cycling | Jen Bendewish │Running Down a Dream

“Love the Pain, Inc.” — What is that?

On a recent trip home, aka the somewhat quarterly Tallahassee to Los Angeles trip, my girls and I were asked what our “Love the Pain” trucker hats were about, which we are always very ready to talk about. For my six and eight year old, their response is simply, “it is swim-bike-run, that’s what we do.” For me, it’s that and so much more. It’s about my Angelino roots that connects my skate/surf/snow roots to my East Coast running and triathlon life. Needless to say, I am stoked to give a little shoutout to this small and super awesome company!

In their own words, “Love The Pain is not just a brand, its a lifestyle. For those who give it their all in exchange for a few seconds of extreme satisfaction.
Love The Pain is committed to endurance sports and its amazing athletes. Our Products are designed and crafted in Los Angeles, CA.”

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Love the Pain also offers team slots on Team Mojo as well as an ambassador program. I am stoked to give a shoutout to some awesome Team Mojo Athletes and ambassadors! Check them out on Instagram (and.. hint, hint…. some will hook you up with a discount code so you can grab some of your own #LTPEndurance gear)!

Robin @simplerobin
Mike @kingofthelake
Alisha @starlithvn
Rick @royer6
Kieran @iron_kieran

The Ride for Hope… Stop Saying “Just”

The Ride for Hope celebrated it’s 9th year this weekend and it was my second year being involved. The Ride for Hope, a Tallahassee cycling event, was created by two brothers in honor of their father and cancer survivor, Lou Farrah. Lou’s vision was to promote healthy lifestyles through activities and awareness. As a result, the Ride for Hope, is “‘not just a ride’, but also a family friendly event that includes the cycling courses, a health fair and expo, a family fun area, music, food, and so much more” (Ride for Hope).

During the Vendor Expo and Family Health Fair there was one thing that people said over and over when I asked them how far they were riding… just 11, just 29, just 40, just the metric century, just the century. We would never say “it’s just cancer” or I am “just riding for my loved one who is fighting cancer.” Each and every person that showed up raised money for cancer, cycled through many miles under the hot Tallahassee sun. Whether it was 11 miles or 100, I want to say thank you! Thank you for getting up early on Saturday morning and helping fight the fight. Thank you for riding for those who can’t.

Take a moment to “like” the Ride for Hope Facebook page and see more pics from this year’s event and to stay updated on next year’s event — The Ride for Hope