photo credit: courtesy of Challenged Athletes Foundation
ParaCyclist Ryen Reed is participating in the 2025 Million Dollar Challenge.

More than 120 cyclists, including two dozen athletes with physical disabilities, are embarking on a journey down the California coast. Their aim is to help level the playing field in adaptive sports. The week-long event kicks off in Santa Rosa on Friday, October 17th.

The 2025 Million Dollar Challenge kicks off in Santa Rosa at the Flamingo Hotel. Over the next week, the inclusive group will ride more than 600 miles to raise money to cover the high cost of adaptive sports equipment which, the Challenged Athletes Foundation says, is the number one barrier to participation.

“Some of the grant requests we get might be for $1,000 for travel expenses so they can go to a clinic or maybe go compete in a race. Some of the more expensive requests we will get, will involve those really cool techno running blades that you see, that have been made famous, I think, in more recent years with social media and broadcasting at the Paralympics, those may cost you know $25,000,” said Dean Roeper, chair of the Million Dollar Challenge and a board member of Challenged Athletes Foundation. He’s in Santa Rosa for the start of the weeklong cycling event.

“Every rider raises at least $15,000. That not only covers the cost of doing the event, but also drops quite a bit to the bottom line,” said Roeper. “And the goal is each year when we do this particular event to have about a million dollars net drop to the bottom line for adaptive equipment.”

Besides fundraising, there’s another important aspect of this cycling event.

“We’re very visible, right? So we're 120 people and brightly clad Lycra rolling down the coast with people in hand cycles and missing limbs,” Roeper said. “And I think part of what we do is we're out and about in society and visible to the rest of the world.”

Roeper says the peloton includes about two dozen disabled athletes, making their way through the most scenic stretches of the coastline. After a celebratory roll through San Francisco, the route will include stops in Santa Cruz, Big Sur, Pismo Beach, and Santa Barbara. Roeper says the impact of this event is extensive.

“In the Paris Olympics two years ago, more than half of the US Paralympic team had at one point in time received a grant from the Challenged Athletes Foundation over the lifetime of their athletic career,” Roeper said.

Roeper says the Santa Rosa area’s history with cycling events like the Tour of California and the Gran Fondo made it a very desirable location.

“This is an area so rich in cycling history and so rich in the people around cycling,” Roeper said. “It's kind of an honor to be able to ride in these routes and on these roads and in this area because there is a culture of not just being outdoors, but also particularly being on a bicycle.”

The 61-mile route will depart from and return to the Flamingo Hotel. Roeper describes some of the cyclists taking part in the race.

“One young woman, Ryen Reed, is in hand cycle. She has been on the US Women's Paracycling Team,” Roeper said. “She'll be out there doing all of this with her arms. So, if people can visualize what it's like to ride your bike 80 to 100 miles with strong legs, now try to do it with your arms in a seated recumbent position.”

The Million Dollar Challenge culminates in La Jolla, and coincides with the San Diego Triathlon Challenge, the world’s largest triathlon for disabled athletes. Roeper says the end of the race is emotional.

“The Challenged Athlete children, many of whom are in chairs or missing limbs, will form a tunnel for us to ride through and then hang a medal around every finisher's neck and thank them for the money they've just raised for the cause,” said Roeper. “And I tell you what, there's never a time when I describe that, when I don't get a little choked up.”

“Yeah, I can, I can see why. Oh my goodness,” I said.

“Got you,” said Roeper.

Learn more at challengedathletes.org