The last ride of the season was a huge success for the thousands of American children with brain tumors, wrapping up a great fundraising year for the national Ride for Kids® program. Three hundred and seventy-five motorcyclists, fundraisers, volunteers and patient families from around northern Florida came together for the sixth annual Dunnellon Ride for Kids® on Sunday, Nov. 6 to raise more than $72,000 for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation’s medical research and family support programs. Area residents have been battered by several fierce hurricanes this year, but that didn’t stop them from coming out to support the Dunnellon event. Under clear blue skies, the police-escorted ride toured the area’s lush grasslands and rolling horse farms. The riders then pulled into Ernie Mills Park in Dunnellon to hear directly from the young brain tumor survivors who benefit from their fundraising efforts. The poignant Celebration of Life program featured four teenage Ride for Kids® “stars,” 19-year-olds Corey, Kim, Kyle””all PBTF scholarship recipients””and Andriana, 18. Corey has been to all six Dunnellon rides, and both Kim and Andriana are event regulars. “When Kyle was diagnosed six years ago we were in a predicament,” said his dad, Bill. “Finding the PBTF on the Internet, and then calling that 800 number, was a lifesaver.” Other special guests included Dunnellon mayor John Taylor, longtime supporter and ride participant, and Chamber of Commerce director Don Koppler, both of whom pledged to join the ride next year in its new location in Sarasota. The crowd also heard from Dr. Jill Barnholtz-Sloan of the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute, who said, “We are going to find the reason these tumors are happening, and we are going to fix it!” The total raised at the Dunnellon event was $72,363. Top individual fundraiser honors went to Skip and Renee Halback, who raised $6,138. The top club, Hap’s Gulf Coast Riders, brought $28,045, while the customers of Hap’s Cycle Sales of Sarasota made it the top motorcycle business with $28,010 in donations. J.T. Haskell of Osprey Fla., was the winner of a brand-new Honda motorcycle. Heartfelt appreciation went to Dunnellon’s task force leadership, Emily and Martin Czysz, Sharon Richens and Pat Harvey, along with their hardworking task force members and day-of-event volunteers, for organizing a terrific event. Since 1984, the national Ride for Kids® program and PBTF have supported childhood brain tumor research and family support programs. Programs include free literature about brain tumors, two national newsletters, online conferences, and college scholarships for young brain tumor survivors. Thanks to the thousands of caring and generous motorcyclists and motorcycle dealers who have supported the program since its inception, PBTF has become the world’s largest non-governmental source of funding for pediatric brain tumor research. The next Ride for Kids® event kicks off the 2006 season on Sunday, Jan. 22 in Sunrise, Fla. The 2005 wrap-up and 2006 calendar are coming soon. For more information about the Ride for Kids® and the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, please visit www.rideforkids.org or www.pbtfus.org, or call (800) 253-6530.