A Bike sends a Kid to Camp!

     Sunday morning, my sister, Krista (Mike's wife) and I sat quietly drinking tea when she said, "It was the right time, the right place and the right thing to do."  She was referring to the auctioning of Mike's Tour de Rock bike the night before.

     It had been an emotional evening.  During the auction, as I held the bike and walked it around the circle of bidders, a sense of finality came over me and I cracked.  I don't cry often but the emotional impact of auctioning off Mike's bike was just too much.  I passed the bike off to a friend as the bidding kept going.  As I walked out the door to get some fresh air, one of my trainers, an alumni rider, gave me a smile and a look of understanding.  

     His look told me that this is what the next two weeks will be about.  It won't be about the riding...it will be about the emotions.  Tour de Rock is about the stories that people want to share and it's all about listening and hugging.  Am I ready?  I don't think I can answer that yet.

     So with tears flowing down my cheeks, I went back to the auction and wheeled that bike around with a sense of purpose...and pride.  The auction of Mike's bike raised enough money to send a child battling cancer to Camp Goodtimes and that was the goal.  I'm sure Mike is up there somewhere flashing his devil horns and cheering.