Tag: ALS

Bike check

John Gruber1 Comment

This morning I embark on the Death Ride. The bike I’m riding is a Soma Fog Cutter. This is the description from the Soma,

The Fog Cutter is an endurance road/road sport design. We designed it to fit fatter tires, but its geometry makes it handle like a road bike rather than CX or gravel bike. It can float you over chewed up asphalt better than most bikes in this category. This is the frame you want for long days in the saddle and the most demanding commutes. 

http://www.somafab.com/archives/product/fog-cutter-frame-set

What makes this bike special is that I have used some key components from the last bike my dad rode for the build. My hands are holding the same handlebar and pedals are turning the same crankset he did. This bike is my first road bike and it has been fun to ride a new style of bike these past few months.

I need to give recognition to Soma, Spoke-n-Sport and Sturdy Bag Designs. Soma for helping me with the frame and fork, Spoke-n-Sport for the build, especially, Andy, and Sturdy Bag Designs for the custom frame bag. Thank you all so much!

Friday Fundraising

John Gruber1 Comment

Fundraising is a component of the Death Ride Tour. Each participant is required to raise at least $300 for ALS-TDI. Click here for info about the ALS Therapy Development Institute.

Please click here for my personal donation page. I have 307 Instagram followers and 323 friends on Facebook. I know some of my connections are duplicates, but if each of them gave $1 I would hit the minimum goal. Thank you for considering a donation.

Here is the background of why I am riding and raising money.

My dad’s story – The year is 2016 and my dad moved to Sioux Falls, SD to be closer to family and retire. He was planning a full retirement with relatives, odd jobs and most importantly riding his bike. During that year the unthinkable happened and he was diagnosed with ALS. Obviously many of the things he was looking forward to did not happen. My dad passed away last November from complications related to ALS.

My story – Many memories of my dad growing up involve bicycles. He fixed up my first two wheeler that I learned to ride on, took me shopping for my first mountain bike and was always active on his bike from triathlons to local rides with friends. One of my favorite cycling memories is participating in the Seattle to Portland ride with my dad and my sister. Riding 200 miles together over two days is something we will never forget.

I raising money for the future of ALS research and hopefully a cure.

New Year

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Yesterday marked the beginning of a new year and the first year of my life without my dad. He was diagnosed with ALS in October of 2016 and died peacefully at home this past November. It has been an interesting time as I deal with my father’s death and the impact he had on my life. The sadness peaks through when I’m not expecting it. I was in his garage and looking at his tools realized they would never be used by my him again. Yesterday I took part in the Spoke-n-Sport New Year’s Day Ride and thought of him through out the ride as riding his bike was something important to him and something we had planned on doing together during his retirement in Sioux Falls. I’m planning on tackling the biggest ride of my life to honor dad this summer.