Gran Fondo Cancer Benefit

The twelfth annual Providence St. Mary Gran Fondo, the "Great Ride" to benefit local people with cancer, will be Sept. 24.

The events begin in the morning at the Walla Walla Community College Dietrich Dome. Participants choose to walk, run or cycle and after their event, listen to music, purchase food from the WWCC Culinary Food Truck and more.The money raised from the event goes to the Cancer Special Needs Fund of Providence St. Mary Foundation.

This year, people also can fund raise through www.everydayhero.com/us/gran-fondo, a website that helps participants rally support and pledges from friends and family near and far.

Gran Fondo events include:

*5k Fun Run/Walk: The loop begins and ends at Walla Walla Community College with optional turnaround points at each mile. Check in at 10am and depart at 11am. Wear any and all the colors of cancer (the wilder, the better) to symbolize our purpose and celebrate survivors.

*35-Mile Bicycle Ride: The route loops through farmlands, orchards and vineyards. Check in at 9am and depart at 9:30am.

*62-Mile Bicycle Ride: A metric century through wine and wheat country. Check in at 7am and depart at 7:30am.

*WWCC Food Truck: 11:30am to 2:30pm. Food will be available for purchase.

*Welcome back and ribbon cutting for Clint Froke: 12pm (or whenever Clint crosses the finish line) as he rides from Canada to the Gran Fondo in a 24-hour period to raise money for the Cancer Special Needs Fund.

Registration
Cost to register is $25. Cancer survivors and kids 17 & under participate for free. The first 500 people to register will receive a special giveaway. Register or learn more at www.providence.org/granfondo.

Wine, food and music downtown
The Gran Fondo is followed by a separate event downtown, A Pairing on Main that also benefits the Cancer Special Needs Fund of Providence St. Mary Foundation.

From 6 to 8 p.m., participants stroll through downtown Walla Walla as they taste wine from an array of tasting rooms, paired with food from some of Walla Walla's finest restaurants and enjoy live music from Whiskey Creek. Tickets are $50 per person and only 150 are available online at providence.org/stmaryfoundation.