Kai Brothers Rides to Give Thanks

Kai Brothers, 43, of San Francisco doesn't consider himself a cyclist; he only bought his bike in order to do AIDS LifeCycle and has only been cycling a handful of times other than training rides. This is his fourth time riding in AIDS LifeCycle. "If anything, ALC has turned me into a cyclist," he says.

Kai found training tough the first year. "I joined organized training rides but found it hard to keep up," he says. "I also got lost once and didn't make it back home until it was dark and very cold."

His experience improved in later years. "I have been on some very amazing rides up north with small groups of friends. Riding with good friends and stopping at a nice place for lunch makes an 80-plus mile ride much more bearable.

"Training is definitely challenging, but I don't push myself too hard. But, I am amazed at how much easier it gets each time I head out for a ride. Hills that were a bit of a strain get easier with each ride. Riding over the Golden Gate Bridge and up through the Marin Headlands is always a very moving experience."

After listening to close friends rave about AIDS rides for years, Kai was finally hooked when he saw an ALC promotional video. "As a gay man living with HIV for 25 years now, I am just thankful that I am able to do this ride at all," he says. "There was a time when things looked pretty bleak, and I lost many close friends to AIDS. Thinking I was next was a debilitating force that had a profound impact on what I chose to do with my time and how close I would (or would not) get to the people in my life. You can say it was a pretty dark period. Coming out of that and finding that I am a long-term non-progressor [who is HIV+ but does not contract AIDS] was like a whole new world opening up for me. Realizing that I could contribute to the efforts for finding a cure or vaccination mobilized me to the point where I have become involved in at least six different studies. I have also doubled my efforts to volunteer, give money and do events like the ALC ride. I ride for those I've lost as well as to give thanks for my good fortune."