LIVERMORE — The Fitness Fanatics Team has organized Alan’s Ride for Saturday, May 21, in memory of one of their own who died while training for The Dempsey Challenge.

It also gives people a chance to become more heart healthy, team organizer, Sue Biliouris said.

The proceeds from the ride, named after Alan Libby of Livermore who had a massive heart attack riding his bike on Sept. 11, 2010, in Auburn, will go to the Patrick Dempsey Center for Cancer Hope & Healing in Lewiston.

Biliouris, a nurse from Livermore, started Fitness Fanatics in 2009 in an attempt to get people together who were interested in getting their hearts healthy with exercise and healthy eating, she said.

Alan Libby, 47, joined the team last year after his doctor informed him in January he needed to get his heart stronger. He decided he would join the Fanatics to get in shape and ride in the The Dempsey Challenge, his wife Renda Libby said.

“He was doing well and he was proud of himself. He was being heart healthy and training for a good cause,” Libby said. “It became a passion for him.”

Her husband dropped 53 pounds and was well on his way to accomplishing his goal when tragedy struck.

Libby had been waiting at home while her husband trained, getting the motorcycle ready for the two to go for a ride along the coast.

A friend came by and told her to get in the truck, there had been an accident.

She thought she would be bringing him and his bike back home.

“It didn’t quite work out that way,” Libby said.

The team went on to do the challenge, with Alan Libby’s son, Matt White, riding in his father’s place.

The team started meeting in February to continue their fundraising efforts for the third annual Dempsey Challenge this fall. A Valentine’s Dinner at the Club House Tavern in Livermore raised $1,600 to benefit the challenge.

“The team wanted to do one thing for Alan,” Libby, a team member, said.

They organized a 10-mile ride that will begin at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 21, at Livermore Falls Gazebo and go to Pike’s Corner Oasis and back on Route 133. A 20-mile ride will begin at 9:45 a.m. from the gazebo and go to Tubby’s Ice Cream in Wayne and back. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m.

Anyone pre-registering for the ride by May 10 will get a free T-shirt. Pre-registration fees are $30, and $20 for age 12 and under. Registration on the day of the ride is $35, and $25 for 12 and under. Forms are available at the Livermore and Livermore Falls town offices and Fitness Stylz in Livermore Falls, Biliouris said.

To get more information contact Biliouris or her husband, Bill Biliouris at 897-2237 or 240-9385, or Holly Richards at 931-8075.

There will be other fundraisers at the gazebo including a bake sale.

Tubby’s has created an ice cream, Alan’s Pride, that is made up of vanilla ice cream and pineapple chunks that will be given away after the ride at the gazebo, Sue Biliouris said.

“Anybody is welcome to ride,” Biliouris said.

Blood pressure checks will also be done.

The night before the challenge, at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, May 20, there will be a pre-ride, all-you-can-eat buffet that includes sliders at the Club House Tavern at Maple Lane Golf Course in Livermore, Biliouris said.

The cost is $15 a person, not including tax or gratuity, and the theme is Luau-Hawaiian, Proceeds will benefit The Dempsey Challenge. To reserve a seat, due to seating limitations, contact Lisa at 740-7434.

The Fitness Fanatics Team has also developed a May calendar to benefit the challenge. It is $10 per chance and someone’s name is drawn daily for a prize, their name is re-entered in the drawing if they win. The prizes range from gift certificates to firewood.

“Being heart healthy is such a big thing with this team,” Libby said. “Watching some get heart healthy is what it is all about.”

dperry@sunjournal.com

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