I've just returned from an amazing ride down the coast of California. We covered 620 miles in 7 days but that's not the real story. The real story started 20 weeks ago when I was asked to be a part of the Qualcomm Million Dollar Challenge, QMDC, an event put on by the Challenged Athletes Foundation, CAF.CAF is a local San Diego non-profit that helps disabled people participate in sports. I became associated with them last year when I entered a radio contest with XX1090 AM. The morning show, 5-9 AM, Scott and BR, put up the fund raising fee requirement of $10,000 for one lucky winner in their contest. I was one of 30 people who started in the contest.
Over the following weeks people were eliminated one by one. I'm still not sure how it happened but in the end I was the winner. As the contest progressed I came to a realization: I was determined to go on the ride one way or another. Along the way I started raising the $10,000 entry requirement on my own. I ended up raising over $12,000.
With that success in hand, CAF invited me back as a Ride Leader this year. They also asked me to be the liaison between the radio station and their organization. Little did I know what that would involve.
Again, this year, the radio contest started with 30 people. I wanted to pass on my previous experience to this year’s contestants so they all could have an equal opportunity to win. Based on my experience from the previous year, my advice was to figure out ways to promote 1) CAF 2) QMDC and 3) XX1090. If they kept those objectives in mind it would provide the best chance possible.
All the contest entrants had various levels of cycling experience. Since part of the effort was to prepare for riding 620 miles, some thought it was about the speed of the ride and immediately set out to ride with the fastest groups. Others, like Rob, showed up to a road ride of 50 plus miles on a hybrid bike. He very quickly learned that he was going to need a different set of wheels to complete 620 miles down the coast.
After a few weeks 15 people were eliminated from the contest. The remaining had a mix of good stories and reasons that they should be the one to win. One of the remaining contestants was Chris. He had been trying for 3 years to get into the contest and finally made it. Unfortunately, after 4 weeks he learned that he was finally approved for a much needed back surgery. He continued riding and training with us right up to the day before he went under the knife. Since the doctor said he had to be off his wheels for at least 3 months to recover he was out of the running.
Finally, it came down to the last 7 people in the contest. XX1090 had indicated at this point that one will win but they had an additional $10,000 to be used for anyone who had raised a minimum of $5,000. The final seven, Adam, Mark, Joy, Joe, Brian, Alex, and Rob decided that they would team together and figure out a way to get everyone to San Francisco.
They all had been working hard on fund raising up to this point. Now the efforts doubled over night. Fund raising events, singing in yogurt shops, raffles for a island BBQ, car detailing and bike detailing are just a few examples of what they did.
Rob and Alex were the first two to make the $10,000 mark so they were guaranteed a spot at the start of the ride. The last contest elimination was made and the two remaining people were Adam and Joy. They were called into the station and the winner was announced, Adam, a cancer survivor.
Adam had told me that he had considered not entering this contest but with some encouragement from friends decided he would. Just four months prior Adam had raised money for the cancer society and ridden from San Francisco to San Diego with another buddy. They had undertaken that adventure with far less support.
The real winners of this whole amazing story are the challenged athletes who we had the privilege to ride with as we headed down the coast. The money and funds are one thing but when you can spend time with someone who lives now without the use of their legs, you tend to get a different perspective on what you should focus on. One challenged athlete, Chris Self, is missing his leg below the knee and is still serving in Army Special Forces. He's done his time and then some for our nation but he's determined to stay in for 30 years.
Remember that guy Chris who had back surgery. The surgery couldn’t stop him from helping the cause. He showed up and rode with us the last day of the ride. Not only that, he had also helped out the group during his recovery.
I was going to write about the details of the ride down the coast but maybe that's another article. I thought it was more important to highlight those who took time to raise awareness about CAF. I applaud their spirit and hope others will find a cause to work with. If it incorporates riding your bike that sounds like a win/win situation to me.
by Mike Henderson
Mike's Blog: Finding Way to Help Others
Photo: 2009 San Diego Century
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