20 mph Winds with wind chill at 24 degrees

WHY DO I RIDE?
No pics from this ride! I had all I could manage to stay on my bike at times! We had strong head winds and then side winds that were difficult to manage...but I remembered the challenges that Lance had in the beginning of the Tour of California...and that made my suffering seem like nothing!

WHY DO I RIDE?
I was wondering if my runny nose was going to freeze on my face...but it froze on my wind jacket instead! My fingers were numb as were many other peoples...and worse than mine. I am taking every remedy I can think of to avoid getting sick on these early morning and cold "not for the faint of heart" rides...taking my inhalers....and I am a girl...after all.... who does not like the cold....that's why I moved here from NY after all!

WHY AM I RIDING in the winter with this frigid wind? The answer was obvious to me when we were given a photo and ribbon of Dennis a cherished supporter of TNT and a person with blood cancer who passed away a few weeks ago. As I received his pic and put it on my sleeve so I could see it and remember him, I choked up for a moment and tears came into my eyes...I did not know Dennis but he symbolizes WHY we are riding.....for a greater purpose than our own.....to find a cure for blood cancer so that NOT ONE MORE person will have to pass away.