My ride number

I just spent a week riding through mud.

Not the kind of nice warm Dead Sea mud that tourists buy. I’m talking about freezing cold mud. It gets on your arms, your legs, in your nose, and between your teeth. Every day after the ride you take a shower wearing your riding gear to try and get some of it off. But it’s just not possible.

The mud gets on your bike chain and in your gears. It gets in your brakes and clogs your pedals. Your bike weighs a ton no matter how often you try and clean some muck off.

What an amazing week.

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Finally.

Team Neve Daniel has trained as much as we can and raised the money for our sponsorships for Alyn. For everyone who sponsored us, thank you.

The weather report for the next week is grim. The Golan is expected to be cold, rainy, and muddy. Now anyone who seriously rides a bike has gotten caught in the rain more than once. A cold rain can make a ride quite difficult and uncomfortable. Basically, when it starts to come down and the trails turn to mud, there are only two ways to look at the situation:

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Chaya Bailey Bat Kelev

Last week, my family had a bit of a crisis. Our beloved dog Bailey swallowed something that was never meant to be swallowed, and it tore up her belly and intestines.

She spent a week and a half in the vet clinic in Maale Adumim where she underwent two major operations. At one point, the vet told us that the odds were heavily against her making it home.

Those who are not pet owners are forgiven for not comprehending how torn apart a family can be when a pet is near death’s door. All of us went to bed on Rosh Hashana crying, wondering if we would see our Bailey again.

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In my not so humble opinion, there is nothing more thrilling than riding a bicycle along a rocky trail in the land of Israel. From the forest and mountains around Jerusalem to the stark grandeur of the desert, the land is full of amazing sites that come alive when you use your own power to experience them. In the three years since I moved to Israel, I have ridden thousands of kilometers, yet I have just scratched the surface of the beauty that this land possesses.

Yet as moving as riding in Israel is, once a year to ride a bicycle takes on another dimension. About ten years ago, some genius thought that he could use a bike ride to raise desperately needed money for a children’s hospital in Jerusalem. Apparently, many people agreed with him and the Alyn Hospital “Wheels of Love” ride began.

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I’m riding my bike and am only halfway up a seven and a half kilometer climb from the Kineret. My lungs are burning. I can feel my heart thumping and my legs are on fire. The sun is scorching my skin as I make my way up this beast of a hill. It’s only the second day of the International Bike Ride for Alyn Children’s Hospital. I’m having the time of my life.

For five days, over 500 riders rode through the north of Israel gradually making our way towards the hospital in Jerusalem. Every time we thought the hardest part was over, we rounded the corner into even greater challenges. We would climb into the sun and then descend at incredible speeds over rocky footpaths. We rode on pavement, gravel, rocks, and mud. When the terrain flattened out, we shifted to the big gears and rode like the wind. When we finished for the day, we were covered in dust and sweat. At night, we would shower, eat three or four dinners, and crawl into bed. The next day we woke at 5:00 A.M., ready to do it again.

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