This post is (mostly) non-political. I must admit I’ve been waiting for the news to slow down so it doesn’t disappear in the crush but...who am I kidding? That ain’t gonna happen this year so I may as well hit “publish” and hope for the best.
As I’ve done for seventeen of the past eighteen years I’m participating in AIDS/LifeCycle, riding a bike from San Francisco to LA, raising money (yup, this is a request for donations and I’ve put a link way up here at the top in case you don’t want to keep on reading to the end where there is another link) to support the work of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation.
The ride raises money for two organizations: The San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles LGBT Center. Who one raises money for depends upon where one lives; it’s determined by zip code. If you live in Northern California the money you raise goes to the Foundation; if you live in Southern California the money you raise goes to the Center. The money raised by folks living outside of California is divided 50/50 between the two.
I began riding in 1999 when the event was called the California AIDS Ride. I rode in 2000 and 2001 and then, after taking a year off, resumed when the ride changed its name to AIDS/LifeCycle. So this will be my fifteenth year of riding without a break. Why am I so obsessive about it?
I’m a veteran, an old timer. I tested positive for HIV in 1985, later found out that I’d been infected well before that and eventually pinpointed the date of my infection to December of 1980. I wrote a story about that whole process back in 2010.
Like I said I’ve been doing this for a long time. Last year in fact I was the subject of a YouTube video…
Over the years thanks to participating in the ride I’ve learned a great deal about safety and the law (as they pertain to cycling), I’ve learned how to speak in front of a group and in front of a camera without fainting, and I’ve learned to speak openly and without shame about living with HIV. Seventeen years ago I found myself facing a camera, discussing my status with a reporter from a Los Angeles television station. The world didn’t end, nobody I knew rejected me (I had work colleagues in LA who might have seen me, since my interview actually did make the news) and I suddenly felt somehow empowered. I’ve also and quite by accident learned how to be a better photographer than I’d been when I started.
I’ve completed all of my serious training; I’ve got one--perhaps two more short training rides to do; in fact my final training ride will take place on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend because I need to take some time off before the “real” riding begins. Since the beginning of July 2016 I have been on 69 training rides. I’ve spent 200 hours and 40 minutes on my bike, ridden 2,664 miles, gained 131,289 feet of elevation and burned 95,734 calories.
I’m committed to raising $7,500 by June 2nd. So far I’ve raised $6,898.44 and I’d like to make it at least to $7,000 by then. I’ve sent I don’t know how many emails and posted multiple times on Facebook. I have people who support me every year (my mom and a handful of others have donated to me every year since I began) and others who donate once or twice. I get donations from people I’ve never asked and get ignored by people I think are going to be generous to me.
There are so many reasons for me to ride (and for people to donate):
1. It’s just a good cause.
2. The money raised is desperately needed, especially given the priorities of the current administration.
3. Even though raising the money is the most important thing, the ride itself provides visibility and raises awareness.
4. I’m HIV-positive and have been for over 36 years. I’ve also lost two partners and countless friends over the years. This is my way of honoring their memory and of healing the pain of those losses.
5. In the absence of an effective vaccine or a cure there are three strategies for controlling HIV. These are PEP (Post-Exposure Prophylaxis), PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis) and TAP (Treatment as Prevention). All three of these require access to medications.
6. New this year: Trump and his buddies want to shred ACA, Medicaid, Medicare and funding for basic research. If they’re even remotely successful they will make life much more difficult for people who live with HIV. I’m retired from the federal government, am on Medicare and have legacy health insurance as a federal retiree. Those changes will affect me; imagine what they will do to someone with HIV who is insured only through the Affordable Care Act and gets their medication only thanks to ADAP. Then too, this administration is clearly no friend to the LGBT community. Although HIV is of course not a gay disease, because of the lies and stigma that surround it here in the US, homophobia is one of the leading causes of HIV infection and one of the leading causes of people avoiding getting tested for HIV. Being open about being a gay man who lives with HIV is part and parcel of my own personal prevention strategy. Basically everything I do on AIDS/LifeCycle flies in the face of the sort of America Trump, Pence and the rest of them are hoping to create. For me that’s reason enough for me to ride and for you (hopefully) to donate.
The ride raised over $16 million the past two years and hopefully will raise more this year. Even that won’t make up for all the damage the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress plan to inflict. But at least it will help some people, do some good and mitigate a small portion of the damage.
Those who donate give money, those who ride their bikes give their time and their sweat. There are some ways of quantifying the value of donations. For example, $25 can help a Financial Benefits counselor to assist one person in navigating the private and public benefits systems, including Medi-Cal, Medicare, CARE/HIPP, short-term disability, and Social Security. In dollars raised I’ve covered benefits counselor sessions for 247 people. $10 will pay for 143 condoms to be distributed, free of charge at various places in San Francisco. In terms of miles ridden I’ve facilitated the purchase of 37,022 condoms. $100 can help provide the travel cost for a Treatment Advocacy Coordinator to attend the medical appointments of 25 clients, providing moral support and to help clients advocate for themselves. In terms of dollars raised that’s 61.94 sessions or 1,548 clients assisted. Those dollars do make a difference.
I’m hoping all of this will get some of you, my fellow Kossacks, to make a donation by following this link: sfbob's AIDS/LifeCycle page.
Thanks for reading.
Before we go, some music. A number of years ago when the song was popular this one was used during the opening and closing ceremonies of the ride.