June 16, 2024 • 15 mins
On this week's program, host Phil Tower speaks with Jon Conkling, Grand Rapids Gran Fondo event director, and Jocelyn Detloff, Major Gifts Director with Mary Free Bed Foundation. West Michigan's signature and largest road cycling event, The Grand Rapids Gran Fondo, presented by Key Bank returns to downtown GR on Saturday, June 22nd. The start and finish of the race begins in downtown Grand Rapids. Jon told us that bike routes will be available for all levels of riders: 80, 40 & 25-mile distances plus a 12-mile family ride. The Grand Rapids Gran Fondo Will be followed by a finish-line festival featuring craft beer, music, and more. This year, The Grand Rapids Gran Fondo has chosen Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital as Fondo’s official charity partner. 100% of the fundraising from the event will support their mission and the work they do right here in West Michigan. The GR Gran Fondo Will also include an appearance from 2024 Celebrity Rider, Tejay van Garderen.Online: Grand Rapids Gran Fondo
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:05):
iHeartMedia West Michigan Weekend, a publicaffairs program. Hi, It's West Michigan
Weekend from iHeartRadio. Welcome in.We're glad you are along. I'm your
host, Phil Tower, and weare with you on all iHeartRadio stations across
West Michigan. Remember we're a podcastas well. After you hear us on
the radio, you can go toWoodradio dot com left hand side of the
(00:25):
page and find this as a podcast. I am in studio to talk about
a major event coming up just thirteendays, the Grand Rapids Grand Fondo presented
by Key Bank in Studio. Wedid this a year ago. It's deja
vu a year later. John Conklingis event director and Jocelyn Detlof You were
(00:47):
not with this last time. Jocelynis major gifts director for Mary freebd Foundation.
John, welcome back to the program. Thank you, And Jocelyn welcome
back to the program. You andI did another show again, which is
also in the podcast section at woodradio dot com. Hi you get did?
Hi? Always good to be back. So this is a very big
(01:08):
event. It's in its second yearof its current iteration. A couple of
years off for COVID. This eventhas has over a ten year history,
John Conkling, and it is justa big cycling event, a great event
for everyone, even if you don'tride, because there's spectators, because it's
(01:30):
kind of cool to come down andwatch a big bike event like this,
right, yeah, absolutely that.What's great about the Grand Fondo is,
outside of being the largest road cyclingevent in the state, it appeals to
all levels of riders. So youcould be out there with your family doing
the twelve mile family ride, allthe way up to being a serious cyclist
doing the eighty miler. So it'sit's got spectating, it's got cycling for
(01:53):
all levels, it's got a greatafter party. There's just something for everybody.
And Grand Fondo, by the way, a and fondo means big ride
in Italian in case you were wondering. You don't have to google that while
you're hearing us on the radio.This is an event, as John said,
with a lot of different ride levels. It also has a wonderful party
(02:16):
afterwards being come on after the bikeride's done, you want to have a
great party, a catered finish linefestival with craft beer, live music and
more. And one of the biggestthings about this that you wanted us to
stress for our listeners is that thisis a major fundraising event this year.
One hundred percent of the fundraising effortssupport the mission and the work done by
(02:38):
the Mary free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital,the official partner of the Grand Rapids Grand
Fondo. So you have a differentcharity each year right the past two years,
Yes, but that's not always beenthe case. We really love working
with Mary free Bed. It's beena great experience this year. We're just
thrilled to be able to raise awarenessfor all of work they're doing here in
(03:00):
West Michigan and hoping that that willcontinue forward. Yeah, it's a great
organization. Jocelyn and I, forfull disclosure for our listening audience, have
known each other a long time andI know a lot of the folks over
at Mary free Bed. They doreally special things and I can say that
from firsthand experience. So Jocelyn asMajor Gifts Director for the Mary free Bed
(03:23):
Foundation, let's talk about the areasthat will be areas of focus for fundraising
that people who register and all theother proceeds from the race supporting the Mary
free Bed Foundation. Yeah, there'sthree areas. The wheelchair Sports program,
(03:43):
recreational therapy and the upcoming Joe andSekia Children's Rehabilitation Hospital. And we even
have some adaptive hand cyclers who willbe participating in the Grand Fondo as well.
The Wheelchair Sports Department is one ofthe largest wheelchair and adeptive sports programs
(04:06):
in the country and we're just sofortunate to have a robust program here in
Grin Rapids. And so far wehave loved working with the Grand found of
organizers. It has been a teameffort on both parts, but just to
recruit writers, but then also it'sbeen fun to see that thermometer increase with
(04:31):
contributions. Yeah, which is alwaysgreat. Puts a smile on your face
and John's face. John, thisis an eventa has roots for every level
of rider. A twenty five mile, a twelve mile family ride, and
then a forty and an eighty mileride an in shape cyclist. Notice I
(04:51):
prefaced my comments with an in shapecyclist. How long does it take to
do forty miles? First average averagefor a road cycling I mean you could
be doing twenty miles an hour easycycling, so it could just take you
a couple hours. We do havea rolling start with this because we want
cyclists to be safe going out ofthe city as they go towards the Lake
(05:13):
shore, depending on which route they'redoing. And then things open up and
you've got bicycle packs and people ridingleisurely. But a couple hours, I
mean, you could do it andget back, you know, even three
four hours, depending on We havegreat rest stops and they're catered, so
people don't just roll through grab water, a gatorader or banana. They're stopping,
they're having a hot breakfast burrito,they're grabbing you know, fruit parfase.
(05:35):
They're really enjoying themselves on this ride. It's not a race. That's
what's great about it. You reallycan take your time, enjoy the moment,
get through the ride, and thenyou have a fully catered after party
as well. And eighty miles itstarts in downtown Grand Rapids. By the
way, the event is on Saturday, June twenty second. I don't know
(05:58):
if I mentioned that. That's aone negative point for me as host of
the radio program. Not mentioning thedate of the are great and fun,
though, Saturday June twenty seconds justthirteen days away. Eighty Miles goes starts
downtown, goes how far it goesout to North Beach Park, basically right
at the lake shore. It goesall the way out there. Riders stop,
get off their bikes again, havesome cater food, get some pictures
(06:20):
at the beach, and then whenthey're ready, they turn around and come
back. So it's that's a longride. That's a long day for a
lot of people. But you'll havepeople doing that in record time. And
to see them come back in theyare screaming through the finish line, those
lead packs. It's really really exciting. Yeah, and it's thirteen days away.
(06:40):
So if someone is hearing us andthey say, yeah, i'd like
to do this, especially an experiencedregular cyclist, they can sign up.
They're still room. Oh yeah,you can sign up right up until the
event date. I mean it's we'llbe taking people right up through that Friday
night beforehand on the twenty first.So yeah, we'll get a lot of
sign ups. People especially like towatch the weather and see how the day
(07:02):
is going to be. So wetend to get sign ups for the shorter
distances because they're a little bit moreaccessible that people aren't training for those for
months, right, But yeah,well, we'll have sign ups right through
the right through the I have friendswho do twenty five mile rides on bikes
all the time. It's it's likeI walked across the street, had a
hot dog, came back. It'slike, no big deal. They do
(07:24):
it all the time. But it'simportant to mention that you can sign up
right before the event on Saturday,the twenty second. I would think John
cyclists probably like moderately cool weather,maybe even cloudy skies so they're not getting
the sun beating down on them.Although if you're doing the eighty mile ride,
you can just hop into Lake Michigan, park your bike up, you
(07:46):
know, on the sidewalk, andthen jump into Lake Michigan come back.
Is there a preferred weather for cyclists? Sunny for sure, you know,
dry weather is ideal. That's wewere blessed with really great weather last year.
It was a little warm in thef doing, but it was just
a wonderful day and we're hoping fora repeat this year for sure. We
are speaking with John Conkling, eventdirector for the gr Grand Fondo. Also,
(08:09):
Joscelyn dett Loof is here, majorgifts director with the Mary free Bed
Foundation. Grand Fondo will be supportingthe Mary free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital as the
official charity partner of the fundle thisyear, and the presenting sponsor is Key
Bank with a downtown Grand rapid startand finish. So if you just want
to I'm just trying to think howwe can get our listeners who say,
(08:33):
well, I want to be thereat the end when everybody comes in.
Do you welcome people in at alldifferent times? John, what would you
say to spectators who want to comedowntown and take this in? Anyone and
everyone is welcome to come down.You don't have to ride, You can
come down and spectate, you canpartake in the finish line festival afterwards.
You can come down and volunteer.Volunteering is a very important piece. This
takes a lot of community support toproperly support the rider, so you can
(08:56):
come down and do that. Butyeah, I would highly recomon anybody come
on down experience it. This isa one of a kind cycling event that
you're not going to find anywhere else, specially not here in West Michigan.
It truly is super special and Iwould think you're going to have some near
pro level writers there you're going tohave a celebrity writer whe He is TJ
(09:18):
Van Gardin, a former American professionalroad racing cyclist, also a two time
top five Tour de Front's finisher that'snothing to shake a stick at and now
retired. Currently as sports director ofUCI World Team EF Education Easy Post.
I don't know what any of thatmeans, but it sounds important, and
(09:39):
I think that would be really kindof expiring, inspiring and exciting to meet
somebody like TJ down there who's reallylived this in a big way, especially
doing the Tour of France. Yeah, he's been at the pinnacle of this
sport. So the fact that he'llbe here riding out there with our riders.
He'll be attending our Friday Fondo fundraiserdinner that we have the night before
(10:03):
after our expo and packet pickup.Top fundraisers are invited to that one.
We get a really great dinner kidterdinner that night by Gilmore Catering. He'll
be sharing stories from his career.It's a great Q and a session.
There's a VIP reception prior to thatwhere people can meet and greet him who
are top fundraisers. So just havinghim here is really wonderful. Our two
riders last year came and they werejust really, really wonderful individuals. Road
(10:26):
with everyone was really part of theexperience and we're still looking forward to having
TJ here this year. Now,if you have a cyclist fan, fan,
or friend or someone in your familywho is going to take part in
the gr Grand Fundo, keep inmind they are fundraising incentives for riders or
maybe somebody who's kind of on thefence and say, hey, there's some
(10:46):
pretty cool things happening here. Fundraisingincentives for riders, fundraising prizes for the
top fundraisers like trips, sporting equipment, and a lot more, but just
a great opportunity to raise money forthe Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital. And
they're great programs again, the newsoon to be unveiled some point in the
(11:07):
future, Joan and Sakia Children's rehabHospital, Wheelchair and adaptive sports which are
really really important, and recreational therapywhich Jocelyn Debt love. What does rec
therapy mean for Mary FREEBD. Rerectherapy is about help part of healing the
whole person, not just playing games, but finding hobbies and things that you
(11:31):
enjoy so that you can keep livinglife and doing the things that you love.
Yeah, and I will add thatif somebody cannot come down to the
event but wants to support it,you can go online and make contributions to
the event to be a fundraiser andcontribute to this great ride. Now,
(11:54):
if you want to see your results, if you did the Grand Fondo last
year, the twenty twenty three,your results are there. You can go
to gr Grandfondo dot com to register. That's the most important things you heard
John Conkling say earlier. Plenty oftime for you to register. And even
if it does rain a little bitthat day, there people will ride in
(12:15):
the rain, right absolutely, Yeah, yeah, what are you doing?
Are you going to just zoom aroundwith a hat trying to pull in some
extra donations for Mary free Bed?Not quite. I will be there.
I have signed up for some volunteerjob. Good for you. And yeah,
helping out at the expo, helpingout at the race. So sorry
(12:35):
the ride, and yeah, I'mlooking forward to it. I haven't experienced
this before, so with all thetalk and the hype, looking forward to
it. It is a great event. And I also want to mention John
conkling that before we run out oftime. First of all, if somebody
is listening, if you are listening, you have a company or brand you
would like to be a part ofthis sponsorship package. John would love to
(12:58):
speak with you. They can connectwith you through the website absolutely. Our
contact information is up there. Ican be reached very easily. I really
want to stress this is a WestMichigan event supported by West Michigan companies.
The work that we're supporting through Maryfree Bed is all done right here in
West Michigan. So we would loveto bring more companies on board to really
(13:20):
be part of this experience and thegood work that we're trying to do with
Mary Freebed. Yeah, and thisis a big event, but it's a
lot of fun with a big impactof courses. You just heard John say
volunteers are needed as well. You'vegot thirteen days before the gr Grand Fondo
and they can learn about volunteer opportunitiesthrough Grgrandfondo dot com as well. Don't
(13:43):
miss your opportunity to sign up.Any other final words of wisdom you want
to share with writers or people aregoing to come down spectators anything I didn't
mention, No, just We're lookingforward to seeing everyone down there, having
a great ride and having a greatafter party supporting free Bed. And if
you're curious about Grandfondo, you've neverseen it, don't know what it is,
(14:03):
come on down and check it out. You don't have to ride this
year, be part of the experience, and then maybe sign up next year.
Yeah, it is a great opportunityto come down and cheer on a
family member or friend who is goingto ride, and just take in a
wonderful event. Again, as Johnsaid, really want to stress that a
West Michigan focused, West Michigan centricevent and it is the gr Grandfondo Grgrandfondo
(14:28):
dot com. John Conkling is eventdirector. Jocelyn Debtloff is the amazing Major
Gifts director with Mary freebd Rehabilitation Hospital. Thank you, Jocelyn, thank you.
It's been great to be here.John, great to see you on
our annual visit. Thank you somuch. I love being here. I
always appreciate it. iHeartMedia. WestMichigan Weekend a public affairs program
iHeartMedia West Michigan Weekend, a publicaffairs program. Hi, It's West Michigan
Weekend from iHeartRadio. Welcome in.We're glad you are along. I'm your
host, Phil Tower, and weare with you on all iHeartRadio stations across
West Michigan. Remember we're a podcastas well. After you hear us on
the radio, you can go toWoodradio dot com left hand side of the
(00:25):
page and find this as a podcast. I am in studio to talk about
a major event coming up just thirteendays, the Grand Rapids Grand Fondo presented
by Key Bank in Studio. Wedid this a year ago. It's deja
vu a year later. John Conklingis event director and Jocelyn Detlof You were
(00:47):
not with this last time. Jocelynis major gifts director for Mary freebd Foundation.
John, welcome back to the program. Thank you, And Jocelyn welcome
back to the program. You andI did another show again, which is
also in the podcast section at woodradio dot com. Hi you get did?
Hi? Always good to be back. So this is a very big
(01:08):
event. It's in its second yearof its current iteration. A couple of
years off for COVID. This eventhas has over a ten year history,
John Conkling, and it is justa big cycling event, a great event
for everyone, even if you don'tride, because there's spectators, because it's
(01:30):
kind of cool to come down andwatch a big bike event like this,
right, yeah, absolutely that.What's great about the Grand Fondo is,
outside of being the largest road cyclingevent in the state, it appeals to
all levels of riders. So youcould be out there with your family doing
the twelve mile family ride, allthe way up to being a serious cyclist
doing the eighty miler. So it'sit's got spectating, it's got cycling for
(01:53):
all levels, it's got a greatafter party. There's just something for everybody.
And Grand Fondo, by the way, a and fondo means big ride
in Italian in case you were wondering. You don't have to google that while
you're hearing us on the radio.This is an event, as John said,
with a lot of different ride levels. It also has a wonderful party
(02:16):
afterwards being come on after the bikeride's done, you want to have a
great party, a catered finish linefestival with craft beer, live music and
more. And one of the biggestthings about this that you wanted us to
stress for our listeners is that thisis a major fundraising event this year.
One hundred percent of the fundraising effortssupport the mission and the work done by
(02:38):
the Mary free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital,the official partner of the Grand Rapids Grand
Fondo. So you have a differentcharity each year right the past two years,
Yes, but that's not always beenthe case. We really love working
with Mary free Bed. It's beena great experience this year. We're just
thrilled to be able to raise awarenessfor all of work they're doing here in
(03:00):
West Michigan and hoping that that willcontinue forward. Yeah, it's a great
organization. Jocelyn and I, forfull disclosure for our listening audience, have
known each other a long time andI know a lot of the folks over
at Mary free Bed. They doreally special things and I can say that
from firsthand experience. So Jocelyn asMajor Gifts Director for the Mary free Bed
(03:23):
Foundation, let's talk about the areasthat will be areas of focus for fundraising
that people who register and all theother proceeds from the race supporting the Mary
free Bed Foundation. Yeah, there'sthree areas. The wheelchair Sports program,
(03:43):
recreational therapy and the upcoming Joe andSekia Children's Rehabilitation Hospital. And we even
have some adaptive hand cyclers who willbe participating in the Grand Fondo as well.
The Wheelchair Sports Department is one ofthe largest wheelchair and adeptive sports programs
(04:06):
in the country and we're just sofortunate to have a robust program here in
Grin Rapids. And so far wehave loved working with the Grand found of
organizers. It has been a teameffort on both parts, but just to
recruit writers, but then also it'sbeen fun to see that thermometer increase with
(04:31):
contributions. Yeah, which is alwaysgreat. Puts a smile on your face
and John's face. John, thisis an eventa has roots for every level
of rider. A twenty five mile, a twelve mile family ride, and
then a forty and an eighty mileride an in shape cyclist. Notice I
(04:51):
prefaced my comments with an in shapecyclist. How long does it take to
do forty miles? First average averagefor a road cycling I mean you could
be doing twenty miles an hour easycycling, so it could just take you
a couple hours. We do havea rolling start with this because we want
cyclists to be safe going out ofthe city as they go towards the Lake
(05:13):
shore, depending on which route they'redoing. And then things open up and
you've got bicycle packs and people ridingleisurely. But a couple hours, I
mean, you could do it andget back, you know, even three
four hours, depending on We havegreat rest stops and they're catered, so
people don't just roll through grab water, a gatorader or banana. They're stopping,
they're having a hot breakfast burrito,they're grabbing you know, fruit parfase.
(05:35):
They're really enjoying themselves on this ride. It's not a race. That's
what's great about it. You reallycan take your time, enjoy the moment,
get through the ride, and thenyou have a fully catered after party
as well. And eighty miles itstarts in downtown Grand Rapids. By the
way, the event is on Saturday, June twenty second. I don't know
(05:58):
if I mentioned that. That's aone negative point for me as host of
the radio program. Not mentioning thedate of the are great and fun,
though, Saturday June twenty seconds justthirteen days away. Eighty Miles goes starts
downtown, goes how far it goesout to North Beach Park, basically right
at the lake shore. It goesall the way out there. Riders stop,
get off their bikes again, havesome cater food, get some pictures
(06:20):
at the beach, and then whenthey're ready, they turn around and come
back. So it's that's a longride. That's a long day for a
lot of people. But you'll havepeople doing that in record time. And
to see them come back in theyare screaming through the finish line, those
lead packs. It's really really exciting. Yeah, and it's thirteen days away.
(06:40):
So if someone is hearing us andthey say, yeah, i'd like
to do this, especially an experiencedregular cyclist, they can sign up.
They're still room. Oh yeah,you can sign up right up until the
event date. I mean it's we'llbe taking people right up through that Friday
night beforehand on the twenty first.So yeah, we'll get a lot of
sign ups. People especially like towatch the weather and see how the day
(07:02):
is going to be. So wetend to get sign ups for the shorter
distances because they're a little bit moreaccessible that people aren't training for those for
months, right, But yeah,well, we'll have sign ups right through
the right through the I have friendswho do twenty five mile rides on bikes
all the time. It's it's likeI walked across the street, had a
hot dog, came back. It'slike, no big deal. They do
(07:24):
it all the time. But it'simportant to mention that you can sign up
right before the event on Saturday,the twenty second. I would think John
cyclists probably like moderately cool weather,maybe even cloudy skies so they're not getting
the sun beating down on them.Although if you're doing the eighty mile ride,
you can just hop into Lake Michigan, park your bike up, you
(07:46):
know, on the sidewalk, andthen jump into Lake Michigan come back.
Is there a preferred weather for cyclists? Sunny for sure, you know,
dry weather is ideal. That's wewere blessed with really great weather last year.
It was a little warm in thef doing, but it was just
a wonderful day and we're hoping fora repeat this year for sure. We
are speaking with John Conkling, eventdirector for the gr Grand Fondo. Also,
(08:09):
Joscelyn dett Loof is here, majorgifts director with the Mary free Bed
Foundation. Grand Fondo will be supportingthe Mary free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital as the
official charity partner of the fundle thisyear, and the presenting sponsor is Key
Bank with a downtown Grand rapid startand finish. So if you just want
to I'm just trying to think howwe can get our listeners who say,
(08:33):
well, I want to be thereat the end when everybody comes in.
Do you welcome people in at alldifferent times? John, what would you
say to spectators who want to comedowntown and take this in? Anyone and
everyone is welcome to come down.You don't have to ride, You can
come down and spectate, you canpartake in the finish line festival afterwards.
You can come down and volunteer.Volunteering is a very important piece. This
takes a lot of community support toproperly support the rider, so you can
(08:56):
come down and do that. Butyeah, I would highly recomon anybody come
on down experience it. This isa one of a kind cycling event that
you're not going to find anywhere else, specially not here in West Michigan.
It truly is super special and Iwould think you're going to have some near
pro level writers there you're going tohave a celebrity writer whe He is TJ
(09:18):
Van Gardin, a former American professionalroad racing cyclist, also a two time
top five Tour de Front's finisher that'snothing to shake a stick at and now
retired. Currently as sports director ofUCI World Team EF Education Easy Post.
I don't know what any of thatmeans, but it sounds important, and
(09:39):
I think that would be really kindof expiring, inspiring and exciting to meet
somebody like TJ down there who's reallylived this in a big way, especially
doing the Tour of France. Yeah, he's been at the pinnacle of this
sport. So the fact that he'llbe here riding out there with our riders.
He'll be attending our Friday Fondo fundraiserdinner that we have the night before
(10:03):
after our expo and packet pickup.Top fundraisers are invited to that one.
We get a really great dinner kidterdinner that night by Gilmore Catering. He'll
be sharing stories from his career.It's a great Q and a session.
There's a VIP reception prior to thatwhere people can meet and greet him who
are top fundraisers. So just havinghim here is really wonderful. Our two
riders last year came and they werejust really, really wonderful individuals. Road
(10:26):
with everyone was really part of theexperience and we're still looking forward to having
TJ here this year. Now,if you have a cyclist fan, fan,
or friend or someone in your familywho is going to take part in
the gr Grand Fundo, keep inmind they are fundraising incentives for riders or
maybe somebody who's kind of on thefence and say, hey, there's some
(10:46):
pretty cool things happening here. Fundraisingincentives for riders, fundraising prizes for the
top fundraisers like trips, sporting equipment, and a lot more, but just
a great opportunity to raise money forthe Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital. And
they're great programs again, the newsoon to be unveiled some point in the
(11:07):
future, Joan and Sakia Children's rehabHospital, Wheelchair and adaptive sports which are
really really important, and recreational therapywhich Jocelyn Debt love. What does rec
therapy mean for Mary FREEBD. Rerectherapy is about help part of healing the
whole person, not just playing games, but finding hobbies and things that you
(11:31):
enjoy so that you can keep livinglife and doing the things that you love.
Yeah, and I will add thatif somebody cannot come down to the
event but wants to support it,you can go online and make contributions to
the event to be a fundraiser andcontribute to this great ride. Now,
(11:54):
if you want to see your results, if you did the Grand Fondo last
year, the twenty twenty three,your results are there. You can go
to gr Grandfondo dot com to register. That's the most important things you heard
John Conkling say earlier. Plenty oftime for you to register. And even
if it does rain a little bitthat day, there people will ride in
(12:15):
the rain, right absolutely, Yeah, yeah, what are you doing?
Are you going to just zoom aroundwith a hat trying to pull in some
extra donations for Mary free Bed?Not quite. I will be there.
I have signed up for some volunteerjob. Good for you. And yeah,
helping out at the expo, helpingout at the race. So sorry
(12:35):
the ride, and yeah, I'mlooking forward to it. I haven't experienced
this before, so with all thetalk and the hype, looking forward to
it. It is a great event. And I also want to mention John
conkling that before we run out oftime. First of all, if somebody
is listening, if you are listening, you have a company or brand you
would like to be a part ofthis sponsorship package. John would love to
(12:58):
speak with you. They can connectwith you through the website absolutely. Our
contact information is up there. Ican be reached very easily. I really
want to stress this is a WestMichigan event supported by West Michigan companies.
The work that we're supporting through Maryfree Bed is all done right here in
West Michigan. So we would loveto bring more companies on board to really
(13:20):
be part of this experience and thegood work that we're trying to do with
Mary Freebed. Yeah, and thisis a big event, but it's a
lot of fun with a big impactof courses. You just heard John say
volunteers are needed as well. You'vegot thirteen days before the gr Grand Fondo
and they can learn about volunteer opportunitiesthrough Grgrandfondo dot com as well. Don't
(13:43):
miss your opportunity to sign up.Any other final words of wisdom you want
to share with writers or people aregoing to come down spectators anything I didn't
mention, No, just We're lookingforward to seeing everyone down there, having
a great ride and having a greatafter party supporting free Bed. And if
you're curious about Grandfondo, you've neverseen it, don't know what it is,
(14:03):
come on down and check it out. You don't have to ride this
year, be part of the experience, and then maybe sign up next year.
Yeah, it is a great opportunityto come down and cheer on a
family member or friend who is goingto ride, and just take in a
wonderful event. Again, as Johnsaid, really want to stress that a
West Michigan focused, West Michigan centricevent and it is the gr Grandfondo Grgrandfondo
(14:28):
dot com. John Conkling is eventdirector. Jocelyn Debtloff is the amazing Major
Gifts director with Mary freebd Rehabilitation Hospital. Thank you, Jocelyn, thank you.
It's been great to be here.John, great to see you on
our annual visit. Thank you somuch. I love being here. I
always appreciate it. iHeartMedia. WestMichigan Weekend a public affairs program
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