September 12th & 13th, 2009

Tour de Canal

• 100-mile ride: 50 miles on Saturday/50 miles on Sunday

Our journey begins Friday evening, September 11th as we meet in Georgetown in Washington, DC to transport you to our host hotel in Williamsport, MD where you will stay both Friday and Saturday nights. Volunteers greet you in Georgetown with a boxed dinner and help load your bicycle and luggage onto trucks. Your bike ride begins early Saturday morning and ends late Saturday afternoon. Relax at the hotel before enjoying a hearty pasta dinner. Sunday rise and shine as you start the 2nd leg of your ride back down to Georgetown. Your luggage will be transported back to DC and will be waiting for you at the finish line. Celebrate your great achievement by joining us for a victory party at the finish line.

The C&O Canal

 The 184.5 mile long Chesapeake & Ohio Canal is located along the north bank of the Potomac River, starting in Washington, DC and ending in Cumberland, MD. The canal was built between 1828 and 1850, and it operated sporadically between floods until 1924. In 1954, US Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas organized an eight day hike up the canal's towpath in an effort to save it from being converted to a parkway. His efforts succeeded, and in 1971 the canal became a National Historic Park.

Today, much of the canal has been drained of water and reclaimed by the forest. However, the canal's towpath remains a favorite of hikers, joggers, and bicyclists.

Check out a virtual tour of the canal online!

http://www.mcmullans.org/canal/

As some of you may know, I have been involved with the Tour De Canal since Jimmy MacLean Started this ride years ago and have only missed it twice. The first time when I had my accident in 1999 and the other when a cousin got married a couple of years ago.

For the past 10 years my involvement has been on a "volunteered" basis as a bike mechanic, but this year I think I am up for the challenge of actually riding the C&O canal. I will be doing the 100 miler (50 on Saturday and 50 on Sunday)

I know time are tough right now so please do not feel obligated to donate... Any support (such as motivating me to ride/train) will be greatly appreciated. That being said here's the link to my donation page:

https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=305046&lis=1&kntae305046=3C6C1E4C774E45FEBD45C060C144646B&supId=252573588

Oh and lastly... this ride is made possible by volunteers. And because of volunteers the charity actually gets no less than 90% of the money donated. That's a hell of a lot more than what the other rides get which is why I have stuck with this ride from Day One! (well that and Jimmy and Carin volunteer my services every year)

UPDATE:
I am now also Recruiting RIDERS! those who would like to become a rider, JOIN MY TEAM! (OCRACING)

sign up as a rider on the OCRacing team and help raise money for the ride.

Lee