“Hey – it’s Ben Gura again from the Tour des Trees. Days like
today are the ones I love! The weather was perfect and the roads were scenic
and rolling. We started our day early and managed to have gelato by 9 a.m. I
had 47 miles to lunch and was excited to see all of my peers in New London from
ATC. During those miles, I reflected on why I signed up for the Tour a second
time.
Simply put – it’s the impact that the Tour has on the
communities it touches. Each of these towns opens their arms to the Tour when
we ride through. It seems that community members love seeing all of the riders
decked out in their matching kits – plus they’re happy to feed and hydrate us!
The message that the Tour sends about the value and importance trees on the
environment and community is always heard by the residents who attend the tree
dedications and the educational presentations.
When we made it to lunch all of my peers had the ATC Grow
Smart tent set up and were assembling the giveaway bags that the
kids got to bring home. They received books about trees, purple coneflower
seed packets, a kid’s activity guide and other goodies too. Melinda Myers was there to greet the
kids, talk about Grow Smart and answer any gardening questions that the guests had. We had some other
special guest as well including the mayor of New London. 
There were about 50 kids present who got to hear “Professor
Elwood Prickethorn” give his tree presentation. It was great to see the
kids getting involved and learning about trees and planting
“the right tree in the right place.” After the presentation, the kids dedicated
a tree in a very special Tour des Trees way.
The dedication starts with a clap of the hands above your
head. Then we rub our hands together to make energy. Next the energy is transferred to the trees roots by pointing our hands at the roots, wiggling our fingers and saying “the roots, the roots are on fire.” Then it ends in a loving rendition of John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance” but instead the lyrics go: ‘All we are saying...is give trees a chance.’ Some of the kids get embarrassed about doing this but most think it’s really fun. It was great to see my ATC friends and the kids that get to hear the ATC and Tour des Trees message.
The day ended 53 miles later with a tree dedication to a
special kid who’s life was impacted by a car crash, followed by a lovely dinner at
Lambeau Field in Green Bay.
Now, just three days of riding remain and my legs are
getting stronger. We’re heading to Sturgeon Bay on Thursday, but cross your
fingers for a strong north wind on Friday as we had 120 miles to ride down to
Port Washington.”
