Having fun and touching lives ….

It’s interesting how you can set out to do something you enjoy and have it wind up touching so many other people’s lives….
My wife and I went to a fundraiser dinner the other night for my buddy’s team that is doing the Coast Classic ride form SF to LA to benefit the Arthritis Foundation.

I’m not sure how Jerry got involved with the Arthritis Foundation other than he loves to ride and it’s a good cause. I don’t know that he is directly connected to anyone that has suffered from this disease.

We went mainly because we thought it would be fun and to help him raise some money. I figured that’s probably why most everyone was there….

What I didn’t realize was that the team Jerry is on is called Team Also-Touch and they have a very specific reason for getting involved in this cause. The family that started this team lost a 10 year old daughter, Christiana, who suffered from Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis and although, she passed away as a result of another illness, the two are connected in some way that I don’t understand.(www.alsotouch.com)

The thing that really amazed me at the dinner, in addition to the ribs and mashed potatoes, was how many people were involved and what their stories were. There’s Jer, who has been involved in the ride from the beginning. There’s the father, Dwight, and his oldest daughter, there’s the doctor from Stanford that attended to Christiana, there’s a spin class coach who got one of his students involved. The student, rides with a bike club in Tracy and he got a couple of his riding friends involved, then there are all of us that just know Jerry from his rides…

It’s interesting how fitness and fund raising go hand in hand. As a kid I can remember doing a walk-a-thon where people pledged a certain amount of money per mile walked. And, now we’ve got literally hundreds of walking, running and biking events that raise money for a good cause.

And of course there’s the Tour de Donut….which although it’s not a fund raiser, looks like something I could definitely have a chance of winning…..
The Tour de Donut bicycle "race" starts with a mass start
The route has varied slightly from year-to-year do to road conditions/construction and is over rolling terrain with two donut stops. Riders must stop at the two checkpoint stations (donut stops). Donut consumption is not mandatory, however, a five minute bonus is awarded for each donut consumed and recorded. After the race placement awards are presented for best Elapsed Time, Adjusted Time and Most Donuts Eaten. Door/Attendance prizes and a grand prize are also awarded.