Free Olympic Dream by Matt Christopher, Karen Meyer

from the Olympics, he thought. But it’s a step.
    He wondered whether Billy Torrant would enter the race. It would be kind of fun to have a buddy out there. Then he thought
     of someone else he’d like to have out there. Someone who loved cycling. An idea took root in his head.
    That evening, he took his father aside.
    “Dad, are you going to be in your office tomorrow?” he asked.
    “Sure,” said Mr.Cannon. “Why?”
    “Mind if I stop by?”
    “Of course you can,” said Mr. Cannon. “Anytime you like.”
    The next day was an off day for the Rails to Trails project. Doug did his practice run, then got cleaned up and went down
     to Mr. Cannon’s office. He was armed with a pledge book he had picked up from Red earlier.
    “Dad,” he said. “Will you sign up to sponsor me for the Tour de Lakeridge? See, it’s a charity event. You pledge to pay so
     much if I complete the distance I sign up for.”
    “Doug, nothing would make me happier than to be a sponsor. Where do I sign?” asked his father.
    He took the pen, started to sign, then stopped.“What’s this?” he asked, pointing to a notation Doug had added to the pledge form.
    “The money collected is being donated to cancer research. Riders can leave that space blank and donate their collections anonymously.
     Or they can write in someone’s name and give the money on behalf of that person. I decided to fill it in. But don’t tell,
     okay? I want it to be a surprise.”
    Mr. Cannon grinned, signed, and handed the book back to Doug.
    “Is it okay if I ask a few of the others?”
    “Go right ahead,” said Mr. Cannon. “They hit me up often enough, and this is definitely a worthwhile cause.”
    Doug circled the office and collected quite a few sponsors with generous pledges. He thanked everyone and was heading out
     the door when he heard his father’s longtime assistant, Mr. Atwood, say quietly, “I can hardly believe that’s Doug Cannon.
     He’s really trimmed down and looks so healthy!”
    Doug couldn’t see it, but someone else had overheard the same remark. Inside his office, Mr. Cannon’s chest swelled with pride.

9
    Collecting pledges turned out to be the easy part. Getting himself prepped was a lot harder.
    It wasn’t simply practicing the twelve-mile run. He knew he could do that. It was everything else—like showing himself cycling
     in front of a zillion people. Despite the nice comments he heard, like the one in his father’s office, there were still a
     few people who still saw the old Doug Cannon when they looked at him.
    He tried to avoid checking himself out in the mirror, but he still caught glimpse of bulges here and there. Those rolls didn’t
     just disappear like magic. He still had a way to go.
    And what if something unexpected happened during the event. Pepper Meade and the gang were due back any day. Leave it to them
     to do something stupidlike throw banana peels in front of him. That’s just the sort of thing they’d think was funny. Well, maybe they wouldn’t
     even know the event was taking place—much less that he was in it.
    Doug groaned. There were so many things that could go wrong. Maybe he ought to just chuck it all and spend his time practicing
     video games on his computer. Someday the arcade would reopen.
    His thoughts were interrupted by Kate shouting to his mother in the dining room. “I’ll be there in a minute,” she said. “I
     want to watch the local news on TV to see the long-range weather forecast.”
    “Well, I’m ready for dinner,” said Doug. “I’m starved.”
    They were camped on the living room floor watching TV.
    As he got up to leave, the TV announcer caught him by surprise.
    “A final note before the weather. The video arcade damaged by fire will be open for business at its new location in just a
     week. The grand opening is scheduled for next Saturday.
”
    Next Saturday! The same day as the Tour de Lake-ridge! Rats! Well, it would just have to wait.
    Doug had been training