SMART Ride 20 Recruits Riders

For new or casual bike riders, a 165 mile trip may as well be a 16,500 mile trip: impossibly long. But with a little training and a little mentoring, and a lot of encouragement, it’s a very realistic goal.

That’s the message The SMART Ride organizers are trying to promote as they get ready for the 20th year of the iconic ride. “It can seem like a lot but it really isn’t,” SMART Ride founder Glen Weinzimer told OutClique . “You find a team, or we’ll put you with a team, and you start small. You work up to a 20 mile ride and get comfortable with that.”

Breaking it into smaller, bite-sized rides, is a strategy Ride veterans still use each year. Weinzimer continued, “The first day of the ride isn’t 100 miles. It’s five, twenty mile rides.”

The SMART Ride is an annual, 165 mile bike trip from Miami to Key West the week before Thanksgiving. It’s the largest of its kind that distributes all proceeds to HIV/AIDS related organizations throughout Florida. The first 19 rides have raised nearly $15 million.

Riders and volunteers have created a familial bond over the years, and pride themselves in encouraging new riders and developing their skills. Robin Martin of Team GearGrinders remembered when he began thinking about doing the ride. “When I first thought of how long the ride is, I thought no. But we began training as a team a few months before the ride. We would do short 10, then 20 mile rides. After a few weeks we added 2 rides a week and then one long 40 mile a week.”

He agrees that having supportive people at every turn is key. “Breaking into smaller rides really helped me and the team prepare. It's important to have a supportive team.”

One rookie rider this year is new executive director Todd Delmay. He officially joined the group in January. For the big 20th year, he’s shadowing Weinzimer to help make a smooth transition. He realized once he’s in charge, it will be nearly impossible to do the ride. “It’s probably the only opportunity I’ll have as executive director. It’s important, not only as the experience for me but to set the example that anyone can be involved and be a part.”

Delmay says once you decide to ride, supporters will come from unexpected places. “Once you decide to ride, you’ve got friends you never expected saying ‘I’ll ride with you, I’ll do that!’”

Delmay, Weinzimer, and their team say signups are strong, but they want to involve as much of the community as possible. This year, for SMART Ride 20, the goal is to raise a record $2 million dollars.

The money is urgently needed. The theme of this year’s ride is #NoMoreNames, that when we stop HIV/AIDS, we can stop adding new names to AIDS memorial walls, quilts, and other remembrances.

To learn more, make a pledge, or join the ride, visit TheSmartRide.org

Author: John Hayden