For the last four years, I’ve stood at the end of the street and cheered as I watched my mom and thousands of other riders complete day one of the Pan-Mass Challenge. Slowly but surely other family and friends have joined my mom. I’ve always thought maybe one day I’ll do it with them, but never followed up. Then last summer, I asked myself why haven’t I decided to join them? I could come up with a whole host of reasons. I’m a commitment-phobe and the idea of committing in January to training for and riding a whole 86 miles on a hot August day isn’t my cup of tea. I’m fair skinned and develop tan lines quickly and I’m vain enough to fear the farmer’s tan that will inevitably develop while training. I don’t like riding my bike down hills because I’m afraid of losing control. But after developing this (much longer) list, I realized none of the reasons are compelling enough. The truth is cancer sucks. I’ve watched some of the people who mean the most to me go through this devastating battle. It is heart wrenching and unfair. So if scaring myself a little can help cure cancer, then by all means I should do it. The Pan-Mass Challenge’s motto is ‘commit, you’ll figure it out’. So I’ve committed to raising $3700 dollars, 100% of which will go directly to Dana Farber and cancer research. Hopefully I’ll figure out how to ride fearlessly downhill and combat that awful farmer’s tan. It would mean the world to me if you would consider donating to my ride to help me reach my goal (I would also appreciate sunscreen recommendations).