Sunday February 12, 2012 – 9:00 am
Mercado San Agustin (100 South Avenida del Convento, Tucson, AZ 85754) The rides start & finish there.

From website: www.tourdecookie.com. It’s in the 4th year, so I must have missed the other three. Register online now for either 13 or 30 mile rides.

Welcome to the 4th Annual Tour de Cookie! Participants will race/ride between 10 cookie-stands (hosted by local clubs and organizations) and purchase/eat as many pastries as possible. Part of the proceeds will benefit the Wheelchair Athletes Worldwide and pay for the Tucson Kids’ Try-athlon, a free triathlon designed for children with special needs and/or disabilities.

Participants will receive a collectible long sleeve t-shirt and a custom medal. Awards to the top 3 finishers (male and female), best cookie-stand and most money-raiser. You’ll have to visit every cookie-stand to be eligible for awards.

Congratulations to all cyclists and the dozens of cookie stand volunteers! The 2011 Tour de Cookie was a huge success and we really appreciate your help and support.

2011 Winners: 1st Place: Betsy Woodhouse and Phil Roper (also winner of the 2010 ride); 2nd Place: Dori Fisher and John Peterson; 3rd Place: Kim Sooter and Howard Grahn; Last Bite Award: John Henneberger Jr; Best Cookie Stand: Tucson Roller Derby (winner of the 2010 ride).

Sounds like great exercise and I hope those are healthy cookies at the 10 stands.

Go to Perimeter Bicycling Association of America for the latest unofficial ride results: www.pbaa.com. Thousands registered to ride the 111, 85, 60, 42 mile rides, plus the Indoor El Tour. All you have to do is click on the individual rides you are interested in to see the long list of names and home towns, as well as finishing times.

New this 29th year – disposable timer chips, unlike the previous years when there were $50 to $85 deposits/charges if you failed to return the chip band.

I volunteered off & on for 3 days at the El Tour Bike, Fitness & Health expo (click here) at the Tucson Convention Center.

Perimeter Bicycling Association of America is located at 2609 E Broadway, Tucson, Arizona 85716,(520)745-2033, email:info@perimeterbicycling.com.

Congratulations to all the participants & winners!

Wright Flight, Inc. is a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation which was founded in 1986 in Tucson, Arizona by Robin Stoddard.

Robin, an Air Force Reserve fighter pilot, noted the profound effect that airplanes have on youngsters. He decided to use that interest to motivate kids to do better in school. Working almost single-handedly at first, he developed the program materials and organized a group of volunteers and pilots to teach the program and ultimately to fly the graduating students.

Since its humble beginnings, the program has grown significantly in both scope and size, with over 750 successful students graduating in the Tucson area during this school year and approximately 10,500 since its inception. New chapters are springing up across the country in addition to the Tucson headquarters and the Phoenix branch. North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Vermont, Kansas, Missouri, Massachusetts and Florida have proven successful with their chapters.

One of Wright Flight’s more famous graduates is Jessica Cox, an amazing Tucsonan born without arms, whom I wrote about previously (click here). Jessica was approached by Robin Stoddard to learn how to fly, and she accomplished it, as she does many other feats.

And Robin has been nominated for Goodman’s “Eye for the Good Guy” award (among 10 other finalists), so vote for him by July 15 by clicking here. Congratulations Robin for being one of the finalists – quite an honor! Robin was a top fighter pilot in the United States Air Force, also served three combat tours in Iraq and two tours in Afghanistan, and was the recipient of the Bronze Star and Air Medal in Afghanistan.

For more information about Wright Flight, www.wrightflight.org.

Wright Flight, Inc. is located at:
7075 S. Plumer Ave., #14
Tucson, AZ 85756-6926

Phone: (520) 294-0404
Fax: (520) 294-9011

Executive Director Robin Stoddard:
exec@wrightflight.org

It’s programs like these that make our country one of the best.

So if you have a youngster who wants to learn to soar, contact Wright Flight right away!