Empire State AIDS Ride #5 gets on the road soon...

[MM_QFC!]

Starting the oh so familiar pre-ride countdown now...finished my last long training ride today as I'll clean and pack my bike to send it off to Niagara Falls soon.
I led a contingent of veteran AIDS riders (5) and volunteer crew (3) from the Northwest (Puget Sound Riders team) last year and several of us are returning again this year, as a beneficiary team for the Breakthrough Fund at the UC, San Francisco AIDS Research Institute. So, this year, we're the P.S. Breakthrough Riders, with riders (13) and crew (5) from Seattle, Bay Area, NYC and New Jersey!
The ride director is a veteran AIDS rider also and, like many of us, she had become disenchanted with the model of previous AIDS fundraising rides - put on by a for-profit company, that kept losing the support of its participants and folded in 2002.
I coordinated and rode in a self-supported ride in 2002, from Seattle to San Francisco, with ARI-UCSF as the sole beneficiary, so I have a huge amount of respect and appreciation for how the Empire State AIDS ride is managed and that a minimum of 82% of the proceeds are committed to the beneficiaries.
As many of you ride veterans know...putting on rides is costly. Any multi-day event, especially one crossing the challenging terrain of NY state (surprising to this native NY'er!), supporting the safety and well-being of all the participants is a daunting - and expensive task. There is a limit of 100 riders though and only public parks or rest stops hosted by locals offering free rest room access are used, along with state campgrounds with available showers, so that there isn't a need to rent shower trucks or porta-potties = less overhead and more $$$ towards our goal of ending AIDS in our world.
Previous to this year, several NY AIDS service agencies were the beneficiaries, so it'll be very inspiring as well as satisfying to be riding to support the amazing work and research efforts of the doctors and scientists at the AIDS Research Institute. Yes, I'm stoked! I'll need to be as this is a tough ride...I say that even though I've done rides all over the Northwest, the AIDS Vaccine rides across Alaska (2000) and Montana (2001) and would much prefer our hilly seattle area terrain and western mountain passes to the never-ending and steep hills that are around every bend in NY!
Every minute of every day, 5 more die and 9 more are newly infected with HIV. Our combined efforts can bring hope to their journey.
Tailwinds!
Mary

[KnottedYet]

Mary - are you aware of the HIV Vaccine Trials Unit here in Seattle? I'm in their volunteer pool, and Mimi's son has been a subject. They have a very cool website. I don't know if they would be any kind of participant in your rides, but you could mention the HVTU to interested bystanders along your ride if they want to do something to help with AIDS/HIV.

There are trials units scattered around the country, so interested folks you meet could probably find some way to get involved.

(the vaccine being tested now should be out for public use in 7 years. So far it works, now they are testing dosages and injection sites for the most efficient delivery method)

[MM_QFC!]

Hey Knot - yes, am familiar with the HIV - VTU ...it's been around for a long time, right? I think maybe even a decade or so longer than I've been riding (since '97) and before I lost my awesome brother, Peter to AIDS in '95.

I got to ride with the former exec directors of both NW AIDS Foundation and Chicken Soup Brigade - pre-merger to become Lifelong AIDS Alliance and I know that the the AIDS Research Institute is tapped into the same international network, because the director has been up here on a fairly frequent basis, interacting with both UW and Fred Hutch researchers.
It's good to know that they're all working together to beat this, isn't it? Actually, did you know that Dr. Jay Levy of ARI-UCSF is a co-discoverer of HIV in 1983? - with a French research doc, but Dr. Levy is still a leading researcher and a recipient of the Breakthrough Fund seed money that I've helped raise in part; I had the honor of meeting him and he is a ride donor as well this year - cool, eh?!
Good for you in your volunteer efforts...Mimi's son too - many thanks!
Mary

[short cut sally]

Mary, I went to the empirestataidsride.org to see if I could find a map of the route you are all taking, but only got the locations of where you will be spending the nights. Why you are probably asking yourself, I am on vacation that week and would like to go and cheer on one day when the ride gets closer to my neck of the woods..well, sort of close anyways. I am going to see if I can't email someone and get a general idea of the ride route, there is an email address to go to for questions..so, who knows..I was reading the website and it was very inspirational. Congrats on your team being such high fund raisers! A long term goal for me would be to that ride..someday! Good luck..enjoy yourself and be careful.

[Trek420]

Shellyj, It's possible the ride organizers like ALC do not announce the route in advance to keep traffic low. You might be able to either go to the destination city and work (drive carefully) backwards along the signed route to find a place you can cheer or do the opposite go forward from the ride start.

[MM_QFC!]

Mary, I went to the empirestataidsride.org to see if I could find a map of the route you are all taking, but only got the locations of where you will be spending the nights. Why you are probably asking yourself, I am on vacation that week and would like to go and cheer on one day when the ride gets closer to my neck of the woods..well, sort of close anyways. I am going to see if I can't email someone and get a general idea of the ride route, there is an email address to go to for questions..so, who knows..I was reading the website and it was very inspirational. Congrats on your team being such high fund raisers! A long term goal for me would be to that ride..someday! Good luck..enjoy yourself and be careful.

Hey Shellyj - whereabouts will you be when you're on vacation in NY? I know that Marty (ride director and she will be the one to respond to questions that are emailed anyway) has changed the route a bit, but since I did it last year, I am familiar generally with our direction and rest stops enroute, so I could give you more info too...just give me an idea of your general locations, ok?
It'd be great to see/hear a smilin' TE woman on the road!


Thanks for your interest and yes, we're still shooting to raise lots more $ ($75k and we're $30k short of it currently), so as to get the AIDS Research Institute a larger share of the proceeds. There are several riders on our team, including myself who are still working to reach their minimum, so we're begging away and hopeful...
Mary

[short cut sally]

Mary, I live 1 hour south of Rochester area, and I see that one of the nights you will be staying in the Rochester area. (I am assuming probably the first night out). I have a wide variance as to where to go and cheer on, I prefer more rural to country as I am sure you won't be going right thru the heart of the city. When I did the 100 miler for diabetes not too long ago, there was only 1 lone cheerleader along the whole route, and it was so refreshing and would like to return the support. I am not sure if you will be going towards the Syracuse area after Rochester or towards Canandagua area after Rochester. BUT all of the Rochester area isnt far, Syracuse is a little haul, Canandagua isn't that far either..Both 1 hour or so away, and it would be such a great thing..(my vacation consists of staying home and bike riding ).

[MM_QFC!]

Mary, I live 1 hour south of Rochester area, and I see that one of the nights you will be staying in the Rochester area. (I am assuming probably the first night out). I have a wide variance as to where to go and cheer on, I prefer more rural to country as I am sure you won't be going right thru the heart of the city. When I did the 100 miler for diabetes not too long ago, there was only 1 lone cheerleader along the whole route, and it was so refreshing and would like to return the support. I am not sure if you will be going towards the Syracuse area after Rochester or towards Canandagua area after Rochester. BUT all of the Rochester area isnt far, Syracuse is a little haul, Canandagua isn't that far either..Both 1 hour or so away, and it would be such a great thing..(my vacation consists of staying home and bike riding ).

Thanks, as we'll head directly East from Niagara Falls on Sunday, 8/12 and I remember that we were mainly on the Seaway Trail, all of the time (ride director said that a pretty good landmark for us to keep in mind was that "since we're traveling East, then Lake Ontario should be on your left all day!")...and had these stops (haven't rec'd final confirmation yet that all remains the same this year):
- AM rest stop: Wilson-Tuscarora State Park
- Lunch: Golden Hill State Park
- P.M. rest stop: Hamlin Beach State Park
- Camp: Robach Community Ctr/Bathhouse, Charlotte/Rochester, NY

on Monday morning, we head south/southeast through Penfield, so we'll be closer to Canandaigua, but will stay northeast of it, and not go thru it, and we won't go east toward Syracuse at all. These were last year's stops in that area:
- AM rest stop: Town of Penfield Athletic Field (next to Town Hall)
- Lunch: John Brown Memorial Park, Clifton Springs
- PM rest stop: Lakefront Park gazebo, Geneva, NY
- Camp: Sampson State Park, Romulus

I think that's about as close as we get to you...that help?

[short cut sally]

THANK YOU so much Mary, that did help..I am just deciding which day to choose now..I am probably leaning more towards Mondays schedule..I am getting excited for you...thanks again..

[MM_QFC!]

Just heard from the ride director again today, teasing me that she'll find hills for me on the flat, long day 1 ride...everyone else cuts off 6 miles and takes the Lake Ontario State pwy from Hamlin park/afternoon rest stop to camp (the comm ctr/bath house at Ontario Beach park). I will be eagerly pedaling into camp on day 1, as some local friends of my gf are picking us up, and we're going to enjoy showers and dinner at their home. My cousin lives in Interlaken, close by overnight #2, so he'll do the same that night.

At any rate, the route will be marked on the day of, so you may spot the signs with arrows on roadside telephone poles and such; they can be followed to the rest areas too.

As Trek noted, ride directors always have the request - for safety purposes - that supporters do not startle the riders by yelling or honking at us from vehicles, but I'd sure welcome the opportunity to stop and say 'hi' to you if you spot us, so flag us down somehow - we're a friendly group! There won't be more than 100 riders and our ride vehicles will have the 'lady liberty head with rider logo' stencil signs on the back or side of the car, so yell out my name and, more than likely, someone will know where I am...tailwinds!
Mary

[Trek420]

Shellyj, we want pictures! Tailwinds.

[MM_QFC!]

I'll be taking plenty o' pics and it'd be great to get a pic with Shellyj to share with y'all too...we'll see.
Trek, thanks for your supportive auto-signature - cool beans!
Tailwinds for all!
Mary

[maryellen]

Hey Mary, having done this ride in 2005, I share your amazement in discovering just how many hills/mountains there are in NYS. As Marty told us, there's no way to cross the Hudson without going over some serious hills.

[MM_QFC!]

Hey, Maryellen - sure wish you were doing it again this year and yeah, Marty's a real comedian; whenever I get flip with her (which is constantly), she tells me that she can easily make a special route detour just for me - thru the Adirondacks too!

[shadon]

and ShellyJ...I still get choked up when I think of:

The woman I saw nearly every day of ALC, standing somewhere along our route, holding up a sign that read "You are my hero".

The kids outside of Santa Cruz who had pipe cleaner flowers for us.

I hope you can get out there somewhere along the ride and cheer on the riders! I'm gonna send my Mom a note..I wish she and my Dad would get out somewhere along the ride and cheer them on!

Ride On!