Community Corner

'Tour de Cure' to Race through Palo Alto on Sunday

Organizers say a record number of racers are registered for this year's ride, which kicks off at Hewlett Packard in Palo Alto—and it's not too late to sign up and join in on the action.

Watch your step in Palo Alto this Sunday—bicyclists will be taking to the streets by storm as the Silicon Valley Tour de Cure races through town, raising money for the American Diabetes Association.

A record number of riders are signed up to take place in this year’s event, which takes off from Hewlett Packard at 3000 Hanover St. on Sunday morning. The race has four routes to choose from, depending on how far cyclists want to ride. The 120k race kicks off at 6:30 a.m., the 75k at 8:30 a.m., the 50k at 9 a.m. and the 25k at 10 a.m.

Many businesses from Palo Alto and the surrounding areas have been hard at work assembling riding teams and raising money for the cause. Palo Alto-based Hewlett Packard is in sixth place among the corporate teams in this year's event, having raised more than $16,000 as of Thursday afternoon. Team HP is just behind Team Google, in fifth place, which has raised more than $21,000. Team Facebook has raised roughly $6,000. The leader of the pack is Lockheed Martin Corporation of Sunnyvale, which has raised nearly $130,000.

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It’s not too late to join the action, if you’re itching to ride or just want to help out organizers. With more cyclists taking to the streets this year than in years past, organizers say they could use all the help they can get. Registration begins at 5:30 a.m., with the check-in for each race beginning 30 minutes before its start-time.

All routes will be stocked along the way with plenty of rest stops, bicycle experts armed with gear and equipment, and support vehicles. The registration fee each rider pays includes breakfast, lunch, snacks and beverages at each rest stop and access to all support features throughout the race.

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If you want to race, registration on the day of the event is $35, plus a minimum fundraising contribution of $200.

Some of the most popular riders in this Sunday’s event will be the “Red Riders Group,” adorned all in red. These riders are people who live with diabetes and are riding to try to find a cure for the disease they live with.

Even if you don’t want to ride, anyone is welcome to go out and watch the race and cheer the riders on, organizers say.

For more information, visit the event’s website.


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