Tour For Kids - My summer adventure on the bike

A decade ago, I spent the weekend up north at a friend's cottage. When I was driving home, I kept seeing these signs posted for "Tour For Kids". I had no idea what it was until a couple of years later when I met someone who had done it. At that time, it was a four-day cycling trip across southern Ontario and into cottage country. That sounded incredible to me and something I added to my "bucket list".

Years later, I venture into my second career, as a teacher, and get a grade 7 position at a middle school in Mississauga. For the last two years at my school, we have had several students who have been affected by cancer, either personally or through a sibling. One of those students was in my class three years ago and is a young man who is wise beyond his years. I grew to really enjoy chatting with him about books, ideas, and various trivia and value my discussions with him. He later came back to volunteer in my classroom. In that time, he started having strange symptoms and later was diagnosed with Leukemia. I was in shock and did not know what to do. The only thing I could think of was to visit he and his mother at SickKids.

The following fall, I had a girl in my new class who, I later found out, had a sister who was diagnosed with Leukemia at two years old and died, a month earlier, at the age of eight. When I learned about that I thought about these two students and the other students in our school who were also affected and I promised myself I would finally do Tour For Kids.

I registered for the event and my fundraising and training began. I raised the $1750 by August 10th, packed up my car and headed off to Barrie for a three-day adventure. Friends who participated in the past (some repetitively) told me amazing stories of friendships made, beautiful cycling, and tears. It was more than I could have imagined.

This summer, I have been riding with a group of girls and one of them, Shannon, is training to do The Sears National Kids Cancer Ride (SNKCR). Her nephew was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia just before he turned 1 and passed away just before his 3rd birthday. She and her sister will be meeting in Vancouver with several other people to ride the Coast to Coast on September 1st. If you would like to learn more about her family's story and their upcoming journey please click here.

I joined Shannon and her group of SNKCR riders and had an absolute blast. We were met with all kinds of weather: extreme heat, headwinds, and torrential rains. Apparently. there was even a tornado lurking around. We did not care. Our spirits were high and everyone was supportive of one another. The riding was safely lead by an experienced marshal who kept us organized.

Over the three day period, I rode a total of 415 km. It was quite the accomplishment and something I will always remember. The routes were amazing: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3
Anytime I got down on myself, I remembered why I was there and who I was riding for. My older student is attending Camp Ooch this month and I know he is going to enjoy himself. I look forward to catching up with him soon and hearing his story. It will be a nice addition to all of the other stories I heard over the weekend.

Serendipitously, when I got home, Sage was running out the door with an instruction for me: shower, change, get on the TTC and meet him at the ACC. He was bound and determined to see the Tragically Hip's final Toronto performance. When I met him down there, we started talking to the guys in front of us in line. One of them had done Tour For Karen (another event in the Beyond Kids Cancer series) and, as a fellow teacher, has volunteered for eight years with Camp Ooch. Talking to him and hearing his camp stories was the perfect closure to my Tour For Kids weekend. Oh, and we did finally get tickets.

A big thank you, again, to all of my donors. If you want to learn more about the Tour please check out my page: Tour 4 Kids: Deanna Solomon

I think the next thing on my Bucket List is Coast To Coast. Shannon and crew...I will be thinking of you guys and wishing I was in your pelaton across Canada. Have fun and ride safe. You are all doing a wonderful thing!

Me and Shannon at the final rest stop on the 1st day
where we discovered MMs with banana chips

First day - post ride beer,
even caught up with an old Ironman friend

100 km in the rain - done - do we continue?
OF COURSE WE DO!!!

2nd night ... posing with Kitty Kitty

SNKCR Team

Sage got his wish!!!

Now, will you finally stop riding your bike?

Three weeks ago I had another fall off my bike. Yes, that is right, ANOTHER fall. In the 15 years since I have been cycling, I have fallen about half a dozen times. Four of those falls have been pretty severe:

1. Going over wet train tracks in Milton (2004), which I approached in aero position, and crossed over at a 45 degree angle. Result - fractured clavicle - wore a figure 8 brace over my shoulders, it was winter so I could cycle on the trainer but running was postponed for 3 weeks and swimming for 6 weeks.

2. Training for Ironman (2009), cycling on a country road on a windy day. I was almost back to the car when I got blown over on my bike while in aero position. Front wheel slipped into a tar snake and I flipped over the bike onto the side of the road. Result - waking up on the side of the road waiting for an ambulance to take me to Milton District where they found I had 5 fractured ribs and a concussion - withdrawal from Ironman that year. Season was a wash due to worry of riding on the road due to concussion. Spent the summer riding the trainer and walking a lot. Learned to find enjoyment in other things but could not wait to get back on the bike.

3. Heading out to meet a group for a ride on my new road bike that I was just starting to use for road cycling rather than triathlon (2011). Passed a slower commuter on the road and in doing so I went over some streetcar tracks. While moving back in front of her, I did not turn my wheel at a right angle, it got caught in the tracks and I went down on my neck. Result (worst yet) - fractured C1 and the worst experience at a hospital ever (avoid St Joe's). Had to take 2 months off of work (I am a teacher), sat on the trainer almost all summer while my husband rode with our friends, and a lot of walking, getting to know the City of Toronto.

4. My latest experience occurred while riding to work on a regular weekday morning. Roads were quiet, it was a little misty out but promised to be a beautiful autumn day. I was really looking forward to putting a good day in at work and riding home via Lakeshore Road, making the ride safer and a little longer. I was approaching Dixie Road on Bloor Street, heading west. I was well on the right and a car was passing me in the left-hand lane. That car obviously was not going fast enough for the black pick-up truck that sped past me in the right hand lane, almost clipping me. I breathed a sigh of relief while cursing him (I am assuming it was a guy).
I realized the light up ahead was red and my mind started focusing on the pick up truck and wondering if he was at the light. I did not realize that I was also approaching an area where the asphalt has been graded. I ride and drive this section of road all of the time. It has been under construction for about two years now. Usually, when I ride through here, I stay on the graded section, giving the cars the left lane. I focus on what the asphalt is doing and ride it accordingly. But, on this day, my mind was on the pick up truck up ahead, that almost hit me.
I woke up in an ambulance. Honestly, that can be the scariest thing in the world because you have no idea what happened. But in another sense, at least you don't deal with the fear of the worst thing happening because you are unaware it has even happened. This time the result was another concussion, a bruised rib, and a collapsed lung. I have been off of work for three weeks, am walking all over my neighbourhood, learning all sort of things about acupuncture, and spinning easily on my trainer.

When I had the fall where I fractured my C1 (#3), my G.P. asked me if I was ready to stop cycling, I quickly found myself a new G.P.. It has never really crossed my mind to quit cycling. I understand that when I ride, when anyone rides, it isn't "if" I fall, it is a matter of "when" I fall. Unfortunately, some falls result in some frightening results. But you do what you can. For me, it really has just been, how long am I off the bike? Can I ride the trainer? Ok, here is the plan of action.

This time, I had a family function to go to the weekend after my injury. Two of  my aunts, who I adore dearly, asked me if I am going to "finally quit cycling". I asked, "why?" Later that night I asked my husband if I should quit. He gave me the best answer, "Do what you like. Do what is best for you. If you want to quit, quit."

The thing with me and the bike is it has really become a part of my life. Most of my friends ride, a lot of the activities I do are focussed around group rides, destination rides, trips with the bike to Europe and other cycle friendly spots, my husband rides and it is something we share and, as much as we argue on the bike, we love what we do. There is nothing better than racing my way up to the Lake Simcoe coffee shop with Beaches Cycling Club where the winners get first dibs on the Muskoka chairs on the dock. There are always a lot of laughs and stories that help my husband and I survive the winter on the trainer. I love the lifestyle. I love the people that I meet. I love how good I feel when I ride.

So, why would I quit?

Well, it's dangerous. What if you get hit by a car? You can't trust the drivers on the road. Look what happened to so-and-so. You have been lucky, the next time might be worse. And I could go on...I have heard them all...trust me. And, yes, every time I am walking my neighbourhood because I cannot be on my bike, this is what I am contemplating. But then the boys from Wheels Of Bloor whoosh by me, or a lone ranger adds a couple of gears and stands out of the saddle to make the light, and I feel that spark, that desire to get back on.

As a child, I grew up in another saddle, the saddle that is mounted on four legs. I was an equestrian, and a pretty high level equestrian at that. There was never any talk about will I stop riding because I got bucked off, or the horse stopped in front of the jump and I kept going right over it, it was "get right back on the saddle, let's go!" (Now, with all we know about concussions, this might not have been the best thing but it is what we did and I never bowed out, except for the time I almost lost my baby finger but that is another story.)

There is something about cycling, especially here in North America, where people just believe that the bike is too dangerous and should not be on the road. There are so many things people are passionate about: rock climbing and skiing are two such things that can also be quite dangerous but nobody ever asks a skier if they are putting away the skis when they break a leg going down the hill. Or what about as a commuter? If I had made a judgement error and went through a red light causing someone to drive into me ultimately causing severe injuries, no one would ask me if I am going to stop driving. What is it about cycling that makes people feel they have a right to question your passion? Why can't people simply ask me how I am doing, maybe joke around and ask how the bike is and if anything WHEN I will be ready to get back on that saddle again?

Cycling is a part of who I am...and a fall is not going to change that.

Class of '87 - A Family Reunion of sorts.

Twenty-seven years ago I graduated from grade 8. I left my elementary school. The institution that had been such a big part of my life for nine years. I attended my graduation, said "goodbye" to friends I had known for my lifetime and walked away from a wonderful school full of amazing memories.

This past weekend I reconnected with more than a third of those friends and it was an amazing experience. But who does that? We hear about high school reunions and university reunions but elementary school? I suppose the world of social media, particularly Facebook, is a big part of it but it is also who we were as a class. When my life-long friend from this class told me that everyone from WHPS was on this thing called Facebook, I had to check it out. 

My elementary school experience was a unique one. I was in a class of 25 or so kids and most of us remained together from kindergarten to grade 8. Some faces came and went but there was a core group that remained the same for nine years. When I reconnected with these people on Facebook, it was amazing to see what they were doing in life, how they had grown up, and for some, to see their children.

But this is no different than many other people's experience. What is it about us that brought us back together for a reunion? Why did we all feel the importance of reconnecting like we did (even those who wanted to be there but unfortunately could not)? 

Part of me feels it is who we each are and how we were raised. We didn't move around like people do today. Our school was not a transient school where people moved in and out. We spent many years together and really got to watch one another grow up and develop into the people we are today. 

I am not saying that those years were perfect. I do remember some instances of typical adolescent behaviour of "today I am your friend, tomorrow I am not", and exclusive groupings, but by grade eight we moved away from that and accepted each other for who we each were. I remember grade eight being more like a big family where we supported each other and accepted one another. Part of this has to do with the caring and genuine people we were growing up to be but I also remember our grade 8 teacher, Mr Tetley, encouraging the friendships we had rather than separating people in fear that they would not do the assigned class work. He trusted us to do the right things or accept the consequences if we did not. As a result, this strategy worked to our benefit because we appreciated our close friends and developed acceptance of everyone in the class. As a teacher, I hope that I can instill the same kind of respect and cohesiveness in my students.

(Again, I am not saying that we were perfect, for example I do remember a food fight one day at lunch when we had a supply teacher, that resulted in one of my horse drawings being splattered with strawberry yogurt.) 

There was no pretentiousness in our gathering. Everyone was genuine and happy to share their memories and relive those good years. There were even tears as some reflected on what it meant to see what was home for so many years or to see their children play exactly where they did when they were that age. As the day faded into evening and some of us stayed up way past our bed times, we enjoyed sharing our first "legal" drink together and, danced to tunes we loved in the eighties. There were plenty of laughs and hugs to carry us on to the next time we see each other where hopefully more of us will be able to share the memories and reignite old friendships.

Here's to the class of '87! 

Friends...Reason, Season, Lifetime

I find myself reflecting a lot lately on the true meaning and value of friendship and who my "real" friends are. As a teacher, I teach my students the value of friendship and how to interact with each other in a positive manner. We recently had a big discussion during homeroom about peer pressure and standing firm on what you truly believe and how it is important to not follow the crowd simply because you want to be accepted by that ever important crowd.

I followed up the discussion with an activity with the iPad app Haiku Deck where the students needed to create a six word memoir about teenage relationships. They could share something about the true meaning of a friend, how it feels to be bullied, or the fine line of peer pressure and how to deal with it. As a result, they have come up with quite a few good ones, here are three examples:
1. Friendship - Will it always stay with you?
2. Stop Bullying - Don't be a standby, stop bullying. (This one has a picture of a picture of two boys sitting behind a grate and a third boy kicking a soccer ball at it)
3. Friends - The ones you can rely on.

These short little messages made me realize that a lesson on friendship is not just something to be learned as an adolescent. It is a lesson we need to carry with us for our entire lives as we navigate through the various people we meet and learn the valuable lesson of trust and the importance of a true friend. We learn that a true friend does not judge, or hold expectations that may never be realized because they are their own expectations or they are unreasonable.

About a decade ago, someone shared with me the poem "Reason, Season, Lifetime"; a poem that identifies the meaning of relationships with others and answers the question regarding why some people seem to be in one's life forever, regardless of situation or circumstance, and why others seem to fade off into history, thought of with fond and distant memories; others end quite abruptly, leaving one to question what ever happened and never really knowing.

I could not imagine growing up now in the world of social media. As much as it has its benefits, it must be frightening to feel like friendship is based on how many followers you have on Twitter or friends you have on Facebook. Those posts that come out now and then from some of my "friends" asking me to complete the test of a true friend before she decides if she will delete me from her friend list on Facebook make me laugh. I can't imagine how a fragile teen would feel getting a message like that, or worse, being deleted as someone's friend because, overnight, they have decided not to be his or her friend anymore.

Its funny, the whole reason why I got on Facebook, six years ago, was because I found out, through my lifelong friend I have known since kindergarten, that my grade 8 graduating class was all on Facebook. I had gone to school with most of those people for nine years. Some of them for another three years into high school. Those were people I thought would always be in my life but we grew up and each of our lives took us in different directions. Was it ever amazing to catch up with those people and some of us have reestablished our friendship and met up with each other whenever possible.

I guess as we mature we discover that the bullies we knew in elementary school and then in high school are the same people we later meet when we are adults. Lessons like the ones I have recently given my students give them the coping skills for how to deal with those bullies presently and, I suppose, well into the future when they are adults and meet their childhood bully all over again. In the end, we realize that no matter how old that bully is, the bully is just insecure and I hope my students develop the skills to deal with that bully and perhaps have empathy toward him or her.

First Day of School

Labour Day Monday. The night before the first day of school. It is almost like the calm before the storm because we know that once tomorrow arrives it will be a whirlwind of craziness until we get to take a breather for the Christmas break in December. I often use the metaphor of being shot out of a canon to describe the feeling of the first day of school.

I have mixed feelings about the first day of school. I love summer and the freedom it allows me. I get to travel, ride my bike whenever I want, go about my day as I wish. However, I am a teacher and my job is to teach. It is time to go back to work.

This will be an exciting year for me. After three years, I will finally be back at the Valleys for the whole day. No more running off at 11:05 to get to my 11:30 physed class at Edenrose. No more feeling like I am missing out on opportunities to bond with my students and share good middle school memories (i.e., Terry Fox Run, Talent Show) because I need to be at my afternoon school. I can finally open up clubs for the students to participate in or coach some teams. And I can fully jump on board the technology and get literate in the world of classroom technology.

It promises to be a good year at the Valleys this year and I am excited to share that enthusiasm with my students and colleagues at the school. See you tomorrow!

My First Blog

I just attended a two day PDSB conference on how to use technology in the classroom #TLDWpeel.  I figured since the schools are going BYOD, I best prepare myself for the change, and a little birdie, @the_mulcaster, told me that I was going to join her there and share my experiences using iPads with the students. Well, I am now ready to "jump" in and...I kind of feel like, if I don't, I will be left behind.

So, what did I do? First of all, as our keynote speaker George Couros (@gcouros) was sharing with us the reasons for embracing the world of digital technology, I finally opened up a Twitter account and made my first "tweet."

I have Facebook and use it to keep up with friends and share what is happening in my life. It is often a time sucker and, when I am on it, before I know it 45 minutes have flown by. So I find it a bit of a time sucker. I have postponed starting a Twitter account because I did not want to have one more thing to eat away my time.

I also feel that in this world of the internet and Smart Phones, I often feel over-stimulated and that there is too much information being thrown at me. How do I ever sift through it all?

But, I did it. I joined Twitter. During the keynote yesterday, I realized the importance of my role as a teacher. What I like most about my career is that I am always building relationships: with my students, their parents, and my colleagues. Let's face it, that is why I became a teacher. I love connecting with people, teaching, learning and sharing. To do that in the 21st Century means embracing this world of technology, a world that, as George Couros informed us, is mobile.

My second leap is to start a blog, another thing I just feel I don't have the time for and something I have always felt that I did not feel comfortable doing because who is really interested in what I have to say? But again, this is the 21st century and it is how we connect with each other. This will be something I will use with my students and their parents and, if I am going to ask my homeroom class to start blogging, I better start doing so too.

George Couros ended his presentation with the following clip which does epitomize how I feel at the moment but we will see what works:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebtGRvP3ILg Let the journey begin!