By Neto Baptiste
Cyclists across Antigua and Barbuda are being encouraged to support a fun ride organised by the Antigua and Barbuda Cycling Federation (ABCF), on Sunday, as they seek to raise funds for the ongoing medial care of hospitalised national cyclist, Andre Simon.
President of the federation St Clair Williams said the event will be held in the form of a circuit race at the Pan Am Base with all funds raised going towards Simon’s care.
“It’s a minimum of $20 and if you don’t have the 20, then we will take 10 … as well to contribute towards the expense of Andre Simon’s medical care. What we are going to do is meet up by the Pan Am Base. I am encouraging persons to get there by around 8:30am so that we could do the registration, collect the funds, and then we would just have a few laps around the Pan Am Base. For those who don’t want to go around the 1.4 miles circuit, you can just ride up and down the straight away there. So, we are just hoping that a lot of people can come out and support this venture,” he said.
Williams went on to reveal that the federation will make provision for those who can’t attend to be able to view the event.
“We’ll be streaming the event live on our Facebook page, so for those who can’t get there and for those who are overseas, they can always tune in as they normally do to view the proceedings. We are going to start with a short five-minute ceremony to give some acknowledgement to all those who would have come out and contributed and supported the family of Andre Simon,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dwayne Simon said his brother’s progress has been slow but steady and that family and friends remain optimistic.
“We don’t really see changes happening every day, but over maybe a week you may see improvement in certain areas, so we are happy about that and about keeping him stable and so forth. We’re optimistic, we’re hopeful, and we’re praying that things continue to improve,” he said.
Individuals and groups wishing to register for the event can call 727-7390 for more information. The ride is slated to start at 9am.