BY KAREN BOSSICK
Sun Valley Tour de Force wrote Idaho Basecamp a $65,000 check this week to be used for the BaseCamp’s fifth-grade Outdoor Adventure Camps and its new South Valley afterschool program.
Funds from the Tour de Force were raised during an event held the second weekend of July, which offered sports car drivers the opportunity to test their cars’ speed on Highway 75 near Phantom Hill.
“This is my proudest day of the year. We are helping out working families with the afterschool scholarships and through the Outdoor Adventure Camps, giving students an experience they wouldn’t have had otherwise,” said Whitney Slade, co-director of Sun Valley Tour de Force. “These programs help shape our future generations into caring, responsible, and mindful young people, it doesn’t get much better than this.”
The Sun Valley Tour de Force saw tremendous growth in its second year in attendance and sponsorships. It annihilated previous its first-year attendance records, said Slade.
In addition to the high-speed runs at Phantom Hill, the event includes a Huckleberry Drive to Smiley Creek Lodge, a downtown car show featuring collectibles and supercars, a Cars & Comedy fundraiser and the revealing of the Sun Valley Singer.
The fastest speed of the day was 253.01 miles per hour achieved by a 2019 Bugatti Chiron.
Attendees at the Cars & Comedy fundraiser had an opportunity to bid on a 2020 Indy 500 TAG Heuer VIP Experience, BMW driving school, the Portland Grand Prix and more.
One donor brought the crowd to its feet when he pledged a 15-seat Ford Sprinter passenger van valued at $35,000 to Idaho BaseCamp to help it with its transportation needs.
That donation plus the $65,000 check represented $100,000 worth of donations total, Slade noted.
In 2018 Sun Valley Tour de Force granted Idaho BaseCamp $16,000 for 52 public school fifth-grade students from Bellevue Elementary and Mackay School to attend a two-day camp at Idaho BaseCamp, which is located west of Mackay on Trail Creek Summit.
“The donation from Sun Valley Tour de Force is not about what it means to Idaho BaseCamp but what it means to our community,” said Mat Gershater, executive director of Idaho BaseCamp. “This money will be used to offer scholarships to the youth of our valley for Outdoor Adventure Education programs - from our fifth-grade outdoor adventure education program, to our IBC after school camp, and our summer Mountain Adventure Tours. And the van that means that the children are safe and riding in style!”
Sun Valley Tour de Force is produced by intrepid Events, Inc., a 501©(3) created to raise awareness and funds for nonprofits that strengthen and support the Wood River Valley community . The board is now accepting applications for Sun Valley Tour de Force nonprofit recipient to partner with in 2020 and 2021.
Applications are at www.sunvalleytourdeforce.com. They’re due Dec. 2, 2019.
The benefits of partnering go beyond the monetary donation, Slade noted, as organizations gain exposure to a new audience of donors and build stronger awareness.