#amydfoundation

The Rapha Foundation, which was just announced on Wednesday, May 29, seeks “to build a better future for the sport of cycling by inspiring, empowering and supporting the next generation of racers,” through grants to handpicked non-profit organizations. The Amy D. Foundation was targeted for the foundation’s inaugural round of grants.

“The funding will allow us to hire an executive director to oversee operations and help ensure the future sustainability of the programming.  We are very excited about it,” says Amy D. Foundation founder and president Daniel Dombroski.

The Rapha Foundation, which does not accept unsolicited applications, sought out the Amy D. Foundation, which “encourages and supports young women through cycling, inspiring the celebration of healthy challenge and empowering the confident pursuit of lofty dreams” as a quintessential organization for the foundation’s mission and the program’s announcement.

With the grant in place the Amy D. Foundation Board of Directors will meet in July. “The focus of the meetings will be to hash out a general plan for how we will proceed with the hiring,” says Dombroski, with the goal of having the new executive director ready to hit the ground rolling for the 2020 season.

Created in 2016 to benefit the Amy D. Foundation and NICA, BikeFlights.com’s Buck Up for Bikes program has been growing ever since. 2018 year-to-date program contributions are up 60%, and since the program’s inception, BikeFlights.com has raised and given out more than $40,000.

"We are delighted that BikeFlights.com continues to support our efforts to serve youth in every community,” said Trips For Kids Executive Director Robert Ping. “Their generous gifts allow us to develop resources and trainings for our chapters and help us teach children about self-confidence, self-discovery, independence and much more."

Per the Buck Up for Bikes program, BikeFlights.com customers have two options upon checkout when booking their bike shipping online: 1) Contribute a buck to any of the four beneficiaries; or 2) Contribute a buck to each of the four beneficiaries. BikeFlights.com not only collects and tracks all donations, but it also supplements collected contributions and covers the costs of administering and publicizing the program.

Ride Like Amy D: How It All Began

Amy Dombroski was a versatile cyclist who earned Under 23 National Championship titles in road, mountain and cyclocross. She died tragically at age 26 while training abroad in Belgium. When she passed, Amy left a fleet of nice racing bikes. Believing that Amy would want to see her bikes ridden, the foundation launched the “Ride Like Amy D” program. One of its first projects was to put Amy’s bikes to good use. Their plan was to loan Amy’s bikes to deserving young riders and to provide them with kit and race support.

As fate would have it, the Ride Like Amy D program is what brought the Amy D. Foundation and BikeFlights.com together. “We first connected with BikeFlights.com because I was looking to ship Amy’s bikes to our chosen riders, and they helped us do that,” said Dan.

Growth and Partnership

Since the early days, the scope and impact of the Amy D. Foundation has grown in leaps and bounds. Today the foundation provides support and programming for women at the elite and grassroots levels in road, mountain biking and cyclocross. The partnership between the foundation and BikeFlights.com has evolved to support each of these initiatives.

“Our relationship is special because BikeFlights.com has seen us grow from a fledgling operation putting young women on Amy’s old race bikes to an organization that has impacted approximately 100 athletes, including national and world class riders,” said Dan.

Elite Team Support

In fall of 2014, the foundation launched the Amy D. Cyclocross Elite Team, a developmental program to bridge the gap between elite and professional cyclocross racing. Riders are are provided with equipment, mechanical and logistical support and professional mentorship to race a national calendar of events. Athletes are selected for the team via an open application process, including a written application and interview.

The foundation just announced this year’s elite ‘cross riders: Katherine (KK) Santos and Emily Shields. For them, being selected to the team is a dream come true.

“I am so unbelievably excited to be racing for Amy D. this cyclocross season,” said Shields. “It has been my lifelong dream to race professionally.”

BikeFlights.com helps the elite cyclocross team by shipping its riders’ bikes from event to event, removing the burden of driving bikes nationwide.

During the rest of the cycling season, BikeFlights.com also helps selected Amy D. Foundation Composite Road Cycling Team guest riders get their bikes to and from major road races. It’s a way to assist up and coming riders, especially those with limited financial resources, as they gain experience and try to make the move up from amateur to pro ranks.

For both road and ‘cross racers, eliminating the stress of flying with a bike is important. It’s one less logistical detail to manage during hectic travel to and from important events.

Community Engagement

The Amy D. Foundation’s support of women in cycling isn’t limited to professional racing. New for this year is the opportunity to ride like Amy D. via the foundation’s Grassroots program, a community-based team welcoming all genders, ages and abilities.

The foundation also partners with Little Bellas in Colorado, a program that reinforces strong female bonds for its young riders as they progress and improve their mountain bike skills.

Learn more about the Amy D. Foundation and help support their programs by donating a buck (or four if you’d like to also support the National Interscholastic Cycling Association, Little Bellas and Trips for Kids!) through our Buck Up for Bikes Program every time you ship.