Seventeen Hundred Miles and a Very Personal Challenge

Turning the Big 5-0 can make some folks think about slowing down but when five decades caught up with Bill DaGiau, the thought of slowing down never crossed his mind!

Just after sunrise on Tuesday May 22^nd , Bill, the owner of Valerio’s Kitchen in Stratham and co-founder of Annie’s Angels, hopped into a van loaded with food, beverages, his great friends Chris Beliveau and Frank Travis, his son Billy, and the most important passenger – his bicycle, and headed off to Daytona Beach, Florida to begin his Annie’s Angels Big East Coast Adventure.

Sounds like a mid-life crisis, doesn’t it? Not even close!

Having done charitable bike rides for years, Bill is no stranger to the open road but the BECA is his most ambitious quest yet – a 22-day (May 26 to June 16) solo bike ride with the goal of raising $100,000.00 for the charity closest to his heart – Annie’s Angels.

After losing both of his parents within three months of each other to cancer, Bill wanted to honor Val and Annie and to keep their memory alive by helping people - the same way his beloved parents always did. Founded in 2007, Annie’s Angels, a non-profit organization, helps families dealing with the challenges of cancer, AIDS and other life-threatening diseases and disabilities. When asked how it all works, Bill replied, "Simple. We start a fund in your name, you send us a list of bills, and we send the money directly to the hospital or wherever it may be. When people are sick they need to focus their energy on feeling better. Bills can get in the way of that." But the money to do that doesn’t grow on angel wings so the DaGiaus have always had to be go-big-or-go-home fundraisers and that’s how the idea for the BECA was launched.

According to Bill, Phase One, the twenty-four hour drive TO Florida was a piece of cake. After a brief memory-food stop for Rippers at Rutts Hutt in his old stomping grounds Clifton, New Jersey, he put the rest of the 1700 miles in his rear view mirror.

Now, after arriving at Daytona Beach on Wednesday, Bill is spending some time soaking up the sun and, no doubt, loading up on carbs – pasta is in his DNA after all – in preparation for the first leg of his bike journey north to Jacksonville, on Saturday. According to GoogleAuto, if you drive the ninety-plus miles, it will take 1 hour and 38 minutes. According to GoogleBike, traveling on only two wheels will take 8 hours and 43 minutes – that’s a 7 hour and 5 minute difference!

When asked how he psyches himself up for doing this not only once but 17 more times over the next 22 days, his espresso-brown eyes twinkle as a charming, little-boy smile lights up his face, “I may be just ok at the business end of this charity thing but one thing I can do very well is ride a bicycle. I don't ride fast but I can ride far...VERY FAR! And so I’m going to put my butt on the line to raise $100,000.00 for Annie's Angels families the best way I know how.”

To get physically ready for this challenge, Bill spent the last 6 months with personal trainer Beth Parmenter at Synergy. “Let’s just call it Heavenly torture! But seriously, Beth is great! I’m in pretty much the best shape of my life and definitely ready for this!”

When asked what he’s thinking right now, two days before this momentous journey’s beginning, he laughs and says “I’m thinking, "What did I get into?" "This is great!" "This will be great!" I'm hungry!" "Can I have a beer?" "I hope we raise enough money for our families!" "I can't wait to get started!"

Bill will take a total of four days off along the way for R and R. When the course gets difficult, he has a great plan to keep motivated. "I know every family that we help by name and by face, up close and personal. I will be thinking of all of them, through every mile. I will think about what they're going through and where my life is and that perspective will keep me pedaling! Always!”

Check back for a Progress Report and some “Bill DaGiau Humor from the Road.”

By this time next week, Bill will have ridden through towns and on roads called Holly Hill, Bulow-Tulow, Pumpkin Hill, Black Hammock, Jekyll Island, Broken Pottery Drive, and PGA Tour Boulevard. His odometer will read over 475 miles; his bike seat will be about 40 hours older; and he will have 1225 more miles to pedal.

To learn more about Annie's Angels, or to sponsor Bill DaGiau's Big East Coast Adventure or a specific family, visit www.AnniesAngels.net