skip to main |
skip to sidebar
WOW! Incredible. Shortly after arriving in Mitzpe Ramon and changing, we walked up to the Makhtesh - one of the 4 erosion craters in the world (the other three are in the Sinai Peninsula).
The views were incredible. We've posted an album of photos - taken by several of our team - on Picasa. Check it out ...
In the morning, we'll be riding into the crater on our way to Kibbutz Ketura - the home of the Arava Institute.
We are at a meeting of the Arava alumni. What a fascinating bunch of folk.They are Jewish, Christian, Muslim. They are Israeli and Palestinian.They are from Britain, Vancouver, Israel, Jordan, the United States and more.They are in their 20s and 30s. They came for a short time and many never left.They are parents, students & teachers. They have Masters degrees and PhDs.
They are no different from us.They study a wide range of physical sciences and their applicability, environmental technologies and their application, government policies and their sustainability, current conditions and their future impact.This extremely well rounded and committed bunch helped us with planes, buses and vans; breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and road food; hotels, kibbutzim, bags and keys; tubes, tires, wheels, chains and seats.And throughout all the support, all the hard work, all the schlepping, all the fixing, the very few hours of sleep … they have smiled, laughed, listened and been genuine and unreservedly friendly.
Without these angels, our wheels would have ground to a halt and the fundraising efforts of their alma mater would have been severely compromised. Their effort and hard work has made the Israel Ride much smoother than many of the roads we have ridden together.From all of us on Team Atlanta, from the bottom of our hearts (and the bottom of our seats):TODA RABA!
It is with great joy and anticipation that I'm getting ready to be part of - for the second time - the Israel Ride.
When I first experienced this amazing ride, I kept telling to myself how amazing it will be to have a larger group from Atlanta. This year Team Atlanta is the largest team in the ride with 19 riders!
As you already know by now, the ride is organized by two wonderful institutions doing amazing work: The Arava Institute and Hazon. With our riding and the help of all those who donated to support us we are helping them to continue their mission.
What the riders will discover during the ride, is that more than we helping them, they will transform us by helping us seeing Israel with very different eyes and from an unique perspective. To ride through the wilderness creates a special connection with the land and with the history of our ancestors who toured and lived in many of the places we'll be riding at.
And we'll be riding with an amazing group of men and women from every corner in the US, Australia, Canada and Israel. People who share the love for the land, for biking, for the environment and for peace and coexistence in the middle east. The ride also teaches a lot to every individual about themselves. It is a true religious experience in the sense that it really challenges each rider in so many ways.
Stay tuned to listen to the amazing stories, and inspirational ideas that I know we'll come out of many of the riders. And the lessons they will learn about life.
After all as Einstein taught us many years ago: "Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving."
L'Shalom
Mario
We started the day with a fore-shortened Shacarit service on the edge of the Makhtesh.What a phenomenal experience. Rabbi Mark (Team Boulder) led a beautiful sunrise service. Ilana and the crew played the drums as we sang Modeh Ani (the morning prayer) and offered a few selected prayers related to our upcoming effort.
When we rolled out, it was directly into an all-out screaming descent into the Makhtesh with crazy switchbacks. However, once we were past the last switchback, we had a stupendous straight-away where a bunch of us hit our top speeds ... ever! I only got to 46.4 mph because I was sitting up too much - the view was gorgeous and I didn't want to miss it. Rabbi Mario topped 51 mph! He'd seen the view in May when he did the ride last time. ;)
Well, what goes down must come up. Each of the climbs (into Shdema, out of Nachal Pharan and the slow burn towards the last descent into Ketura) was work. This was not a day of rest.
