5th Annual Velo4Yellow
In July Gyros Cycling Club hosted their 5th annual Velo4Yellow ride benefiting LIVESTRONG. This year’s charity ride had 415 riders and raised $10,000 to support LIVESTRONG cancer programs – bringing Velo4Yellow’s 5 year total to $30,000! Amazing. We caught up with Dave Brown from Velo4Yellow to hear more about this impactful community fundraising event.
LS: How have you been affected by cancer?
Dave: My father lost his battle with multiple myeloma in 2007. I was very young when my maternal grandmother died from lung cancer
LS: What made this 5th year at Velo4Yellow special? What moment stands out to you the most?
Dave: I think the round of applause and cheers from the riders, at the start of each distance, when I thanked the riders for joining our 5th anniversary struck me. It seemed like an acknowledgement from the participants that we’ve done something worthwhile, and it is appreciated.
LS: Why did you start Velo4Yellow five years ago?
Dave: We wanted to give something back to the community. Several members of our cycling club, Raleigh Gyros, have been personally impacted by cancer. As a cycling group, we also wanted to give something back specifically for the local cycling community, and LIVESTRONG matched our interests from a cancer and cycling perspective.
LS: What does LIVESTRONG mean to you?
Dave: It means not giving up, keeping the faith that you can beat tough odds and come out stronger on the other side!
LS: What is one Fundraising tactic that has been successful to you?
Dave: We don’t require fundraising for V4Y, we use proceeds from registration, along with miscellaneous donations to fund our contribution to LIVESTRONG. We really strive to make the ride more of an event, not just a charity bike ride. It’s a full day event and we work to make not only the ride fantastic, but the post ride too! That makes people want to come back, and also spread the word to help build the event, and more registrations means a larger contribution to LIVESTRONG.
Our sincere thanks to Dave and all of those who make Velo4Yellow such a special event each year. If you are inspired by this community fundraising event and want to start your own, get started here!
