Lake Nona, FL – Ride4Ronald 2019

Fall has arrived in Florida, and with it, the annual Ride4Ronald charity ride. Sunday, October 13, 2019, was a special day for this event.

Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Florida finds, creates and supports programs that directly improve the health and well-being of children and families. It provides a home away from home for families with children receiving treatment at hospitals and medical facilities in Orlando. The donations received for this event help families, as no family is ever turned away due to their inability to contribute.

This year’s Ronald McDonald ride was dedicated to Ron Norton, who was our team captain and passed last month doing what he loved most, riding. Ron recruited every single rider on our team. He went as far as donating most, if not all the gear including bikes, to some of our riders. He was just that passionate about the sport, not to mention giving. Members of the team rode anywhere between 30 to 60 miles, and some participated in the 5k.

As the team prepared for the ride and we gathered for our group picture, the coordinator gave us each a necklace with Ron’s picture and a bracelet that said, Ride for Ron. We all had tears as we put the necklace on and had a moment of silence. At that moment we all knew Ron was right there with us cheering us on.

The Ride

The weather was perfect, 70 degrees with a wind of 6mph. Not too bad! The first 30 miles were pretty easy. We rode at a speed of 19 to 20 miles with 1 SAG stop. It was a small group, 2 members from Nemours, (my Manager and I) and the rest of the group were members of another cycling team. When we stopped at the SAG we took a break of 5 minutes and as we were ready to ride out I received a call from my daughter who had locked herself out of her car. Needless to say, the group my boss and I were riding with took off as I stayed behind and made a few phone calls to find someone to rescue her.

Once we were ready we saw another team that was taking off and we decided to ride with them. Well, about 5 minutes into the ride, I was out of breath and pedaling faster than I have ever had before just trying to keep up. This team was riding at a steady pace of 22 mph. My Manager was right there with them. He is a great cyclist and had no problem keeping up. Of course, as he saw that I was struggling he stopped and said we ride at our own speed, and that is exactly what we did. We pulled back and rode at a steady speed of 17 to 18 mph.

At the last 10 miles we picked up a cyclist who was riding alone and the 3 of us struggled as the wind picked up a bit. The last 10 miles are always the hardest for me. It just feels like it will never end. My boss and the cyclist who joined us pulled and I was able to draft. Thank goodness! Our speed fell to 16 mph but we made it and as we crossed the finish line all I can think about was Ron smiling down on me and saying, “that was amazing.” I kissed my good luck charm and smiled. Ride for Ronald McDonald will always be Ride for Ron!