Unfortunately (and I hate to admit it) I haven't owned a bike since middle school! I was completing an internship in Junction, TX a year ago and luckily got the chance to borrow a friend's bicycle for part of the summer. Suffice it to say that I was a little shaky for the first week or two...it seemed like I had lost all the confidence I had during my glory days of riding in elementary school. Steep hill? No problem. Gravel? Bring it. Potholes? Please. But over a few weeks, my riding improved and I felt much more comfortable on a bike. I've now gotten used to our amazing new Trek road bikes, and feel like I'm a little more prepared to battle the route this summer.

At UT, I've been active with on-campus residence life by serving as an Resident Assistant in Kinsolving for the past two years. I was a member of the Roustabouts Dance Company until late October and performed with them at multiple UT events since the fall of 2003.

As a Biology major, I had trouble figuring out what I was going to do after graduation. During my junior year, I stumbled across the possibility of public health when I took a course in Medical Geography, which sparked my interest in infectious disease and medicine. I hope to soon apply for medical school, where I'll study (very, very) hard to receive my MD and Masters of Public Health degrees.

So, I had a lot written down for this. A lot about how I've been waiting three years to do this. A lot about how cancer is unfair, horrible, depressing. Too much about how painful it was to see my family devastated by the losses of my uncle John and aunt Cindy.

It's not just the mileage, every single day, that will get to me. It's going to be the desert. It's going to be the hills and the cement and the sun. It's going to be each person I meet who tells me how cancer has changed how they work, what they do, who they think about, what they fight for. It's going to be the hardest thing I've done in my life--I'm not a triathlete or a marathoner or even a jogger. In all honesty, I scare myself every time I remember that I haven't touched a bike in over a year. But I think you know why I'm riding this summer.

All of it comes down to the fact that cancer kills. I was present when my uncle passed away from cancer in May of 2004. The sight of my uncle in pain from his illness was shattering and emotional. He was a skeleton compared to his healthy and loving previous self, despite how hard he had been fighting his disease. My aunt Cindy passed away too quickly from pancreatic cancer--she had strongly persevered through so much in her life, but no matter how strong a person is, cancer can still somehow win the fight. A few years ago I pledged to myself that I would, at one point during my time at UT, complete the Texas 4000. I want to do this for Cindy, for John, for my family, and for you. Thank you for coming to this site and for supporting this cause. It means so much.