AIDS Lifecycle: Riding My Butt Off for a Cause

There's nothing worse than your alarm clock ringing at 5:30 a.m. on a still-dark Sunday morning. You drag your ass out of bed, fumble around for biking shorts and a jersey, look for your misplaced helmet and grab your bike to ride 70+ miles planned for the day.

And Starbuck's isn't even open yet.

A short time later, you meet up with a group of 60 people who have just gone through the same wake-up call. You stretch together, endure a safety speech and finally start pedaling. As you wake up (and hit mile five), you notice that everyone is getting into a better mood. You are all in this together, and it is all in preperation for the ultimate ride: the 545-mile AIDS/Lifecycle ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles.

On Sunday, May 31, I will join 2,199 other cyclists for this annual trek which raises over $10 million for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center. The ride will take us six days and while this will be my first ride, I hear it is the experience of a lifetime. Riding for HIV/AIDS is an important cause for me — my partner is HIV+ as are a number of my close friends. I'm doing this for them. I'm riding to stop this disease.

I've biked for years and have participated in a couple of centuries (100+ mile rides in a single day). But, I just hope my middle-aged body can take the daily turmoil a tiny seat can offer. The ride has an amazing support system to help every individual succeed, so I am optimistic. And, my legs are looking great!

I will file daily reports right here at Tonic on my progress, along with Tweets throughout the day. If any of you are in Los Angeles, please come and cheer us on at the closing ceremonies in L.A. on Saturday, June 6. And be sure to follow us on Twitter: @tonicnews.

I have reached my $3,000 fundraising goal (THANKS to any of you who donated). How can you help? My partner, Rich, still needs to raise $2,000 to participate and you can support him here.

So, wish me luck and be sure to check in with my progress all during the week of June 1.

Photo: Rich and Dan on "Day on the Ride": 70 miles through Marin County 4/25/09 (Photo courtesy of Richard Prendes).