Cyclists from the annual 7 Days fundraiser for pancreatic cancer will be passing through Huntsville from May 28 to 30, raising money and awareness for the cancer with the highest mortality rate.
The riders will bike over 1,100 kilometres from May 27 to June 2, traversing a loop from Peterborough to Huntsville and back. Founder Gord Townley created the event to honour his late mother Lorraine, who died from pancreatic cancer. When the Townley family stepped away from running the event two years ago, Pancreatic Cancer Canada took over running the event and brought volunteer organizer Jack McKittrick on board to plan the routes and lead the tour. Last year’s ride raised $180,000, and this time around, the fundraising total is on track to hit $250,000.
“Throughout the week, we’ll have close to 50 people ride in portions of this, so that feels really good that we’ve managed to start to build it back up and hopefully even build it bigger than what we had in the past,” McKittrick said. “I’d personally like to see this become a really huge ride that people are aware of around Ontario.”
McKittrick envisions it as a signature event with a few hundred cyclists participating each year, so he’s dedicated himself to growing the event. He originally got involved with the 7 Days ride in 2018 in memory of his friend Ron.
The two of them were childhood friends who met at a local church choir around the age of eight. They played sports, attended high school together and remained friends as adults. Before a group birthday trip to Calgary, Ron said something that ended up having more of an impact than he could ever know at the time.
“My one friend didn’t want to go and [Ron] said, ‘Look, I’m going because I’ve seen too many other friends that I’ve had to bury recently because of illnesses. So I’m going.’ So we all went,” McKittrick said. “Then a year later, he got diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, so it was very astute of him to make that memory happen.”
After Ron was diagnosed, it wasn’t long before he died, which is often the case with pancreatic cancer. McKittrick said it was hard to watch him go through that process, so when one of his cycling friends brought up the 7 Days ride a few years later, it resonated with him as a chance to commemorate Ron while raising money for a crucial field of research.
Since his first 7 Days ride in 2018, he’s raised $32,000 through the event. It’s become a key part of his cycling life and a reason for him to stay in shape each year. He plans on continuing the ride for as long as he can manage it.
“I feel very proud I was able to raise that much money,” he said. “I never would have imagined I could do that when I started doing this ride, so I feel really good about my contribution to the community in terms of helping give back to Pancreatic Cancer.”
One of the best parts of the ride is it gives participants a chance to explore new parts of the province. For this year’s route, McKittrick decided to incorporate the gate-to-gate route through Algonquin Park. It’s an iconic ride that many cyclists have on their to-do list, and it allows the event to reach people throughout Muskoka, he said.
Riding in late spring usually means avoiding the traffic of summer, but for the cars they do encounter, McKittrick said the cyclists appreciate the support of drivers who give them space and share the road. The time of year usually also means temperate weather, though they have encountered their hot or stormy days.
“There are some days you are riding and it’s not great weather,” he said. “It’s raining, it’s cold and you’re kind of thinking about giving up, but I think about Ron at those times and what he went through and that helps me push through those moments.”
Pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death in Canada, and roughly 50 per cent of patients die within four months of diagnosis. Though the five-year survival rate has improved marginally in the last decade, about 90 per cent of people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer die from the disease.
Since it’s asymptomatic in its early stages, more research is needed to improve detection and treatment. Early detection for other cancers like breast and cervical cancer increases the five-year survival rate to at least 90 per cent. For McKittrick, that goal will be top of mind as he bikes the route and remembers his friend Ron.
“From the time somebody is aware they’ve got it until they pass on is usually measured in months, so it’s really difficult how fast it does take somebody,” he said. “For us, we’re doing this, obviously, so that we can help figure out ways to identify pancreatic cancer way sooner and bring up the survival rate.”
To learn more about 7 Days or to make a donation, click here.
