A Proud Start at the Connecticut Challenge

This was certainly an adventure of a lifetime. I raised $1000 for Cancer. I trained for 3 1/2 weeks. I made it 36 miles and then CRASH.

Post Crash Road Rash

Carefully heading downhill, going fast, breaking gently, slick roads, into a turn – back wheel slid out and I flew over the handle bars. Head – shoulder – knee. Helmet saved my life – it has a huge dent. Sore back – badly bruised knee. Ended the day with 51 miles. My lesson? Life is not a spectator sport. In biking and in business and in life – sometimes you fall. Today I fell pretty hard.

Bruised

It could have been devastating. Life could have changed in a split second. I got back up. Have some really cool battle wounds. Met 3 prospects. All in all – it was a great birthday.

Just a quick one before I’m off to the Connecticut Challenge to compete in a century ride, with hopes of raising money for cancer survivors.  I thought this picture was appropriate!  Have a fantastic weekend folks!

Amazing Things Are Happening Here!

Yes, network marketing is a business.  And, yes, network marketing is a great business.  But network marketing offers a great lifestyle.  I am a daddy and a husband first.  I am training for a bike ride as a fund raiser for cancer survivors.  We are buying a house, moving to Connecticut, having a baby, and still having an amazing summer.  Network marketing is about lifestyle.  So far we have been to Cape Cod, Marblehead, Mass, Maine, Vermont, and today we are off to Mohonk Mountain.  I meet people when I am out and about.  I don’t go out to prospect.  I prospect when I am out.  I met 3 potential customers/business partners/friends yesterday at a christening.  Two the day before at a concert.  Two the same day on a bike ride.  What a business!  Network marketing is attracting people from all professions.  Real estate professional, athletes, financial planners and doctors are looking toward network marketing as their next career.  Are you ready to have CEO income without having a J-O-B?  We can help.  Are you already involved in network marketing and need some guidance?  We can help.  We teach people how to combine the three greatest trends of the new millennium – health and wellness, distribution through networks, and the internet. I am looking for a few key people to work with.  I bet you a dollar that I can help you add at least 20-30% to your income even in a down economy.  I can help you make your car payment, pay off your mortgage, or at the very least add a couple grand to your income each month.  Ready to take your health and your wealth to the next level?  Give me a call.  It’ll take one conversation – 15 minutes.  If it’s a fit, we can open up a door to extraordinary things together. If not, I will wish you well. 917-226-6901.  Let’s see if I can help you hit your financial goals.

5) Lance Armstrong is a world class cyclist – Drew Berman is also a cyclist
4) Lance Armstrong has won the Tour de France several times – Drew Berman has watched the Tour De France several times
3) Lance Armstrong has trained in sleeting hail – Drew Berman prefers to train when it is sunny
2) Lance Armstrong has written a book called “Its not about the bike” – Drew Berman has read that book
1) Lance Armstrong has survived cancer – Drew is training for the Connecticut Challenge to raise money for cancer survivors, and you can help!

I was struggling with the name for today’s blog. It could have been “training continues” or “Manhattan by Bicycle” or “Wow what a day” or “a day in the life” or “I love my wife , I love my life“.

I woke up and played and wrestled and giggled with little Tyler. Got on the bike and headed north on the Hudson river. Ended up at my buddy Sandy and Eileen’s apartment uptown. Chilled there on their deck for a few hours. Hosted an international leadership call looking out over the water. Got back on the bike and rode to the little red lighthouse under the George Washington Bridge.

GWB Lighthouse

I love lighthouses and it was extraordinary to view the bridge from below. Finished the day with 10 miles. Came back for a meeting with one of my top leaders.

Then put on my dancin’ shoes and saw the New Mastersounds on a boat cruise around Manhattan with some friends.

New Mastersounds

Statue of Liberty

One week of training done.  I borrowed an old bike from a friend and have had 5 training rides so far.  First two days out was two loops around central park – 12 miles each day.  Two rides in Vermont – about 15 miles each – one with a 4 mile climb.  Today, 30 miles – Manhattans Upper West Side, where I live, over the 59th street – The Queensboro Bridge – Northern Blvd through Queens – past the new Citi Field – Union Tpke to Old Country Road to Levitown Long Island to return the borrowed bike.   Tomorrow I pick up my Cannondale from the bike shop to take the training to the next level.  Raised $254 so far.  Will you join me in this fight to raise money for cancer survivors?

For the next 3 1/2 weeks I am going to train for New England’s Toughest Century Ride – 100 miles – to raise money for Cancer Survivors.  I have not been on a bicycle since 2002.  I will train very hard.  Focus on my diet.   Be strict with my work-outs.  Luckily, I will flood my body with Isagenix – the world leader in nutritional cleansing.  I will do a 9-day cleanse.  Eliminate coffee and alcohol.  And get into the best shape of my life.  And I will raise over $2000 for the 1 in 3 Americans who will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime.  I will ride to help hospitals create their own survivorship program.  I will do this ride on July 25th – my birthday!  Please follow along as I blog about this experience over the next 3 1/2 weeks.  And please – help me exceed my goal.  Please sponsor me here.

Thank you!

But for a whole year?  Yup.  In the year 2000, I participated in the world’s first and only 200 person, 35 country, 6 continent, 20,000 mile bicycle tour.  We left Jan 1 from LA kicking off the Rose Bowl Parade.  We rode all the way down to Baja.  Flew to Costa Rica.  Rode through Panama and the canal.  Flew to Chile.  Rode to Buenas Aires.  Flew to Johanesburg.  Rode from JoBurg to Cape Town.  Took some time off for a Safari.  Hiked through Drakensburg Mountain Range where JRR Tolken was inspired for The Misty Mountains in the Hobbit.  That leg took a whole month.  We took several months in Europe.  Norway, Finland and Sweden mere magical.  Back to the states and Canada.  Rode from  Montreal to Quebec City.  Back to Europe and then to The Land Down Under.  We were there for the Sydney Olympics.  Got certified Scuba Diving at The Great Barrier Reef.  China, Japan and Thailand were magnificent.  Back in NY January 2001.  Wow – a lifetime memory.   Usually when I tell someone this story they inevitably ask me how much it cost.  Very few are able to guess.   How much do you think a trip like this cost?  It included 2 meals a day for a year,  all sleeping 60% hotel and 40% camping, a bicycle, a gear truck, a massage therapist, a daily printed itinerary, 18 international flights – and nothing else.  Wanna guess?  Email me your guess!  Get a calculator if you have to.  Email me your guess and who ever is closest gets a prize….  I’ll give you a hint.  It cost a lot.  A lot more then you might guess.  And a lot less then you might think.  More than I had at the time, but less than I have now.  A lot less than the memories they were worth but a lot more than some people earn in a month.  But less than some people pay in taxes and slightly more than the population of some of the countries that we visited.  Certainly less than the …. well you get the picture.  Bottom line – it was worth every penny!