It was a great fall day in Rochester, completed my 9th Bike MS event. Thanks to all my sponsors for making this year's Bike MS a success.

This year's Finger Lakes Challenge was held at a new venue -- out of Geneva, NY. I opted to ride the 100 mile route, and it was indeed a challenge. Starting out the weather was questionable, with heavy downpour cells scattered throughout western NY (it was pouring in Brockport when I left in the morning). The route promised over 4800 feet of climbing, and I soon found out it delivered as promised. I spent a good part of the day in my lowest gears.

But overall I felt lucky. It was a great scenic route despite the difficulty, and the 100 mile group, fifteen of us, escaped all the downpours. Our only major nemesis turned out to be the 30 mph winds from the Northwest, which slowed us town on our return trip to Geneva.

I thought the route was very well selected, as all the roads were in good shape, and we stayed off the beaten path. Very minimal traffic throughout the day.

Here's the Strava link to the ride: https://www.strava.com/activities/1074282908

The day was capped off with a nice dinner with team Wheels for Warren and a final donation from a good cycling friend. We raised $560 this year to fight Multiple Sclerosis.

Thanks to all my sponsors for making this year's Bike MS a success.

Compared to last year, today's Roc the Ride was chamber of commerce weather day, which also featured a new route. As always MS rides are well organized, with plenty of well stocked rest stops. I made a point of having fun with the volunteers at each stop, taking selfies, and thanking them for their time. Was great to see my good friend Kerrie volunteering at the event. She was at the best rest stop booth of the event -- they featured Italian ices!

I finished the 62 mile ride in just over four hours ride time -- all the cycling I've done this summer has paid off. Thanks to all who sponsored me this year in my MS rides.

Perfect weather today, and an overall great event, that left from Keuka College, in Penn Yan. For the first time in 10 years, I rode a true 100 mile century. This was the culmination of training done the past year.

This is probably my favorite charity ride of the year, as it takes place in the Keuka lake area, features many hills, and is challenging. They also have a great dinner after the event at Keuka college.

Thanks to all my sponsors -- this year we raised $532.50 this year to fight Multiple Sclerosis, bringing a two year fundraising total for MS to $2038.50. I also won a free MS cycling jersey via a contest on FB. Can't wait to ride the FLC next year!

A beautiful day capped my conquest of the Upstate Bike MS slam. This area of New York was completely new to me, other than my occasional trips to Boston. The starting location is right alongside the highway which takes you to Mass Pike. Was not sure how hilly it would be (because there are some BIG mountains nearby) but turned out it was very comparable to the finger lakes region. It was generally rolling hills, though some of the "bumps" were steep. There was one hill that lasted a considerable distance, but nothing anyone with some gears could not handle. We rode through many small towns, including Chatham, Ghent, Philmont, Stuyvesant Falls. I passed by a golf course that looked stunning, the tree lines reminded me of Pinehurst (Winding Brook Country Club).

Despite carefully looking for the directions painted on the road I missed one turn (a left turn on Tishauser Rd mile 37.5) -- which brought me back into the town of Philmont, again. I was able to get back on track by noting where the next rest stop was supposed to be and setting my Google Maps GPS to that location. Fortunately it only added five miles to my journey.

As always, the event was magnificently orchestrated by the Upstate New York MS team of volunteers and Kerrie Merz. The course was dutifully marked everywhere (I don't blame anyone but me for my wrong turn at Albuquerque). The Catering of the event at the starting line was amazing. We had a hearty breakfast provided at the start, plenty of ice cold water, all the rest stops were fully stocked and the volunteers could not be any friendlier (the lunch wraps at mile 43 were awesome). Scott, a riding SAG rider, swung back a few times to see how I was finishing up. Dinner was a feast fit for a king. I felt like royalty.

At the end of the Hudson ride, I found myself feeling a little sad that my Bike MS rides for 2015 are now over. But looking back at all four events I can't think of one instant where I was not enjoying myself thoroughly -- these rides have been the highlights of my year, and I hope I can continue riding in them for years to come.

Thanks to all of you who sponsored my fun for a most worthy cause, fighting and help funding a cure for Multiple Sclerosis. We raised $1506.

To say Rochester got some rain today is an understatement. Today's precipitation was the most I've seen in some time. It is still raining. Buckets. But I would not have missed today's Bike MS ride for all the tea in China. As always, Kerrie Merz and crew to a phenomenal job creating the event and doing everything needed to make the cycling event a success.

It has been sometime since I've ridden in the pouring rain. You spend a good deal of time concentrating on the road, not riding on the white line, etcetera. The ride was fun heading North through Rochester, and our group of about 50 cyclists stayed together in "peloton" formation all the way to Lake Ontario. As we approached Lake Ontario, it felt more and more like a tropical storm, with winds gusting 20 mph, rain pelting sideways, and some serious waves pounding the shore. But we're a hearty lot, and we just kept riding.

Once we turned West and a little inland the wind settled down and the rain subsided a bit. The rest of the roads are actually near my home and I am familiar with many of them. It's funny too because this years' ride as compared to last seemed a lot less in distance, even though it is the same. Guess all the riding I've been doing makes it easier.

Turns out my gear was not waterproof (I'm thinking Christmas gift) but the layers kept me warm. The temp today was in the high 50's. Got a tip from a cyclist that a "Showers Pass" brand jacket does the trick. (A postscript -- I ended up getting a Gore Waterproof Jacket that is awesome)

Pete was a great guy to ride with -- turns out we pretty much ride the same speed so we were able to finish the ride together. We stopped a few times but still finished within 5 hours of our start time.

Thankfully the forecast for next week's final ride, the Hudson River Ramble, is mostly sunny. Hoping that does not change. I did meet a rider today who has ridden Hudson before, and she says it is a beautiful ride. Looking forward to it!

A quick recap of the Buffalo ride today -- perfect weather conditions and the flatness of the course made it an easy ride. I challenged myself by riding a little faster than normal, and actually finished rather quickly. Somehow I was the first person of the 70 mile crew to finish the route - I was shocked to find this out by one of the SAG crew along the way toward the end. But of course it was not a race. There were a total of 165 riders, dispersed among the 30, 70, and 100 mile routes.

Of the two, I still prefer the the Keuka route and somewhat sadistically missed the hills. I obviously have a soft spot for Keuka. But it was nice to get back to Buffalo, where I lived with my wife for two years while attending UB.

Kudos to the local Police crew who helped me (and all the other riders) cross the busy route toward the end of the ride. He pulled up to me, gave me the thumbs up, then raced ahead and stopped traffic. I didn't have to stop.

As always Kerrie Merz and crew did a phenomenal job with running the event. After the ride we had a tasty barbecue and the band there was great!! I'm looking forward to the third leg of my "grand slam" being held in Rochester September, in my backyard.

In 2015, this was my first of four consecutive MS rides. I was the first one to ride in all four events in the calendar year -- making it the "Grand Slam" of #Bike MS rides in Upstate New York. Here I rode with Anne Fowler, and our team name was "The Greecers." Thanks to a fundraising incentive we enjoyed the spoils of a team tent at the end of the event, complete with chocolate milk and cookies!