Barely Three Weeks to go before "The Ride"

Sorry for no post on Sunday! Memorial Cup was on and my hometown team the Halifax Mooseheads were in it so I was watching that! And they won so it was great!

Well, it is only three weeks away until the "Ride to Conquer Cancer" is upon us. In just a few weeks, (June 15-16) me and almost 4000 others will be riding their bikes from Vancouver to Seattle as a conclusion to this years fund raising event. Training has been going well, and fund raising has gone better than expected (My web page for it! www.conquercancer.ca/goto/eamonnc). When I started out this year I set a goal for the team I was starting (Team Phoenix, team jerseys come tomorrow! So excited!) to raise $20000 for cancer research. We have already passed that mark by $3000 now and I couldn't be prouder of everyone involved (especially Sara! Man she carried a lot of the work!). This event for me gives me personally a lot of satisfaction and pride in helping out raise money to fight back against cancer. It probably is the most satisfying thing I have ever been a part of. 

The ride itself is great fun. Every person in the event who is a cancer survivor has the option of having a yellow flag attached to their bike. I personally like identifying as a survivor and seeing all the others out there too. I feel it can give people a bit of hope that they can still do great things after cancer. I will never forget when I started training during chemo, I could barely go one km on my bike, now I do 240 km over this weekend. I like knowing that things got better.

Me and my yellow flag 2012

One of my favorite parts is at camp at the end of the first day. Not just because I no longer have to peddle any more for that day, and my butt gets a break from the seat, but because we get to hear the total funds raised. Last year, it was $11.2 million, which suffice to say is a huge number. It has gotten larger each year and I can't wait to see what it gets up to this year!

Me at the finish line 2012

I find it hard to write about the ride sometimes. I really enjoy. It was my goal to be able to do it while I was sick, and I love raising the money each year. It is surely something I will continue with for a long time. I do have fears about not being able to do it. I usually have a check up around the same time. I have x-rays next week. It is just a very emotional time for me.I love it. I am scared to lose it (go back to being sick). I know how much it helps people, and I want to continue to help. I know how much it helped me.

Part of me wonders how "selfish" it makes me to do something like this. I know I got started in this because I got sick. I often tell people the biggest make I have made in my life was waiting until I got sick to get involved with something of this magnitude. I often wonder how much I could of done if I had of started earlier in life with events like this. So I always try to encourage to find an event, whatever the good cause and get involved. Helping people not only makes you feel good, but it makes others feel good too, and in some way, that matters more to me. I don't want people to have to go through what I did.

So I will close just by saying thanks to all the readers out there, and I hope in some small way this blog and my writing helps people. I know it helps me, and without it, and events like "The Ride" I wouldn't of met so many wonderful people out there.

Take care!

Eamonn

Last years team, "Riders for Ryders" at camp!