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Lyme Booth at SSWC 2008 |
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Written by Vikki Logrbrinck
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Thursday, 11 September 2008 |
Single Speed World Championships
Napa, CA
August 28, 2008
 If you have read the race report on SSWC08, you know that my husband, Mark Logrbrinck, raced in the Single Speed World Championship 08 for Team Bikeman, held in Napa, CA. Before the race, he had been trying to get a park to allow us to have a Lyme Ryde, sponsored in part by Bikeman.com and California Lyme Disease Association (CALDA). He kept hitting brick walls. For the heck of it, he asked the coordinators of SSWC if they would consider letting us set up a booth about Lyme Disease at their race. Without hesitation, they said yes, as they are very aware of the tick problem not only in Napa, but in the entire state, and country. We were extremely fortunate not only to get volunteers to help man the booth, but for Davis to graciously donate a Carver 96er frame from Bikeman.com, color and size to be chosen by the winner, for a raffle to raise money at the booth for CALDA.
 This was a last minute booth coordination which lifted our spirits when so many reached out to help. Finally we could try to help those who are so often on the trails where the ticks like to hang out. Marisa Battilana, one of the directors of CALDA came both days, educating many riders and spectators. Lupe Herrera and Thora Graves who both have Lyme Disease volunteered their time at the booth and donated needed supplies. Also, my cousin’s daughter, Amelie, a senior in high school in Los Altos, CA, came with her entire family to support and work at the booth, as part of her community service work for her school. This was a perfect opportunity for her to start her marketing skills with promoting the raffle.
 I printed a poster of Bikeman, and we had many stickers for Bikeman.com at the booth, along with many “lime” items. With so many racers drinking beer, and wine (it is Napa), it was hard to bring attention to the raffle, despite our bright lime appearance. So Amelie went into the crowd, tickets and Bikeman stickers in hand, promoting Bikeman.com and the raffle. There was much interest in ticks, from people all over the world. Everyone who came to the booth was asked if they heard of Bikeman.com, and what a wonderful company they are to contact when they need anything bike related. All were told of their humanitarian effort in donating the bike frame. The stickers went fast, because lets face it, these wild riders love crazy looking stickers. Many had heard of Bikeman.com. Those that did not, now know.
The event helped us raise over $500. All money is going directly to research, by my request. Big cheers go to Big Al for his huge effort in helping us start to get people more aware of the Lyme problem and what to do if bit. We met racers there that had been bit, had the symptoms, and didn’t know what to do. Knowing we helped them was the rewarding part of the race. Despite the wild appearance of the riders, people took us seriously. One man came up to our booth, who was from Pennsylvania. He was a vet and was quite educated in Lyme, and knew just how common it is both in humans and dogs. I tried very hard to have a serious conversation with him, despite the fact he was one of the racers wearing only a tighty whitey. Hey, my racing age is 50, but I’m still a woman!
Thank you again Davis, Al, and Bikeman.com
Vikki
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