AEGiS-BAYW: Harbor to the Bay nets record funds

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2006. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Harbor to the Bay nets record funds

Bay Windows - September 21, 2006
Ethan Jacobs, ejacobs@baywindows.com

The fourth annual Harbor to the Bay HIV/AIDS charity bike ride, held Sept. 16, broke all previous fundraising records for the ride, with current totals at more than $200,000 raised from the ride. In previous years the ride, which runs from Boston to Provincetown, has pulled in between $130,000 and $100,000, but Frank Ribaudo, one of the directors of the ride and a co-owner of Boston's Club Cafe said when all the funds are collected and tallied this ride's total could be as high as $225,000 and $250,000.

"This was the banner year. This was the year that really put this event on the map," said Ribaudo.

He credited the success to a few different factors, the major one being the ride's new website at www.harbortothebay.org, which was designed free of charge by supporters Bob Walker and Henry Langlais, who own the web design company Computer Simple, Inc. Ribaudo explained that the site gave each rider their own page to keep charge of their pledges, allowed riders to send out notices to friends and loved ones asking for donations, and allowed visitors to donate directly to riders from the site.

"Ninety percent of our money actually came in online, and we were able to keep in touch with people without spending a lot of money on advertising and mailing and printing," said Ribaudo.

He said another reason for the ride's success this year is the organizers' efforts to publicize that all funds raised by the riders for the event go directly to the three benefiting organizations, Fenway Community Health, Community Research Initiatives, and AIDS Support Group of Cape Cod. Ribaudo said all of the costs of putting on the ride, from the publicity to the food and beverages given to riders at each pit stop along the 128-mile route, were all donated by the ride sponsors. The ride was formed as a replacement for the now-defunct Pallotta-Teamworks Boston to New York AIDS Ride, which came under fire when it was discovered a large portion of the funds raised went to pay for the high overhead costs.

This year's ride featured 158 riders and 125 crewmembers. At the finish in Provincetown all the riders rode along Commercial Street, to cheers from onlookers, and ended at the Crown and Anchor, which hosted the closing ceremonies.

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