Pan-Mass Challenge 2007

[Bruce K]

Well, I just got home ffrom this year's PMC.

Overall, the Serotta Forumites had a pretty good weekend with the exception of a pretty bad crash today at mile 57 when one of our riders got tangled up with a tandem recumbent (there's more to the how, but let's move on). He ended up getting transported to Hyannis Hospital with a mild concussion.

Everybody else got in safe and sound.

Here are a couple of pictures from the event.

1. The Serotta Forumnites are joined by Dave Powers and Ben Serotta (left) and Ron Kiefel (right)

2. Len J's Ottrott all padded up and ready to load onto the truck back to Boston.

3. The Boston Fire Dept. fire boat with its traditional salute to the arriving PMC ferry from Provincetown.

Len took a bunch of pictures that hopefully he will post in the enxt couple of days.

I will write a bit more after I get some sleep.

Enjoy for now.

BK

[Fixed]

you cats are heroes imho .cheers :beer:

[Smiley]

Could you guys and gals get better coordinated bottoms to go with those tops :) Job well done all and for a great cause !

[RABikes2]

you cats are heroes imho .cheers :beer:
+1+1+1
You are all great! Super job!
RA

[Climb01742]

well done. good cause, good hearts.

[capecodcowboy]

Awesome job Bruce! :beer: It was great to see you at the finish. :banana:
Serotta Wana-be:
CCM

[csm]

there was an item about this in yesterday's nyt. it's funny 'cause when I see a pic of a bike I immediately look to see what it is; it was a serotta ottrot I believe.

[Bruce K]

Now that I have some sleep behind me (10 hours !!!) I want to fill out the story of the Team and the weekend a little.

First off, we had a great group for our first year as a team. I really want to thank them all for a great effort of fundraising so far. Yes, you still have time to contribute if you would like. As of this morning we have raised over $61,000 as a team and we will definitely surpass $70,000 !!!

This year our team consisted of:

Lucy Bernardin
Chip Bolman
Bruce Kapsten
Len Janssen
Morris Marks
Matt Myette
Steve Robbins
Rob Sakal
Amy Schoenbaum
Joe Scozzafava
Ben Spector
Peter Vanderwarker
David Wilson
Karen Wood

Saturday started out warm and humid and it just kept getting more so. Morris (quattro) lives about a mile form the Babson College start area so Len and I rode to his house and joined Ben, Morris and 2 of their freinds for breakfast and an "independent" start. We had a nice ride to the lunch stop where we ran into Steve (92 degrees). The group left together but was split as the heat began to take its toll. Late in the ride Len and I rolled up on Uta Pippig, a 3-time Boston Marathon winner, and spent a couple of pleasant miles with her. We also ran into Ron Kiefel and part of Paul's Posse Team at the last water stop (boy those misters work great!).

A fine day of riding was wrapped up before 1:00PM for our earliest arrivers to Mass. Maritime Academy in Bourne and the rest of the team made their way in safely. Team photos were taken and food, liquids, and music were enjoyed by all.

Len got the "full" treatment of his first PMC. The lunch stop entry road was lined with Pedal Patner pictures. Children who are undergoing treatment at Dana Farber and the Jimmy Fund Clinic who have been paired up with teams who visit them and they, in turn come out to the route. He also met "The Sisters". Two older ladies who lost their brother to cancer and are HUGE PMC supporters. This year they were dressed as cats, cheering the riders along. I hope Len finds his missing photo card so we can share some great Saturday photos with you all.

Sunday dawn cooler and drier and the ride was fantastic as we made our way along Cape Cod to Provincetown. People lined the route (as always) with signs, noise makers, and handouts for the riders. Somehow this year, there just seemed to be more of them. Everything was going great until our incident with the recumbent. Fortunately, it sounds like Chip will be all right. The rest of us made our way into Provincetown in a couple of small groups and after a shower, courtesy of the National Guard Field Engineers, and some lunch we walked down through P'town to the ferry for a leisurely ride back to Boston.

I am hopeful other team members will post some of their stories as well.

CCC, how did the pictures from the finish come out? If you can't post them, please e-mail them to me and I'll get them re-sized.

Thanks again to the team members, to Serotta, and to all of you who have supported us with donations and encouragment.

5000 riders X 192 miles (for most) = $28,000,000 dollars raised in the fight against cancer.

Thanks for reading.

BK

[92degrees]

Thanks for the update Bruce! It was great hooking up with you guys at the lunch break! The heat on Sat was something and it was great to have Quattro's company for last push to Bourne to keep my mind off of it. Hoped to see you guys at Wellfleet but I had a rendezvous with family in Brewster early and ended up getting out there way ahead of schedule. Saw a few of you hammering along in Truro as I drove back -- you guys looked sharp, naturally!

Thanks again for all of your hard work! sR

[quattro]

The PMC weekend is not about the bike. The emotion of the PMC weekend is overpowering. The people you meet and the stories you hear echo time and again of those lost to cancer, those vigorously fighting cancer and those on the recovery path. You can't come away from the experience without being touched by the fact that well over 7500 people, including riders, volunteers and support people all come together for the purposes of raising awareness of the need for funding cures for cancer and raising what this year will total over $27,000,000 for research towards finding cures for cancer. It's huge!

Being a part of the Serotta Forumites made the weekend special. Riding with Bruce K., Len J., Ben and 92 degrees was a lot of fun. Almost all of the team got together for a team picture on Saturday afternoon. The number of miles, the different routes and our different riding abilities doesn't allow for everyone to ride together, but seeing that familiar Serotta Forumites jersey on the road or walking around the MMA and meeting new friends was a great deal of fun.

Bruce K. did an outstanding job of organizing the Team and keeping in touch with everyone leading upto the weekend through his regular e-mails and I thank him for taking on this responsibility. When someone on the Team was having severe leg cramps on Saturday Bruce made sure he was ok and stayed with him, when there was an accident Bruce also made sure that Chip got proper care and stayed with him. Well done Bruce! :beer:

I enjoyed meeting and riding with Len J.-hope your drive back to Maryland went well, Matt M.- glad your tent worked out Saturday night, 92 degrees- a pleasure riding with you into MMA. Chip-I hope you are feeling better.

Thank you to Serotta for supporting the Team and to everyone for their encouragment and donations.

I hope next year Bruce K. will continue in his role of Team Manager and the Serotta Forumites will return to the PMC with a team twice the size.

quattro

[Bart001]

Enough can't be said! So I'll just say a hearty congrats to all.

I hope to join "the team" next year. It's great to have a goal to aim for, and the PMC is a great goal in every way.

[Steelhead]

Thats Awesome! Will we be seeing any of you at the LAF Livestrong Challenge (formerly Ride for the Roses) this year in Austin, TX??

[Bruce K]

Probably no Livestrong ride for me.

My next stop is The Sunflower Revolution IV in support of the Davis Phinney Foundation and Parkinson's research and care. The ride is in Cincinnati on the weekend following Labor Day.

I have done 2 RFR's and they are great events. I will miss you guys down there, weisan, rustoleum (are you still out there?), Alexis, and the chance to meet new Forum freinds like you steelhead.

I am a little fuzzy headed still, but I am thinking about trying to figure out how to "take the team national" and developing a Forum based charity ride program with a team jersey (that could be sold to help the charities) and the opportunity to get folks together in support of good causes all over the country by using our bikes and our passion to help those who need it.

But that is a discussion for another day and another thread.

I really cannot thank the team members enough for making this such a success.

I too hope that for next years PMC we can double the team size. THAT would be amazing.

BK

[Len J]

I had a 8+ hour ride home to think about what riding this event meant to me. The lasting impression I have when I think about the 2 days is that I had the privledge of getting a view of the best that we, as humans, can be.

From the 5,000+ riders, to the thousands of volunteers to the thousands and thousands of people that lined the route to cheer us on, it was an event full of positive energy.......even though I rode hard for 2 days, I feel incredibly recharged. I wish I could have counted the number of people that yelled "Thank You for riding!" from the side of the road. Or the number of positive supportive comments I heard from one rider to another as they were passed. Or the number of warm embraces from old friends. Or the number of "We love you........." signs with a name filled in of a rider.

The team members I met for the first time in real life were awesome.....thanks to all of you for heling this newbie experience this awesome event.

Bruce, what can I say but thank you. You took me under your wing, introduced me to (what seemed like) your thousands of friends. You made sure that I knew what to not miss. If there truly is karma in the world, you have some great things coming.

Unfortunatly, some where along the way I lost a storage device with about 75 pictures on it from day 1.....including some pictures of one of our teammates getting a massage at a rest stop.......so the pictures below are some of the highlights from day 2 only.

1.) John an 11 year old survivor and symbol of the event
2.) Some interesting "riders" from the finish
3.) "The Hedge" goes on for several hundred yards packed with cheering people....one small example.
4.) Bruce finishing.
5.) An inside joke about Provincetown on the rear of one of Bruce's friends.
6.) One of the rest stops.

If you ever get the chance to do this ride, it is worth it.....trust me.

Len

[Len J]

some more pictures.

Len


boston from the ferry at sunset
Crowd at dock

[davids]

You guys did a good thing. Thank you, and congratulations! :beer:

I've got some friends who also did the ride. Not surprisingly, they didn't show for this morning's 6:30 ride! I'm looking forward to some more stories.

Some day, when I no longer go to Maine every summer weekend, I'll plan to do this ride. Maybe I'll finally get to do Best Buddies next year...

[Ti Designs]

My girlfriend doesn't much like big group rides, and for her 150 miles doesn't qualify as a challenge. She did a double century and wanted to add on another 40 just so she could call it a 400K. When we did the B2B she wanted to go 30 miles past the second brewery and come back to make it an even 200 - she's nuts! Well, another friend pointed out that it's also not really Pan-Mass. If they're going to call it that, why not start at the New York state line? So now there's the idea of a Pan Mass Challenge for next year - New York to P-town in a day, on the tandem.

[davids]

My girlfriend doesn't much like big group rides, and for her 150 miles doesn't qualify as a challenge. She did a double century and wanted to add on another 40 just so she could call it a 400K. When we did the B2B she wanted to go 30 miles past the second brewery and come back to make it an even 200 - she's nuts! Well, another friend pointed out that it's also not really Pan-Mass. If they're going to call it that, why not start at the New York state line? So now there's the idea of a Pan Mass Challenge for next year - New York to P-town in a day, on the tandem.
Or you could go from North Attleboro to Kingston, and be home for brunch...

[Bruce K]

Isn't that the missing flash card lying next to your water bottle in the picture of your bike?

The picture of Jack (sorry to correct) is special because he is the "mayor" of the Nickerson State Park water stop. Jack has been cancer free since he was (I believe 4 years old) and is out there every year with a new sign. He is one of the lasting and perpertual images of the PMC.

"Da Hedge" is a special part of the PMC. Cape Cod Sea Camp campers, staff, and freinds come out every year to put on a bigger and better cheering section. They go so far as to place count down markers by the mile for about 10 miles until you get there.

I'm glad Len made it home safe. We'll keep our fingers crossed that the flash card shows up in the lost and found.

With a little luck we'll get some more pictures from other folks too.

BK

[Len J]

Isn't that the missing flash card lying next to your water bottle in the picture of your bike?



I think you are right! Sorting thru the luggage trying to get ready for the shower, I'm not surprised something ended up on the ground.....grrrrr.

Len

[Bruce K]

These ladies lost their brother to cancer several years ago. Every Saturday they are on the soutern end of the PMC route in a new costume with a new theme. On Sunday, they are always near the top of the last big hill on our way into Provincetown dressed in pink cheerleading costumes as "The Over The Hill Cheerleaders".

BK

[Tom]

...So now there's the idea of a Pan Mass Challenge for next year - New York to P-town in a day, on the tandem.

You don't want to sound like you're minimizing what everybody's been doing, but of course the event is more about the fund raising than the riding even though the riding is nothing too shabby.

I've thought about that, too. I wondered how the organizers would view somebody showing up at the two day event and just not stopping for the night. I think they'd take a dim view because of the liability issues. Even though you might assure them you wouldn't do something, all you need is some idiot to walk in front of you or something and then find out what you were up to and the organizers are in trouble.

It would be nice if you could fund raise under the Pan-Mass banner and then do exactly what you describe. Start in Petersburg, pick up the course where it starts normally, and run the rest of the way with it. That would be cool.

[BumbleBeeDave]

I am constantly amazed by your energy in everything you do, and particularly with the PMC. You've got a lot to be proud of in putting together the team and the PMC has a lot to be proud of in having people like you helping them out.

BBD

[Bruce K]

Thanks Dave.

If there weren't a bunch of like minded folks out there, things like this just wouldn't happen.

I am VERY fortunate to be connected with a great bunch of dedicated folks.

I hope that next year we can have a larger team and do more stuff pre-event.

TiD, I don't know if you and your wife have ever done the PMC but I can tell you (and I think Len will back me up on this) that if you don't do the ride as organized you will miss A LOT.

There is a group that rides in from the Albany area on Thursday, and I am sure they would love to have you join them, but there are so many sights and people, and so much emotion and energy on the route that I think you would ultimatley be dissappointed if you weren't part of it all.

That said, we would love to have you join the team next year.

BK

[Len J]

Thanks Dave.

If there weren't a bunch of like minded folks out there, things like this just wouldn't happen.

I am VERY fortunate to be connected with a great bunch of dedicated folks.

I hope that next year we can have a larger team and do more stuff pre-event.

TiD, I don't know if you and your wife have ever done the PMC but I can tell you (and I think Len will back me up on this) that if you don't do the ride as organized you will miss A LOT.

There is a group that rides in from the Albany area on Thursday, and I am sure they would love to have you join them, but there are so many sights and people, and so much emotion and energy on the route that I think you would ultimatley be dissappointed if you weren't part of it all.

That said, we would love to have you join the team next year.

BK

if you want to do a 192 mile ride (or more) & you are only interested in the milage, then don't do the Pan-Mass. You can follow the route signs any time of year. If you want to be part of something bigger, experience something incredibly positive & oh yeah, do a 192 mile ride, then do the Pan-Mass.

The second option is IMO much more rewarding.

You can always do a long ride to the start.

Len

[quattro]

+1 what Len said.

[Steve D]

It was nice to say hello to a few of you on the Serotta team this year. I said hello to Bruce, Len and Quattro.

This was my 10th PMC and the second one I've done with my son. It was one of those times when I was proud to be a dad. My son is 16 and raised more than $2000 all by himself by writing to his friends and their families (if he runs short of the $3600 minimum, I'll share my sponsors with him).

[jeffg]

My girlfriend doesn't much like big group rides, and for her 150 miles doesn't qualify as a challenge. She did a double century and wanted to add on another 40 just so she could call it a 400K. When we did the B2B she wanted to go 30 miles past the second brewery and come back to make it an even 200 - she's nuts! Well, another friend pointed out that it's also not really Pan-Mass. If they're going to call it that, why not start at the New York state line? So now there's the idea of a Pan Mass Challenge for next year - New York to P-town in a day, on the tandem.

no reach arounds on the forum :no: :no:

[jeffg]

I am constantly amazed by your energy in everything you do, and particularly with the PMC. You've got a lot to be proud of in putting together the team and the PMC has a lot to be proud of in having people like you helping them out.

BBD

+1 You are awesome!

[imm]

if you want to do a 192 mile ride (or more) & you are only interested in the milage, then don't do the Pan-Mass. You can follow the route signs any time of year. If you want to be part of something bigger, experience something incredibly positive & oh yeah, do a 192 mile ride, then do the Pan-Mass.

The second option is IMO much more rewarding.

You can always do a long ride to the start.

Len

Well said Len. The "Challenge" is the fund raising, not the ride.

The ride is the reward.

[Bruce K]

Registered riders: 5458
Actual riders: 4969
2-day riders: 3610
1-day riders: 1359

Sturbridge starters: 2685
Wellesley starters: 1953

Total mileage ridden: (My own estimate): approximatley 800,000 person-miles

Male/Female: 65%/35%
States: 36
Countries: 10
Average age: 43 (low is 15 - high is 84)
Average years of participation: 4.8

Fundraising goal: $27 million

Pretty cool,

BK

[BostonCanuck]

Just a quick note to say that it was a pleasure to meet Team Serotta Forumites. I absolutely love my custom Cour d'Acier and rode the bike to my all-time fastest century on day one of this year's PMC: 5hr20min for the 110 miles, average speed of 20.5mph.

I noted to Ben when I met him near the flag pole that my record speed was all thanks to my custom Serotta - to which responded, "It's not all because of the bike as I did not finish that early!"

Great job to all that rode, finished, and helped to contribute to the overall fund raising goal!

Hope to see y'all on the road again at PMC 2008. I'll be the tall fella (from Team Novartis) on the racing red Cour d'Acier! (unless of course I'm riding a tandem with my partner)

Best,

John

[myette10]

Thanks to Bruce for putting the team together. It was great to meet all of you... especially Morris who convinced me to ditch the dorm for a tent. That turned out to be a great decision on several levels!

:banana: :banana: :banana:

I was going to skip 2008 to give my sponsors a break but it was such a great vibe I'm all in for next year.

[Bruce K]

BC;

Please tell me that you were NOT the guy we had completely convinced (and getting pretty PO'd :crap: ) that we had been given bikes when we joined the team !!!

I feel so bad for him and I am glad that we let him in on the gag before he completely blew a gasket. :banana:

If it was you, I apologize. But it was all quattros idea !! :rolleyes: :D ;)

BK

[quattro]

just one cotton picking minute! I only suggested to the Team members that were already signed up in response to an e-mail from Bruce that maybe next year Serotta would donate to the Team free bikes and we could take the Team on the road for charity events. Never received any replies to that e-mail. It's the emet! :rolleyes:

[Bruce K]

I am just hoping that next years team will include some of the folks who we met that were unattached and who read this board.

If that happens the team could grow by 50%.

:banana: :banana: :banana:

BK

[BostonCanuck]

BC;

Please tell me that you were NOT the guy we had completely convinced (and getting pretty PO'd :crap: ) that we had been given bikes when we joined the team !!!

I feel so bad for him and I am glad that we let him in on the gag before he completely blew a gasket. :banana:

If it was you, I apologize. But it was all quattros idea !! :rolleyes: :D ;)

BK

Nope, that was not I....besides I can take a great ribbin' any time!

Hey, how would I upload a pic for y'all to see?

Best,

le Canuck

[Bruce K]

As long as it's the right size go down to "manage Attachments" below the reply box and upload it from there.

Somehow I've got to figure out a way to priate all you guys on other teams to help make this one grow.

I think it would be really cool to have lots of Serotta Owners be involved along with the Forum participants.

BK

[Bart001]

As long as it's the right size go down to "manage Attachments" below the reply box and upload it from there.

Somehow I've got to figure out a way to priate all you guys on other teams to help make this one grow.

I think it would be really cool to have lots of Serotta Owners be involved along with the Forum participants.

BK

Hey I'm whor. . . . er making myself available for next year! I come cheap :beer:

[Bruce K]

YOU may come cheap, but the fundraising effort is significant.

As someone said earlier, the ride is the reward, the fundraising is the challenge.

Len - I did a quick scqan of the Lost & Found list, cameras, cell phones, clothing, water bottles, but no flash card. You might try looking yourself and/or calling them. :crap:

154 highlight photos and not one of any of us. :(

I guess we'll have to wait for Mondays posting of the whole gallery.

BK

(With credit to Capecodcowboy)

[Len J]

YOU may come cheap, but the fundraising effort is significant.

As someone said earlier, the ride is the reward, the fundraising is the challenge.

Len - I did a quick scqan of the Lost & Found list, cameras, cell phones, clothing, water bottles, but no flash card. You might try looking yourself and/or calling them. :crap:

154 highlight photos and not one of any of us. :(

I guess we'll have to wait for Mondays posting of the whole gallery.

BK

(With credit to Capecodcowboy)

I called...nothing yet.

he pictures were a disappointment.....I figured at least one. Maybe the jersey colors were a problem for the photographer.

Len

[Steve D]

I am just hoping that next years team will include some of the folks who we met that were unattached and who read this board.

If that happens the team could grow by 50%.

:banana: :banana: :banana:

BK

I read the forum on occasion, but don't own a Serotta so never really thought about joining the team. My son certainly doesn't have a Serotta (I bought him a cheap Scattante frame and put my old parts on it).

I had assumed the team was for card carrying members of the Serotta family.

[Bruce K]

Steve, if you are here, you are welcome.

The name of the team is "Serotta Forumites" for a reason.

Certainly, I would like to see as many owners involved as possible, but most of us met here, on line, in the Forum.

Both you and your son would be more than welcome to be part of the team next year.

The more the merrier.

And that would include any forum based ride, BBQ, party, etc.

BK

[imm]

So, Serotta sponsors two teams in the PMC? That's impressive.