TX Tough Grand Prix cycling races held at Victory Park are part of the USA Criterium Championship. This year, the Championship of that series will be held in North Texas after the final race of the season was moved from Las Vegas to Dallas.
"If you enjoy cycling or not, it will be a great event and a great time to be out here at Victory Park," says Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert, "If you love cycling, it will be the best in the world."
"What people are finding is that we have a great, great cycling community here in Dallas and the fans have really embraced it," says Jonny Sunt, a member of Kenda Pro Cycling presented by Geargrinder.
While the race itself will be held on the streets around Victory Park, the real finish line is at Children's Medical Center. Last year, TX Tough fund raisers collected $560,000. This year, their hope is to double that amount.
The high speed circuit-style criterium race will include 100 international, including Tour de France cycling champions. The race will cover a 1500 meter loop through Victory Park.
"The neat part about it is that it came from hundreds of people in small chunks," says J. Peter Kline, the President of the Children's Medical Center Foundation. "A lot of times people think that small gifts don't matter. I can tell you when you assemble making small gifts; it has a huge impact on what we're able to at Children’s."
"What Texas tough is pick a fight and change a life," says Geoff Godsey, the Executive Director of the TX Tough campaign. "We're telling people, tell us what you’re passionate about, and chose something they want to make a difference. Pick a fight and change a life and everybody can do it."
Joel Williams is the founder of the Texas Tough Campaign. "We are just getting started," Williams says. "We are very interested in raising millions of dollars annually for Children's. Children's needs and deserves the support from organizations like Texas Tough and the rest of the community.
Folks are also hoping the race, which will be held on September 16th, will eventually become the premier cycling event in the United States.
