Why Ride for Cancer?

People have asked me, why ride for cancer? One's "causes" are generally personal. This one is no different for me. Eighteen years ago this summer my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and eleven years - and countless battles later - cancer took her life. She was the fourth person in my immediately family to have been diagnosed with cancer. Three others since have been diagnosed with and have battled cancer. My first family member to die of cancer was in 1982; so you could say that cancer has been part of my life since then. Ministering to and supporting others who have cancer or have family members with cancer seems natural to me. So riding in honor of those battling cancer and in memory of those who've lost their battle with cancer just seems right. Because of my family's history, I have worked to reduce risks often associated with cancer; exercise has been a part of that plan. So this bicycle ride seems like a perfect blend of my own battle against cancer and supporting individuals who have had to live with cancer in their lives as well.

TWENTY-ONE days before the ride!