Tour de Cure Follow-up

Whew! That 50-mile ride was treacherous but fun up in Grafton, Illinois near the Mississippi River. There were some hills that showed me just how conditioned I was for the ride (70%). I managed to pull through well until around the 40th mile when my legs locked up, but fortunately there was a scheduled resting point up the hill: I ate a couple of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, an orange and drank some more water. I was good to go the rest of the final 10 miles. Our team finished in under 5 hours which was good considering we were fighting prevailing winds and hills throughout the ride. We topped 20 MPH on straight-away's, but bogged down to 5 MPH on most of the hills. The final down hill had us a 34-37 MPH which was a reward for the hours of paddling. After the ride we tried to sit and eat hamburgers etc, but the wind had picked up a lot more due to an incoming storm system across the Mississippi so we headed back home. Our total contribution to the American Diabetes Association was roughly $3000.00, and 2,000 plus calories burned. We registered a 5 person team; however, only three of us rode together. One rode the hundred miles, and the other moved out of town prior to the ride. It was all for a good cause plus it gave me a chance to get ready for the next few 25/50 mile rides. The next one in Missouri in August is a tough one that I rode last year (one hill steeply climbs for a straight three miles--you run out of gears and are brought to a walking pace at one point) I hope to do a lot better on that hill this year. I need to turn in my bike though to have it tuned up. The gear that I needed the most slipped out during this ride. Until next year's Tour de Cure...ride hard.

Senator Barack Obamas' Response to my Letter on Economic Development Etc in East St Louis Illinois

Dear Zamounde:

Thank you for contacting me regarding economic development in East St. Louis. You raise some important concerns.

I agree with you that our government needs to devote more time and resources to help communities struggling with unemployment, sprawl, blight, and other ills associated with lagging economic development. I also take sincere note of your point about the effects of underdevelopment on my friends in East St. Louis and the Metro East area.

I am a strong supporter of federal efforts to improve the lives of my hard working constituents in the Metro East, including the many good folks I've met in East St. Louis. I have encouraged the federal Economic Development Administration (EDA) to focus more of its efforts on blighted and underdeveloped communities, and I am a strong supporter of federal job training efforts that would help displaced individuals find new employment. Further, I've voted against legislation such as the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) that was slanted too far in favor of corporate interests but ignored the needs of many of my constituents, including families in East St. Louis. I also secured record levels of funding in last year's national transportation bill that will help individuals in Illinois find good-paying jobs in transportation-related industries.

I will continue with my efforts to fight for working families in the days ahead. As this process proceeds, I will certainly keep your concerns closely in mind. I believe our government has a responsibility to help individuals like you, who are looking to recapture the cities of their youth after a long career spent outside of Illinois. America is certainly a land of opportunity, but we still have much work to do to make sure that the full breadth of that opportunity extends to communities like East St. Louis.

Again, Zamounde, thank you for contacting me. I wish you the best on your coming retirement, and encourage you to contact me again in the future.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama
United States Senator


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