I got an email from the Bristol-Myers Squibb Tour of Hope yesterday announcing that registration has opened for the 2005 DC Fundraising Ride. The first 1,500 riders to raise the required $500 in pledges will be able to join Lance Armstrong in one of two rides through Maryland and the District of Columbia:

• a 50-mile ride beginning at 7:00am at an undisclosed location in rural Maryland led by Lance Armstrong
• a 10-mile ride beginning in Glen Echo, Maryland

The email strongly suggests that the 10-mile route will be the same as the last 10 miles of the 2004 DC Fundraising Ride Course, so I assume that the 10-mile ride will start at or near The Irish Inn.

I'm a little surprised they announced the route less than 48 hours before the start of the Tour de France, because I don't see the PR advantage to doing it at this time. However, the organizers did such a good job putting this event together last year, there's no reason to second guess them.

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