Ride Studio Cafe Kickoff Party

On Thursday March 3rd from 6:30-9:30 pm at the Ride Studio Cafe in Lexington the raffle to end all raffles will be held to raise money for Tim Johnson's Ride On Washington to support Bikes Belong! When I say its the raffle to end all raffles I am really not exaggerating.

I have done a few raffles in my time. Frankly I am beginning to think the real reason people are so nice to me is that I somehow have an ability to create a prize list filled with serious swag. And not one XL t-shirt from the early '90s but a prize list worth winning. Wiis, Ipods, etc. But I digress. This raffle blows them all out of the water. And I have personally been blown away by how everyone I have talked to has been so enthusiastic and supportive of Bikes Belong and this event. It really has resonated. And for this I tip my hat to Tim Johnson, Richard Fries and Bikes Belong. I hope the Ride On Washington gets the attention outside of our circle of friends and cyclists it deserves. The fact that Tim and Richard and an ever growing list of supporters are riding their bikes for 5-days to the National Bike Summit speaks volumes. I got caught up in this same wave of enthusiasm about it and I know lots of other people have as well.

But on to the night at the Ride Studio Cafe! This Thursday drop everything and come to the Studio! The kick off party will be so much fun. Tim Johnson and Richard Fries will be our celebrity quests for the evening! Harpoon has donated the beer for the party and the Ride Studio Cafe has provided the space, the food and coffee. Raffle tickets will be $10 and all proceeds will go to Tim Johnson's Ride On Washington and Bikes Belong. Our goal for this 5-day advocacy mission was $100,000. The pledge funds that each rider who has committed to the ride has raised over $10,000 to date. The other pieces of the fundraising puzzle will be these fundraising evenings we will be doing in each of the 5 stops along the way.

Ok so what does your $10 raffle ticket get you a chance to win? For starters and I honestly can't even believe Tim agreed to this is a piece of 'cross history. The biggest news is that TJ is donating one of his Cyclo-cross National Championships skinsuits to the raffle! I may have to buy every ticket we have to ensure I have that for my cross shrine! I know I am a bit of a crossfan superfreak but that is a huge part of American cross history right there!

Also being raffled off that evening:

Cannondale donated an autographed Nibali jersey

Pedro's donated an MTK Tool Kit

Rapha is donating some pieces of their always stylish clothing

Mad Alchemy is donating some Tim Johnson's signature blend embrocation and their new hot of the presses Start Oil

CXmagazine is donating subs to their fine magazine

Embrocation Journal is in the mix

Light & Motion is donating 3 light products

and we also have a Wii, an Ipod, and a garmin (non cycle computer style)

Dave Chiu is donating one of his framed pictures

Harpoon has added some swag as well as their great beer

The list keeps growing daily.

On Friday, March 4th at 8 am Dave Chiu and I will roll out from City Hall with Tim Johnson and a small peloton of riders heading towards Washington DC for the National Bike Summit. Dave and I are planning on riding two days. 100 miles each day. Thank you so much to everyone who has stepped up and supported all the riders efforts and Bikes Belong's mission! Dave and I will be flying the brand new double secret Ride Studio Cafe's race team kit made by Rapha. I am so honored to be such a small part of this ride and to be able to ride with Dave and represent the Ride Studio Cafe.
I had to post up some spy shots of Dave's customized Cervelo R3 Ride Studio Cafe team bike. The attention to detail and the sense of design of everything that comes out of the Studio is amazing. The R3 is a sexy bike on its own but with the RSC's design treatment it is just stunning. But its not all about good looks. It is going to be a great machine for the ride. Granted it does remind me of the original Hup Noir so I am biased.
If this is how nice the bikes look I cannot even wait to see how stylish the Rapha Ride Studio Cafe team kit is going to be. If you have never been to an event at the Studio you will be in for a big treat. The Studio is all about Coffee, Bikes and community and these events are a big piece of that. Again a huge Hup Hug to everyone who helped with the fundraising, who donated to the raffle, who agreed to help with the ride and for everyone who makes this cycling community so amazing!
And a special thank you to all our sponsors and supporters including: Bikes Belong, Pedro's USA, The Ride Studio Cafe, Firefly Bicycles, Red Bull, Bikereg.com, Strava.com, Rapha, The Marriott Corporation, SRAM, Cannondale, Light & Motion, Harpoon and Mad Alchemy