Hi all,

The first weekend in August I will again hop on my bike and ride nearly 200 miles from Sturbridge to Provincetown for the Pan-Mass Challenge for the 10th time! The PMC itself has been running for over 40 years and there are a lot of riders who have done a large chunk of those years, so in relative terms, I still feel like a newer rider. This year, however, is huge for the PMC and they expect that the total amount raised over the 40 + years as an organization will surpass One Billion dollars! The amount of good that this money has done over the years with cancer treatments is immeasurable and that is thanks to all of you!

As I look back on my experience last year, waking up the morning of Day 1 really sticks out to me. I received an email from my cousin Dan at 3:48 am just saying, “Good luck Tim. Stay safe and healthy!”. Great words of support … and yes I was awake then since we get up very early to be able to be riding on the bike by 5:30am! Dan has been one of the people I have ridden/ran in honor of for years and he was always just supportive and thoughtful like this. I found out a few weeks later that Dan was up so early since his cancer had been spreading it was resulting in some odd hours awake for him. Unfortunately Dan passed away at the end of November from his chronic cancer. There are lots of people I ride in memory or honor of every year including my dad, my uncle, friends, and other family members. This year Dan will even more help drive me to keep pedaling to the finish.

We still have some work to do to find more cures for cancer. I am committed to doing what I can, which is to take a few days to ride a bike. Cancer treatment has come a very long way in the 40 years of the PMC and what is a reality now was completely unimaginable back then. Dan was able to have much better treatment options throughout his cancer journey than if he had been diagnosed when the PMC started. This progress is because of people like you. I appreciate all donations made to the PMC as well as any encouraging words or thoughts!

Thanks!

Tim