GA Chain Gang

We are only four months away from the start of the Race Across AMerica on June 12th! In spite of the crummy weather in January, the team is on track with our training plan. In February we have been ramping up to about 12-16 hours a week in the saddle. A good chunk of that time is still indoors – we are all regulars at the ATS “pain cave”, as it is affectionately known. But if the sun comes out, even with temps in the 30’s or 40’s, we’ll hit the road.

Our crew is just about complete with nine on board. All these folks have very strong commitments to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, as well as key coaching, mechanical, health and navigation skills. We are lucky to have them. Mark Engemann has also signed on to be the team’s alternate rider. He is a local racer and recent winner of his class at the ‘09 Grant Park Criterium. Thank you Mark!

We are still finalizing our race logistics and one of the most significant decisions is whether to stay with three vehicles, as we did last year, or go with four. We know three will work, but we lose time at night on transitions as the riders have to stop to wait for the follow vehicle to load up the rider coming off shift. Seems like a little thing but four vehicles would allow us to do “flying” exchanges, saving 3-4 hours over the course of a week. Besides requiring a fourth vehicle, we’d also need a 12 person crew. Stay tuned for more info as we finalize logistics.

For any of you who want to join us on some training rides, know we ride every Saturday and Sunday possible. For up-to-the-minute ride updates follow @gachaingang and @coachtonan on Twitter. We will most likely be participating in all the organized century rides in the area for the next four months. The first one on the calendar is the Wheels of Fire Century Ride on Saturday, March 27th. This ride always kicks off the century calendar for the year and is a favorite.  Besides the 100-mile option, there are shorter routes as well.

Our fundraising is just kicking into high gear. Expect to hear from one of us! We hope you will be as generous as last year. In the meantime, make plans to attend our first local fundraising event at Ormsby’s on March 23rd.

It’s official – the Georgia Chain Gang will be riding in the Race Across America again in 2010. We have a team. We have most of our crew. Most importantly, we will be riding for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society again.

The team will include Dave Armento (planning to finish), Frank Fuerst (planning to start and finish), Jerome Rossetti and Tony Myers. Frank is stepping back in to replace Dave Dowdakin who stepped in to replace Frank last year after Frank’s training accident took him out of the race. The team is already training hard, although the guys have spent a lot of time indoors the past few weeks with the cold and rain.

Warren Bruno, veteran crew member from 2009, will be crew chief this year. Assisting him will be Jane Eastham. Everyone on the crew has a close association with the Leukemia Society – some have lost loved ones, some are cancer survivors; some are battling the disease right now. They all have a common goal of defeating it and helping others engaged in similar battles.

In 2009 the team did well, especially in their rookie race, finishing in 7 days 8 hours 19 minutes. We won our age group and placed 5th overall among all 4-man teams. We are most proud of our accomplishment on the fundraising front. RAAM gives the Lon Haldeman awards each year to the team or individual that raises the most money for their selected charitable organization. We came in a very close second! We raised over $80,000 last year. Our goal for 2010 is to double that and ride away with the Lon Haldeman award!

Party like your dad, or grandpa for that matter, this Memorial Day Weekend at the First Annual Virginia Highland’s Classic Bar Tour. The Virginia Highland Neighborhood boasts some of Atlanta’s most historic bars and restaurants, with a number of venues opening before 1970.

Miller High Life and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society present a “Classic Bar Tour,” featuring the oldest bars in the neighborhood on Saturday, May 23, 2009 from 1:00 PM – 6:00 PM. Atkins Park Tavern, George’s Restaurant and Bar, Limerick Junction Irish Pub, Manuel’s Tavern and Moe’s & Joe’s Tavern team up to offer bar tour attendants food, booze, prizes and a historic look at Atlanta’s oldest neighborhood bar scene. For more information and tickets, see www.atlantaclassicsbartour.com.

We got our first story published in the local press. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution gave us a nice write-up in their “PROUD MOMENTS” column: PROUD MOMENTS: Atlantans take on coast-to-coast race

We now have committments from 9 crew members, giving us a full support team:

Al Bodine – Manager
Debra Priest – Co-manager
Jason Allison
Martha Brown
Warren Bruno
Marshall Priest
Chuck Murphy
David Rossetti
Melanie Zinger

With fund raising just beginning, we raise almost $8000 by year end.

Atlanta Cycling (http://atlantacycling.com/) signs on as our first sponsor – committing to supply the team with bikes, lighting, spares!

Our on-line donation page at Team In Training is now open to accept donations to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society:
http://pages.teamintraining.org/ga/ambbr09/gachaingang

We’ve received 2 lead gifts, one from Jack Margeson, the other from Mirome LLC, to kick off our fundraising. Each donation is for $3200! THANK YOU for such generous commitments to our team and cause!

Georgia Chain Gang officially becomes a Team in Training team, dedicated to raising funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS).