sweat and tyres: Coming soon to an inbox near you
A pop-up newsletter charting the ups and downs en route to AIDS/LifeCycle
sweat and tyres — what dis?
From 1 January 2022, I’ll be sending a newsletter every Sunday evening (Pacific time) taking (succinct, don’t worry!) stock of my preparations for the AIDS/Lifecycle in June. This is a 545 mile cycle from SF to LA in June 2022. sweat and tyres is a pop-up newsletter (inspired by the ones Craig Mod has done for his walks), meaning it ends shortly after I (🤞🤞) complete AIDS/LifeCycle.
And who the hell are you?
I’m Alex, a journalist and copywriter living on the rugged Northern California coast. I’m much more comfortable swimming Speedo-clad in the frigid Pacific than spending hours on a bike, so training is going to be pretty essential. (I also should probably figure out how to change a tyre…)
Why are you doing the AIDS/Lifecycle?
To raise funds for HIV treatment, prevention and counselling services offered by the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles LGBT Center.
To explore the Golden State on two wheels
Without a massive thing to train for like this, I tend not to exercise NEARLY as much as I ought to (and its really time to rein in that pandemic paunch of mine… too many beers in front of Bake-Off have taken their toll)
Hmmm, K. I’m subscribed to TOO MANY NEWSLETTERS, tho. Why do you want to send me another one?
Selfishly, sweat and tyres is an accountability mechanism (I plan on sharing how much mileage I’ve done each week, so it’s more likely I’ll get out and train if I have to fess up to how much/little I’ve been on my bike). It’s also a way of keeping supporters in the loop, and an opportunity to share glimpses of the ruggedly beautiful and remote part of Northern California where I’ll be training. There’ll be pics! Wildlife sightings! (Hopefully) near misses!
OK, OK, I’ll subscribe. Do I have to donate too?
You don’t HAVE to, but I’d love it if you would. Otherwise risk having to use OnlyFans to raise funds to reach my $3000 goal — and the competition on there is, um, stiff… Here’s a nice shiny donate button for you to hit up:
What’s up with the funny spelling of “tires”?
Well. I grew up in South Africa, and although I’ve spent over two years living in the USA, I still haven’t been able to bring myself to start spelling things incorrectly like you Yanks have a penchant for doing.
The Canucks spell “tires” with an “i” too, btw. Anyway. Let’s start wrapping this up, I’ve got another newsletter to read. Have you ever done a cycle odyssey like this before?
Um. Nope.
What could possibly go wrong?
Here’s how you’ll find out:
