By Khalida Sarwari
If all goes well, Oct. 5 will be the day Derek Engfelt crosses off an item that’s been on his bucket list for more than two decades. That’s the day the 50-year-old is due to reach Santa Monica on his bicycle, the culmination of an eight-day journey traversing 525 miles down Highway 1.
“Riding the coast of California is something I’ve wanted to do since I was in my 20s,” said Engfelt, an Almaden Valley resident and pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Saratoga.
This fall, Engfelt will be one of nearly 300 people participating in the Arthritis Foundation’s California Coast Classic Bicycle Tour from Sept. 28 to Oct. 5. To qualify for the tour, which begins at San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf, participants are asked to raise a minimum of $3,000.
Since registering in February, Engfelt has raised $6,555. His advertised fundraising goal is $12,000, but his personal goal is nearly twice as much.
“I think it’d be awesome to raise $20,000,” he said.
The tour helps support the Arthritis Foundation’s nationwide effort to prevent, control and cure arthritis. The funds raised also provide educational resources to help adults, parents and children manage their arthritis through community-based services. One of the organization’s programs, for example, helps to send youth with arthritis to camp.
“One of the things that surprised me is that [arthritis] doesn’t just affect old people,” said Engfelt. “Part of the reason for this fundraiser is to provide a week at camp for kids who have arthritis, so that’s one thing that kind of piqued my interest.”
Engfelt had other personal reasons as well. He recalled a woman he met in his very first congregation years ago who had rheumatoid arthritis despite being in her early 30s. The woman’s numerous surgeries and the pain and suffering she endured has stuck in his memory throughout the years, Engfelt said.
Earlier this year, he mourned the loss of Bob Thurston, a fellow cyclist who was his father’s best friend and whom Engfelt also considered a good friend.
“He had arthritis that ended up turning into a cancer,” said Engfelt. “Part of the ride for me personally is in his honor.”
Beyond these somber reasons, he said he looks forward to the adventure of the tour and indulging in his cycling hobby.
“I’ve got to do this while I still can do it,” he said.
To prepare for the tour, Engfelt rides about 100 miles a week and recently participated in the Santa Cruz Mountains Challenge.
“I wanted to have one ride where I really tested myself and I completed the ride in under 10 hours of riding, so I feel pretty good,” he said.
He has also been busy soliciting donations via email and social media. There have been some surprises along the way, Engfelt said; some of his supporters have been people he didn’t expect to donate. Saratoga community leaders are also among his 114 sponsors.
To support Engfelt’s fundraiser, visit the Arthritis Foundation website atafcabikeclassic.kintera.org, click on “sponsor participant” on the left rail and enter his name in the search field.
