Tickets gone for Armstrong reception
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Fri January 12 2007
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Posted Jan 12, 2007
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About 30 still remain to hear the celebrity speak at the Greater D.M. dinner.
By DONNELLE ELLER
REGISTER BUSINESS WRITER
Instead of Mr. Pork Chop, Lycra bike shorts and beer, Lance Armstrong can expect Mr. Oman, business suits and wine on his next tour of Iowa.
One thing will be unchanged for Armstrong, the keynote speaker at the Greater Des Moines Partnership's annual dinner Tuesday and last summer's celebrity RAGBRAI participant: Iowans will be queuing up to see him.
A 100-person private reception with Armstrong, the seven-time Tour de France winner, sold out within days of the Partnership announcing he would speak at the group's annual event.
Susan Ramsey, the Partnership's spokeswoman, said the group could have easily sold another 100 tickets - at $75 apiece - to the hourlong private reception, held before the dinner. But a group that size would have given fans little time to schmooze - let alone get photos snapped - with Armstrong, she said.
Ramsey said only former President George Bush and former Secretary of State Colin Powell have attracted as many attendees as Armstrong. Only two dozen seats are left for the 1,540-seat event, held in Hy-Vee Hall at the Iowa Events Center.
At the dinner, Partnership board president Mark Oman, executive vice president of Wells Fargo's Home and Consumer Finance Group, will pass leadership of the group to incoming leader Jim Cownie.
Ramsey said Armstrong's battle against testicular cancer and inspiring consecutive victories at the Tour de France fits the Partnership's focus this year on wellness.
Top among the group's priorities is an emphasis on improving the recreational and entertainment opportunities in the metro area. The reason: The Partnership says the metro area faces a possible worker shortage of 60,000 workers in the next five years.
The group has called for an additional 1-cent sales tax to help make the area more attractive to workers and businesses. The $75 million raised annually from the proposed sales tax would be used to provide property tax relief, make money available for local projects, and expand the metro area's cultural and recreational opportunities.
Expanding and linking trails will be key to recreational improvements, Ramsey said. "You'll hear a lot about trails this year," she predicted.
Iowa also will see more of Armstrong, who has said he will ride in next summer's Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa. Last year, crowds of riders and townspeople greeted him as he rode part of the seven-day ride.
Armstrong has said he likes Iowa's first-in-the-nation presidential caucus, which gives the cyclist a platform to advocate for greater cancer research. Armstrong leads a foundation in Austin, Texas, that helps people in their fight against cancer and in funding cancer research.
Armstrong shouldn't expect his favorite coconut cream pie at the Partnership's dinner, though.
The Partnership will have chocolate mousse for dessert.
Reporter Donnelle Eller can be reached at (515) 284-8457 or deller@dmreg.com
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