FINAL PREPARATIONS...AND 4 WEEKS UNTIL WE RIDE

North American members of Bicycle India 2007 met this evening in Indianapolis to make final plans and preparations for the 2,000-mile trek from the southern tip of India to New Delhi beginning December 30, 2006.

Here we are with our spouses, whose support for this effort is critical. While we ride 100 km each day, they'll be working and caring for many homefront challenges. We simply could not make this investment of time and mission without them.

During our meeting, we conferred on medical forms, documents, and schedules. We divvied up tire tubes and other supplies. We talked through financial issues and walked through our checklists. It's hard to believe we're just four weeks away from living this dream. Everything seems to be coming together for a successful launch.

After our meeting, we broke down one of our bikes and boxed it to check the fit and weight. What a handy and compact package a 23 lb. bike makes. The durable box should be easy to process as one of two pieces of checked luggage in Chicago.

We hope our ride will inspire folks in North America to contribute to help rebuild Umri Christian Hospital. If you can help, you can go to and print out a mail-in donation form.

$50 sponsors us at $1.5o per ride day. $200 sponsors at $.01 per mile. Every gift in any amount is important to reaching the goal of $600,000. And each donation goes directly to rebuild Umri Christian Hospital.

We also hope Bicycle India 2007 raises awareness of UCH in India. We hope it inspires residents of India whom we encounter along the 2,000-mile route to support and sustain UCH as an important medical resource in rural central India.

Thanks for your interest & involvement. Check back often for updates. Learn more @ www.bikeindia.org.

5 POSSIBLE WAYS TO HELP UCH

Consider one these five ways to help rebuild Umri Christian Hospital:

• Sponsor our ride @ $1.50 per ride day = $50 for UCH
  
• Sponsor our ride @ $.05 per mile = $100 for UCH
  
• Sponsor our ride @ $.10 per mile = $200 for UCH
  
• Sponsor our ride @ $.50 per mile = $1000 for UCH
  
• Sponsor our ride @ $1.00 per mile = $2000 for UCH

Umri Christian Hospital in Umri (village), Maharashtra (state), India, has been serving rural residents of central India for 55 years. UCH is in desperate need of a new facility. Serving the poorest of the poor, UCH is led by an international Board of Directors and is supported by charitable donations. Click here to donate to help rebuild UCH.

Thanks for your interest & involvement. Check back often for updates. Learn more @ www.bikeindia.org.

COUNTDOWN TO RIDE: 6 WEEKS

READY TO ROLL? We're just six weeks away from starting to roll on "Bicycle India 2007" - our 2,000-mile ride through India to raise awareness and $600,000 to rebuild Umri Christian Hospital. Hard to believe we're that close! Yikes!

BOXED BIKES. Our North American team members meet together on November 28 - our final preparation and planning meeting before getting on an Air India flight to Mumbai on December 26. We will box up the second of our three bikes. Our three bikes - boxed carefully in containers designed especially for bikes - will be checked as part of our baggage. One of our significant hopes (and prayers!) on logistics is that our bikes arrive in southern India when we do! The difference between riding a single-speed 40-lb. bike (the typical bike used in India) and our multiple-speed lightweight (22-25 lb.) bikes is vast.

ITINERARY FIRM. We have firmed up our daily itinerary, at least to the point of identifying what towns and cities we hope to arrive in each afternoon. We plan to ride over 100 kilometers (62+ miles) five or six days days a week for most of the six weeks. Our goal is to start early each day - around 6:30 am - and try to be at our daily destination by early afternoon. This, we hope, will keep us out of the hottest portions of the day in India's "winter." While the American Midwest will be experiencing freezing temperatures in January, we anticipate 85-95 degree temps and full sun during the day. It will be "cold" in the evenings - down to 75! We anticipate cooler weather as we approach New Delhi during the first week of February.

Thanks for your interest & involvement. Check back often for updates. Learn more @ www.bikeindia.org.