September 2012
 |
| Riding through Death Valley in 2010 |
Yes,
its that time of year again…The 31th Annual Whitney Classic Bike
Ride, Summit Adventure’s main fundraising event,
will take place on September 29th-30th .The Whitney is an
adventurous 135-mile bike ride that starts at 3:00 p.m. at Badwater,
Death Valley, California (282 ft. below
sea level), continues through the night and finishes the next morning at the
portals at Mt. Whitney (8365 feet above sea
level). The ride includes three major climbs of 17 miles, 13 miles and 13
miles, two of which by Tour de France classifications are considered “Out of
Category” which to you and me means “really, really steep.” Total elevation
gain for the ride is 15,300 feet.
This is my 13th Whitney!
What, are you nuts? Yes, nuts and addicted to this awesome ride. I love to
ride, I love Summit Adventure, and I love this event. Nothing matches the
awesome course, camaraderie of the participants, and incredible support from the
Summit Staff and volunteers. Many of you have been loyal supporters of Summit all these years. I
cannot thank you enough!
This year I was able to convince 4 other riders
(Michael Atkins, Ryan Snow, Daniel
Tansill, and Carlton van Leuven) to ride uphill, in the heat, and through the
night to join me for this suffer fest! All are experienced riders, but none
have ridden the Whitney Classic as a solo rider. This year will all ride solo for the ‘Full
Whitney’ Audax Style (together as a group). This will be my 7th
Whitney solo effort!
In the past twelve years, through your generous support, we have contributed over $125,000 to Summit Adventure! Thank
you! Here’s where you come in: I have
set a goal to raise $10,000 for this
year’s Whitney. Course income provides
for only 45 percent of the Summit
budget. The rest comes through fund raising events such as the Whitney Classic.
I served as a member of the Summit Board of Directors and know how critical a
successful Whitney is to the financial health of the ministry. Debby, Mark,
Michael and I have all participated on Summit
courses over the years and have been deeply impacted by this great ministry! We
all love Summit.
That’s why I ride!
Please
join my support team and send in your donation today!
(Donate online by clicking
here and indicate ‘Steve Atkins
WC’ in the donor comment box).
Please
pray with me for a safe, successful event. If you have any
questions, or would like to just catch up, please call me at 602-549-5331 or at
home at 480-775-1682. I would love to hear from you. Thank you and God bless!
Check out Summit’s web page by clicking here
Thank you for your continued support!
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