One of our team’s 1st time riders in 2014, Peter Delmastro, took the time to recap his entire PMC weekend experience. We hope that you enjoy this and get a sense of how powerful and amazing the PMC truly is. A long-time cyclist, Peter rode his first PMC in memory of his beloved nephew Nicholas. His initial goal was to raise $5,000. As of this post, he has raised nearly $9,000. Thanks to Peter for sharing his thoughts of the weekend, for his passion for the PMC, and for sharing the courage and grace of his nephew with all of us.
Forza-G teammates Gi, Peter, and Judy enjoying one of the rest stops during #PMC2014
Sorry for the length of this post, but I wanted to share my experience with you all. I am also including this in all of my thank you cards that I am in the process of mailing.
I’m not sure if it is even possible, but I am going to attempt to put into words what I experienced on PMC weekend. Friday August 1st I woke up feeling like a little kid getting ready to go to Disney for the first time. Although admittedly nervous, I couldn’t wait to start the ride! Jo-Ann and I left the house at 10:00AM and met our daughter Ashley and grandson Zayden in Salem as they were coming with us to Boston where I was to put my bike on a truck and then board the PMC bus to Sturbridge, MA where the ride was to start. Upon arrival in Sturbridge I immediately knew I was in for a special weekend! Approximately 3500 of the 5730 riders were starting their ride in Sturbridge. What an amazing sight to see all these people wheeling their bikes around and getting checked in at the registration tables. To say that the PMC organizers and the wonderful volunteers had it all together is a terrible understatement! Everything went so smooth and efficiently. Once checked in, I went looking for my Forza-G teammates (more on this group later!)
Peter showing off his PMC jersey featuring his nephew Nick
Some of the team rode 100 miles on Friday (called Day 0) from the New York/Mass border to Sturbridge! I guess 192 mile just wasn’t enough! Having met many of my teammates before this weekend, the first place I went looking for them was at the lakeside bar outside the Sturbridge Host Hotel! No surprise here, I found them! After a few beers, we all went to our respective hotels to get ready for dinner and the opening ceremonies. Let me say right here that the food all weekend was fantastic! Opening ceremonies started out with speakers Billy Starr, the founder and a 35 year rider of the PMC, along with Lisa Hughes from channel 4, a PMC rider herself, and a mother and daughter who had lost their husband/father to cancer and were also PMC riders (starting to see a pattern here?) Then at 7:30 PM we went live on channel 4 for the public portion of the opening ceremonies. When the opening ceremonies ended Team Forza-G decided that a night cap was in order, so back to the bar we went! As we all had to be up at 4:00 AM on Saturday this was a quick stop and I was in my hotel room and off to bed by 9:30.
4:00 AM Saturday morning arrived about 30 seconds after I closed my eyes, but it was time to do this. After having breakfast with 5000 of my closest friends it was time to head to the starting line. I gotta tell ya….I had enough adrenaline running through me I could’ve taken on Mike Tyson! My Forza-G teammates and I decided to hang back at the start line and let the majority of riders go before we headed out. It took the better part of an hour, but we finally got going! What an incredible feeling! It was my first experience at being cheered on by hundreds of people. To say that it was an emotional moment is a gross understatement! This was the first, but certainly not the last! The entire route both days was lined with people cheering, ringing cow bells holding up signs of encouragement, it was simply amazing! I can’t put into words what it feels like to ride your bike past a child holding a sign that reads “Thanks to you I am still alive”. Let me tell you, it is EXTREMELY DIFFICULT to peddle your bike and cry at the same time, but by the end of the weekend I pretty much had it mastered! There were so many moments while I was riding that filled me with the inspiration and strength that was needed and it always came at the right time. Did I mention that it rained a little bit on Saturday??? At one point I think I saw an old grey haired guy in a boat filled with animals going by laughing at us! Saturday was in fact the coldest and wettest day in the 35 year history of the PMC! (Leave it to me to pick this year to do my first!) Shortly after the monsoon started I really started to wonder if I had what it was going to take to finish the day. Then I turned onto Cherry St (in Wrentham I believe). This street alone had a couple of hundred absolutely crazy people cheering us on! It was like a giant block party complete with a bagpipe band! They went so far as to have professional signs made up that thanked us for what we were doing! I think I can do this!
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