Press Room

Why I Participate: Southern California

Scott Campbell (West Hollywood, CA)

Fifth-time AIDS/LifeCycle rider (and one-time volunteer roadie) Scott Campbell, 39, is a survivor of two often-linked health problems both epidemic among gay men: HIV infection and crystal meth addiction. 

Less than a week after he learned he was HIV-positive, in 1994, Scott contracted meningitis and spent months in the hospital.  He then sought to take an active role in his health and get fit--but body image and self-esteem issues contributed to drug use, which made him "a shell of a person" until he got clean.  

Crediting his struggles with making him a more compassionate person, Scott has vowed he'll ride until there's a cure.  He says he keeps coming back not only to support the cause but also for the "amazing sense of community" ALC riders create.

"Wouldn't it be great if the entire world could act the way we act on the ride?  We're a diverse group working together for a common goal, and we're having fun while doing it, cheering one another on," says Scott, co-captain of Team Funky Monkey.

Visit Scott's AIDS/LifeCycle homepage.

Phillip Gonder (Palm Springs, CA)

AIDS/LifeCycle is an intense physical experience for all participants--but as a survivor of HIV-related heart failure, artery disease and diabetes, Phillip Gonder, 47, faces particular personal challenges.  The ALC veteran, who has a pacemaker, rides with a little blue vial of nitroglycerin pills around his neck and stops to rest when he feels he needs it--sometimes 12 times during a single training ride--and jokes that his pace allows parked cars to pass him.  Nonetheless, as a training ride leader, Phillip heads up rides in the 100-degree Palm Springs heat and logs 150-200 miles a week.  

Phillip describes ALC as a "lovefest" that breaks down barriers--a tight knit community where gender, sexuality and race don't matter.  Each year, he looks forward to reuniting with ALC friends.  

"You're all doing these challenges together, carrying one another up the hills," he says. "You meet these challenges, and it's amazing. None of us are doing it alone, and no one gets left behind.  Everyone benefits."

Visit Philip's AIDS/LifeCycle homepage.

Shirley Jaglowski (Long Beach, CA)

Following her HIV diagnosis in 1998, Shirley Jaglowski, 48, was evicted, and her job was threatened.  She fell into a deep depression.  She kept her HIV status secret for a year and a half until she realized that, in order to be happy, she'd have to be unashamed of who she was--and that HIV was part of that.  She credits coming out about her HIV status and taking a stand with making her a more open, compassionate person.

People don't understand, she says, that fear and ignorance are hurtful--and there's a lot of ignorance surrounding HIV and AIDS.  People pry about how she contracted HIV, often assuming she was once a prostitute or a drug user.  

"The government and the media say the epidemic is over, and I strongly disagree.  People also think it's only a gay disease, and it isn't," Shirley says.   
New to cycling, Shirley just bought her bike--affectionately named "Lola"--after Christmas.  Both Shirley and her husband, Matt, have long wanted to take part in ALC, and Matt is coming along for the ride as a volunteer roadie. 

Visit Shirley's AIDS/LifeCycle homepage.

Joannes Boman (Laguna Niguel, CA)

Joannes likes to do something to mark her "big" birthdays, and her first ALC will be a belated 50th birthday adventure.  It's a significant milestone because she'll ride alongside her son, James, whom she checked into rehab on her birthday in 2005.

When he was struggling with meth, James contracted HIV.  

"He never wanted to be that statistic, and he ended up being that statistic," says Joannes, who at first saw HIV as a death sentence.  Now that she's educated herself, she wants to help others better understand the disease.

"I don't think people know about safe sex," she says.  "James knew, but he was so strung out on crystal meth he didn't care."
James did his first ALC last year, and Joannes was inspired.

"I was just so moved by the spirit and everyone working together toward a common goal," she says.  "I'm looking forward to getting out there and meeting people whose lives are affected by HIV and seeing how they live on.  It's all about living."

Visit Joannes's AIDS/LifeCycle homepage.

Trevor Wooten (Bournemouth, United Kingdom)

While looking at a friend's online profile, Trevor Wooten, 40, followed a link to the AIDS/LifeCycle website. 

"I 'ummed' and 'ahhhed' for a while," he says.  "Could I do it?  After talking to my man, Phil, and a few friends, I signed up and started training.  I'm the fittest I've been in my life; I've stopped drinking and totally changed my way of life. 

"Being gay myself, signing up was just the right choice.  I have friends who are HIV-positive and have had positive friends in the past.  We all know someone with HIV/AIDS, and we all wish there was something we could do--so I'm doing something."  

When people ask why Trevor is coming all the way across "the pond" to do the ride in the United States, he answers, "Does it matter where I go or what I do to help?  I'm helping."

Trevor says he's looking forward to ALC as "the trip of a lifetime." 

Visit Trevor's AIDS/LifeCycle homepage.

Sal Miramontes (Los Angeles, CA)

When Sal Miramontes, 42, was in high school, his father contracted HIV from a blood transfusion.  Sal's mother later contracted the disease as well, and both Sal's parents eventually died from AIDS-related complications.

"It made me open my eyes for other people," Sal says.  "You learn a lot when a loved one has a serious health problem; you don't take them for granted."

HIV and AIDS weren't well-understood when Sal's father was infected in 1984.  Although the immediate family and close family friends knew, Sal's parents were tightlipped about HIV.

Still finding it hard to broach the subject--and intimidated by the idea of raising money--Sal hesitated to sign up for ALC, even though it's a good fit for him as a "pretty hardcore" cyclist. Finally, he says, he gathered the courage to do it this year.

Visit Sal's AIDS/LifeCycle homepage.

Mark Botello, (Los Angeles, CA)

Mark, 47, has been living with HIV for 17 years and is riding in AIDS/LifeCycle to support the organization that has provided so much support to him.  Homeless and without medical insurance, Mark turned to the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center for medical care.

"The medical and counseling services at the Center changed my life," said Mark.  "Just knowing I could go some place where people knew what I was going through, even before I knew, made all the difference.  Before coming to the Center I had a very uncomfortable experience with a doctor--an eye doctor.  After learning I had HIV, she put on gloves and a mask." 

Last year was Mark's first time riding in ALC and he was scared about his ability to complete all 545 miles; he had never participated in any kind of cycling or endurance event like this.  But today, Mark is an ALC training ride leader and a member of Positive Pedalers, a fast-growing group of HIV-positive cyclists.

Visit Mark's AIDS/LifeCycle homepage.

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