Man to bike 545 miles for Lifecycle

Laguna Beach resident Mike Sweeney will ride his bike a daunting 545 miles in one week from San Francisco to Los Angeles to raise money for AIDS Services.

The 53-year-old father and retired gym equipment designer is about $500 away from raising the $2,500 he needs to take part in the grueling ride which will start on June 3 and end seven days later.

According to the AIDS Lifecycle website, about 2,500 cyclists will participate from 45 states and 7 countries.

Sweeney said the distance he will ride each day will fluctuate according to terrain but will average out to about 80 miles a day.

The first day’s ride takes the cyclists up a 4,500 foot climb, along the coast. At night, the riders sleep in large tent camps set up by ride organizers.

Sweeney started riding long distances as part of triathlon training three years ago. The longest ride he’s taken part in to date was a 73-mile ride at Camp Pendleton. Sweeney said he expects to be exhausted by the end of the week.

The AIDS Lifecycle, now in its sixth year, aims to raise $9 million with this year’s ride. The money goes to the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center.

Each rider gets a personal homepage on the AIDS Lifecycle website to help raise money, as well as tips to help them gather funds.

With his background in triathlons, Sweeney said his biggest fear has been raising the money rather than the physical feat.

He said his friends, family and business partners have stepped up to help him gather the requisite $2,500 to participate in the race. So far he’s raised $1,975.

“Just about everyone’s contributed that I’ve asked, which is really kind of amazing,” Sweeney said.

Any money Sweeney can’t get donated, he said he will pay himself.

Sweeney said he’s excited to be working to raise AIDS awareness and help victims of the disease.

“I want to help to continue to provide services to them and keep them with a better quality of life,” Sweeney said.

Sweeney said he hopes to help corral the proliferation of the disease with his ride.

“AIDS is still on the rise. It’s not as bad as in Africa, but it’s a problem here,” Sweeney said.

Since 1981, nearly 7,000 AIDS cases have been reported in Orange County. According to the County Health Care Agency, there are about 3,500 people in the county living with AIDS as of December, 2006.

Sweeney won’t be riding alone. His friend, Tracy Stice, who he’s known since high school, will be riding with him. It was Stice who originally brought the idea of the ride to Sweeney.

Sweeney said seeing his old friend, who now lives in Hawaii, will be a treat. He said they were “partners in crime” as kids.

“We used to get into trouble together,” Sweeney said.

Instead of stirring up trouble, the no-longer teen-aged friends will this time ride for a good cause.

To view Sweeney’s AIDS Lifecycle page, visit www.aidslifecycle.org/6229.