Professional cyclist Ted King of Brentwood, New Hampshire will participate in the fourth annual Dempsey Challenge presented by Amgen, a non-competitive run, walk and cycling event benefiting The Patrick Dempsey Center for Cancer Hope & Healing. The event will take place Oct. 13 and 14 in Lewiston, Maine.
King took part in the inaugural event in 2009 as part of a stellar pro lineup that included George Hincapie, David Zabriskie and Stephen Roche.
This year, along with actor and event namesake, Patrick Dempsey, King will ride alongside fellow pros Levi Leipheimer, Tom Danielson and Matt Updike; and former pros Davis and Connie Phinney.
The 29-year-old rides for UCI ProTeam Liquigas-Cannondale, where he’s been an integral part of nearly two dozen wins this season. He placed third in the 2011 USA Pro National Championships and finished second overall in the U.S. national rankings in 2008. In keeping with his New England roots, King won the 2009 Lake Auburn Road Race, an 81-mile trek presented by Maine Cycling Club.
King is a skilled writer, entertaining fans with regular entries on his website www.iamtedking.com. He writes a column titled ‘King Me’ for Bicycling.com and is an avid cook, baker and photographer.
King created the Krempels King of the Road Challenge scheduled for Oct. 20 in Stratham, NH. The fundraising ride benefits the Krempels Center, a Portsmouth NH based nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of people living with brain injury from trauma, tumor or stroke. The 2011 inaugural event raised nearly $60,000. The event features 10, 30 and 62 mile routes and like the Dempsey Challenge, the event is not a race, but a ride designed to be an enjoyable day of cycling and camaraderie. For more information, visit www.kingchallenge.org.
The Dempsey Challenge offers the Electricity Maine 5K and 10K run/walk on October 13 and Fundraising Rides presented by Exergy Development Group of 10, 25, 50, 70 and 100 miles on October 14. All events will begin and end at Simard-Payne Memorial Park in Lewiston. The weekend will include a family friendly Festival in the Park which plays host to the Concentra Health and Wellness Expo, TD Bank KidZone, vendor fair and live entertainment. The Amgen Breakaway from Cancer Survivor Walk highlights the weekend.
Participants are encouraged to create or join teams through the Dempsey Challenge website to build camaraderie and assist their fundraising efforts. For more information, including participant, volunteer and fundraising information, log on to www.dempseychallenge.org.
