Well, I am packed and ready to head to the mountains tomorrow! The forecast for Fletcher, NC for our ride is 79 degrees and mostly sunny. I am so excited to take on this 100 mile ride with my sister in honor of our mom in the mountains (I'm told it is in the valley) of NC!

I started getting nervous last week, but this week my husband told me, "The hay is in the barn." Of course I thought he was crazy because I had never heard that phrase before. He quickly explained that it means to trust your training and to know that I have done everything my coaches have trained me to do. That phrase has gotten me through this week especially when I wanted to cram in exercise like I would studying for an exam. It doesn't work that way. It was better to taper and rest my body for the long mileage on Sunday.

I want to thank everyone for the donations to this cause that is so close to my heart. Since the last time I trained for a century ride with Team in Training Gleevec was developed and has helped people with CML live long and happy lives. I know with your donations I will be able to talk about the new strides that have been taken to cure cancer.

If you'd like to learn more about joining Team In Training, you can visit http://www.teamintraining.org.

On behalf of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, thank you very much for your support. I really appreciate your generosity.

ps You will be hearing from me after the race!!

Oh my gosh! I can't believe it is almost here! I've been training for about 4 months now and the ride is less than a week away. I'm nervous and excited! I have been thinking about how I want to feel when we finish. I want to be able to say it was fun and that I remember everything. Beth is already trying to think of some songs we can sing along the way.

Another emotion I'm feeling right now is gratitude. I am overwhelmed by all the support from our friends and family. I am so amazed every time I look at the list of donators on my TNT website. Thank you so much for all of your support. I am only $40 away from my personal goal.

I'll keep you updated on our progress on Sunday!!

Love,

Anna

Our training ride tomorrow is 90 miles!! Yes, on a bike! Oh my! And we are doing 2 of the hardest hills in the area. I haven't worn my arm band with my honorees name on it yet this year, but I will be needing it tomorrow to remind me of the reason I am doing this training and fundraising. It will give me inspiration to get up those hills knowing that it is nothing compared to what cancer patients have to go through.

And as always I will be thinking about my mom, but especially with Mother's Day and her birthday (May 22) coming up. She would've been 65 this year.

Thanks to everyone that has encouraged and supported me through this journey. Only a couple of more weeks left until the ride!!

Anna

This past Saturday we did a 57 mile ride through Apex and Corinth! It was a wonderful ride with a great group of cyclists. Most of us were able to have a relaxing lunch together afterwards. The weather was warm and pleasant sitting under the umbrellas outside at JD's. This was our longest ride yet, but next week we will tack on 10 more miles! Let's hope the weather stays clear!

Thanks to everyone that has donated! I reached my minumum, but have decided to raise my personal goal. Most of the people I am training with are doing the America's Most Beautiful Ride in Tahoe and their minumum is more than mine, but I would still like to raise as much as them.

I hope everyone has a wonderful week! Thanks again for all of your support!

Anna

I'm doing this ride to raise money to help fund research that develops drugs to help cure Leukemias like the one that my mom had. Here are some of the ways LLS research funding makes an impact.

LLS RESEARCH FUNDING MAKING AN IMPACT

Generous donors have helped LLS support the research that has already benefited blood cancer patients and many others. Advances include:

Multi-drug therapies that are more effective than treatments with single anti-cancer agents,

Bone marrow / stem cell transplantation and supportive care treatments for patients who relapse despite the best available therapy,

Tests that distinguish specific characteristics of particular blood cancers for accurate diagnosis of cancer subtypes, and for “risk stratification” to select an optimal therapy.