Curtis Bass

President

Curtis was introduced to AIDS/LifeCycle in 2012 and rode for the first time in 2015. Upon beginning training rides, he was quickly introduced the PosPeds community and participated in both the Paul Hulse Century Ride and the Jonathan Pon Memorial Ride that first year. Curtis joined the Board of Directors in 2019 and has served as President since December 2020. Curtis is also a captain of the AIDS/LifeCycle New Bear Republic cycling team and a staff member for AIDS/LifeCycle. He has participated as well in other charity bike rides throughout the country as well. Curtis believes deeply in the mission of eliminating stigma through our positive public example and continues to help raise the critical funds needed to provide the necessary treatment, education and awareness to those in need.

Doug Milliken

Vice President

Doug discovered the Positive Pedalers in 2014 when he was training for his first AIDS/LifeCycle ride. He has ridden ALC every year since, with the exception of one year as a Roadie. He joined the board of Positive Pedalers during 2020 and is currently serving as Vice-President of the Board. He helped co-found the GLBT association at Youngstown State University in 1993, served as President of the Queer Coalition at Illinois State University in 1994, and was a member of the Pride Student Union at Florida State University while pursuing a Ph.D. in Historical Musicology. Doug is a classically trained musician, performing with the Youngstown Symphony from 1994-2003 and with the Renaissance ensemble Ciaramella from 2001-2022.

Adrian Avalos

Treasurer

3rd-generation Californian and Angeleno. Adrian has lived in Southern California his whole life and works for a nation-wide bank as a Corporate Loan Officer. Adrian has done 6 ALC rides as both a rider and a roadie, and has been the board of Positive Pedalers since early 2020. His hobbies include bike riding, traveling, video gaming, and going to music festivals.

Anne Nelson

Secretary

Working as a pharmacist in the Castro, Anne found that many of her patients living with HIV were struggling to pay for their meds. This should not be happening. Anne was looking for a way to do more. She found ALC in 2014 and made it down to LA because of the support of the Positive Pedalers. She has completed 5 ALC rides and continues to support from the side lines. She holds current HIV Pharmacist Credentialing from the American Academy of HIV Medicine and hopes bring insight from her pharmacy experience. Outside of work, Anne enjoys snowboarding, swimming, cycling, and all things outdoors in the Bay Area.

Dennis Dentoni-Lasofsky

Dennis first rode in the AIDS/Lifecycle in 2014 having done three short training rides and knowing very little about bikes. They surprisingly survived that first ALC, and have fallen in love with the cycling community brought together every year by ALC. In 2024, Dennis will ride in their 6th ALC, and their first as a member of the PosPeds board. In their professional life, Dennis is a nurse practitioner who specializes in HIV and other infectious diseases and has spent the last twelve years working in the field of HIV care. As such, they are passionate about HIV health education and dismantling the stigma of living with the virus. When they’re not biking or Nursing, you may find Dennis lip-synching in heels and wigs at queer spaces across the bay area, probably raising funds for their next ALC.

Chris Eisenberg

Chris rode her first AIDS/LifeCycle ride in 2005, eager to support such an important cause and convinced she didn't know anybody HIV+ personally, aside from the folks she met on the ride. She has done every ALC ride since then (and training new riders since year 2) and has been learning all about the power of stigma, and realising just how wrong her initial assumption was. She was introduced to PosPeds by Paul Serchia, and was a longtime supporter before joining the board.

Mel Embree

Mel became actively involved in the fight against HIV and AIDS in 2001 when he rode the 575 miles of California Aids Ride 8 in memory of and as tribute to a friend/mentor/brother who had died from the disease. In 2002 Mel became a Training Ride Leader and in 2003 rode AIDS/LifeCycle 2. Mel has been a Training Ride Leader and rider for every AIDS/LifeCycle since to support all of the people he knows, and doesn’t know, living with HIV and AIDS. AIDS/LIfeCycle 2023 will be his 20 th ride and 23rd year as a TRL. Mel brings to the Positive Pedalers’ mission of eliminating the ignorance and fear that lead to stigmatization his understanding that societal change does not come when the only voices raised in opposition to practices that are detrimental to any group are those of the aggrieved. Mel also brings his experience as counsel to other non-profit entities and as the first Board Chair and long-time board member of Youth Employment Systems, a Youth Build affiliate, providing educational and vocational opportunities to at-risk youth in the greater Los Angeles area.

Mike Hephner

Mike was introduced to the Positive Pedalers at the 2022 AIDS/LifeCycle Expo. In his exposed to support groups of HIV positive people, organized by a healthcare provider. He attended a few sessions of such a group through Kaiser and they helped to alleviate his fears and anxiety greatly about the disease and new medications. They did not, however, serve to portray HIV Positive people in the same way that Positive Pedalers do. Mike is happy to be a part of such a robust group of people that can impact society in such a positive way.

Frank Landin

From 2000 up to January 2023 I have been working in the not for profit sector primarily in a leadership role (Director of Human Resources to name one). This has provided me with many opportunities to work closely with the Executive Director/Chief Operating Officer as well as the Board of Directors of Project Open Hand and more recently Meals on Wheels San Francisco on mission driven objectives. I have participated in several ASO related rides and to be more specific the NorCal Ride, The Harbor To Bay (Boston to Provincetown) and the Aids Lifecycle of which I have participated several times I have found kindred spirits with riding with PosPeds riders who all share life experiences living with HIV/AIDS that includes the struggles, challenges, loss AND that we choose a healthier outlook by riding and sharing our various experiences.

Daniel Scott Le Blanc-Pittman

Daniel is thrilled to be a member of the Board of Directors for PosPeds. He has rode in the AIDS/Lifecycle 3 times, starting in 2017. He is part of the Hot Wheels team, a longtime supporter of PosPeds. As a proud gay married man I ride and am a part of the PosPeds organization to be a voice for those who can’t speak loud enough and to educate those who are uninformed on HIV/AIDS. As a child he grew up through the Boys and Girls Club and learned early in life to give back to the community. Daniel looks forward to continuing to give back and will bring his project management and operational expertise to the board to help make all our fundraising efforts highly effective and successful.

Dot Theodore

Dot Theodore is committed to social justice work and bringing healthcare to all. She has a masters degree in public health and supports the HIV Care program for Alameda County Public Health Department as the director of the Office of HIV Care. Dot has been cycling since 2016 and has completed 3 ALC rides. This year will be her fourth. Serving on the board of Positive Pedalers perfectly blends her professional work to end stigma around HIV and increasing access to HIV care, as well as her love of cycling. In addition to cycling, Dot is a novice rower. Dot also spends time knitting, sewing, and cooking. Dot has two teenage kids, four dogs, two cats, and a tortoise.