Day 4 - Beautiful Kansas, TV Coverage

This just in...

Tonight we learned that WIBW-TV in Topeka ran a story today about CycleQuest. The news anchor read the symptoms of ovarian cancer and shared the CycleQuest blog address with viewers. Yea!

Here's the link: http://www.wibw.com:80/home/headlines/8574087.html

Here's the script:

CycleQuest Ride for Ovarian Cancer
Posted: 11:28 AM Jul 18, 2007
Last Updated: 11:28 AM Jul 18, 2007

Two men cross Kansas to raise Ovarian Cancer awareness. On July 15th Brad Wingate along with his cycling team member Bob Lewis began their ride from Vail, Colorado to Hannibal, Missouri. Wingate lost his wife, Susan DeFrank Wingate to Ovarian Cancer in 2005.

The team will ride more than 100 miles each day. To check on their progress visit www.cyclequest.blogspot.com.

The team emphasizes that the signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer are subtle.

- Pelvic or abdominal pain or discomfort.
- Vague but persistent gastrointestinal upsets such as gas, nausea, and indigestion.
- Frequency and/or urgency of urination in the absence of an infection.
- Unexplained weight gain or weight loss.
- Pelvic and/or abdominal swelling, bloating, and/ or feeling of fullness.
- Ongoing unusual fatigue.
- Unexplained changes in bowel habits.

Thanks WIBW!

Earlier today, we left Idalia, Colorado after a hearty breakfast at that favorite diner, the Prairie View, I told you about yesterday. We were not disappointed. It was clearly the best breakfast I've had since I last ate there with my brother, John, in the 1980s. We were well fueled....and ready for a nap. Just kidding!

We're very pumped by some good news that arrived via email early this morning from Shelly Rozenberg, the Chief Administrative Officer for the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition:

"Thank you for sending us this information about Brad's journey to raise awareness. We have posted this information on our website and emailed our 82 chapters across the US. We are grateful to Brad for raising awareness and making a difference. He is truly an inspiration."

Sincerely,

Shelly Rozenberg
Chief Administrative Officer
National Ovarian Cancer Coalition, Inc.
500 NE Spanish River Blvd.,
Suite 8
Boca Raton, Florida 33431
561-393-0005
888-OVARIAN
www.ovarian.org
Help "Break the Silence" about Ovarian Cancer

Thanks so much Shelly and all the folks associated with the Coalition. We are very grateful for your kind words and encouragement. It means more than you can imagine.

We hit Kansas about 10a and switched to central time. We snacked at St. Anthony, KS with 30 miles under our belt for the morning. After eating lunch at Bird City, we rode another 45 miles to Atwood and will overnight here. We did 73 miles in temps that exceeded 100, but had to make it a sub-100 day for mileage since we have laundry and necessary bike maintenance to do.

Earlier, we met two cycle tourists who set out two months ago from Maine for a leisurely ride to California. One of the cyclists is planting saplings along the way. We traded stories of the road, and they inquired about amenities and supplies in Last Chance, Colorado. We joked that it's named that for a reason. We explained that it's best to stock up on food and water before riding across that remote stretch of eastern Colorado.

The roads are great; nice and smooth for comfortable riding. The bikes and their humans are holding up well in beautiful Kansas!

We're spending the night at a nice little motel called the "It'll Do"...and it will.

Tomorrow...day five of the CycleQuest Across the Heartland. Thanks for checking in on our progress to raise awareness about the symptoms of ovarian cancer...please check the symptoms on the right side of this blog.

Brad (and Bob)