We have all sorts of resources
to make your fundraising successful and four days
on the road comfortable and
fun. Some participants may be very self-sufficient,
while others may need a lot of encouragement, advice,
and information. It’s likely that most of us
will fall somewhere in between. Please take a look
at the following and see what works for you!
Participants are encouraged to join our Yahoo! discussion
forum by clicking here.
As a member of the discussion group, you’ll be
able to share concerns, questions, and information
with other participants via email.
Information Sessions
Several weeknight information sessions
will be scheduled for participants who live in the
greater Sacramento
region. The topics will include any of the following:
training, equipment maintenance and repair, safety,
fundraising, nutrition, and information on the benefiting
agencies.
At times, all of this training
and fundraising can get a little overwhelming. The
NCAC participants below
have volunteered to be available to you to help you
through the tough spots you’ll undoubtedly encounter
between now and the Challenge. Whether you’d
like some help shopping for the perfect NCAC bicycle,
want some advice on tuning up your current ride, can’t
find any training partners, don’t know where
to start with your fundraising, or just need a sympathetic
ear, try giving these folks a call or dropping them
an e-mail. Please do not call mentors after 09:00 in
the evening!
Fundraising; HIV and AIDS information for the
greater Sacramento region.
Company
and advice while shopping for bicycles; training
and nutrition; stretching; training routes and partners;
fundraising ideas; positive energy.
Training
and nutrition; fundraising; training
rides and routes; positive Energy
530.400.9666
Company
and advice while shopping for bicycles; bicycle
fitting; training and nutrition; stretching;
training routes; massage therapy; positive energy.
916.600.5355
Training
and nutrition; fundraising; HIV and AIDS information
for the greater
Sacramento region; positive
energy.
Training
and nutrition; training rides and routes; fundraising; positive
energy.
209.815.7102
Positive
Pedalers, living with HIV, training rides and routes,
positive energy.
Are you interested in being a mentor? If so, click
here.
You don’t need to be an expert, or even
knowledgeable in all areas. You just need to be willing
to provide advice and encouragement to other participants
in one or more of the areas listed above.
Training
Rides
Wanna
meet other members of the NCAC community? Here’s
your chance! Starting in November and until the Challenge,
there will be a monthly informal ride open to all NCAC
Cyclists, Crew members, friends, family members, and
loved ones. It’ll take
place on the second Sunday of every month at 09:00
a.m., start near the big green
bridge in Discovery Park [in Sacramento], and follow
the mostly flat American River Bike Trail toward Folsom.
It’ll be an out and back route with groups for
riders of all ability levels, so ride distance and
pace depend completely on you and what you feel like
doing. Each month’s ride will have a set turn
around time so we can all start and finish together.
Arrive early for a short stretching session and safety
speech. After the ride, you can stay late for gear
and idea swapping!
This will be a chance to meet
other Challenge participants, experience the American
River Bike Trail, and get some
practice riding in groups. It’ll also be a great
time to hear about others’ fundraising ideas,
share some ideas of your own, pick up or give away
some gently-used gear, find a tent-mate, and meet a
whole new batch of friends and cycling partners.
Please click here to see the training
ride schedule!
Are you interested in leading some rides, or have
some training route ideas? If so, please click here.
Cycling
Clubs
During the NorCal AIDS Challenge,
you’ll be
riding through some of the most bicycling-crazy regions
of the country that are home to some of the largest
and best-organized clubs, rides, and other cycling
events in California. These clubs a huge number of
informal and formal rides every week that are FREE
and almost always open to the public.
To get some more group riding experience, see some
new terrain, and meet members of the bicycling community,
consider going on some of the rides hosted by these
clubs, or even joining your local cycling club[s].
Check out their websites for ride schedules, route
maps in your area, and information on how to join one
of their rides.
Chico
Velo
Davis
Bike Club
Ophir
Milan [Sacramento-based for women]
Sacramento
Wheelmen
Sacramento
Bike Hikers
Santa
Rosa Cycling Club
Stockton
Bike Club
Cycling Events
If you’ve never done one before, it’d
be a great idea for you to ride in at least one large,
fully supported century or metric century before the
NCAC. In addition to being great training, it’ll
help you get used to riding with large groups of other
cyclists, cycling rest stops, and doing really long
distances without having to carry all your food and
water with you. Some of these rides even overlap with
the NCAC route, so you’ll get to preview some
sections before the event in May!
Listed below are some of the
more popular rides that take place in the Central
Valley in the months leading
up to the NCAC. Links and dates are provided to the
2005 editions if they’re available. We’ll
update this as more information becomes available.
Party
Pardee -
a super-fun metric century in the lower Sierra
foothills. Challenging, but not too much
so with lots of rolling hills and beautiful scenery. Scheduled
for Saturday, April 2nd 2005. Registration
opens in January.
Cinderella
Classic – a
popular female-only century in the eastern San
Francisco Bay foothills. Scheduled for
April 2nd, 2005.
Bike
Around the Buttes -
a benefit ride for the Diabetes Society of Yuba
Sutter with 40 and 100-mile options. An
excellent, awesomely-supported first century
that usually takes place on the second or third
Saturday of April.
Chico
Wildflower -
when the timing’s just right, this is the most
beautiful spring century in California. They
offer several routes of differing length and
difficulty. And the food always kicks butt! Scheduled
for Sunday, April 24th, 2005.
Delta
Century -
this is a relatively easy century which follows
levee roads and country lanes along various rivers. Scheduled
for Sunday, May 1st, 2005.
Cycling
Shops
You’re encouraged to find a local cycling
shop you like and trust, and stick with them as much
as possible. The reason is simple. Although you may
be able to purchase some equipment via the web and
through large cycling clearinghouses, you won’t
get the attention and advice you’d like from
these anonymous sources. Your local cycling shop
[assuming it’s a reasonably good one] will
handle your small and large repairs including adjustments,
will work with you to make sure your equipment fits,
and offer invaluable advice to you. Please be sure
to develop an ongoing relationship with them, and
your loyalty will pay off big time.
The following cycle shops and providers have donated
their time and skills to support our Cyclists before
and during the event. Please show your appreciation
by supporting them!
Discount Program
We are currently working with several recreation-based
and cycling businesses in the greater Sacramento
region for discounts and other services. These will
be listed here as they become available.
Online Resources
You can do a google or other kind of search for
almost anything on the Internet these days, and come
up with something relevant. However, here are a couple
of sites for bicyclists that you may find useful:
http://www.bicycling.com/ - road and mountain biking
magazine. Provides reviews, gear, cycling tips, and
training information.
http://bicycling.about.com/ - excellent clearinghouse
for all types of bicycling information.
http://www.bicyclinglife.com/ - focuses on the good
news about bicycling as a means of transportation
and recreation in everyday life.
