day, Best Weekend EVER

What an awesome experience. While I have done many of these 3-Day events, I have never been on a team before and never been a part of something as special as Team THRIVR. In memory of team founder Jen Hoffmann, we laughed, hugged, cried, hugged, talked, hugged and danced. Then we hugged some more. Thank you Greg Hoffmann and all of the THRIVRs out there.

As always the crew in Phoenix was fantastic. Chuck and Steve kept everyone on task and the crew worked like a well oiled machine.

Ebony & Ivory performed as usual and everyone did their thing to cheer on and protect the walkers.

The walkers in Phoenix are amazing. Cold, hot, rain, shine, they just keep on smiling and dancing. No one (and I mean NO ONE) complained at all. Personally, the route does little for me, but the people here make it all worthwhile.

And sometimes one shirt really says it all.

The Arizona 3-Day is upon us

I am in Phoenix and the bike is ready. Today is crew day, my 23rd time to learn why we are here and how to use a Nextel radio. Seriously guys, I think I get it by now. Oh well, it is a chance to see all my 3-Day friends in Phoenix again.

I had a great dinner with Greg Hoffmann and some of Team THRIVR, my official team in AZ. I have never really been part of a team before, but in honor of our dearly missed Jen, it seemed appropriate. I am honored to wear my Team THRIVR shirt to the crew meeting today. Tonight I will hook back up with some of the team members for another memorable dinner at Nello's before heading to the hotel for a few hours of sleep. Friday mornings come early on the event as we arrive around 4am to help traffic control for the walker drop offs. If you are walking tomorrow, wave as you go by me. I shant be hard to find in my flashing, pink bunny ears.

San Francisco 2009

The long road trip is (nearly) over as is the 3-Day in San Francisco. The event was, in a word, awesome!

While the starting, camp and ending sites were the same this year, some of the route changed for the better.

As always, starting at The Cow Palace means the first few miles are less than spectacular. But, once we leave South City the walk includes gorgeous beaches, cliffs, park trails and forrest settings. Yes, there are hills; it is, after all, San Francisco. But the beauty of the area is well, well worth it.

We camp in Crissy Field which is at the base of the Golden Gate Bridge on the San Francisco side.

Day 2 is equally amazing as we leave Crissy Field and walk across the Golden Gate Bridge, down the paths and through Saulsalito. Again,

views of the islands, the bridge and the harbors are amazing. We walk through Mill Valley and then loop back over the Bridge and return to camp. Another beautiful day seeing the best of the Bay Area.

Day 3 completes our tour of the west Bay by showing us much of the city itself. We take the walkers through residential neighborhoods, through Golden Gate Park, past the Japanese Tea Garden, down the Haight district (including my post of guarding the Haight/Ashbury intersection), through the government center and down into Little Italy, finally ending at the marina.

This year's walk was down in headcount from last year as many have been. We hope to see a return to the strong numbers we have seen in the past. Even with our smaller numbers and tough economic conditions, this fabulous group of walkers and crew raised nearly $4 million for breast cancer research and treatment!

It is time for the San Francisco teams to celebrate -- which some started a little before completing the walk.

End of the world as I know it

Today I reached the end of the road as they say. My ride to Denver started in San Diego on Aug 11. I had a great ride there (see below) and an awesome event in Denver.

I left Denver a few days after the 3-Day closed and headed east. I've visited friends and family in Denver, Chicago, Ann Arbor and Boston. I then traveled North East to Bar Harbor, ME where my bike and I rode the high speed ferry 150 miles to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. I've been in NS ever since riding around the island and onto Cape Breton for the Cabot Trail.

Tomorrow signifies the start of my ride home as I round the point of Cape Breton heading for Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Quebec, Thunder Bay and many other places too cold to be riding right now. On or before Oct 1 I will arrive in San Francisco for the 3-Day event there before finally heading home.

Thank you 3-Day walks for allowing me to do the ride I have always wanted to do -- one corner of North America to the Other!

[Posted with iBlogger from my iPhone]

Great company, awesome donation

Most followers know that I ALWAYS have a pink pig on the back of my bike for the 3-Day events. Pink for breast cancer, pig to represent my Harley "hog". You also know I give the pig up for adoption by a walker. I give the pig to a walker who touches me and helps me remember each event uniquely.

A few years ago I bought several as I have troubles finding a pig I like to have as my passenger. I have been using a pig called "Snout" from Aurora Plush Toys (Aurora World) but that little guy is discontinued. While at the event in Denver I contacted Aurora asking where I might find more.

To keep this short, they had no more Snout but had run a promo for an almost identical pig called Pookie. Alas they said they were out of THAT pig too but would check the warehouse. During that time, Mala at Aurora read this BLOG and contacted me immediately. They had found 32 Pookies in the back and wanted to DONATE them to me for these events. Awesome! The pigs were never expensive but combined with the Harley clothes I use to dress them, it put a small dent in what I had available to donate to walkers. Now I have enough little partners for 8 years of events at my current rate. Of course, that could change. :-)

Thank you Mala and Aurora for your very generous donation to Komen for the Cure!

Aurora Plush Toys

[Posted with iBlogger from my iPhone]

In the wind

I am, as we say, in the wind. A general destination ahead and lots of time to get there makes for some very relaxing riding. With my next event in San Francisco nearly a month away, I am heading out on an adventure. There will be very few BLOG updates during this ride but my Facebook feed will get daily updates and pictures. If you wish to follow me there, please send a friend request to me -- michael@landesman.com

The end of DEN

The rebirth of the Denver 3-Day is done. The event was not without challenges but we made it through with good weather and happy walkers.

The route was gorgeous with mountain, lake, and river vistas and neighborhoods of spectacular mansions full of beautiful people. Excellent law enforcement support from Cherry Hills PD and others enhanced the whole experience.

It was great to see so many friends from the AZ walks. I'm sorry we lost Craig this year as he would have been a welcome addition to our team. He will be missed in AZ as well.

To Jim, my favorite power walker from OR, I'm sorry your couldn't finish but I'm glad your OK and I look forward to seeing you on a route sometime, somewhere.

And to Mr. and Mrs. August, you guys are amazing. I've never seen anyone fight or come back from red tagging so aggressively. You finished and that is a testament to your dedication.

Dan, it is always great to see a Motocrew member in sneakers and a coconut bra on the route. Congrats on finishing your first event from the other viewpoint. Nicely done.

That wraps up my Denver event. A few days hanging out in Colorado then on to the next leg of my great adventure. If the weather and lack of a job holds, I should be in Halifax, Nova Scotia in a few weeks then heading back west to attend the San Francisco 3-Day in October.

Day 2 is here

What, I hear you say, happened to Day 1? Well, we got busy. It is a small event with only 650 +/- walkers which is understandable given that this is the first year returning to Denver and a tough economy. Certainly hoping for a stronger showing in 2010.

BTW, who knew it got so damn cold in Denver? :-). Hot day yesterday on the route with beautiful skies. Very warm last night night when I climbed into the tent but 2:10am, not so much. OK, add some long underwear. 3:30am. Damn. Add more clothes. 4:00am. Shit. Nothing left to put on. 4:15am. Just give up and get up.

OK, I am passed that now. Great breaksfast, good people, happy walkers.

OK, Let's Go!

And away we go...

The bags are repacked and I am heading to bed. Up at 3am, heading for Opening Ceremonies at 3:30, first cars dropping off walkers at 4, Opening speeches at 6:30 and the walk is underway by 6:45am. Wish the walkers well and come out and cheer if you are in Denver!

Denver Crew Day 2009

I got tired of the "Tough Guys Wear Pink" shirt that has lasted me for 6 years and 20 events.

And so it begins...

The crew arrives in dribs and drabs, the hotel staff still seem confused and the walkers are already smiling and thanking the crew. It is 3-Day season for me. This is what it is all about.

The bike has the appropriate accoutrements, my boob helmet is at the ready and my pink shirts are hanging in the closet. Tomorrow morning we will meet for our training, my 21st such session, and get a chance to meet our route safety team. Some of the coolest guys from the AZ 3-Day are here in Denver but we are missing a few others. Chuck, get well, we need you to lead us in AZ in November.

Park and Fly

The bike is safely parked at the Harley dealer in Denver and they are actively siphoning my savings as they perform maintenance and add one helluva loud airhorn. ;-)

In a few hours I fly back to California to meet up with my family for the annual beach vacation which is, conveniently, 2 miles from my house. Then, the final meeting with my client on Tuesday and a short Southwest flight back to Denver. 3-Day season, here I come!

I am so looking forward to this event in Denver. We should have somewhere near 1,000 walkers and a full-sized Route Safety team which means I can hug the walkers 5.5x more frequently than I can in San Diego! How cool is that?

Wowowee

Today was a Wow day. Starting from Ely, NV I continued on The Loneliest Road in America, Hwy 50 to Utah.

Once I hit Utah, however the scenery changed significantly. This is the Wow part since my route took me through Red Canyon, skirting Bryce and other lovely areas. I made a big horseshoe around the canyons and actually said Wow out loud a few times. I don't think anyone heard me over the XM Stereo and my pipes. No worries, I know I said it.

Tomorrow I continue East but I am ahead of schedule, so I will start looking for alternate routes. Just to kill time, you understand. I don't want to, I have to.

En route to Denver

The end of day 2 of my completely indirect, scenic, meandering route to Denver. Tonight and tomorrow I am in South Lake Tahoe.

The trip by the numbers so far:

7,200 Elevation change

714 Mileage traveled

34 Temperature change

5 Skunk-induced breath-holds

1 State line crossed

0 Miles closer to Denver 3-Day

The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated

As I pack the bike and saddle up to start my 2009 Komen for the Cure 3-Day season, I realize that I was a little remiss last year. One post saying the season is here and then... well... there was no then. Apparently I got a little busy. That does tend to happen when I am in the middle of traffic, but that is no excuse.

This year, I promise to be better. If not, I will delete this post and pretend I never committed to anything.

It is early morning already and I have not finished packing. I will do so, then grab a full night's sleep and ride out from Orange County, CA. Because of a funky work schedule, I cannot ride into Denver for my first 3-Day event this year with the rest of the nuts on two wheels who call themselves Route Safety (MotoCrew for us old dogs). Instead, I get to spend a leisurely 7 days riding around the west coast with the intent on ending in Denver a week from today. I will drop the bike with the Harley dealer and fly back to Orange County for an annual family vacation and a meeting with my one and only client on the 25th. Afterwards, I will fly back to Denver, pick up the bike, attach the pink bras, don the nipple helmet and put on my safety vest to enjoy MY first 3-Day in the Mile High City.

Looks for updates here and on FaceBook (if you are my friend) as I ride up to central Kaliforniam then to Lake Tahoe and on through the forests, hills, valleys and eventually mountains of Colorado. Should be a blast -- somewhere around 2,000 miles before hitting Denver. I have no idea of how I am coming home yet. Should be fun!

Tis the season

for Pink Ribbons, again!

I am on the road heading for my first of three events this year -- San Francisco!

Why we Crew

From one of my favorite multi-event walkers. She was my walking buddy in Boston in ’05 and has been with us in San Diego since ’03. Thank you, Pamela, for the kind words. We all appreciate them.

Michael,

that job of motocrew must be totally exhausting! people who drive could care less about 4600 walkers raising money for a cause. they are busy with their hurried lives. hats off to the motocrew. and you guys come back year after year for the torture. me too! see you in Chicago, San Fran and San Diego next year.

feel free to forward this to the motocrew. we walkers appreciate you to no end.

Pamela

Lauren's 2007 Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk

My sister walked her 3rd Breast Cancer 3-Day walk in San Diego. Click the picture on the right to see the letter she sent to her supporters.

San Diego wrap-up

The problem with doing an event in your hometown is that, when it ends, you work like returns.

I am sorry for the delay in updating this and I know you are all waiting with bated breath. My phone died on event and I wasn't able to post during the event. Now, a full week later, I am finally getting around to posting.

This one picture says it all. In case you can't read it, these ladies walked with shirts that said "FΩck Cancer".

Overall, we had an awesome event. The little rain we experienced on Sunday was nothing compared to other cities and the walkers all took it in stride, if you will.

Make no mistake, the San Diego event is a tough walk. 20 miles day one and 21 miles day two with a ton of hills. If you are not from San Diego, you might think that this area is flat -- it is not. Trust me.

That said, walking along the beach cannot be beat. The walk also took us through Hillcrest and many other parts of Downtown before ending at Petco Park, the home of the SD Padres MLB team.

Once again this year, we enjoyed the support of the San Jose Bike Police.

On route, day 2, I met a special walker I had been looking for. The week before the walk, I was watching The Learning Channel's LA Ink, a tattoo show. On the show I saw, a young surfboard designer named Andrea who came in to get a tattoo to memorialize her best friend, Ally, who had just died of breast cancer. The tattoo is a full sleeve and very distinctive. Since she lived and surfed in Santa Monica, I thought I might see her in San Diego. Sure enough, here she is, walking all 60 miles for Ally.

Finally, all walkers were in Closing and another event was successfully completed. Over $12,000,000 raised! On this event, my special Pig was named Rosha by Linda, for Romy and Shannon, two lost friends.

Preparing for the big one

Tomorrow the San Diego 3-Day starts. The big one. Twice the size of most other cities. Watch out San Diego.

Here we come.
Walking down the street.
We get the funniest looks from,
Everyone we meet.

Hey Hey, we'll be walking!

Thank you, AZ Route Safety Crew

You guys are awesome.

Another successful 3-Day

Fantastic day in AZ

Once again the awesome walkers of Phoenix have turned a challenging event into a fantastic experience. Arizona heat is legendary, even this time of the year, but we have been blessed with moderate (by AZ standards) temperatures. The police support today in Gilbert and elsewhere was stellar.

Today we had a few challenges on our team, including on bicyclist who was hit by a car and taken to the hospital. We believe she is OK, but her bike is totaled. It is the risk we take to make the walkers safer.

Well, it is approaching 8pm and I am exhausted. Think I'll take a nap.... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

AZ is Pig-Ready

Thanks to Ali, Tracy and Rayann, my bike is now 3-Day-ready. If you don't remember Alison and Tracy, go back in this blog to 2004 to see them wearing Luanne on their heads. Thanks, ladies!

Crew Training, Phoenix-style

I think Alan is as tired of seeing me in class as I am hearing the How-to-Nextel speach. Next I will learn how to drink water and use a porta-potty. And not one Continuing Education Credit to be had.

Michael Landesman
(currently mobile)

Dallas Wrap Up

Another outstanding event. Short. To the point.

The heat of 2005 and the wind of 2006 left us alone this year. Instead, we had 72° days with cool breezes and lots of sunshine.

The nights got cold -- near freezing Friday night -- but manageable. Once again, the Dallas Route Safety team was outstanding. A friendly, likable, quality group of folks. Evenly split between motorcycles and motorless cycles, the group worked together flawlessly. Our venerable (look it up) captain once again navigated the OCD-prone staff and renegade bikers (sorry, Chuck, but I was only going one way) with grace.

As always the event is measured by the walkers. This group of perambulators was awesome. Happy, healthy and well trained, they carried their 3-Day Smiles for all 60 Miles.

Thank you Dallas walkers, crew and staff. I will miss this group of new friends.

On the road again....

Apparently, I COULD wait to get on the road again. That bed just felt too good, perhaps fueled by the full plate of Campisi's spaghetti and meatballs last night.

Oh well... I am leaving Dallas now.

Sorry for the missed updates. My phone died on Saturday and I didn't charge it until last night. Hopefully, the recipients of my 3-Day pigs from the last two years will send pictures as I have missed getting both shots.)

Great Day 1

I am too tired and my head hurts too much to blog now, but I wanted to share one picture. These two Marines are walking the event in fatigues with 60 pound packs. Talk about inspirational.

Carbo loading for the DFW walk

Crew training is done, hugs exchanged and stories told. Comparisons to prior years will continue -- 2005's heat wave that knocked out many walkers and 2006's wind storms that knocked over the rest of the walkers -- while we carbo-load for the start at 5am tomorrow.

I hope to post a pic or two during the event but no promises.

Here we roll again

It is Tuesday afternoon, San Diego is burning, and I am packed and ready to fly back to Texas to start my trek on the final 3-Day events of 2007.

My thoughts and prayers for all who lost homes or other, precious items.

I will try to post nightly, but experience has told me that it is unlikely I will be consistent. I am usually too busy, followed by too hungry and finally too tired to do much. Please, keep checking though. I may get a sudden burst of cuteness and you wouldn't want to miss that.

From the Cleveland 3-Day Team

Invitation to the Michigan 3-Day Closing Ceremonies

We invite you to join with Michigan Breast Cancer 3-Day walkers and crew members on Sunday, Sept. 30, for the Michigan Closing Ceremonies at The Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. You are welcome to meet up with the Michigan 3-Day community at the Holding Area to participate in the ceremonies. If you wish to participate in the Closing Ceremonies please plan to arrive by 3:00 pm as parking is limited.

Please send us an email RSVP by Monday, September 10th, so we can plan to expect you!

Pictures from Dawn Cawood

Dawn is the wife of a Dallas Route Safety Crew member and an awesome person in her own right. Here are a couple of pictures of me with her team, including her daughter, in Cleveland.

Jordan Leventhal, 3-Day Guru

17_15A, originally uploaded by levenhopper.

This a Jordan's first 3-Day event but you could never tell by his enthusiasm, professionalism or qualitism of his character. The man, all 18 years and 2months of him, was the bomb! Thank you Jordan for all of your help to the crew and the walkers! Mom, you should be very, very proud of him.

2007 Cleveland Route Safety Crew

18_21A, originally uploaded by levenhopper.

Nipple Man

12_10A
Originally uploaded by levenhopper

A random walker -- if you know who this person is, please post a comment and I will update the entry.

Steffanie Roulet

Thank you, Steffanie, for sending these pictures. You are awesome!

Email from Komen

Dear Walkers and Crew of the Cleveland Breast Cancer 3-Day,

We wish to express our sincerest regrets that the severe weather conditions on Sunday cut short the celebration of your accomplishments this weekend at the first Cleveland Breast Cancer 3-Day. If anyone ever earned the right to a public celebration at Closing Ceremonies, it was you. You rose before the sun. You camped in the wind, and walked in the rain. Our hats are off to you.

The Breast Cancer 3-Day has never had to cancel an Opening or Closing Ceremony before. We know you missed an important part of your experience. We know you are disappointed and we are, too. However, your safety is always our first concern and after considering the options, we made a decision that we did not wish to make. We hope you understand that we felt it was the right decision for you.

None of this diminishes the fact that you accomplished a huge feat this weekend. Congratulations! You walked 60 miles in three days – and you raised an amazing $2.8 million in the fight to end breast cancer forever.

You walked because you knew you were making a real difference in the breast cancer movement. We’re so proud of you and we thank you! Proceeds from your tireless efforts benefit Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the National Philanthropic Trust Breast Cancer Fund for breast cancer research, education and community outreach programs. A portion of the funds will benefit the Cleveland area through the Northeast Ohio Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

Though the extreme weather shortened the event, we hope your overall experience was positive. The journey you started months ago culminated with each mile you walked this weekend. We hope you celebrated every moment – from Opening Ceremonies to that final step you took when you received your victory shirt as we cheered you on. We’re grateful for such a supportive and determined group of participants. Next year, we will have an amazing Closing Ceremony just for you!

Thank you again for your efforts. Because of you we are much closer to our ultimate goal to live in a world without breast cancer!

Thank you.
Pat RenzulliVice President, Breast Cancer 3-Day

Local News Reports

WKYC: Closing Ceremonies Canceled

WOIO: Closing Ceremonies Canceled

Closing Ceremonies, Canceled

My morning wish was granted, but that apparently was all I was allowed today. I had asked that, even though it rained all night long, the rain would stop in the morning at least long enough for us to break camp and pack up. I hate packing a tent and loading a bike in the rain; nothing remains dry for long.

We woke to cloudy but quiet skies and it stayed that way through our pack-up, breakfast and even our route opening. It started raining within the first hour of the day and never stopped. The weather turned so bad that closing ceremonies were canceled. I have never seen that before. For some reason, likely cost, 3-Day does not have a relocation plan for closing ceremonies. In this case, since thunder showers with heavy lightning was predicted (but never arrived), they decided early in the day to cancel the celebration. Quick work by the 3-Day Staff and a very generous Marriott hotel a block away from the scheduled location allowed us to use a ballroom for the distribution of shirts and a gathering place out of the rain to welcome home the walkers. We made the best of it, celebrating the $2.8m raised by 1100 walkers for the first Cleveland 3-Day ever, but it still lacked the pizzazz that we all expected and wanted for the final hours of a great event.

Lest I sound like the event was less than perfect, it is important to note that, walker for walker, this is one of the best events in which I have ever been involved. The route was awesome, the camp site great and the coordination of city police and services was impeccable. Lastly, the community support was amazing for a first time event. A lot of families out providing water and snacks, banners and signs and cheering for ALL walkers, not just the first 100 or so. The fire department came out with their mascot Dalmatian (all 6 feet of him waving to walkers) and a misting fan.

Now, I am in the hotel room trying to dry everything I own. My computer still works, luckily, but my camera may not fare as well. My HD map book will be trashed after I make it home and anything that was made of paper in my bags was reduced to pulp. So, it is a night of delivery pizza, diet cokes and cloths hanging all around the room.

And I forgot to mention, the wonder extra charger cable I creatively installed in my bike’s trunk to keep my mobile phone charged broke a wire, so my phone is now dead and I have no way of charging it. I will try to rig something tomorrow so I can have a phone for emergencies, but it could be a quiet ride home.

Cleveland Day 2

We had a great day today. Cool temps, shady residential streets and breezes. The walkers are great and the crew are doing an awesome job -- not just for a first time event, but for any event.

Unfortunately, they are predicting rain overnight and thunder storms tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed that it blows by or, at least, waits until the evening so everyone can enjoy Cleveland's first 3-Day.

Day 1 is in the books

Cleveland 3-Day got off to an awesome start. Good walkers, good crew and great staff. After the major heat wave that made hadline news, today was a miled, comfortable day. It is still warm in the evenings (a liitle to warm for my tastes to sleep) and very windy. The wind made interesting work of tent building. And speaking of tents, the 3-Day is finally pink! Pink trucks, pink inflateables, and pink tents.