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Packing for the road (Slick Sun-Shield!)

Discussion in 'News' started by NewsBot, Jun 15, 2009.  |  Print Topic

  1. calboy147

    calboy147 Email Defunct

    Region:
    East
    State/Country:
    CA
    City:
    Newberry Springs
    Ride:
    noname trike
    Name:
    gene
    Yea, kinda caught me off gard.. I knew i needed new glasses real bad but was not expecting that one.. Its got me studying my Bible a lot more tho, so theres one silver lining. I have allways wished i could memorize scripture and verse like some folks i know. So now i have decided to get serious about that goal...
    May have ended my cycling career tho... I have figured it all up and it would be cheaper to travel by motorcycle and i would get to see alot more country at the same time. Then if an emergency arose at home; i can be anywhere in the country in about 30 hours, without flying.. Not sure if the motor bike is going to help my knees as much as my trike has.. Doc gave me 7 years on the knees too. Unless they come up with some new medical breakthrough...
    Of course being a born again christian i am going to take it to a higher authority and see what THEE physician has to say about it.:jiggy9:
     
  2. myerscw

    myerscw

    Region:
    SouthWest
    State/Country:
    CA
    City:
    Downey
    Ride:
    Jetstream III
    Name:
    Curtis
    Hi Gene,

    My dad had macular degeneration for about 20 years before he died. Although he wasn’t able to drive, he developed his peripheral vision abilities to allow him to bowl, golf, and shoot trap (even with his bad eyesight he was better than me!). He kept busy and did all the things he wanted to do (other than drive) until his emphysema kept him tied to an oxygen system. In fact it was the emphysema which caused him to stop using his tractor around his home, although he lived in the LA area, he was from the farmlands of Kansas and always had a vegetable garden going on the large lot he had.

    Depending upon the type of macular degeneration, there are some medications that help slow down the sight loss.

    I’ve been told one of the best things to do is to make certain you always have sunglasses on when you’re out in sunlight (overcast day or not) as the UV is a major factor in this disease.

    So, I will keep you in prayer, you stay close to the Lord, and continue doing the things you’d like to do for as long as possible. It could be, that like my dad, you could have a very large number of years of things to do!

    Curtis
     
  3. calboy147

    calboy147 Email Defunct

    Region:
    East
    State/Country:
    CA
    City:
    Newberry Springs
    Ride:
    noname trike
    Name:
    gene
    I heard that too.But so far I can't find any one in the medical field that knows anything about it. A friend in the cival air patrol said his wing comander stated he had to have 3 injections in each eye and it all but stopped his..Of course he has since moved to New Mexico and i have not been able to relocate him yet. I think I made an appointment ( yes i said i think the eyes are not the only thing that goes with old age ) with an eye doctor to see if he knows anything...I really hate spending $89.00 to hear him say he doesen't know of anything tho.....:jiggy9:
     
  4. Mtwnrocket

    Mtwnrocket Supporter

    Region:
    NorthEast
    State/Country:
    TN
    City:
    Morristown
    Ride:
    Corsa;Rocket;C700
    Name:
    Dave
    Do you have the wet or dry type of MD? One eye or both? I have had the dry type in one eye for several years. It seems to have stabilized with a slight blurring in the central view and straight lines appearing bent. MD is more common that many realize. I take large doses of Wal-mart's version of Ocuvite (eye vitamins). It can't hurt and may have helped. Don't give up hope. It could stabilize and in some cases even get better.

    Dave
     
  5. calboy147

    calboy147 Email Defunct

    Region:
    East
    State/Country:
    CA
    City:
    Newberry Springs
    Ride:
    noname trike
    Name:
    gene
    Thanks for the info on the eye vitamins Dave.. I have no idea if its wet or dry; never heard that termenology used with it before..Now that I think about it he did give me a list of nutriens to take for it.
    He told me I have 3 things going against me ;1 i have hi blood pressure 2 & 3 are the 2 medications i take for high blood pressure..
    :jiggy9:
     
  6. Fire Fly

    Fire Fly

    Region:
    West
    State/Country:
    MS
    Ride:
    Tera Trike Tour
    Name:
    Linda
    He ain't skinny. I say he ate the 10,000. Not fat but not at all skinny. That is where all my money goes, especially if I rode across the country.
     
  7. calboy147

    calboy147 Email Defunct

    Region:
    East
    State/Country:
    CA
    City:
    Newberry Springs
    Ride:
    noname trike
    Name:
    gene
    Your dad sounds alot like my dad in his never give in attitude, i have just added him to my list of real heros...
    Ain't it funny some of the misconception we have about things. Most people think L.A. is all about wacko movie stars (my daughter excluded) but i stopped to visit old friends that you can throw a rock to downtown L.A. from their house. And they have in their back yards gardens chickens goats and even a pig...
    I don't intend to let a few health problems stop me maybe slow me down a bit but not stop me..:jiggy9:
     
  8. A.D.

    A.D. #1 Custodian

    Region:
    SouthEast
    State/Country:
    TN
    City:
    Athens
    Ride:
    Reynolds T-Bone
    Name:
    AD
    Indiana juvenile detention students learn valuable lesson from Weston teacher

    [​IMG]

    In June, my sister, Liz Chapel-Kochlany, in Sunrise, e-mailed me about Rafael Giraldo, a teacher at Tequesta Trace Middle School in Weston. Giraldo planned to ride a recumbent trike from San Francisco to St. Augustine, and then back to Weston.

    The objective of this tour was to give to his students a life lesson in planning, organization, and commitment. Liz suggested monitoring his trek with my students at the Porter County Juvenile Detention in Valparaiso, Ind.

    The GPS feature on Rafael's Web site took us to his exact longitude and latitude on a daily, hourly basis. My students copied the coordinates into Google Maps to see a duplicate of what Rafael was seeing actual time. The site also features pictures and videos that they could post from the previous day's travel. I communicated with Rafael by placing "viewing from Detention" in the subject line and encouraged my students to read the blog and guest book.

    It was from a mountaintop in eastern Utah that Rafael first addressed my students in video. Rafael messaged "to those students in that detention center in Indiana" that they were the master and slaves of their own decisions and fate.

    There was an initial silence in the classroom, both in surprise and shock that he cared enough to respond. One resident inquired, "Is he talking to us?"

    From there, Rafael spoke to the students via YouTube. Since our residents are restricted in their ability to communicate by phone or Internet, I messaged their ideas and questions to Rafael.

    Later Rafael e-mailed me and proposed that, when he reached the Mississippi River, he would rent a car and trek to Valparaiso to speak in person to the residents in detention. We accepted.

    Along the 2,000-mile route, Rafael has made many challenges, and has even had to change his initial route to bypass Jamestown. However, Rafael did not modify his commitment to my students. He drove from Memphis to Valparaiso this month and spoke with our students, who were unusually animated in their questioning; extraordinarily impressed with the discourse.

    So, thank you Rafael for honoring a commitment to those who you never met before. Thank you for affecting young lives. Thank you from the residents and staff of the Porter County Juvenile Detention Center in Valparaiso.

    Still watching from Detention! May the wind be at you back. Vaya con Dios!

    Roger Chapel teaches at the Porter County Juvenile Detention in Valparaiso, Ind.

    South Florida middle school teacher Rafael Giraldo is cycling across the United States this summer. He crossed into Florida on Thursday and is headed toward Tallahassee. Earlier this month, he took a two-day detour, by car, to Valparaiso, Ind., to speak to 21 youths at a juvenile detention center who have faithfully followed his trek via the Internet. An official at the facility, Roger Chapel, wrote this column about Giraldo's visit.

    source SunSentinel
     
  9. A.D.

    A.D. #1 Custodian

    Region:
    SouthEast
    State/Country:
    TN
    City:
    Athens
    Ride:
    Reynolds T-Bone
    Name:
    AD
    Cyclist teacher completes his 'manifest destiny'

    [​IMG]
    Teacher Rafael Giraldo cycles into Weston after his cross country cycling trip.

    WESTON, FL - Rafael Giraldo completed a 3,800-mile cross-country tour this afternoon, riding a recumbent Tricycle he calls "Manifest Destiny."

    "It's tied to history and fulfilling a promise," explained Giraldo, 46, who teaches history at Tequesta Middle School in Weston.

    When Giraldo returned home after the 80-day stretch that began in San Francisco on June 6, he found an enthusiastic crowd of about 30 people waiting at State Road 27 and Interstate 75. He had braved hailstorms, sandstorms and traffic across 11 states, sending dispatches from a GPS transmitter along the way.

    "I know you don't like to hug a sweaty man, but today is an exception," Giraldo said as he embraced his wife, Andrea DeStefano-Giraldo, after dismounting--actually, pulling himself up from the semi-reclining position he used for riding.

    "I'm just happy he's home in one piece," his wife said as she hugged him back and started to cry. She had not seen her husband since he left, though "we talked every day."

    To mark his return, Giraldo got a blessing from his priest at St. Katharine Drexel Catholic Church.

    The whole thing started with Giraldo's promise to his students at Tequesta that he would show them they could accomplish anything.

    "It's a lesson in commitment," he said. "If you prepare, you will achieve."

    As anyone who has taken his eighth-grade history class knows, manifest destiny was a 19th century belief that the United States was destined to reach from coast to coast across the North American continent. Giraldo started his journey in San Francisco and rode through the Nevada desert and sandstorms in Utah, ending up on the east coast of Florida.

    "I told myself it was my destiny....I'm going to do this," he said.

    Along the way, Giraldo tracked his journey through the GPS, allowing students and anyone else who was interested to see how it was coming along. Three other cyclists heard about the trip online and decided to join his team.

    "We wanted to share in the experience," said Jim Artis, 63, who rode the last leg of Giraldo's journey, meeting up with him in Clewiston. "Cyclists like to support other cyclists."

    Also tracking the trip was Tequesta student Jack Lundell, 12. He greeted Giraldo with a homemade sign that read, "Way to go, you Rock Mr. Giraldo."

    "It was really cool to learn about different parts of the U.S.," Lundell said. "It showed me that you should never give up."

    At 9 a.m. Monday, Giraldo returns to the classroom, winding down after the summer of adventure. He spent about a year planning the trip, everything from his route to getting physically fit. By Sunday, he had lost 30 pounds.

    "If I hadn't done my homework I wouldn't have been successful," Giraldo said. "That's another good lesson for my students."

    source Orlando Sentinel
     
  10. A.D.

    A.D. #1 Custodian

    Region:
    SouthEast
    State/Country:
    TN
    City:
    Athens
    Ride:
    Reynolds T-Bone
    Name:
    AD
    In his words: Rafael Giraldo's bike journey across the U.S.

    I am a middle school history teacher who spent his summer cycling across America, from coast to coast, simply to prove a point — ideas by our hand become realities.

    For almost three months, I cycled from California to Florida, 11 states, to fulfill a promise and teach my students valuable lessons about commitment, life and history. Loaded with technology, photographic equipment, camping gear and "Manifest Destiny," my recumbent trike, I flew to San Francisco where, coincidentally, I began my Tour of Discovery on June 6, the anniversary of D-Day.

    Riding alone, the challenges from the 3,800 miles I covered are too numerous to recount. Through California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida, every fiber of my body, every crevice of my mind, and all the resilience of my soul would be thoroughly tested for 86 days.

    The beauty of the land (see more photos at www.tourof discovery.com) was only surpassed by the generosity of many strangers. In Colorado, I fell sick after climbing Monarch Pass at 11,312 feet above sea level. Before reaching Cotopaxi, a fever weakened me. The charitable hearts of Dave and Teresa White invited me to stay for next to nothing in their Western-style lodge.

    On the day of my arrival in Pueblo, the skies darkened, ready to unleash a furious storm. As lighting began to strike, Bob Fredrigill pulled me off the street and, along with his wife Tryna, took me into the comforts and safety of their home. Like royalty, they treated me both in their residence and splendid restaurant, La Renaissance.

    In Alabama, a grandmother with whom I shared a few friendly words took it upon herself to catch up with me down the road to contribute a few dollars to my cause. In Tallahassee, a retired teacher, her daughter and her grandchildren tracked my GPS position from my website. Making a colorful welcome sign, they drove to greet and encourage me on.

    The environments were extreme. Even with all my planning, I was ill-prepared for California's Sierra Nevada and its mid-summer freezing temperatures. The mountain climbs on my recumbent trike were strenuous. In Nevada alone, I encountered over 24 summits and was exposed to the solitude and dangers of the desert. It was in southern Utah where I truly earned my stripes in surviving several sand storms and temperatures exceeding 119 degrees Fahrenheit. Climbing the Rockies was demanding, yet as strange as it sounds, it was nowhere near as difficult as riding against the winds or through the rain storms on the Great Plains.

    From sunrise to sunset, tough work had to be done every day, without exception. Preparedness defeated adversity, determination defeated doubt, work defeated failure, and constant prayer blessed the journey.

    The fabric of this story was woven in real time, as it happened. Technology and the human experience merged as one and made the voyage come alive. Soon, many started to contribute with their own postings on my forum and message board. The tour's following took on a life of its own and quickly evolved. Others, such as the members of Bent Riders Online, contributed thousands of postings in their newsgroup. Through the publication of Cycling Experiences, Jim Artis made Tour of Discovery ever so vivid. His knowledgeable comments and richly written articles helped many understand the difficulties faced by the rider.

    Yet, what truly touched my heart was the fact that unknowingly I had reached out to the most in need. Rog Chapel, a teacher in the Porter County Juvenile Detention Center in Valparaiso, Ind., was making use of the content in my website to teach his own students about the same values I had set out to teach. With similar principles as common ground, two complete strangers connected and together worked to inspire these imprisoned children. Rog and his students tracked me every day. Their commitment led to my promise of visiting them in person once I reached the Mississippi River.

    A full month has passed from the day I rode back into Weston, escorted by two new friends and fellow cyclists, Jim Artis and Josh Beatty. The homecoming was splendid. A welcoming crowd of family, friends, students, parents, colleagues and sponsors was present to greet me.

    It became evident with their expressions of support that the Tour of Discovery had accomplished its mission. And that age, sex, ethnic background, skin color, language or condition did not matter. What was important was that we were all in agreement that, in life, one has to choose meaningful goals, prepare thoroughly and work consistently to achieve these. We all shared the same values and knew in our hearts that we are all masters and slaves of our thoughts, words and actions. What we accomplish in this life is in great measure the product of our own will and dedication.

    Rafael Giraldo teaches U.S. history at Tequesta Trace Middle School in Weston.

    source SunSentinel

    On a side note, it looks like he changed out his overhead SUNSCREEN for one a bit more beefy somewhere along the way.(pics below) Still, a neat idea to keep from roasting in the sweltering SUN.

    rg1.gif

    rg2.gif

    rg3.gif
     
  11. calboy147

    calboy147 Email Defunct

    Region:
    East
    State/Country:
    CA
    City:
    Newberry Springs
    Ride:
    noname trike
    Name:
    gene
    I think I would have made it out of a bright yellow material to reflect some of that sun...
    I hope he writes some more about the trip and maybe how the sun shade thingy worked for him...:jiggy9:
     
  12. A.D.

    A.D. #1 Custodian

    Region:
    SouthEast
    State/Country:
    TN
    City:
    Athens
    Ride:
    Reynolds T-Bone
    Name:
    AD
    As stated in an earlier post "Followers can track the progress of his 5,000-mile, 70-day trip on his website, www.tourofdiscovery.com, and check out photos, which he is loading daily." Loads and loads of pictures and videos there to be seen from all across the country.

    I scanned portions of his blog to see what happened and turned up a LINK to Veltop which is what his new top is. But at a price of 349€ (or $513 U.S.) I'd have to wonder if I couldn't construct something functional for a lot less. To their credit, on a DF bicycle the windshield is mounted on a boom that drops down out of the way when you don't need/want it. Nifty, but a tad expensive in my opinion.

    And yes Gene, I agree a lighter color would be cooler and probably safer, visibility-wise so traffic could see/notice you sooner, but from what I can tell of the Veltop website they only come in black.

    rg4.gif

    rg5.gif

    rg6.gif

    rg7.gif

    rg8.gif

    rg9.gif

    rg10.gif
     
  13. calboy147

    calboy147 Email Defunct

    Region:
    East
    State/Country:
    CA
    City:
    Newberry Springs
    Ride:
    noname trike
    Name:
    gene
    I know you can make one for alot less.
    I wanted a tail sock for the trike,but wasn't about to pay the asking price of $250plus.I made one for about $70.00 :jiggy9::jiggy9:
     
  14. dragnfly

    dragnfly

    Region:
    Middle
    State/Country:
    OH
    City:
    Springfield
    Ride:
    Path Infiniti
    Name:
    Shawn
    Gene you didn't tell me about that . Will be praying for you that you get your miricle.
    cheers
    shawn
     
  15. calboy147

    calboy147 Email Defunct

    Region:
    East
    State/Country:
    CA
    City:
    Newberry Springs
    Ride:
    noname trike
    Name:
    gene
    I hope you and you'r church family are praying for me everyday. Having a ruff time focusing today,but also having a ruff time with the back today.
    Pray for my exwife Teresa too. She is having a biopsy done today on a couple mass they found,but the Dr. said do to her other conditions he is really concerned with her safety during the byopsy.
     

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