The 2010 LiveStrong Challenge fund-raising campaign is returning to Seattle, San Jose, Philadelphia and Austin — the same cities that hosted the events in 2009.
Because the current dire economic conditions that exist now may extend into next year, LiveStrong opted to put all expansion plans — which may include charity bike rides outside the US — on hold until 2011.
And no, don't expect to see Lance Armstrong at these events in 2010, organizers say. He'll be too busy training for the pro cycling season as he attempts an eighth career Tour de France win as the helm of his newly formed Team RadioShack.
Dates for the upcoming LiveStrong Challenges are:
Seattle — June 20, 2010
San Jose — July 11, 2010
Philadelphia — August 22, 2010
Austin — October 23 and 24, 2010
Registration opens Dec. 1, 2009.
Changes
While the host cities will remain the same in 2010, the events will vary city-by-city based on participant feedback and internal analysis in the past year.
For instance, Seattle will host a multi-distance bike ride and a run, while San Jose will only offer a bike ride. In order to handle more participants in Philadelphia, the run will be Saturday and the bike ride on Sunday. Austin also will offer the run on Saturday and the LiveStrong bike ride on Sunday.
Apparently there was some comment about the LiveStrong Challenge bike-ride date in mid-June. The inaugural ride saw plenty of precipitation, especially along the second half of the 100-mile course, as well as calendar conflicts with other popular area bike rides. Organizers considered changing that date, but were unable to find a spot on the calendar that the Seattle Center venue was available and did not conflict with other Seattle events or LiveStrong activities in other cities.
No Portland
Although the fund-raising bike ride for cancer opened its first four years in Portland, its move to Seattle seems permanent. According to an explanation at the LiveStrong website:
“The decision to move to Seattle was made after careful consideration and evaluation of our years of experience in the Portland area, participant survey data about our 2009 plans as well as discussions internally and externally with all of our partners in Portland, including Nike.
“In order to grow the LiveStrong brand and make our event as successful as possible, Seattle was chosen for its significant population matching our event demographics, as well as the abundance of potential corporate sponsors and our programmatic activities in the region.”
If you can't attend one of the bike rides chosen for LiveStrong Challenge in 2010, there are other options.
Team LiveStrong events are held around the US throughout the year; and grassroots fund-raising events for the Lance Armstrong Foundation are also available.
Other charity bike rides
If you're interested in riding your bicycle in support of other causes, you can check my list of Charity Bike Rides 2010.
You can gain access to 100s of bike rides scheduled in the coming year for such nonprofits as Multiple Sclerosis Society, American Lung Association, Habitat for Humanity and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, as well as individual bike rides that raise funds for AIDS awareness, cancer treatment, and more.
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