Some of our honored kids and their families, along with this year's RFAC team and support.

RFAC Ride Out

Dick Hartung, 10th Year RFAC Rider
Blog 9.14.11

After three hard days of riding we have landed in beautiful Bandon. On our first day of riding from Sutherlin to Cottage Grove the sun shone bright and we constantly were searching for a shady spot to cool down. The greatest the part of the first day was meeting with some of honored kids and their families in Cottage Grove. We shared bike rides, gifts (Felix’s amazing Batman art work to our team), a fine Cycle Oregon dinner and lots of laughs and hugs. It was truly a gift to our team for the families to show up and reinforced the reason for our ride. The next day the sun disappeared and we had cool weather for our ride from Cottage Grove to Reedsport. It’s amazing how fast you begin to miss that warmth. The toughest thing about this day was the 90-mile distance. Boy did it feel great to get off that “seat” at the end of the day! As usual, our support team had done an incredible job setting up our camp. The tents were up, refreshments were ready and the mood was set for another evening of camaraderie. The only thing missing all day long was the sun! After the evening prediction of zero chance of rain we woke the next morning to a fine Oregon mist. I guess it would be too much to expect a ride along the Oregon Coast to be totally dry. Yesterday’s ride from Reedsport to Bandon was truly an Oregon Coast jewel! Our lunch stop was at Shore Acres State Park. This is beautiful part of the coast, with a park that had a botanical garden, a view of rocky wind swept vistas, and a breeding ground for sea lions and harbor seals. 75 miles later we rolled through Bandon Dunes Golf Course into the quaint town of Bandon. If you have never been to Bandon it is a must see! We were so grateful to be in camp, but once again the only thing missing was the sun. Before we went to bed last night the stars shone bright and we had hope for a clear day ahead. As I write this blog I am basking in the 10:00 a.m. sunshine! I long to be on the 65 mile bike ride to Port Orford. However, because of my unwavering commitment to Candlelighters I am forced to sit in a comfortable lounge chair, in the sun, resting, warm, in no pain and updating the website! Darn. More later….

John Evered, a Ride For A Child rider, invites you to read his travel on Everlater so you can see what he’s been up to during the week of Cycle Oregon….. Check it out: http://www.everlater.com/johne6/cycle-oregon-+-ride-for-a-child