| | TWO WHEEL RIDE | Petty charity ride rolls on different kind of wheels | |
|  | | CIA Stock Photo | The motorcycle riders rolled into the Ballantyne Resort parking lots just before 6p.m. to complete the fifth day of this year's seven-day trip. | | David Poole / The Charlotte Observer Thursday was typical for the Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America in that it was a really big day filled with a lot of small moments.
The motorcycle riders rolled into the Ballantyne Resort parking lots just before 6p.m. to complete the fifth day of this year's seven-day trip. They'll depart from the hotel this morning, have breakfast and then head south down Interstate 85, turning later toward the finish line Saturday in Savannah, Ga.
Before arriving, the riders spent part of the afternoon at the primary reason for the ride, the Victory Junction Gang Camp.
“Whenever we stop at camp, a lot of the guys ride in wearing glasses, but before long they're wearing sunglasses,” Petty said. “You can't go there and not be affected.”
One of Thursday's stories was about a little girl who saw her parents for the first time after spending a week at the camp near Level Cross. As she hugged them, the first thing she wanted to tell them about was riding a horse for the first time.
There was a brief ceremony at Thursday's arrival. Children from the Allegro Foundation performed, and the ride presented a $25,000 check to that organization.
Charlotte radio personality Robert Raiford, an annual ride participant, joked about being like a small child. “When you're little, you're not 4 you are 41/2,” he said. “I am not 80, I am 801/2.”
Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory introduced legends Richard Petty and Dale Jarrett to the crowd. The problem was, it was Ned Jarrett and not his son, Dale.
“He just lost all of the votes in the Jarrett family,” Petty joked about McCrory, a candidate for governor of North Carolina.
Chick-Fil-A is the presenting sponsor for the ride and Dan Cathey, that company's CEO and the son of its founder, spoke to the crowd. But in the spirit of the ride, so did employees from two of the chain's N.C. restaurants. To raise money for the ride, the managers of those stores walked 22 miles from a store in Morganton to one in Hickory. They raised $1,800 in the process, and presented that money Thursday.
“On the first day this year, we had this little boy standing beside the road with a sign saying he had a donation,” Kyle Petty said. This year's ride started Saturday in Traverse City, Mich. “We pulled over and he had a Pringles can full of dimes, nickels and pennies. There wasn't a quarter in there.”
Petty counted the change that night at the hotel.
“It was $23.22, I think,” he said. “That's the story of this ride. We have great corporate sponsors and the riders pay a lot of money, but that's a cool part about it, too. And those people will never know just how far that $23.22 will go at camp.”
| | Posted July 18, 2008 , 5:29 pm EST
Last Updated July 21, 2008 , 10:19 pm EST | | | | | | |
