A runner and cyclist who recently took part in the ING Georgia Marathon, Anthony Nardis was looking for another challenge. He found it with the Action Cycling 200, an annual fundraiser for the Emory Vaccine Center.
Nardis, who is gay, arrived on the Emory campus early on May 19 to ready his bike and equipment for the two-day, 200-mile trek from Decatur to the Rock Eagle 4-H Center near Eatonton, Ga., and back. He was one of 58 cyclists to participate in either the 200-mile event or a shorter, 150-mile version.
“It’s pretty amazing to see people get out here and push themselves for the cause,” Nardis said before the 7:30 a.m. start time. “You know you are doing something worthwhile.”
The cyclists raised about $65,000 for the event — a final tally was not available early this week — all of which will be donated to the center, which is developing vaccines for AIDS and other infectious diseases. In its fifth year, Action Cycling Atlanta has raised more than $300,000 for the center, funds that fill critical gaps in federal grants.
“We lucked out,” said Brian Sullivan, president of Action Cycling Atlanta and one of the organizers of the event. “Mother Nature provided a wonderful backdrop. Weather like this really energizes our riders.”
Sullivan credits the riders, volunteers and the group’s board with growing the race about 10 percent this year and staging what he called “an incident free weekend” and their best event yet.
Riders paid a $90 registration fee and committed to raising at least $500 in donations, though teams of riders could also participate and needed to raise at least $350 each. The top individual fundraiser brought in $3,550, Sullivan said.
Sponsors picked up the costs of staging the event, which included an overnight stay at the Rock Eagle 4-H Center that was a new aspect of the event this year. After a tough day of cycling, the camp provided cyclists with a relaxed atmosphere, pool and live music.
“It really helped us create more of a community,” Sullivan said.
Action Cycling Atlanta grew from a group of gay friends who took part in a 540-mile AIDS ride in Europe in 2002. Unhappy with the slim 10 percent the event returned to the vaccine center and other beneficiaries, they set out to create their own.
Action Cycling 200 now enjoys wide appeal, drawing gay cyclists impacted in different ways by HIV and straight riders looking for a challenging way to support the vaccine center.
Micah Wedemeyer, a member of Team Emory that raised more than $12,000 for the ride, commutes on bike from her Decatur home to the Emory campus. But Action Cycling 200 was by far the longest ride she’s faced.
“I thought it would be a fun thing to do with friends and a good cause,” said Wedemeyer, who is straight. “There is no downside to it.”
Gustav Thomas, a straight father whose eldest son died of AIDS-related complications in 1994, said the annual event provides a chance to spend time with friends of his son.
“When I learned of these efforts to prevent HIV/AIDS, I certainly dove into that effort to save lives,” Thomas said. “Vicariously, I feel a relationship with my son.”
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