JACOBSON EXPRESS IS PUBLISHED

Monday, 10 October 2011:  After many months of consolidating my blog with my wife Judy’s daily journal, and compiling the pictures to coincide with the text, our book, JACOBSON EXPRESS is now published and ready for purchase at BLURB.com.  The book details both Judy’s and my perspective of the 10,000 mile bike ride I did around the United States to raise awareness and donations for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  The link below will take you to the website where you can preview and/or purchase the book.

http://www.blurb.com/books/2552654

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Long Beach Marathon and Bike Ride by wildwes49

Sunday, 9 October 2011:  Today I was up and ready to ride before sunrise.  My friend Eric met me in Seal Beach and we rode a couple of miles before we met with Mike and Marvie, a couple more friends from my bike club, SCORccc.  At 4:45 AM we continued our ride to downtown Long Beach for their annual Marathon and Bike Ride.  On the way there, Mike got a flat tire.  It is a good thing we started our ride early so we have enough time to fix the flat.  While we were fixing the flat tire, Lance, another member of our club rode past.  He stopped to visit as we continued with the flat repair.  We then all continued to the start line and got ourselves in position for the ride.  There were thousands of riders there ready to ride at the start time of 6:00 AM.  Even with all the riders, it was not as chaotic as I had expected.  After only a few miles, Eric decided to take off ahead of us.  The rest of us tried to stay together.  At one point, Mike got hit by another rider.  She also took 3 other riders down and then just kept on going without stopping.  We waited for Mike a little while, but he disappeared from sight and it was too crowded to go back to get him.  We continued our ride with no further incidences and Mike caught up with us just a few miles before the end of the ride.  Afterwards, we relaxed and listened to a small band and checked out a few of the vendors before getting back on our bikes and heading home.  This ride has numerous charities that you can choose from to donate to.  My charity of choice for this ride is the Alpenglow Hospice which helps the terminally ill live the remainder of their lives in dignity.  Their website is http://www.alpenglowhospicefoundation.com.  In the picture are my friends, Eric, Lance, Mike and Marvie.  You can check the stats of today’s ride by clicking on the link at the end of this post. 

Long Beach Marathon and Bike Ride by wildwes49 at Garmin Connect – Details.

Beach BBQ Ride by wildwes49

Saturday, 8 October 2011:  I got on my bike this morning and rode from Seal Beach, CA to Huntington Beach for a Beach BBQ Ride put on by my bike club, SCORccc.  They had several rides to choose from.  I chose the 48 mile ride through north Orange County and some of LA County.  There were 5 of us in our group and we held a pretty decent pace.  At the end of the ride we all enjoyed a great BBQ and fellowship with friends.  After eating all that good food, I cycled up to Long Beach to sign up for the Long Beach Marathon/Bike Ride that I will be doing tomorrow.  It is a ride for charity and there is a list of charities that you can choose from to benefit from your ride.  My charity of choice for this ride is Alpenglow Hospice.  It is a not-for-profit organization providing the terminally ill the opportunity to live their final days with dignity.  You can find out more about this organization by going to their website at:  http://www.alpenglowhospicefoundation.com.  To view the stats of today’s ride you can click on the link below:

Beach BBQ Ride by wildwes49 at Garmin Connect – Details.

Preview of Long Beach Bike Tour by wildwes49

Thursday, 6 October 2011:  This morning I rode from Seal Beach to the Long Beach Convention Center where they will be having their annual marathon and bike ride this coming Sunday, 9 October.  This event has many charities that you can choose to donate to.  My charity of choice is Aplenglow Hospice and I will be riding my bike on the 26 mile course.  I downloaded the route to the 26 mile course and took a preview ride to check the mileage at each turn point and to see the route first hand before doing the actual event.  It will be dark when we start the actual ride on Sunday so today I took a few pictures of sights you may see on this ride.  Below you will see the Catalina Express, a boat that takes you to Catalina Island.  Across the bay is a nice restaurant with a great view.  We circle around the lighthouse and go past the Long Beach Aquarium.  As we cycle along the beach bike path you can see the Queen Mary next to the Spruce Goose Dome.  We also ride through the Long Beach State University and pass by their famous pyramid.  They are expecting a large crowd on Sunday and it should be a lot of fun.  I will try to take some more pictures during and after the actual ride.  After I completed the course, I returned to Seal Beach with about 40 miles.  There is a link under the pictures that you can click on to view the stats of today’s ride.

Preview of Long Beach Bike Tour by wildwes49 at Garmin Connect – Details.

Hello Fans, Friends and Family

Monday, April 18th, 2011:  Today is day 18 of my 30 day challenge to ride every day during the month of April.  It is a windy morning and expected to have heavier winds later in the day.  I decided I would just take a couple of laps around my neighborhood.  My first lap was on my hybrid bike and went 2.2 miles in 11 min and 01 secs.  I then went on my road bike on the same course and did 2.2 miles in 9 min and 33 secs.  That totals 4.4 miles in 20 min and 34 secs.  No speed record, but hey!  It’s just a bike ride.  You can see the site where my challenge takes place by clicking on the link below.

30 Days of Biking – Cycling Challenge

www.dailymile.com

The 30 Days of Biking cycling challenge has 92 participants. The only rule for 30 Days of Biking is that you bike every day for 30 days—around the block, 20 miles to work, whatever suits you—then share your adventures online. We believe biking enriches life, builds community, and preserves the Earth

Hello Fans, Friends and Family

Thursday, December 9th:  Good Morning!  The adventure is now complete!  After finishing Tuesday’s ride of 77 miles we checked out the map and figured if we drove to the Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton in Oceanside, California  that I would have enough miles left to finish my ride with at least 10,000 miles.  While I was doing Tuesday night’s blog, Judy was calling people we thought would like to meet us at the end of the ride.  In the morning I got up and noticed my rear tire was low for the 2nd day in a row.  I decided it must be a slow leak so I replaced the tube and started out on my ride about 7:00AM.  Judy asked me to leave her the camera so she could take pictures of me arriving at the finish line.  I told her to take pictures of anything interesting along the way.  About 15 miles into my ride my front tire went flat.  The tire itself was also pretty well worn so I not only replaced the tube, but the tire also.  (I always carry a fold-up tire in my waist pack.)  I was back on the road in less than 20 minutes.  I kept contact with Judy via cell phone and she kept others updated on my progress.  Some of the pictures Judy took included the San Onofre Neuclear Plant, a business called “Intimate Obsessions” (what was on Judy’s mind?), shrubs wearing Santa hats, and a walkway in Huntington Beach that you can take from the business side of the street to the ocean side of the street.  I arrived in Huntington Beach about 11:20 and about a half dozen bike riders from SCOR, my bike club, were waiting to help me finish my ride into Seal Beach.

  Upon arrival at Seal Beach I was greeted by my wife Judy, Judys brother Bob and his wife, Eileen,  other cyclists from my club, and a retired postal worker, Rick and his wife that I used to work with when I was a mailman.  There was also a reporter from the Seal Beach Sun who took pictures for the local paper.  At the end of the ride I had cycled 62 miles.  The total mileage for these last four days is 368 miles.  Added together with the 9,646 miles I had accumulated before my accident give me a total of 10,014 miles of cycling around the United States for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  A breakdown of the total event is as follows:  

Number of Days of Event:                                      257

Number of Days Cycling:                                        129

Number of Rest Days:                                                57

Number of Hospital/Recovery  Days:                 71

Number of Flat Tires:                                                  22

Injuries:  4 broken ribs, punctured  lung, fractured clavicle, scapula, and vertebrae and separated shoulder.

Thank you to everyone who helped me acheive my goals along the way.  I had hoped to finish my 10,000 miles by mid -Ocotober, and would have done so if it were not for my accident.  I was, however, able to finish the ride before the end of the year and raised $4,120 in the fight against Leukemia and Lymphoma.  Although my goal was to raise $1.00 per mile, which would have been $10,000, I was never-the-less, very impressed and thankful for the response I received. My ride is now complete, but my website will remain on line and anyone interested in contributing to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society can do so by visiting http://www.gsf.lls.llsevent.org/JACOBSONEXPRESS.COM.  Thankyou again to every one and remember to wear your helmet.  Saving Lives One Mile at a Time . . . Wes & Judy    http://www.jacobsonexpress.com

Hello Fans, Friends and Family

Tuesday, December 7th:  I started today’s ride in Yuma, AZ.  In a few short miles I crossed the Colorado River and entered my home state of California.  My ride continued on the Interstate 8 until I came to a sign that said all bicycles must exit.  I saw a Highway Patrolman and he said I would be on the frontage road until the next overpass and then get back on the Interstate.  I was not too impressed with the condition of the frontage road.  The cracks in the asphalt made it very difficult to ride.

  Back on the Interstate and later on down the road was another sign saying bicycles must exit.  This time I decided to stay on the Interstate.  My only concern was that just up the road was a Border Patrol Checkpoint.  They didn’t seem to mind that I was on the Interstate.  They just asked if I needed some water.  I waited for Judy at a rest stop and had a snack when she arrived.  I continued on down the Interstate another 12 miles and took the Highway 98 exit.  There were quite a few palm trees and some dead bushes that Judy said were turning color and were actually gold.  They had a lot of farm areas.  The one pictured here is a lettuce field.  After 77 miles of cycling it was time for me to call it quits for the day.  I have some sores on my backend from the last 2 days of riding which made today’s ride somewhat unbearable.  Judy and I discussed it and decided to drive to Oceanside, CA and finish the ride to Seal Beach, CA from there, which will make us reach the 10,000 mile goal we were hoping for.  You can still help me reach my $10,000 goal for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society by visiting http://www.gsf.lls.llsevent.org/JACOBSONEXPRESS.  Until next time . . . Saving Lives One Mile at a Time . . .Wes & Judy     http://www.jacobsonexpress.com.

Hello Fans, Friends and Family

Monday, December 6th:  I started today’s ride at 8:00AM from Gila Bend, AZ.  I will be cycling on the Interstate 8 all day.  I feel a little better this morning after taking an Ibuprofin last night.  Not much to see along the highway.  Mostly just desert so I have to entertain myself while I ride.

  There was one interesting thing that I missed that Judy hoped I had taken a picture of.  It was a bush along the highway decorated with large Christmas bulbs.  It doesn’t say much for a town when they advertise their claim to fame as being in “the middle of nowhere”.  The ride today was mostly gradual climbs and descents.  There were a couple of good climbs.  The first one wasn’t too bad and only about a mile long.  The second one was much steeper and lasted almost 2 miles.  After 117 miles of cycling I arrived in Yuma, AZ a little after 5:00PM.  I was still tired after this ride but my muscles don’t ache quite as much as yesterday.  I am only 3 miles from the California  border, so tomorrow I will definitely be in California.  I will be heading towards the San Diego area and then north until I arrive in Seal Beach, California.  I am doing this ride to raise money and awarness in fight against Leukemia and Lymphoma.  Donations to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society can be made by visiting http://www.gsf.lls.llsevent.org/JACOBSONEXPRESS.  Until next time . . . Saving Lives One Mile at a Time . . . Wes & Judy   http://www.jacobsonexpress.com

Hello Fans, Friends and Family

Sunday, December 5th:  Today my 10,000 mile bicycle ride around the United States continues.  After 26 weeks of cycling my ride was put on hold because of an accident on 24 September.  It has now been 10 weeks since my accident and I am in the process of finishing where I left off.  At the end of my 26 weeks I had accumulated 9,646 miles of cycling.  Today is the beginning of the 27th week and I was able to cycle 112 miles from Marana, AZ to Gila Bend, AZ, starting at 9:00 in the morning and finishing at 5:30 in the evening.  It felt good to be back on the bike again, although I could tell that I am not in the shape that I was in before the accident.  I was pretty tired with a few sore muscles at the end of the day.

  The first 80 miles I rode on frontage road next to the interstate.  The rest of the ride was on Interstate 8.  I was not aware until now that Arizona grows cotton.  These big bales are all cotton ready to go to the cotton gin to be processed.  Tomorrow I will head towards Yuma.  That will be a little farther than today’s ride.  I’ll have to get a little earlier start.  Until then . . . Remember to wear your helmet . . . Saving Lives One Mile at a Time . . .  Wes & Judy    http://www.jacobsonexpress.com    Donations to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society can be made by visiting http://www.gsf.lls.llsevent.org/JACOBSONEXPRESS.

Hello Fans, Friends and Family

Saturday, December 4th:  We got our motorhome working again and left about 8:00AM  this morning from Seal Beach, CA and after almost 500 miles arrived just outside of Tucson, AZ about 6:00PM, very close to the spot where I had my accident on 24 September.  Tomorrow morning I will resume my 10,000 mile bicycle ride around the United States, continuing to raise money and awareness for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  As of this date I have cycled 9,646 miles and raised $4,120 through your generous donations to help in the fight against Leukemia and Lymphoma.  By the time I reach Seal Beach, CA I should have well over 10,000 miles and hope that the donations for Leukemia and Lymphoma match my mileage.  Donations to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society can be made by visiting http://www.gsf.lls.llsevent.org/JACOBSONEXPRESS.  Until next time . . . Remember to wear your helmet . . . Saving Lives One Mile at a Time . . . Wes & Judy      http://www.jacobsonexpress.com