Riding for Roses

The ride is tomorrow. Last night, Rachel and I attended the Peloton Appreciation Dinner, an event honoring Peloton Project members and other sponsors. We got to attend because I raised $5150. A summary, then some thoughts:

• Robin Williams is very nice, and hysterically funny
• Lance Armstrong cannot sing
• Sheryl Crow can
• There are a whole lot of amazing and courageous people out there

At any fundraising ride, I always feel more than a little embarrassed by all of the people saying “Thank you” to me. On most rides, most riders (self included on most rides) raise (or donate on their own) a small amount of money, a little time, and get to go on a cool bicycle ride. To the extent that my raising over $5000 is impressive, it is because of the great and minor outpouring of support from people I solicited for donations. I participated in one fund raising event (an auction at an Ice Bats hockey game) and raised the rest from generous donations. Thanks to all of you who donated, and thanks also to all of the volunteers who make the Ride happen. They get hard work, boring work, and miss the ride. Let’s face it, standing at an intersection in the middle of nowhere and pointing at the turn so bicycle riders don’t get lost is not the most challenging or exciting volunteer project.

Going to the appreciation dinner was an awesome opportunity to meet and hear about some truly inspriational people who have been touched by cancer in varying ways. There were about 900 people at the dinner, including Peloton Project members, sponsors, and guests. Before the program began, we got to meet Robin Williams who is a big Lance fan and LAF supporter. He said a quick hello, posed for a photo, and wanted to know if he could make Rachel electric wheelchair do a wheelie. As far as I can tell, he must have spent most of his evening reaching out to the people at the dinner and thanking them; he never appeared to stop, or even try to rush, a greeting or photo request.

After dinner, before the program began, there were slides showing covering various aspects of the Lance Armstrong Foundation and its mission. One slide that really grabbed me was a crayon-written note with coins taped to it, a child offering a donation to the foundation to help fight cancer. It reminded me of the note my nephew gave to my mother after my father died: “If I had one wish, I would wish for grandpa back”.

The program covered the usual thanking of sponsors and then moved down the hill where a stage had been set up. There they gave the awards for highest first year fundraising (almost $50,000), highest fundraising (over $50,000), largest number of individual donors (541 if memory serves), and the Lori A. Tilton Triumph Award for the Peloton Project member who demonstrates remarkable commitment to the mission of the foundation. My mind being the sieve that it is, I have forgotten all of the names of the winners, though I’m sure they will be on the LAF site soon.

Then the show began. Robin Williams did some standup and I nearly lost my voice again (I lost my voice earlier this week) from laughing. Then Sheryl Crow came out and did some acoustic solo stuff and some duets with Lance. Thank goodness, Lance is good at that whole cycling thing; he does not have a future as a singer.

We headed before the rest of the show to let the babysitter get home. On the way out, Robin Williams said hello again and I thanked him.