2013

Dear Family and Friends,

The time is upon us for 2013's edition of the Copper Triangle. Wild Bill and I have been training and are ready to concur all 85 miles, four mountain passes and close to 6,000 feet of elevation gain. This note is a little late coming out in regards to when the actual ride is, but the delay was well worth it! Click here to see what I am talking about.

Hopefully, you enjoyed that little bit and, yes, the ride did actually take us 12 hours to complete. Erik and Brad Anderson were basically there for every last bit, minus a quick detour in Vail. That champagne toast occurred around 5 or 6 at night after starting the day from Copper Mountain at 4 a.m. Needless to say, it was a long yet thrilling experience on a tandem bike with my dad. I very rarely say this, but I was exhausted!

After Billy recovered from the ride, which my mom tells me took a month, he spent a bunch of the summer golfing and time working on a 1948 5-‐window Chevy pickup truck. I bought it for Billy in the spring of 2011 for his birthday. We spent the next six months taking the truck apart in preparation for the restoration that took place at Carlson Auto Body in Ottawa, IL. From the fall of 2011 until the fall of 2012, the truck got a new paint job, various new parts and a second lease on life. As you can tell by Wild Bill’s smile, he was definitely happy with the end product. We recently participated in our first classic car show, giving us an opportunity to display our hard work – it was a lot of fun!

In regards to my dad's health, he continues to live with Parkinson’s and maintain a positive outlook. A few months ago we were introduced to a doctor (thanks again,

Sam!) who runs a two-‐day intensive Parkinson's clinic at Emory University. Wild Bill and I flew down to Atlanta. It was definitely eye opening for me because, although we were already doing a lot to make my dad's quality of life better, there are some additional areas we can improve upon. We are currently working on those.

In the meantime, Billy is getting his dancing shoes and speech ready for the last major event of 2013 when he walks Brookie down the aisle. I'd say for a man who just had his 65th birthday and has now been living with Parkinson's for over 12 years, he is doing pretty damn well.

Thanks again for your continuous support toward finding a cure for this terrible disease.

Please visit www.wildbillswarriors.org to support our 2013 ride.

All the best and, if you care to join the ride this year, drop me a line. You, hopefully, will have 11 hours to choose from! We would love the company.

Brandon