Greetings and Salutations

I'm Brent Hedden, and I approve the last two postings.

Yes, this is the first time I've actually written in this blog. Sure, I've helped Cyndi out with a few postings, but nothing just by myself.

I'm going to ask everyone reading this something quite unusual, and this will probably be the only time I do such for quite a long time.

As many of you are aware, I've lost a pretty good amount of weight so far (60 pounds). I'm almost half way to my goal. My motivation for starting this was pretty simple - when your fat butt can't fit in the roller coaster ride that your daughter wants to go on, the embarrassment is hard to take.

To combat this problem, I've been riding my bike a crazy amount in the past several months. I've even joined a local cycling team to aid in my effort. The team has entered in a ride that will benefit the American Diabetes Association (ADA). I've signed up for a 70 mile ride, which will be a good challenge for me. This isn't a race, but rather a test of endurance for me.

Now, on to my question - The real purpose of this ride is to drum up money for the ADA. At minimum, I need to come up with $150. While I could just pony up the $$ out of my own account, I would rather raise much more than this. I need YOUR donation(s). This being a charitable cause, any money donated can be used as a tax write off. Weather it's $5 or $500 you give, every bit helps. The ADA is a great organization, and has gone a long way to finding a cure for diabetes. Sponsoring me is easy. On the right side of this blog, there is a link that will take you to my ADA page (it's labeled 'Brent's Tour de Cure Web Page!'). From there, scroll down a bit and there will be a red button that reads 'Click here to sponsor me!". After clicking on this button, just follow the instructions. If you would rather give by cash and/or check (or just don't want to use the website), just send me a message, and I'll get you set up. The only requirements of donation is that it must be in U.S. dollars, and must be given before April 12th 2008. I can also give you a receipt upon request.

If you choose not to sponsor me, that's OK. I won't be putting anyone on a guilt trip. I might give you the 'evil eye', but nothing beyond that. Of course, I'm kidding about that. I probably won't even know who didn't sponsor me. But I certainly will know who DID. Thanks for your support.