I was devastated when my friend and long time mentor, Craig, died. I watched him suffer needlessly thanks to a lack of adequate health insurance and a system of health care that works only for those who can afford it. In addition Craig left us believing that his sexuality meant he deserved to suffer. I vowed that night, as I watched my friend struggle for life, that I would do whatever it takes to prevent even one more person from ever having to die believing they were less than perfect in the eyes of GOD."

Training and riding 585 miles seems almost a joke when its placed next to the many painful miles those who have suffered with AIDS have walked since this plague took its first victim so many years ago. But its something, and its what we can do TODAY to stand up and SCREAM that those we loved will not be forgotten and this thing is not over yet. There will be an AIDS/lifecycle until there is NO AIDS. And until there is no AIDS I will be peddling or walking or roadying or just plain screaming but I promise.... I will not stop.

• L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center
  The L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center provides the broadest array of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender services available anywhere, with 70 percent of its $32 million budget dedicated to providing direct HIV and health services. Through its Pedro Zamora Youth HIV Program, Jeffrey Goodman Special Care Clinic, and numerous health education and prevention programs, the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center welcomes nearly 120,000 client visits each year for HIV treatment and services. The organization also operates one of the largest HIV/AIDS pharmacies in the country, filling more than 90,000 prescriptions per year.
  
• San Francisco AIDS Foundation
  The San Francisco AIDS Foundation is a non-profit, community-based organization that is committed to ending the pandemic and the human suffering caused by HIV. The agency provides a comprehensive array of services - including financial benefits counseling, client advocacy, housing assistance, HIV prevention efforts, needle exchange, and the California AIDS Hotline (800-367-AIDS) - that directly serve over 100,000 individuals. The agency reaches over 1.5 million others through community outreach, public policy efforts, prevention campaigns, and the Web.