UPS Faces of MS Video

Here is some video shot during today's Faces of MS event at the UPS Air Group Building. This was taken after the event when the team got together for a group photo with our MS Champions.

Team TdK would like to thank Judy and Amber for sharing their stories. The inspiration we derive from our MS Champions will make the next 4 days easier. Huge thanks to Cheryl Bryant, Sonya Kruer, Debbie Payne and all the other UPSers who worked behind the scenes to make our visit possible and enjoyable, as well as the UPSers that came out to support Judy, Amber, and Team TdK. We hope to make the UPS stop an annual part of TdK.

Thanks also to Sonya for shooting this video so I could get in the team photo.

Recovery Day Events

Our plan for today was to ride the 25 mile Recovery Day ride, with a stop at the UPS Air Group building for a Faces of MS presentation. After the ride we were planning a group lunch at Buckheads.

After Mother Nature elected not to cooperate, we instead met at the UPS building for our Faces of MS presentation. As part of this we also invited all the UPS employees to come down and meet the team and our Faces of MS guest.

About 20 UPSers joined us as we met Judy, a UPS employee with MS, and Amber, whose mother has MS. They both shared their stories with everyone, and we had the opportunity to share with some of the UPS employees in attendance why we ride.

We also raffled off one of the coveted Tour de Kentucky cycling jerseys to one lucky UPS employee in attendance. Ironically, the winner also happens to be a cyclist! Congratulations to Sam Natalino on winning the jersey, and we expect to see you wearing it next May on TdK 2009!

After the meeting, we all went to Corner Cafe for a great lunch. Again it amazes me that after 5 days together, and with 4 more on the horizon, we still wanted to be together as a team. That says a ton about the people particpating in this event.

More videos

As I have time today, I am hoping to get some of the other video from days 1-4 converted and posted.

Make sure you check back through the prior days blogs (linked above and to the right) to watch some of them.

Day 1: Reencoded the Day 1 edited video into Flash= better quality and easier on internet connections.

Day 2: Fixed the Fourmile Hill climb video so it doesnt start as soon as the page is loaded.

Day 4: 1 New video added, and one fixed. I added a cool video I shot from about 20-25 ft up over the road. I also fixed the Hill Climb video- it was cutting off too soon.

Rain out

Due to nasty, persistent showers in the Louisville area, we have decided to postpone today's scheduled Recovery Ride. The last thing we want to do is go out and get soaked on a day that we end up in the same place as we started (home).

We will make up the miles and ride this part of TdK 2008 at a later date.

However, the Faces of MS presentation and visit to the UPS Air Group Building will occur as scheduled at noon.

We look forward to getting back on the road tomorrow.

Recovery Ride Preview

Today we enjoy a casual 24 mile Recovery Ride to give the riders a chance to rest their weary legs without taking a full day off. Having too much time off will cause the legs to tighten up and make getting started tomorrow that much harder.

The weather forecast looks similar to our rest day last year: rain. The difference is that we ride this year! The forecast from the NAtional Weather Service: Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 8am and 2pm. Cloudy, with a high near 71. South wind between 7 and 15 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. Hopefully this holds off and we get in a good ride through Louisville.

Today's ride takes the team through Crestwood and Anchorage to the UPS Air Group building, where team members Bill Turner and Brian Ellis work. There we will meet a UPS employee with MS to be our MS Champion for the Recovery Day. Even on a 24 mile day it's important for the team to be reminded why we ride, and hope that our MS Champions are comforted by our efforts to help find the cure. We will also be met by the MS Society chapter, who will handle SAG duties for the UPS stop. Even the SAG team is going to get a Recovery Day (and they need AND deserve it!)

After leaving UPS, we will ride through Lyndon and St Matthews to connect to Seneca and Cherokee Parks. We will then ride downtown past Waterfront Park and across the Clark Memorial Bridge (State #5- Indiana!). Our ride ends at the Buckheads on the Ohio River in Jeffersonville, IN for a group lunch.

After this, the team will enjoy the remainder of the day with their families to reconnect, recharge and get ready for the next 4 days of awesome cycling and camaraderie searching for an end to MS.