Riding Fixed Gear Bikes from San Francisco to LA to Fight AIDS: Team ONE

Team One:

Riding to Get Closer to a World without AIDS/HIV

One week from San Francisco to Los Angeles.

One gear to push.

One end to strive for.

From June 3-9, 2007, Team One was part of a 2,800-participant event called AIDS/LifeCycle, successfully completeing a 7-day, 560-mile bike journey from San Francisco to Los Angeles to make a world of difference in the lives of people living with HIV and AIDS.

With your help, we successfully raised a total of $6,984.00 to fund vital HIV/AIDS services provided by the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. In total, the event raised record amounts -- over $11 Million -- for the Foundation and the LAGLBT Center.

CLICK HERE TO READ OUR REPORT OF THE MAGNIFICENT WEEK WE EXPERIENCED

Team One: Background

We, Alfonso Estrada and Lisa Lestishock, started Team One with the idea of participating in this event in a slightly different, more pronounced way. For starters, we aimed to complete (and did!) this long journey on fixed gear bicycles. These bikes are set up with only one gear and don't allow you to freewheel or coast... at all. This means no shifting regardless of the terrain, and constant pedaling beginning to end.

It challenged us to new lengths, reminded us of our fragility, and in the end rewarded us with a new personal landmark in our fitness. More significantly, it reminded us that, no matter how arduous, how painful, or how exhausting our pursuit ever was, our ordeal still never compared to the pain suffered by our brothers and sisters with HIV and AIDS. We drew inspiration from their courage to finish what we started, and we were fueled by the support of our sponsors, friends, and every bit of encouragement and admiration we got on the road.

Our participation in AIDS/Lifecycle meant a dedicated effort to supporting domestic services related to prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS populations, but we care deeply about the international AIDS crisis -- especially in the poorest nations -- and hoped to build awareness of a campaign that could be a big part of the solution.

In a more grounded sense, with each year that passes that I (Alfie) have been a part of this, I've met more and more people who have been profoundly affected by life with HIV and AIDS. I've know people who have succumbed to AIDS. People who have suffered the loss of their father, mother, sibling, life partner, friend... child. It's utterly heartbreaking. And it's why we think it's so important that we support organizations that lead the way in making life for those infected with HIV/AIDS even possible, and who are infinitely committed to fighting what seems too many times an impossible battle to end AIDS.

We hope to continually inspire you and everybody we meet during our travels to believe that what we do is a big deal. Please tell us it is.

Team One's Mission: Two-Fold

1. Raise money for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, a model organization leading the fight from many angles to end AIDS, while providing life-essential services to a still-growing population of HIV+ individuals. We’re committed to raising $7,000. Please help us meet this goal by making a contribution (click here to make your pledge online, or buy a Team One cycling jersey).

2. Raise awareness and promote interest in the One Campaign, a nationwide rally to end the global AIDS pandemic as part of a movement to eradicate global poverty that fuels the continued rapidfire spread of the disease.

Special Note: Lisa and Alfie have self-pledged an amount equivalent to more than the estimated cost of supporting themselves on this week-long journey, so that every other penny raised by Team One through pledges to AIDS/Lifecycle will be put to use entirely for the services of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. None of these funds will be used for our personal and travel expenses.

Our Beneficiaries

THE SAN FRANCISCO AIDS FOUNDATION
(www.sfaf.org)

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.

THE ONE CAMPAIGN
(www.one.org)

The namesake of our team endeavor, the ONE Campaign is an effort by Americans to rally Americans -- one by one -- to fight the emergency of global AIDS and extreme poverty. ONE derives its name from the belief that allocating an additional one percent of the U.S. budget toward providing basic needs like health, education, clean water and food would transform the futures and hopes of an entire generation in the world's poorest countries. The campaign also calls for debt cancellation, trade reform and anti--corruption measures in a comprehensive package to help Africa and the poorest nations beat AIDS and extreme poverty.

The ONE Campaign is not asking for your money, they're asking for your voice.

Sincere thanks to our sponsors: