A role model on a pink trike
I was impressed and motivated by Lucinda Chandler even though I only met her once – briefly at the Midwest Recumbent Rally in 2008 when we launched Reverse Gear. I found her to be enthusiastic and informative about recumbent touring. She offered to give our recumbent clothing a try and I said I would be in touch.
In February 2009, we arranged for her to test some of our gear on a trip she was taking to Costa Rica. When she returned, she said that she “was very happy with the fit, feel and look of the garments”. Even though she was suffering from Dengue Fever from the trip, she took the time to write a full review of the jersey and shorts for us and posted it on her Pink Trike Adventures site also.
When I had first met Lucinda, I also found the fact that she rode a trike across the USA to be very motivating personally. I thought of her accomplishment many times when I was planning to cycle solo across Canada during our sponsorship of the Blind Guy Biking Tour, in which Len was riding as co-captain on the tandem. When I had told her of my plans by email, I received this response:
Have you started your cycling Canada trip? Good wishes to you both. Just hang in there when the times get tough (they will pass) and you will get through it! Just remember that any difficulties, life stuff that comes up, etc… are all part of the adventure! And, really embrace the feeling of accomplishment from what you have done at the end of each day! On your “break days” try to get something in from your “normal, every day life” that makes you feel good….for me it was visits to the spa/salon and going to see movies…
Miles of smiles,
Lucinda
So it was a bit of a shock to see the news on the recumbent blogs and forums this past week that she had passed away.
It was even more of a shock for me when I read this article entitled Lucinda Chandler Finds Her Legs, written only two months ago that tells us all of the personal challenges that she had overcome in her 43 years.
I cannot imagine how her family and friends feel to have lost such an incredible role model at such a young age. How could one woman have done so much? I hope that her spirit continues to inspire many.
I know when I get on my trike and I am out riding solo again in some part of the countryside, I will think of the lady with spunk on the pink trike and be motivated to continue the “adventure” as she had advised in her last email to me…
This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 4th, 2010 at 5:35 pm and is filed under Just life. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.