---
title: Why I PMC - Nicole Peterson
description: Nicole talks about her 3-year PMC journey
---

[PMC Blog ](https://www.pmc.org/blog)

# [Why I PMC - Nicole Peterson](https://www.pmc.org/blog/why-i-pmc-nicole-peterson)

 Written by [Nicole Peterson](https://www.pmc.org/blog/author/nicole-peterson) | Apr 28, 2026 5:27:32 PM

###### Why I PMC guest blog by [Nicole Peterson](https://profile.pmc.org/NP0118), 3-year [Team Beachcomber](https://profile.pmc.org/TB0182) rider

I signed up for the Pan-Mass Challenge in 2024 as a way to give back and honor my friends and family who have been affected by cancer—especially my friend and high school teammate, Courtney Quinno-Lynch, who passed away from non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2015 at just 19 years old. Courtney was bold, outspoken, and lived fiercely. I feel compelled to live that way for her—to try new things and step outside my comfort zone.

What began as a personal challenge-buying a bike, learning to ride, fundraising, and training-quickly became something much bigger than me. Everyone I met had a story. Cancer has touched all of us, and it can leave you feeling helpless against something so strong and relentless. The Pan-Mass Challenge gives you a way to fight back—a way to turn grief into action and love into miles. Since I started riding, even more cancer diagnoses have impacted my family and friends. That reality only deepens my commitment. I can't take away the diagnoses. I can't fight the battles for them. But I can ride. I can raise money. I can say their names. I can show up.

 

[View full post](https://www.pmc.org/blog/why-i-pmc-nicole-peterson)

```json
{
  "@context" : "http://schema.org",
  "@type" : "BlogPosting",
  "author" : {
    "@type" : "Person",
    "name" : "Nicole Peterson"
  },
  "dateModified" : "2026-04-28T17:27:32.650Z",
  "datePublished" : "2026-04-28T17:27:32Z",
  "headline" : "Why I PMC - Nicole Peterson",
  "image" : {
    "@type" : "ImageObject",
    "height" : 827,
    "url" : "https://2756700.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/2756700/IMG_5428.jpeg",
    "width" : 620
  },
  "mainEntityOfPage" : "https://www.pmc.org/blog/why-i-pmc-nicole-peterson",
  "publisher" : {
    "@type" : "Organization",
    "logo" : {
      "@type" : "ImageObject",
      "height" : 60.0,
      "url" : "https://wintercycle.pmc.org/hubfs/assets/images/logos/PMC-Google-AMP.png",
      "width" : 600.0
    },
    "name" : "The Spoke"
  }
}
```