Just in case you were wondering, we made it. We're all back home from the Queen city, safe and secure in the comfort of our hot tubs and the capable hands of our family physicians. OK, it wasn't that bad. Maybe I was the only one who needed a week to recuperate.

As for the team, we originally registered as a relay squad, planning to keep someone on course during each of the 24 hours. But as the date of the event drew near, the Tour de France painted yellow strokes inspiration on those of us who wanted to see just how much we could ride individually during a single day. So here we were, 7PM on a Friday night, boarding our bikes for a day-long adventure.

The ride began with all 428 riders taking the first lap of the 2nd annual event and making a formidable impression on the automobile clogged population of south Charlotte. For a change, the cyclists had the road and the right of way. Team PAVE-Aspire took advantage of the cooler evening temperatures to get some early miles in, the last of our group calling it a night at 2:30 a.m. Some of us chatted and snacked until about 3:15 and then it was lights out until 7:30.

Saturday dawned a bit too early for me, but I had a good view of the rapidly rising sun since I had slept on my therma-rest matress in the grass. We were all a bit slow to remount our bikes, but each of us eventually removed the lights from the previous night's laps and refilled the water bottles to renew our pedal-powered efforts to support the fight against cancer.

The team thanks those who responded to our fund-raising requests and to PAVE Creative Group for matching employee-raised donations. Thanks to Irwin Tools for providing the event canopies that provided shade from the afternoon heat and to all of our families (especially 2 understanding wives) who gave a couple of us weekend passes to make this trip. Thanks to the team for going above and beyond to meet both contribution and riding goals. Smitty, David, Keith, Tim, Sara, Richard, and Robert - you people are the best! Thanks for the cheers and encouragement, Meredeth and Carrena.

For those of you who like numbers, here they are: the team raised $1975.00, drank 62 bottles of water (12.5 gallons) and 31 bottles of PowerAid, ate 32 burritos (thanks Moe's), and rode 326 laps for 978 miles in 62 hours on the bike.

Salem and LeeAnn, this ride was for you. You were with us in spirit and provided a personal reason for us to be a part of this important event. On behalf of our team, and those who live daily with cancer and those who have committed their lives to finding a cure, Thank you!