The time for my Bike Florida ride has finally come. I'll start tomorrow (Wednesday) morning at 4:30AM up in Fernandina Beach and ride the roughly 350 miles down to Boca Raton (my home). There I'll rest for a few hours and then continue on with the last stretch of the ride--about 220 miles--down to Key West. In total, from Fernandina Beach to Key West, it's somewhere around 575 miles and I'll be doing it in 60 hours. 

This ride is for two amazing friends, Duben Wilde and Ian Patton, who suffered through Hodgkins Lymphoma. Ian survived and is in full remission while Duben didn't and passed away in 2012. I have learned so much from both of them and their examples inspire me to be better. The money that so many generous individuals and companies have donated will be going to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society to help them in the fight against cancer. It's my hope that at some point in the, hopefully, near future, no one else will have to suffer through cancer like my two friends did and like countless others have over the years. 

Ian will be joining me for a stretch of the ride in Boca Raton and that will be a very special moment for me. And I know Duben will be joining us in spirit for this ride. During the difficult parts of this ride over the next 60 hours, and I'm sure there will be many, I will draw strength from the examples of my two friends and their courageous fight against cancer. They kept going! Day in and day out they didn't give up. They fought every single day! Their memories, their lives, their examples, and their friendship will help me keep pedaling toward the finish line for this ride--and it will keep me moving forward in the fight to end cancer. 

Two more very generous sponsors have recently supported my upcoming ride to raise money for cancer research.

Saglo Development is a privately-owned real estate owner and operator of shopping centers in the Southeast. The company is led by Jack Glottmann, someone I've known for years and for whom I have the utmost respect and who has an impeccable reputation in the commercial real estate industry. 

Multimetco, Inc. is an industry-leading recycler of precious metals from spent automotive and industrial catalyst and is based out of Alabama. My friend, Ian Patton, who I'm doing this ride for, works with the leaders of the company and has great respect for how they run the business and for the good people they are.  

Thank you to these great sponsors for your support of this great cause. 

Saglo's website: https://www.saglo.com/

Multimetco's website: https://multimetco.com/index.html

Over the last couple weeks, two more great real estate companies in South Florida have joined me in the battle to fight cancer. Pebb Enterprises, a family-owned developer and owner of shopping centers throughout the United States, is our latest Silver-level sponsor (donation of $1,000). Su Investment Corp, another family-owned business that owns shopping centers throughout Florida, is our latest Bronze-level sponsor (donation of $500). I have known the leaders of both companies (Ian Weiner of Pebb and Henry Su of Su Investment) for years and have great respect for the businesses they run. I'm honored that they have chosen to support me and this great cause with such generous donations. 

You can learn more about these great companies on their websites:

Pebb Enterprises:  https://pebbenterprises.com/

Su Investment Corp: https://suinvestment.com/

I wanted to recognize another one of our generous supporters--Konover South. They recently became one of our Silver Sponsors and I'm so grateful for their financial contribution to the LLS. 

Konover South is a fully integrated real estate organization built on a legacy of family tradition spanning three generations and is led by David Coppa. Established over 60 years ago, Konover South excels in real estate development, property acquisition, asset management, property management, leasing, construction and ownership.

David and I have known each other for years and I have great respect for him as a business leader. David and I have been through a couple endurance events together (Ironman Texas and Alligator Lighthouse Swim) and he's been a great support to me throughout the years! 

Konover's website is: https://konoversouth.com/.