If you get a chance to return the favor and inspire someone who has lifted you up, it’s a really good feeling.
That’s exactly what we did Sunday during the last leg of the PMC.
Denise and I paused at the water stop in Wellfleet, sitting briefly on an ice couch, rehydrating for the final 20 miles as we grabbed some fruit. It had been another great ride on a delicious weekend marked by dry air and hints of late summer morning crispness. We relished some new conversations with fellow riders, a few reunions with others, and the solitary spaces we found traversing the Cape anew on this day.
And then she spotted them.
Four or five guys in distinctive full-body riding jerseys, each one adorned with scores of multi-colored cancer ribbons. The ribbon riders.
This was the group who encouraged us both to finish during our first ride in 2012, to crest the final hurdle, just as husband and wife were suspended in momentary doubt on the Provincetown dunes.
She approached them in the parking lot, explaining how much their push -- in both a verbal and emotional sense -- had meant a year before. “You got this, almost there ... you got this ... Nice job!” they had told us.
The words rolled off, and we could feel they truly meant it. One of the younger guys explained that they’ve been doing this for several years. They look especially for first-time riders who need that little boost. Boy did we get it, as I’m sure many others do.
These guys probably hadn’t anticipated hearing about this. One thanked us for actually inspiring them -- for adding another spark. It meant a lot to them to hear that their effort made a difference both on and beyond the road.
We took off from this last stop before they did. Before long she heard a familiar voice cheering from behind, “There’s Denise ...” I received similar greetings as they passed by, those final dunes soon within our sights again.
There are many other snapshots from a magical PMC weekend.
We noticed even more handmade signs and placards along the route, especially those in support of a patient, or riders, or in remembrance.
One sign read: “He had 2 more years because of you,” and this tugged at us. Another along Rte. 6A in Yarmouth held up the memory of a boy named Matt, just before we came upon a family standing in a driveway who continued cheering us and others on.
Once again, and this time even more pronounced, approaching the Pedal Partners stop in Lakeville -- where many riding teams matched with children in treatment meet their charges -- we slowed up. We wanted to take in each poster of the children and teens, every face and smile, and I read each child’s name aloud to myself. The event is not about speed or power networking or excessive chit chat. There is solace and ongoing connections, and we find this moment helps define what it is all about.
We met Hannah’s family there again! Her little sister Fiona rode a bicycle on the grass after the Hughes family drove over from Ballston Spa, N.Y., to join with Team Huckleberry for the third straight year. The Hucks are the group I wrote about in Closer By The Mile, who rode an extra day in 2011 and 2012 to support Hannah, who was treated for acute lymphoblastic leukemia. She and is now 10 years old and doing very well, with a plucky summer bursting with activity: her drama club, swimming, and family trips to Acadia National Park and Washington, D.C.
While the group of 14 or so riders did not leave from the Hughes’s driveway this year, their reunion was no less joyful, and Hannah’s parents Rana and Jeff were joined by Hannah’s grandparents. As we met even briefly, Dave Grossman, leader of the Hucks team, gave both Denise and I lasting hugs. We continue to grasp and cherish this bond.
On the road climbing hills into Truro we met some members of Team ROAR, Reindeers On A Ride, who bring magic to children at the Jimmy Fund Clinic. They support patient and family programs at DFCI and do things like help ease families’ financial stress during the holidays. I had not heard of their team before and here they were, churning along, reindeers atop each helmet.
We saw a team of maybe 10 supporters at the Family Finish with t-shirts stunning in their simplicity. This is paraphrased, but the phrases went something like:
“Where there is hope, a cure is in reach ...Where there is faith, a cure is in reach ... Where there is love, a cure is in reach.”
This year we met a variety of new people: a first-time rider who flew in from Texas; Jimmy, a plumber from Fairhaven who lost his mother; family members of some of the PMC staff -- both those paid, and volunteers. We supported a first-time rider at her fundraiser where a comedic hypnotist left us in stitches -- and glad we did not volunteer on stage! We met Katie from Plymouth, who coordinates a new Kids Ride in her town and so thoughtfully stopped by to meet us.
This year Billy Starr drew upon the linkages people continue to make. The intersection between how Bostonians and New Englanders -- and citizens everywhere -- responded to the marathon bombings with compassion and resiliency. Generosity beyond boundaries. Community. “We are all Boston,” he said. Linked to the PMC’s ongoing commitment. Our connections. Sustaining the flexibility that the PMC provides Dana-Farber for research and patient care. A movement.
This year, some 5,506 or so cyclists and 3,500 volunteers, will help lift us further even in 2014.
- Ken Brack, August 7 - original post can be found HERE. Ken Brack is the author of "Closer By The Mile" - the story of the country’s most successful athletic fundraiser, the Pan-Mass Challenge.
