- Start Date
- 12AUG2006
- End Date
- 12AUG2006
- Riders
- Casey Hodges
- Total Distance (miles)
- 5 (two laps)
Notes
One day event hosted by Lance Armstrong to promote his charity for the Lance Armstrong Foundation. I was under 18 at the time, so I could not participate in the actual race, but I did get to participate in the lap around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with Lance Armstrong. Hundreds of people participated, so the chances of actually seeing Lance seemed slim. The line started in the parking lot. Once I reached the track, I navigated through the crowd, full sprint, to reach the front. The closer I got, the more dense the riders became. I managed to ride my way to the very front and was two riders away, shoulder to shoulder, from Lance. I stayed quiet, but listened in to Lance as he answered questions from the crowd. One girl asked if he was looking for a girlfriend but he said not for awhile (he had recently broken off his engagement with Sheryl Crow). When we reached the end of the lap (2.5 miles), every rider begged Lance for another lap, which he agreed to.
This was an exciting encounter for me, and I was very surprised by how close I got to Lance. This all occurred well before Lance’s fall from grace years later.