Saturday night I rode in the fundraising event for “Team Triumph” at Road America. The “Endurafest” (as it is now called) is loaded with biking and running events over the whole weekend. I participated in the 12 hours of Road America biking from 7 pm to 7 am.

The fundraiser is to support people with various disabilities so that they can participate in long distance athletic events. To do this means you need people to support them along the way and those people are appropriately called Angels. They pull the differently abled athletes in trailers behind them.

There are handles on the trailer for other participants, yours truly, to come up and help push them when on an uphill. It allows everyone to participate in the fun.  A couple of people caught my eye Saturday night and I can’t wait to tell you about them.

One gentleman with no use of his legs was biking in a recumbent using his arms!

12 hours.

Up and down Road America’s hills.

In the dark.

And the rain.

WHAT?!

Imagine using just your shoulder girdle for power and none of the core or lower torso…incredible. It quickly takes away any inkling of wanting to complain about a hip, fatigue, or the rain when you witness such fortitude.

My other special encounter was when a young 15 year old boy road up next to me and was chatting about how great it was and how biking had changed his life. I started asking him questions and it turns out he had lost over 100 pounds because of his passion for biking. He zipped up that hill.

Folks there is no way he was zippy 100 pounds before. That means this young lad had patience to allow the process to work and in doing so changed his life.

Next year at this time will you regret that you didn’t start improving your life today? Get off your butt and stop making excuses. If people like this can change their life, so can you. Quit being ordinary and add in a little extra effort for that will make you extraordinary.

Extraordinary people shape the world and inspire those around them. As Freddie Mercury once sang, “GET ON YOUR BIKES AND RIDE!”

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