Riverside Police Department

A Message from Chief Sergio Diaz

May/June 2012

The 28th Annual Baker to Vegas Challenge Cup Relay was held on April 21 and 22, 2012. This 120-mile relay race spans from Baker, California to Las Vegas, Nevada. Thousands of runners represented 268 teams from law enforcement and military agencies throughout the U.S. and several foreign countries.

This year I had the privilege of watching our Riverside Police Department Baker to Vegas team compete. They performed amazingly, completing the race in 14 hours 49 minutes and 52 seconds. This is 40 minutes better than last year’s performance. Of 268 teams, the RPD runners finished 4th in our division and 10th overall. I was also pleased to see the fellowship and support offered to the team. The runners displayed camaraderie with teammates and the volunteers were on hand to assist with any issue that arose. It was wonderful to see the friendship and cooperation toward a common goal.

I commend the team's leadership-Aurelio Melendrez, Matt Cash and Erich Feimer- for their commitment and dedication. I would also like to recognize the volunteers whose vital role is often overlooked. Finally, I would like to thank the sponsors without whose support, our team would not be able to compete. Please join me in congratulating the RPD Baker-to-Vegas team on their performance:

Runners: Cadet T. Khan, Cadet B. Reimer, Officer K. Kauk, Officer R. Serrato, Officer A. Barnhill, Officer G. Cleary, Officer E. Garcia, Officer S. Casteel, Officer Ed. Garcia, Det. J. Czobakowski, Officer E. Feimer, Officer C. Jones, Officer J. Payne, Det. M. Cash, Officer T. Paes, Officer B. Stennett, Officer V. De La Torre, Officer R. Monreal, Officer C. Ouk, Officer J. Elliott, Det. A. Melendrez, Officer C. Payne, Det. A. Tillett, Det. M. Lewis, Sgt. F. Assumma, Sgt. C. Milby, Sgt. J. Hutzler, and Lt. V. Hardin

Volunteers: Mike Perea, Mary Perea, Jay Wood, Lori Wood, Lori Mackey, Ryan Mchugh, Steve Mchugh, Brenda Gonzalez, Julia Vazquez, Robert Casteel, Jana Cook, Traci Dose, Courtney Dose, Rick Hougland, Roberta Hopewell, Dan Russell, Kathleen Russell, Jim Lopez, Lyza Hatzidakis, Greg Matthews, Cathy Nelson, Millie Burns, Becky De La Rosa, John De La Rosa, Josh Ontko, and Stacey Ontko

Major Sponsors:
Riverside County Supervisor John Tavaglione
Riverside Police Administrators Association
Riverside Police Officers’ Association
The Running Center
 

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