Get your money back!

The Ride to Conquer Cancer emailed the other day to point out that all donors who contribute before Dec 31 will get their money back on their '09 tax returns instead of waiting for '10.

A little extra incentive for a good cause!

Happy Holiday season everybody! Only 10 shopping days left!

Twitter.

Some of you may have noticed the little "follow me on Twitter" button added to the sidebar. I know what you're thinking. So here's my side of the story.

I said I would never do it. But I do like to read other people's. A lot of other people's. I still can't for the life of me figure out why anyone would care about what I have to say (although I do still keep this blog, so go figure) but I like to check in with Lance Armstrong and all the others once in awhile. Becoming a member of Twitter is an easy way to do that because lo and behold, all the latest "tweets" (look at me, even using the lingo!) show up in order with just one click.

My first follower is Malcolm Howard, one of Canada's top rowers, so I'm off to a good start. We had a good game of croquet back in the day while I was visiting a teammate of his in Victoria. I don't know if he even remembers that, but maybe I'll 'tweet' him about it.

Anyway, in the spirit of twitter-fun, check this out: "It's like Twitter. Except we charge people to use it."

See you in the twittersphere.

RTCC Milestone!

Thanks to some very generous donations, we've made it over the $1,000 mark. Hurray!!! But that's not all! We're also ahead of Dad's fundraising!

Just $1,500 more to go.

Dear Santa ...

Wow, what a great opportunity for just EIGHT people with Boreale Mountain Biking and Ryan Leech, Norco Pro Trials/Mtb rider.

Spend a week in a yurt, riding beautiful Yukon singletrack, eating local gourmet foods and complementing it all with an evolving yoga practice.

I've met Ryan before at the Toronto International Bike Show and from what I saw there -- both his show, and his talk on the "mental game" -- I think a week under his tutelage would be a pretty valuable use of time.

When is this amazing trip? July 3 - 9, 2010.

I've been a good girl, I swear.

Canada Cup 2010 - Posted!

Looks like the Canada Cup Schedule is up -- once again, no BC stops for XCO. Hmmm. Any one want to head out for the Test of Metal? No Canada Cup Races in June, so we can make The Test an unofficial stop on the Ccup Circuit.

Here's the sked at a glance for XCO. For DH/4X, click here.

#1 Baie St. Paul, QC May 16

#2 Tremblant, QC May 22

#3 Hardwood Hills, ON May 30

Write in: Test of Metal, BC June 19

#4 Edmonton, AB July 11

#5 Canmore, AB, July 18: National Championships

#6 Bromont, QC August 15

A Bloggable Event

Trainer! Day one!! All set up in the warm living room while the temperature drops to the negatives outside. Got my movie, my smoothie, and all the other comforts for trainer-ing. By the way, I found Angels and Demons to be entertaining, but a bit silly. I guess it's sort of redundant to accuse Dan Brown of being over the top.



Before I started, I also made some time to get the new dehydrator working away on some apple chips. Healthy snacks all winter, courtesy of Gerhard on my birthday. So stoked.

First, core the apples ...

Then slice them up with the mandolin ...


And then a few hours in here ...

And voila! Apple Chips!

Double Century for Grandma

Me, Grandma, Grandpa and Dad on the 2008 Ride to Conquer Cancer

Our Ride to Conquer Cancer has gone from a double metric century to a true double century, 200 miles, or about 320 kilometres between Toronto and Niagara Falls.

I was signed up all along, but my dad originally opted for the 200K. When the Ride Guide called me to let me know some info, I found out that the 200M ride I'd signed up for wasn't like the 2008 edition where we got an added ride in the afternoon to make up the miles. Instead, the 200-milers are riding an entirely different route! With different rest stops! So ... if dad and were to ride together, we'd need to decide which route we're doing.

I thought switching down would make the most sense but they said that the 200km route was full!!

So Dad has now bravely moved up, and we're doing the BIG ride. I don't think I've ever been in the saddle for that long, so this is going to be something. I hope you're inspired to donate to our now-harder-than-ever challenge!!

I know we'll make it because I'm very sad to tell you, we have a new family member to add to our memorial list.

My Grandma -- dad's mom -- passed away on November 27 2009 peacefully at St. Catharines General hospital. She was diagnosed with Lung Cancer on the 25th. So we'll do this one for her, and I know she'll help us get it done.

Losing her is a reminder of how important it is to do what we can to help researchers find a cure, and families get the care they need.

Thank you in advance for whatever you can contribute.

Please DONATE to Kris Lake or DONATE to Mark Lake in memory of Marian Lake.

Water colour by my grandma, Marian Lake