MS Rona Bike Tour 2012

Team On Your Left



So happy to have participated again in the MS ride from Grand Bend, Ontario to London and back again.

Our team, On Your Left has raised over $14,000 this year and our team had 28 riders. Some people returned from last year but there were some great new rookies.

Conor, Alicia, David and the whole team made the weekend so well organized and fun. I loved our new shirts.


Me and my new ride - she was awesome
on Saturday

Lennie bought me a new bike for our wedding anniversary in June so I didn't have to suffer on a mountain bike like I did last year.  The friction from the thick tires and heaviness of the bike made it not enjoyable last year.  I had only done a couple of training rides but the bike is easy to manage and it made Saturday go really well.

I had learned from last year that I do not need to stop at all 5 water stops so I planned on only hitting stops 2 and 4 which was the lunch spot. I had secretly set a goal to break 4 hours for the 88km course.

The weather was perfect and the cloud cover made for a cooler day than last year. We took off from Grand Bend at 8:30am with the almost 2000 other riders and I was feeling great.


Mom, me and Dad at the finish line of day 1



At lunch in Ilderton I called my husband and parents to tell them to leave the house to see me finish at UWO.

Much to my surprise they were waiting for me on Nairn road and leapfrogged me all the way to the finish. They said I looked great and couldn't believe how well I was doing.

I crossed the finish in 3:58 and felt great but I know with training I could go a lot faster. This is close to a half ironman distance and the whole day I was thinking about if I could train for and complete a 70.3.

Saturday night we all had dinner and hung out watching the Olympics.

Sunday morning came early and we knew it would be hotter, hillier, and humid. We started at 7:30am and I rode with 20 members of our team the whole way.

The day was really enjoyable as the camaraderie of a team made the tougher day easier. It was really windy so we took turns leading the pack. We all crossed the 76km finish line together in 3:40.

Coach Conor and me hamming it up at the finishing line.

Once in Grand Bend we had snacks and relaxed celebrating our accomplishments. The team did so well, everyone was safe, and we raised lots of money.

Thank you to everyone for the support on and off the bike and I have almost hit my goal of $1000.  You can still sponsor me at http://mssoc.convio.net/goto/CatherineZ