Officials with the Cary Medical Center have announced plans for a two-day 140-mile cycling tour event that will benefit “Camp Adventure,” a summer residential camp for children ages 12 –17 with Type 1 diabetes.
Ride Aroostook, which is sponsored in part by FairPoint Communications, will be held July 16 and 17 and will be based at the University of Maine at Presque Isle. Bill Flagg, director of community relations and development at Cary Medical Center said that the event was inspired by similar rides in southern Maine.
“For many years I have heard about the success of bicycle rides like the Trek Across Maine and the Dempsey Challenge,” said Flagg, who is coordinating the fund-raising event. “Last year I volunteered at the Trek and was so impressed I figured why couldn’t we do something like this in Aroostook County?”
Flagg pointed out that Camp Adventure is now attracting children with Type 1 diabetes from all over Maine and even out of state. The camp now has a waiting list and additional funding is needed to expand staff to handle more children. The goal of Ride Aroostook is to raise enough funds to support the expansion of the camp on an ongoing basis.
Ride Aroostook will involve 135 miles of cycling over a two-day period, through some of the most beautiful scenery The County has to offer. Participants will arrive at UMPI on Friday, July 15 and begin the ride the next morning.
The two-day route is configured like a cloverleaf with riders completing the first 35-mile loop by heading north to Caribou along the Aroostook River on Saturday morning and returning to UMPI through the potato farms of central Aroostook.
The afternoon will bring riders toward Easton and into Mars Hill for a view of the wind turbines and then back to UMPI. Day Two will bring riders into the Amish Country in Fort Fairfield during Potato Blossom Festival Weekend. The final loop of the four-leaf clover ride will bring participants west toward Mapleton for more of the stunning Aroostook River ride.
Flagg said that the event will not only raise money for children with diabetes but will also showcase Aroostook County in summer.
“We all know the impact that snowmobiling has on the economy of the County in winter,but we have a beautiful summer as well and people not familiar with the beauty of this region of Maine are in for a real treat,” said Flagg.
One person assisting with the development of Ride Aroostook is Brent Jepson, of New Sweden, a board member at Cary Medical Center, who has participated in many of the Trek Across Maine and Dempsey Challenge fund raising rides. Jepson said that Aroostook County offers some of the most sceniccycling in Maine on roads with relatively light traffic and sooner or later an event like Ride Aroostook was going to happen.
Jepson also emphasizes that this fund-raising event is not a race but rather a leisurely tour through Aroostook County with fully supported rest stops along each loop and the option to call it a day when arriving back at UMPI after completing the first loop each morning.
“A number of us from the County make the annual trip downstate to do the Trek,” said Jepson, who owns an investment management business in Caribou, “these events really bring people together for a great cause. When Bill approached me about helping to put Ride Aroostook together I was more than happy to help and we now have a very strong committee working on the event.”
The cost of putting on such an event is considerable. Over the past few months Flagg has been seeking sponsorship for the project however raising money in a tough economy was complicated further by the two Biathlon World Cups that were held in the region early in the year. Flagg said that in spite of the challenges the event is now fully sponsored.
“We are so impressed with the support we have received,” said Flagg, who indicated that sponsorships now top $25,000. “I think businesses and individuals are getting caught up in the excitement of a new project that will attract hundreds of people to the County and that this will be an annual event. The volunteers working on our committee and the many generous sponsors have made this event possible and without them it would just be an idea,” he added.
Ride Aroostook got a major break when Fairpoint Communications committed to a major sponsorship. Mike Reed, Maine state president for FairPoint said that the company is very excited about being part of the event.
“We are very impressed with the work that has been done to put this ride together,” said Reed, “we are pleased to have made a major investment in Aroostook County and we value the relationships we have built in the region. We see Ride Aroostook as a great sponsorship opportunity and a great way to support an important cause, helping children with diabetes.”
Organizers of the first annual Ride Aroostook are hoping to draw 300 cyclists in July from throughout Maine, New Brunswick and the Northeast. It is hoped that the event will draw enough to grow that number to 500 in year two and ultimately make Ride Aroostook the most successful fund-raising event ever held in northern Maine.
The Trek Across Maine has come to be known as ‘The Trek.’ Jepson hopes that Ride Aroostook will likewise grow into a high quality and important fundraising event in Aroostook County as “The Ride.” Beyond FairPoint Communications, other major sponsors of the event include Cary Medical Center and the AstraZeneca HealthCare Foundation.
Individuals interested in participating in Ride Aroostook can go to the event Website at ridearoostook.org. Volunteers are needed to support the event and financial sponsorships are still available. For more information contact Flagg at 207-498-1376.
