They came to P.E.I. with bikes, bibs and loved ones in mind

Julie Ricketts was among the dozens of cyclists in the BIG RIDE who are travelling 300 kilometres to raise money for cancer research in Atlantic Canada. (CTV News)

BORDEN-CARLETON, P.E.I. - More than 40 cyclists set out Friday on a 300-plus kilometre ride across Prince Edward Island to raise money for cancer research in Atlantic Canada, many of them driven by personal connections to the cause.

Anxious to start pedalling on a chilly morning, Julie Ricketts pulled on extra layers and pinned on her bib. While the ride is physically challenging, it’s not the toughest challenge she’s faced.

Three years ago, Ricketts completed her first BIG RIDE fundraiser, while unknowingly living with breast cancer. A few weeks later, she was diagnosed.

“I was never terrified or frightened. I just thought whatever comes next, we will deal with it,” Ricketts said. “I’m very lucky that it was caught early, and I will be around for many more BIG RIDES.”

Ricketts, who is from Halifax, credits the community of cyclists, organizers and founders she met through the fundraiser with giving her the strength she needed to get through surgery and treatment.

“It’s something that once you do, you don’t get it out of your head, and you just want to keep coming back and doing it,” she said.

Organized by GIVETOLIVE, the BIG RIDE aimed to raise $150,000 this year for the Beatrice Hunter Cancer Research Institute at Dalhousie University. As riders pumped tires and geared up for the three-day journey, they had already exceeded that goal.

Many of the participants had their own reasons for showing up, including some of the youngest in the crowd. Thirteen-year-old Sam Nunez lost his brother to cancer four years ago.

“I really enjoy doing the GIVETOLIVE projects,” Nunez said. He recruited his friend, Judah Boehm, 13, earlier this year.

“My grandpa suffered from cancer,” Boehm said, adding he was slightly nervous, but mostly eager to get started. “We got 100 kilometres in training rides and I’m pretty excited now.”

While most were from Nova Scotia, a couple Islanders were in the mix.

“The only way to actually start supporting and finding a cure or ways to treat it is through research,” said Judith Mendiolea. “These types of events are exactly what encourages that research.”

Over 18 years, riders have raised nearly $3 million for cancer research, said Todd McDonald, GIVETOLIVE’s co-founder.

The volunteer organization started “sort of by accident,” after he was inspired by his friend Tony Griffin, an Irish athlete who rode from Vancouver to Halifax to raise money for cancer research after losing his father to the disease.

McDonald and his then-girlfriend and now wife, agreed to help Griffin with that ride. McDonald had lost his mother to cancer, and his wife had lost one of her best friends who was in her 30s.

“We caught the bug, and the next year we wanted to do something equally as special,” McDonald said. With a group of 60, they cycled from Halifax to Austin, Texas.

After that experience, one cyclist suggested they should continue. So, more rides were designed, and people kept coming back. Riders have taken part in routes through Cape Breton, Banff, the Alps in Europe and more. This is the first year the BIG RIDE has been held on P.E.I.

“I think everybody likes to push and find where their limits are,” McDonald said. “We are not fast by any means, and we try to have a beer, some fun after the ride and just support one another.”

As they rolled into their first nutrition stop in Kensington, spirits were high for Ricketts and others.

“There’s no heat exhaustion, so it’s good,” she said with a laugh.

Each rider is tasked with raising at least $1,000, but Ricketts set her personal goal at $3,000.

“Just getting out there and doing something to contribute, it’s life changing,” she said. “I encourage people to find what’s important to them and do it.”

With plenty of road ahead, the riders pushed on, motivated by grit, determination and the memory of loved ones.