This past weekend nutrition counselor, Yuri Eliashevsky, participated in the Tour d’Apple bike ride with Ashley, one of his patients. Ashley’s weight loss success has allowed her to get back on a bike, an activity she enjoyed before suffering a car accident and back injury. She joined a couple of the Etowah group rides this summer in preparation for the Apple Fest 100km ride and had ridden in her first two metric centuries bike rides as a patient of Yuri. Yuri has been thrilled to watch her self esteem improve through her progress with bike riding, and was honored to support her during the Tour d’Apple.
The Tour d’Apple is a multi-level cycling tour of Hendersonville, NC on the last day of the annual Apple Festival. This year there were 250 riders who showed up to participate. On the day of the event Yuri made the decision to bike the most difficult course, a 100 mile ride with several mountain climbs, while Ashley opted for the 100km ride. This was actually Ashley’s third bike tour since becoming a patient at Blue Sky; she has also participated in the Assault on the Carolinas in April and the Fletcher Flyer in June. For the Tour d’Apple, Yuri was not with her for most of the ride, but he made sure to be at the finish line so he could cheer her on as he came across.
While Team Blue Sky is always happy to get outside and participate in events, we take the most pride in supporting the successes of our patients. Congratulations, Ashley on your many achievements! Keep it up!