INTERVIEW: i-tri girls Founder Theresa Roden On The Organization’s 2nd Annual Ride And Wine, 10th Anniversary, And More

i-tri girls, an empowering youth organization, is hosting its 2nd annual Ride And Wine Saturday, October 5.

We recently caught up with the organization’s Founder, Theresa Roden, about this year’s event, i-tri girls’ 10th anniversary, and more.

Tell us a little bit about this year’s Ride And Wine?

TR: So, we are gearing up, it’s our second Ride And Wine. Last year, we had terrible weather, so we’re pretty confident that this year we’ll have a good day. But, we also have a rain date on the 6th, the following Sunday, just in case. We’re really excited. We have quite a few people already register and there will be registration available the day of. People can choose from three different distances: 10 miles, 30 miles or 60 miles. Sharon McCobb, our Athletic Director, is leading the 10 mile group, I will be leading the 30 mile group and the 60 miles are pretty much self guided.

Where will the courses take participants?

TR: So, the 60 mile course goes from the Channing Daughters Winery in Bridgehampton, down to the ocean, along the ocean out to Montauk, and then back through Napeague, Northwest Woods, Sag Harbor and back to the sculpture garden at the home of Molly Channing. That’s where we’re having the luncheon and the wine tasting. The 30 mile ride has a similar course, but instead of going out to Montauk, they cut up through Springs and Napeague and do the same course through Sag Harbor. The 10 mile ride is a really nice, easy ride just from Bridgehampton down to the ocean. You even have a little time at the ocean and then ride back for lunch.

Is there anything new this year?

TR: Well, this year, at the luncheon, we will be celebrating i-tri girls’ 10th anniversary. We will be explaining our vision for the future and celebrating ten years. Building on the East End, ten schools in ten years and envisioning the future.

What does it mean to you to be celebrating i-tri girls’ 10th anniversary?

TR: It’s amazing. I reflect on all of the girls and the families that we’ve been able to be a part of their lives. Our first group of girls will be graduating college this year. We’re really looking back on all of their memories and taking that all in. It’s really exciting. We’re just thrilled at how we built such a great foundation here on the East End that we are now getting requests from all over Long Island and other places to bring empowerment through the sport of triathlon out into to the world.

What will proceeds from the Ride And Wine support?

TR: So, every dollar raised for the event will go directly to support the training and equipment necessary for girls. We’re foreseeing that we’ll have up to 200 girls participating in the program next year, and it cost us personally $2,500 per girl to get them from day one to the finish line.

This will be the very start of our annual appeal, which is called Giving Day, which is going to be on October 24. We will be raising funds through the month of October, leading up to our goal of raising $100,000 by October 24, which is our Giving Day.

You mentioned earlier that you expect to have about 200 girls next year. Where do they reside?

TR: The ten school districts that we are presently in are Montauk, Springs, East Hampton Middle School, Pierson Middle School, Bridgehampton, Tuckahoe, Southampton, Riverhead Middle School, William Paca Middle School, and William Floyd.

The Ride And Wine entry fee is $150. Arrival opens at 8 a.m.

The Starting Location is 1927 Scuttle Hole Road in Bridgehampton. For more information, visit itrigirls.org.