March 16, 1995
As he rounds the first turn to the west heading toward the hot asphalt road that rims Big Sur, his leg muscles knotted and sweat dripping and burning in his eyes, he will catch a glimpse of the glittering blue ocean and smile, knowing his effort is not in vain: He is helping better someone's life and he will handle the pain.
Krag Rasmussen, a 27-year-old English major at SF State, is embarking upon a trip that he said will change his life and hopefully the lives of many others when he rides 525 miles for the benefit of AIDS and HIV-positive Californians.
According to Rasmussen, when the starting gun sounds at 7 a.m. on Mother's Day, May 14 at Fort Mason, 2,000 people on bikes will begin pedaling for California AIDS Ride 2 and won't slow down until seven days later when they reach Los Angeles on May 20.
Rasmussen said he will cover 60 to 90 miles a day on his bike in an effort to raise close to $2 million for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation.
"I am convinced that this ride will change my life," Rasmussen said. "I have never been an activist, but I am an athlete, and this is a good way for me to try to put myself between my friends and family and this disease."
Rasmussen said that his aunt is dying of AIDS.
The San Francisco AIDS Foundation, which was founded in 1982 as San Francisco's first response to the pandemic, is a model for other AIDS organizations across the country, according to Rasmussen. The Foundation provides services such as testing, AIDS education and prevention, and a 24-hour trilingual AIDS hot line (in English, Spanish and Filipino) that provides up-to-the-minute AIDS information and referrals.
The Bulletin of Experimental Treatment for AIDS (BETA) and Positive News, a treatment and lifestyle magazine for people with HIV, are published by the Foundation, Rasmussen said.
"Over 200,000 Americans have died of AIDS, 13,000 of them in San Francisco alone," said Meredith Steiner, a ride recruiter with California AIDS Ride 2.
"To get a good idea of what that means, 53,000 died in the Vietnam War. We would need four Vietnam War Memorial Walls to hold all the names, or four Candlestick Parks to hold all the AIDS victims that died."
California AIDS Ride 2 is sponsored by Tanqueray, who contributed $500,000 to the event, Rasmussen said. Fox TV and Good Morning America will provide live, national coverage of the event. Also, each individual rider is required to raise at least $2,200 for the ride.
"I have raised close to $1,900 so far, but my goal is $5,000," Rasmussen said. "Large scale fund-raising has become so sophisticated and bureaucratic, but this ride is different. It's a very personal, collective grass-roots event."
Rasmussen said he started training in November and so far training entails riding 40 to 150 miles a week, no alcohol and healthy eating. He said he also swims or runs daily.
"I rode 60 miles on Sunday; it took four hours and was very painful," Rasmussen said. "It's also hard to find the time to train, but I don't consider pedaling 525 miles a sacrifice. I can't stand around and watch people my age die; AIDS is the number one killer of people between the ages of 18 and 40."
On the ride, the bikers are followed by volunteer crew members in trucks who set up the camp site at the end of the day with tents, showers, food and a massage therapist, Rasmussen said.
The UCLA AIDS Institute will provide medical assistance crews who will follow up the last riders in the supply trucks and will carry two-way radios and cellular phones in case of an emergency.
Rasmussen said those who can't finish the miles for that day or become injured will get a ride to the end destination for that day. Rasmussen said California Aids Ride 2 still needs volunteers for the set-up crews, and he added that anyone interested in riding is more than welcome to jump in.
"Anyone can do this ride," Rasmussen said. "The thought that keeps going through my mind as I am riding up a big hill on my 60th mile is something Winston Churchill said: 'Never give up!' And I never will give up. I will keep doing this ride until the day a cure is found."
Anyone interested in volunteering, riding or sponsoring a rider can call California AIDS Ride 2 at 415-252-RIDE.