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My Brother Started It
My brother William rode in the June, 1998 AIDS Ride, biking from Raleigh, N.C.,
to Washington, D.C., 330 miles, in four days. The ride is one of a national series
of rides that raise funds for local organizations helping those with HIV and AIDS.
Shannon, my wife, and I helped with a contribution to his fundraising efforts.
Later, he reflected what a positive experience the ride had been.
The phone call asking us to join in the 1999 AIDS ride came around Christmas of
1998. William on the line, “No pressure, just thought you might want to ride. By
the way, I’m also asking the rest of the family.” Shannon and I talked it over
briefly, half-heartedly decided to say yes, and became a part of the Ernst & Young
& Friends Team. We needed to raise $1,900 each to be able to ride, an intimidating
proposition for novice fundraisers. The response to the fundraising letters should
have been the first indication that this was not going to be an ordinary bike ride
for a cause. Our friends and associates were incredibly supportive, both with words
and contributions.
A Celebration of Making a Difference
The spring passed, training for the ride commenced, fundraising was successful, and
the team grew to 50 riders.
I began to sense the impact the experience was to have on Day 0, the day you complete
registration, drop off bikes and view the safety video. It was during the video that
I first learned of the AIDS Ride slogan:
“From Impossible to I’m possible”
It was becoming clear that I was part of something much bigger than a bike ride; it
was a celebration of making a difference. I decided at that moment to fully commit
to the experience, to look at the ride as a chance to spend four days surrounded by
the best of human nature. I have been a competitive athlete for most of my life and
am intimately familiar with the “day-before-the-big-event” tension and
apprehension. As I walked among my 49 teammates, 1,699 other riders, and 600 crew,
each having taken a different road to get to Raleigh, there was this underlying
current of support and pride, no competition or comparison; we were all what is
possible.
Saying “Yes” to Helping Others
My athletic background could never have prepared me for what I witnessed those four
days on the road to Washington, D.C. I think, in retrospect, that I expected the
other riders to be “riders,” people who rode bikes. Nothing could have been farther
from the truth. I saw every imaginable form of two-wheel, human-powered transit,
powered by every imaginable form of human being. An old rusted five speed pedaled
along by someone in tennis shoes or flip-flops, not because they wanted to be
retro, but because it was all they had. I was moved by the courage and heart of my
fellow riders. This cause, helping those with HIV and AIDS, was so important to
them, that they accepted what had to be a monumental challenge, to ride a bike
330 miles.
For me, the challenge became to accept the responsibility that we all have of saying
“yes” to helping others. It meant always having words of encouragement for other
riders, maybe even a little push up a hill. It meant, after we finished riding the
day’s route, spending the rest of the day at the finish line cheering in all the
other riders. It meant never forgetting to say thanks to the crew and supporters
along the way. And it means never forgetting that we all have the power to make
the world a better place.
There is no way to convey the emotion of coming around the last turn onto the mall
in Washington, D.C., feeling the energy, support, compassion, and love that brought
all 1,700 riders to the end of the journey. To have helped raise $4.8 million in
the fight against AIDS. To stand, with tears running down my face, among this
community of which I was so proud, knowing that we were all changed by the experience.
To know that so much is possible.
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