Florida: Three-Day, 275-Mile Bicycle Ride Raises $110,348 for AIDS Agencies

A 275-mile, three-day bicycle ride raised $110,348, after expenses, for the Florida AIDS Consortium, a group of service organizations throughout the state. The 2002 Fourth Annual Sunshine Ride for AIDS had 87 bikers, and departed from DoubleTree Guest Suites in Fort Lauderdale, finishing two days later at Valencia Community College West Campus in Orlando.

During the ride, volunteers in vans or sports utility vehicles scoured the route, picking up riders whose bikes had broken down or offering tired bikers a lift between rest stops or camping sites, said Jodi Ihme, an official with Community Healthcare CenterOne. "It's not a race. Everybody comes together for a common cause," Ihme said.

Ride beneficiaries included the Community Healthcare CenterOne in Fort Lauderdale; Care Resources in Miami; Action for AIDS in North Miami; Comprehensive AIDS Program of Palm Beach; AIDS Resource Alliance in Orlando; and the Tampa AIDS Network.

The first three rides in 1999, 2000 and 2001, which benefited the same agencies, raised $1.2 million, said Nicole Covar, event director for Clear Results Marketing (CRM), the ride's producer and a division of Clear Channel Communications. CRM Vice President Julie Wilson-Watson said this year's expenses totaled $306,267 and the net loss was $175,919. But, she said, "none of the charities were affected." The faltering post-Sept. 11 economy and its effects on nonprofit fund-raising may be the reason the Sunshine Ride was not as financially successful as in its first three years, said Covar. "We were the risk takers in this event, but [the charities] received the benefit of the radio outreach and kept charitable fundraising for AIDS in the forefront," said Covar.

Clear Channel Florida, which has more than 75 radio stations across the state, donates more than $1 million annually in public service announcements to benefit AIDS service organizations and the Sunshine Ride. Corporate Sponsor Levi Strauss & Co. donated $20,000, and there were several in-kind sponsors, said Covar.

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