el Tour de Tucson, and Tu Nidito

I'm signed up with Tu Nidito, a non-profit organization here in Tucson that provides support to children affected by serious medical conditions and to their families, to "Ride for a Child" in El Tour de Tucson on 17 November 2012.

Now, what that means is that Tu Nidito has registered my name for el Tour, in exchange for me fund-raising for one of the kids in their program. I have to raise $500 total by the middle of November, so that I can ride!

I'm paired with Brandon, a 16 year old boy with rhabdomyosarcoma (a cancer of connective tissue). The money I raise helps fund his therapy, the treatments, and the family support as well. He's an active kid, builds model planes, and is really a good young role model for the community.

I'm signed up for the 42-mile Tour, starting at the Savonti Aventis facility in Oro Valley, and heading generally down Tangerine to Silverbell and downtown from there. It'll be a good ride, and it's for a great cause.

But it can't happen without the donations. I have been able to get a few, but it's crunch time and so I'm making a plea to my friends, co-workers, family, and compatriots. A plea and a deal. A plea deal, if you'd like !

Here's the plea: please donate on the donation page, to help Brandon continue treatment, and to allow me to ride in el Tour.

Here's the deal. I'm going to put up a blog post each Saturday until November 10th listing my planned training rides, routes, and estimated distances. I propose that if you're interested in donating, to pledge to donate $1/mile for a given training ride (this also keeps me honest about doing the rides!), with a minimum of $10 (no training route is less than 10 miles) and a maximum of $50 (I don't plan any rides longer than this ... even if I manage to go through a long ride, and it ends up being more than 50 miles, I think capping it is fair to you if you pledge). If you wish, you can leave a comment on the ride you'd like to pledge, or send me an e-mail, or just donate anonymously on the donation page.

Thanks to everyone in advance for all your help!