29th Annual Race Across America

Woo hoo! Are you ready for the Race Across America? Well if you’re not then it’s time to get your butt in gear! The Race Across America is considered by many to be one of the hardest races in the United States and for good reason. With a course spanning from Oceanside, California all the way to Annapolis Maryland this grueling ride requires true commitment and dedication!

This year is a very unique year because someone extremely special has decided to not only commit to ride but lead her team as team captain. That’s right ladies and gentlemen Kristina Ripatti a former LAPD police officer who was shot in the line of duty and paralyzed will be participating in this years ride using her hand-cycle!

Women’s Cycing Magazine would like to commend Kristina for turning what is seemingly a tragedy into triumph! Kristina represents the spirit and go-get-em attitude that we here at WCM cherish, honor and respect.

We would like to ask everyone who reads this article to do what you can to participate in this great cause and ride. Whether you just want to know where to go to cheer on the racers, help out with setting up for the event, ride or donate money, we’re encouraging everyone to get involved.

Lastly we’d like to give a shout out to the entire team: Kristina Ripatti, Russ Loomis, Nancy Guth and Mark Burson! Good luck ya’ll you’ve got the support of WCM and all of our gritty, wild and crazy minions!

Below is more information with regard to RAAM’s commitment to charity!
Note: For more info please contact Mark Burson
mark.burson [at] bm.com | 805.390.1767

RAAM’s Commitment to Charity

RAAM has always served as a high profile vehicle for racers raising money for charitable causes.  RAAM participants have raised over $ 1 million for charity in each of the past three years. The Lon Haldeman Award was created to honor racers who raise the most funds for their chosen charity.

With so many worthwhile efforts supported by our racers we felt it was best not to align ourselves with any specific cause but rather to let our racers use the race as a platform to showcase their chosen charities. However, every year RAAM supports charitable causes that warrant special consideration.  Typically, we support efforts that affect people along the RAAM course and/or the RAAM family.  In recent years we have made donations to the following charitable causes:

2010 – RAAM will begin a new recycling program and will be working with Green Guru and Terracycle…More information to come.

2009

Finish Line Donation – Hundreds of pounds of food and supplies from our racers was donated to The Lighthouse Shelter, a shelter serving homeless families in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.  Please visit www.annapolislighthouse.org.

2008

Fallbrook, California – This North San Diego County town is home to many RAAM staff and racers.  The town was seriously damaged by wildfires several months before the 2008 race.  A cash donation, collected at the start of the race, was made to the Fallbrook Legacy Foundation.

No Barriers – A cash donation, generated from sales of limited edition merchandise, was made to this athlete founded charity that supports disabled athletes.  Specifically, No Barriers promotes innovative ideas, approaches, and assistive technologies which help people with disabilities push through their own personal barriers to live full and active lives. Please visit www.nobarriersusa.org.

Finish Line Donation – Hundreds of pounds of food and supplies from our racers was donated to The Lighthouse Shelter, a shelter serving homeless families in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.  Please visit www.annapolislighthouse.org.

Soldiers in Iraq – We sent several boxes of personal items – toiletries, energy bars, etc. – to the son of a long-time RAAM staffer serving in Iraq for distribution to his platoon.

Piste Foundation – We donated clothing to Piste, a small alternative health care clinic, located in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.

2007

Greenville, Kansas – The town of Greenville, Kansas, located on the race route, was destroyed by a tornado.  A cash donation, collected at the start of the race, was made to the Red Cross to assist the town.

Finish Line Donation – Hundreds of pounds of food and supplies from our racers was donated to the city of Atlantic City, New Jersey for distribution to local charities.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (November 1, 2009) — While many medical students and health care professionals spend time behind closed doors promoting world health, a select group of these students and professionals, along with community representatives, will be participating in a bike ride across the nation.  This group of 25 bicyclists will embark on a journey called Ride for World Health to help raise awareness of the various issues of health care that greatly affect the world—healthcare access, poverty and disease, infectious diseases, and women’s and children’s health.  Along with health awareness, Ride for World Health will also raise funds for their yearly beneficiaries, World Bicycle Relief and HEAL Africa.  The cross-country ride will begin March 30, 2010 in San Diego and will end May 25, 2010 in Washington D.C.

Ride for World Health believes education and empowerment of the public is a critical step toward improvement in global and domestic health.  During the ride, “Global Health Days” are organized in select U.S. cities with scheduled “Coast-to-Coast Lecture Series” that help to educate various audiences about the current state of global health.

“The mission of R4WH is to address global health disparities by focusing on education, advocacy, and fundraising which are addressed by utilizing a national cycling event as a vehicle for change,” said R4WH Co-Founder Andrew Wagner.  “Each year, 
our Coast-to-Coast Lecture Series initiates meaningful dialogue throughout communities along our 3,300 mile journey.  Through our efforts, we raise significant funds to support a non-profit organization with goals consistent with our vision, and empower our audience to become informed and active global citizens.”

Last year’s R4WH team delivered nearly 50 lectures to audiences around the country and were able to donate $80,000 to their 2009 beneficiaries, Esperanca and Village Health Works through solidarity rides and fundraising events.  Ride for World health actively seeks sponsors that share their commitment of health awareness and while each rider is responsible for most of the personal costs of the ride, donations can be made to an individual rider or the organization.

Ride for World Health is a national nonprofit organization that was founded in 2004 by a small group of Ohio State University medical students as a reaction to the state of domestic and global healthcare.  For more information about the ride and how to donate please visit www.rideforworldhealth.org.