Podiatrist Turned Politician Walks the Distance from L.A. to San Francisco.

Business Editors

ORANGE COUNTY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 28, 2004

Congressional candidate hopeful David Rizzo announces today the achievement of covering 425 miles (roughly the distance between Los Angeles and San Francisco) on foot while walking door-to-door to meet voters within California's 44th congressional district. In the process, Rizzo claims to have knocked on the doors of 15,000 voters, attempting to convince them to elect him as the Republican nominee on March 2, 2004.

Rizzo hopes to unseat incumbent Ken Calvert for the district that includes the cities of Riverside, Corona, San Clemente and much of San Juan Capistrano.

Hundreds of square miles are involved, and given that the average population of a congressional district hovers at around 660,000, most candidates vying for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives can be forgiven for not "walking the district." But Rizzo is a man on a mission. His marathon march began promptly on October 1 and has continued almost unabated every weekday since.

"Being the underdog, I knew I had to meet voters face-to-face to introduce myself and hear their concerns," says 52-year-old Rizzo, an L.A. native who currently resides in Fullerton, Calif. "In the process of walking five miles a day for five months, I've worn out three pairs of dress shoes and made a mess of my feet. Every 'overuse' foot problem that I've treated my patients for, I now have. I have a much greater sympathy for their complaints."

Aside from being a doctor of podiatric medicine, Rizzo feels that his expertise as a traffic expert offers the most benefit for those residing in the district. Better known as "Dr. Roadmap" -- via five years of traffic reporting on several radio stations, 250 commuting columns, and as author of a popular commuting guide, "Freeway Alternates" -- Rizzo's focus on solving traffic problems stems from his belief that local issues are just as important as national issues.

"As the late Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill astutely pointed out, `All politics is local'," notes Rizzo. "In almost every poll, the ills of traffic congestion continuously rank as a top concern of Southern California residents. A multi-car pile up on the eastbound Riverside Freeway at 5:30 p.m. affects them far more than a roadside bomb going off in the Middle East."