All summer, I’ve been writing about the number of doughnuts that Dunkin’ Donuts has been giving away after every Tampa Bay Rays home win.

In June, I blogged about how baseball fan, Rays supporter and avid cyclist [and good friend] Alan Snel was promising to do a Tour du Dunkin if the Rays made the playoffs.

Turns out that the folks at Dunkin’ heard about this and contacted Alan about doing a cooperative crossover marketing deal. The company just announced the deal today to sponsor Snel on his ride if the playoffs come to pass:

TAMPA BAY-AREA CYCLIST PLEDGES SPECIAL
RIDE IF RAYS MAKE POSTSEASON APPEARANCE

Alan Snel plans to pedal to all Dunkin’ Donuts within 100-mile radius of Tampa Bay – in one day!

CANTON, Mass. - With only one month remaining in what has arguably been baseball’s most compelling story this season, the Tampa Bay Rays continue to push for the team’s first-ever playoff appearance. Inspired by his favorite team’s terrific season, Tampa Bay area journalist/blogger, bicyclist, and Dunkin’ Donuts loyalist, Alan Snel, recently vowed to do something special involving three of his passions. If the Rays make the playoffs, the day after the team clinches, Snel will take a 100-mile cycling excursion, stopping at as many Dunkin’ Donuts locations in the Tampa Bay-area as possible. The Rays are currently four-and-a-half games ahead of the second place Boston Red Sox in their division.

Snel, whose journalism career has spanned more than a quarter-century at newspapers across the country, is also one of Tampa Bay’s most ardent cycling enthusiasts. Every October, Snel organizes the “Bicycle Bash by the Bay,” a festival that advocates and celebrates all forms of bicycling in the Tampa Bay area. “Bicycling is beautiful,” says Snel. “It’s also a good way to stay in shape and save money otherwise spent on gasoline.”

Snel has also been a Rays fan since the team’s inception and, like many Rays fans, has reaped the rewards of Dunkin’ Donuts’ “Rays Win, You Win” promotion. Over the last two seasons, fans have received a free donut at participating area Dunkin’ Donuts by simply mentioning that the Rays won the day before. Connecting his love of cycling, his love of the Rays, and his love of Dunkin’ Donuts, Snel’s solo, celebratory excursion is expected to include a dozen stops along a 100-mile journey through Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.  The dozen stops would be nearly 15 percent of the 84 Dunkin’ Donuts locations in the Tampa Bay region.

“The Rays are doing something special, and I wanted to do my share to show how much I appreciate the fun both the Rays and Dunkin’ Donuts have delivered to Rays’ fans this season,” said Snel, whose blog can be read at http://alansnel.blogspot.com.

To reward Rays fans (as well as non-Rays fans) during his excursion, Snel will be randomly distributing rechargeable Dunkin’ Donuts gift cards and coupons for free Dunkin’ Donuts products to customers at each of the dozen restaurants he visits. And, to reward himself, at each of these stops, Snel plans to sample from Dunkin’ Donuts new DDSMART menu, which includes better-for-you products such as a Reduced-Calorie Berry Smoothie, Egg White Flatbread Sandwiches, and Iced Coffee made with skim milk. 

“Anytime I ride long distances, I’m always looking for something I can grab and take on-the-go,” Snel said.  “Reduced-Calorie Smoothies and Iced Coffee with skim milk are refreshing and help to keep my active lifestyle on track.”

Dunkin’ Donuts DDSMART menu items include both new and existing Dunkin’ Donuts food and beverages available all day that meet at least one of the following criteria: 25 percent fewer calories; 25 percent less sugar, fat, saturated fat or sodium than comparable fare, and/or contain ingredients that are nutritionally beneficial.

“The Rays have been the toast of the area all season and, come late-September, we hope to celebrate the Rays’ first playoff berth with Alan’s Tampa Bay bike ride,” said Natalie Ostroski, Dunkin’ Donuts North Florida Field Marketing Manager.  “We are excited about the Rays and thrilled that Alan Snel runs on Dunkin’.  We also look forward to partnering with Alan at the ‘Bicycle Bash by the Bay’ in October.”

Interesting. One hundred miles might seem like a lot, but Snel every year does a circumnavigation of Lake Okeechobee on his bike along the rim ditch. That’s 125 miles in one day.

His tour itinerary, if the TdD happens, will be:

Start: Near Hillsborough Avenue and Nebraska Avenue.

Mile 2: Hillsborough Avenue, near 34th Street.

Mile 5: Busch Boulevard, near 30th Street.

Mile 7: Busch Boulevard near 56th Street.

Mile 23: Bruce B.Downs across from Flatwoods county park

Mile 35: Fletcher Avenue, near I-75

Mile 40: Fowler Avenue, near I-275

Mile 47: Fletcher Avenue, near I-275

Mile 52: North Dale Mabry, near Busch

Mile 57: Hillsborough Avenue, near North Dale Mabry

Mile 64: Hillsborough Avenue near Sheldon Road

Mile 82: Gandy Boulevard at Manhattan Avenue in south Tampa

Mile 95: The new “green” store being built on 4th Street in St. Petersburg

Mile 100: End at Tropicana Field