David's California
AIDS Ride 7

June 4-10, 2000

Thank you again for supporting me with your pledges. You money helps HIV/AIDS patients in dire need of community services such as medical counseling, food, and shelter. The AIDS Ride serves both as a fund raiser and as a media event to draw attention to the AIDS issue.

Thanks to the generosity of so many people I raised over $3,290 for the event. The CA AIDS Ride 7 raised a total of $11.25 million. Enough money to keep the San Francisco AIDS center and part of the Los Angeles AIDS center going for one year. Tens of thousands of people rely on the services of these centers, and you helped make this possible. Check out their web site at www.sfaf.org.

No other experience is quite like the California AIDS Ride. It is exhilarating, exhausting, exciting, and engrossing. The 2,800 cyclists and 600 support staff formed an incredible community as we cycled from San Francisco to Los Angeles. Their faces and efforts are etched in my mind.

The adventure started June 3 in San Francisco and ended June 10 in Los Angeles. 570 miles of cycling through wind and rain, overcast and blue skies. The foggy downhill tested our brakes, and the rain tested our will. 30-40 mph crosswinds had cyclists leaning sideways on the 100+ mile 2nd day. Some people pushed their bikes up the "thigh buster" hill, while random glass and nails caused a constant hazard for all.

I was designated rider #3687, and you will notice this number in the pictures on my bike and helmet. This number was important because it helped the ride staff identify each cyclist and track their progress. The goal was "no one gets left behind."

I have organized the pictures into themes.

Orientation and Day 1

The (Crazy) People

Life Inside "Tent City"

Rainy Days and LA

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do." - Mark Twain

Back to Main Page

created June 21, 2000
by David Greenstein