Ok, this year is a little different

So this year didn't start as planned. about 48 hours after returning home from a family trip to Australia, the home we were living in and all of our belongings burned to ash in the Palisades Fire. It was shocking, heartbreaking, and really stunned our family. We found temporary housing, many of you contributed to replacing all of Sebastian's toys, craft supplies and books, and we carried on. Of all that we lost, Vanessa and I lament the photos, the memories, and the irreplaceable mementos most of all. Sebastian will never see the photos of Vanessa cruising around Europe, or me in my glory days in pads and helmets. Boxes of photos of my mom and Dave in their youth (and in incredibly spectacular outfits I might add) lost to history.

Through all of it, we tried to anchor on things that we had to look forward to. Most of all, it was our new home that was under construction which was in the evacuation zone and adjacent to the worst of the fire. We watched the news over the coming days and I visited the site by sneaking past police barricades while ash and smoke was in the air and homes burned on the hill across the canyon. Despite moments that caused some of the most nauseating feelings of my life, and times where I felt as helpless than when my mom's passing was imminent, the house survived. For me, also, it was PMC. I held to thoughts of seeing family, friends, and teammates doing something that would bring good, while there was little else to look forward to. I registered, started thinking of designs for this year's jerseys, and thanks to Palisades connections at Pedal Mafia (and Ventum Racing), reloaded with a new bike and gear. Now I am back on the road, training and doing something that feels like a tether to something normal and familiar, that I get to do and look forward to every year.

I hope you'll support me this year. It's already been a wild one. If you don't know the whole story about my connection and motiviation for riding, feel free to read on.

***

Most everyone who would come to this page knows my family's story with cancer. The short story is that cancer sucks, it's killed a lot of people I am close to, and I don't want it to kill me before I am old enough to see my son become a man.

For those who don't know what got me riding in the first place, my mom had 4 serious bouts with cancer... the surgery, chemo, radiation types of bouts. Turned out she had a genetic predisposition to developing cancer cells, and she eventually passed in 2014. Her brother Dave rode in PMC (along with my Aunt Michele and Team Lizard) since the 80's, always riding in her honor. Unexpectedly, Dave passed from a gliobastoma in 2017, hammering home the idea fact that cancer comes in many forms and leads to tragic outcomes, often in a hurry and when it is least expected.

I've lost many others that I am close to, my maternal grandfather, other uncles and aunts on my father's side of the family, cousins, and more than a couple friends, colleagues and other close connections. A number of my cousins and relatives ar still living proof, survivors who we want to ride for to fight anything that might come back.

As for me, I'm ok for now...I started preventative testing earlier than most because of my genetic predispositions, and I feel I'm just lucky to have the opportunity to get early insights and detection than most of the world's population. I'll feel even better when we have some reliable ways to detect, treat, and cure cancer. Hopefully in my lifetime so Sebastian can spend time with an old dad, but even more importantly we get it done so Sebastian can grow old with his family in the future.

I'm getting back in the saddle again, joining my family of Lizards (Team Lizard, that is), and thousands of others to keep fighting to make a dent in this thing. Help me out, come for the ride (without having to put on any spandex or Chamois Butt'r) and support something great!

Thank you,

Danny