June 14/06 1:01 am - Italian Festival Grand Prix Criterium Info, Trans-Canada Bike Rider Raises Money

Posted by Editoress on 06/14/06
 

BikeRace Ottawa presents: 34th Italian Festival Grand Prix Criterium
Courtesy BikeRace Ottawa

Ottawa, June 18th

100 km- 60 laps

We are bringing back the weigh scale and the winner will receive his weight in beer. If Darko Ficko wins again, you can count on other riders hanging around because last year he gave it all away. Cash and prime prizes available.

Open Event For Senior 1,2,3 Men, Vet A,B, Senior 1,2 Women

$2500 cash prizes (15 places) + $1500 in Primes

1st Prize $450 + + + special bonus

Location: Preston/Gladstone/Rochester/Adeline
1.65 km downtown circuit, 4 corners with one big ring climb per lap

Registration opens at 12:00 noon (Preston/George St.)
Entry Fee: $35 , pre-entry not required
Roads close at 12:30pm
Race Starts at 2:00 pm
Note: No One-Day Licences

For directions to Start/Finish , use mapping co-ordinates: 330 Preston, Ottawa, K1S 4M6 (Mapquest, 411.ca)


Young Trans-Canada Bike Rider Raises Money For Mikey Network Defibrillators
Courtesy Julie Giles

Mark Longo, a university architecture student, is partway through a trans-Canada solo bike trip that will see him arrive in the Greater Toronto Area on Sunday, June 18. We're looking for cyclists who may want to join Mark for his final sprint into the downtown core. E-mail jgiles@tcgpr.com for more details.

See bike trip progress on www.transcanada06.mlongo.com.

Mark is riding to raise money for The Mikey Network, a charity that places Public Access Defibrillators (PADs) in public high-risk areas across the Greater Toronto Area with the hope of providing cardiac arrest victims a second chance at life.

Starting in Victoria, B.C. on May 1, Mark has been battling high winds and less than ideal weather since he crossed the Rockies on May 13th. It will take him approximately eight weeks to complete the journey, which is expected to end July 9 in St. John's, Newfoundland & Labrador.

Through his efforts, Mark expects to raise $175,000 - enough to buy 50 defibrillators for The Mikey Network. The charity is named after Michael Hart Salem, a former executive with Heathwood Homes and the former business partner of Mark's father Silvio Longo.

Mark is currently a fourth year student at the University of Waterloo, in Waterloo, Ontario.

Individual donations to help support Mark's TransCanada ride and The Mikey Network can be made at www.mikeynetwork.com.