From the Desk of Joanna:
I have been writing thank you notes to all the volunteer
groups, civic organizations, chambers of commerce, and our sponsors.
To give you some idea what a big task this can be I have been writing
the cards for over two weeks now. There are a lot of
groups on all the tours. These are the folks who really make the
magic happen. We couldn't do the tour without them and we are greatly
appreciative of everything they do for us and you on the tour.
One of my most vivid
memories was our stay in Bayfield on the Bike Northwoods Tour.
The weather was sweltering (it felt like 95 degrees in the shade)
when we rolled into town. We were worried about our cyclists, who
would be hot from their ride from Port Wing. Unfortunately Bayfield
High School did not have air conditioning, and we were concerned that
we would need more fans then might be available. So I called
the Bayfield Chamber of Commerce and talked to Debi Smith to see if
they could help. They were awesome! They immediately emailed their contacts in Bayfield to see if anyone could loan us a fan for
a few days. My cell phone started ringing and didn't stop until 5pm
the following night. We ended up receiving 30 fans from the
community! Wow!!! As I drove all those fans back to
their owners the following day, I realized that our community of
cyclists is but one of many communities connected by a kindred
spirit. We inspire people to discover Wisconsin on their
bicycles and connect with caring individuals in each community
that make a tremendous difference, and touch our lives when we really
need it the most.
Thank you everyone who helped to make the Bike Wisconsin® 2013 summer tours a success!
