Atlanta's Philip Batchelor bikes from San Francisco to Los Angeles in support of HIV/AIDS awareness

Caption: Philip Batchelor celebrates at the midway point of the AIDS/LiveCycle event in June.

Philip Batchelor flew cross-country to San Francisco so he could bike 545 miles in a week. That's a long way to travel -- on both legs of the trip. But the cause is well worth it for Batchelor.

He participated in AIDS/LifeCycle, a weeklong biking event in California to raise money and awareness in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Over the course of a week, thousands of participants and volunteers made the ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles, biking anywhere between 42 and 108 miles per day.

Batchelor, who works for Bank of America in Atlanta, likes a challenge and said he wanted an opportunity to "motivate myself." Since last fall he's been riding 100 miles a week, except during the winter, to prepare for AIDS/LifeCycle.

He joined Bank of America colleagues from across the U.S. to participate in the event as a team of 50 members -- the largest corporate team in the ride.

“I wanted to help carry the message of the AIDS/LifeCycle organization through my friends, family and within our company,” Batchelor said. “I also hope that my participation in this event inspires others to get involved and raise more funds in years to come.”

Money raised in the event will supply 8,581 HIV tests or HIV prevention counseling for 23,812 teenagers.

Joining as a "roadie" volunteer was Matt Keith, another Atlanta Bank of America employee

Batchelor has been with Bank of America for 12 years and is a communication project manager. Keith has worked at Bank of America for more than 22 years and currently is a Consumer Banking, operations market manager.

Both are active in the bank's LGBT employee network.