They give you the shirt at the beginning!

What a relief - all the pressure was off. I forgot that they give you your shirt at the beginning of the ride. So, no one would actually know whether or not you completed!

In fact, with fear as my co-pilot (the big guy had bigger fish to deal with) I did complete again this year - with mucho thanks to all who sponsored and otherwise supported me.

The fearsome Hamilton Mountain - not so bad. When I shared the vertical stats with the brother-in-law he advised me that they weren't as big as the ones he has made me endure around the farm (who knew he was actually trying to help by riding with me?).

I even got a good nights sleep in the lumberjack camp (what else do you call a field with A LOT of guys snoring?)

Once again I was amazed at the support - both from donors as well as people along the route. Met and made new friends, and gathered new stories to share.

Thanks to all who sponsored and encouraged me - there were well over 3,000 riders this year -- and once again we raised over $14-million in total for cancer research @ PMH.

Next year, I'm taking a pass (don't want to overdo it) -- but the brother-in-law has a new mid-lifer planned for us. Motorcycle trip to Alaska! That means more expensive toys!