Riding for Roses

This is the third day of the third time we’ve had chemotherapy at home. The process is simple, but disturbing. Friday, we went in to the oncologist and Spencer had a procedure, chemotherapy, and they left a needle in his chest hooking his port to a tube we can use for IV access. I get [...]

We are filling in context material for the Discovery Network show by taping key events during the Tour de France. They wanted some footage of us watching the mountain days so I made sure Spencer came with me both Saturday and Sunday to Central Market for Tour Watch 2005—Saturday was bit of a bust with rain reducing the crowd and limiting taping chances. Sunday was perfect and Spencer milked it.

Spencer’s counts looked good on Tuesday, so we anticipated going forward with chemotherapy today. We did that, though as it turns out his official counts are a little below the checkpoint requirement. Today the fun begins. Here is how today played out.

Lance took the yellow jersey decisively today, while Spencer got a green jersey of a different support. Thanks to generous donations from all over, Spencer cross the $7500 (and $8000) barrier in the last few days and qualified for a Peloton Project Green Jersey. That means he is over half way to getting the Polka Dot Jersey he is on track to get, and about one third of the way to the yellow jersey he wants to get.

At the oncologist on Friday, I commented to Spencer’s nurse, Jennifer, that Spencer’s hair wasn’t so much attached to his head as it was resting peacefully. Yesterday afternoon Spencer wanted to go for a swim and we wound up proving those words.

Delayed Intensification has a built-in one week pause in the middle to allow for the possibility of low counts. Last week, Spencer had low platelets and severely low ANC at 300. This week the platelets are recovering and are up to 120,000 which is above the minimum to proceed. However, his ANC is 195 and [...]

Lance became the holder of the Yellow Jersey on July 5 thanks to Discovery Team having a great ride, but decided not to wear yellow to start July 6. Why not? Listen to Conversation with Rob: Yellow Jersey Etiquette for a brief discussion.

As I mentioned in my podcast yesterday, most stages of the Tour de France have intermediate sprints. They are fun to watch and, sadly, not always covered by the US television coverage of the Tour. As the riders approach the intermediate checkpoint they jockey for position and there can be a lot of politics if a breakaway group is heading toward a checkpoint—stronger riders may let other riders win to build temporary coalitions. Spencer is in facing an intermediate sprint right now. He has raised $7,187.88 towards his $25,000 goal. We are within striking distance of the next fundraising level of $7,500 (the Green Jersey award). Please help Spencer win his Green Jersey by donating to support cancer survivors and Spencer’s Ride for the Roses.

Conversations with Rob: Tour de France Jerseys

We are here at Tour Watch 2005 at Central Market North in Austin watching the Tour de France. Lance took the Yellow Jersey in Stage 4! People keep asking me about the special jerseys and what they mean, so I spoke for a few minutes on the meaning [...]

It is hard not to make analogies between my life and the Tour de France. This is the third stage of the Tour de France and, naturally, our third day watching it. Some of the attendees, volunteers, and sponsors at Tour Watch 2005 have already burned out. We’re amateurs—nobody has withdrawn from the Tour de France. The thing to remember at this event, like the Tour de France, is that the action comes in pieces every day, but the big action comes later. You have to survive through the first week to race in the mountains and eventually Paris.