HTC-Highroad hosts pre-Amgen Tour of California gala

HTC-Highroad is hosting a gala to benefit its long-time affiliate and charitable organization, Right To Play, on May 9 at the Cynergy Cycles in Santa Monica, California. The upscale fundraising event will allow fans to meet the eight-rider team that will be racing at the Amgen Tour of California.

Guests will have a rare opportunity to meet the HTC-Highroad’s Amgen Tour of California team that includes Bernhard Eisel, Matthew Goss, Bert Grabsch, Leigh Howard, Danny Pate, Tejay Van Garderen, Martin Velits and Peter Velits along with female athletes Evie Stevens and Ally Statcher. Also making an appearance are team owner Bob Stapleton and directeur sportifs Rolf Aldag, Allan Peiper and Brian Holm and staff.

Tickets for the event cost $100 US, available through the Cynergy Cycles website, where all proceed will go to Right To Play.

"We hope to get a big crowd," Scrymgeour said. "It's a great time for cycling in California leading up to the Amgen Tour of California, which is growing every year. It's particularly great to be able to bring some of our women into town for the time trial and they're exited to attend this event too."

According to an event press release, the gala will run from 6 PM to 10 PM beginning with an introduction by the Master of Ceremonies Phil Keoghan who will present HTC-Highroad’s 2011 Amgen Tour of California squad. Tickets include a dinner, drinks, gift bags, entry to win a Specialized HTC-Highroad frameset, and entertainment by Milly De Mori of Milan.

Founded on the legacy of the Lillehammer Olympics, Right to Play’s vision is to create a healthier and safer world through the power of sport and play. The group aims to improve the lives of children in some of the most disadvantaged areas of the world by using sport and play for the purposes of development, health and peace.

"We've been involved with Right To Play since 2008," said Kristy Scrymgeour of HTC-Highroad. "We believe it's an excellent organisation that has a good fit for athletes and the positive effects of play for learning and life skills. As a team we try to help Right To Play by creating awareness and helping with fundraising anywhere we can. In 2009, a few of our athletes traveled to Peru with Right To Play to visit some of their schools. The visit had positive results with the government investing more into the project in Peru."

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Kirsten Frattini
Deputy Editor

Kirsten Frattini is the Deputy Editor of Cyclingnews, overseeing the global racing content plan.

Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science. She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling's biggest races, reporting on the WorldTour, Spring Classics, Tours de France, World Championships and Olympic Games.

She began her sports journalism career with Cyclingnews as a North American Correspondent in 2006. In 2018, Kirsten became Women's Editor – overseeing the content strategy, race coverage and growth of women's professional cycling – before becoming Deputy Editor in 2023.