Travelin’

I have been traveling quite a bit over the last few months for work, which has been cutting into my Pan-Mass Challenge training. I was in Minneapolis in April and Salt Lake City in June. I just returned from a trip to Portland, Oregon and will head to Tallahassee in July. While I am really enjoying the travel and the work, it unfortunately means I have that many fewer weekends on the bike.

I did, however, take some time while I was in Utah to drive down to Moab, home of Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. My original plan was to rent a bike and ride the 60-mile loop through Arches National Park, but thanks to some sound advice from a woman at the Visitor Center, I opted instead to drive through Arches and bike Canyonlands National Park’s “Island in the Sky.” I had never biked at high elevation before, and it really took its toll (yes, it was the altitude, not the lack of training, that caused my sluggishness!).

I’m glad I was able to get 34 difficult miles in the saddle in Utah, because the PMC is only five weeks away! Where did this summer go? Oh right, it just started. It’s really time to start ramping up my training, but also my fundraising. My goal is to be a “heavy hitter” and raise $6,400, 50% higher than the PMC’s fundraising requirement. Expect to hear from me soon about making your donation.

Cancer won’t go away without cutting edge research like what doctors and researchers are doing at Boston’s Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. 100% of your donation goes straight to the Jimmy Fund, Dana-Farber’s fundraising arm, so you can be sure your hard-earned dollars are going as far as possible to find cures for cancer. Be a part of a cancer-free future. Donate today.

The New Face of Cancer Care

In January, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute opened its Yawkey Center for Cancer Care, a state-of-the-practice patient-centered treatment facility that is advancing cancer care in many ways. The Yawkey Center was created with guidance from patients and families in order to advance clinical care, optimize patient safety, and enhance the patient experience, all while providing a welcoming and nurturing environment.

The 275,000 square-foot space accommodates more than 100 exam rooms, more than 150 infusion spaces, and 20 consultation rooms. The building's soaring atrium is a welcoming presence to the world-class facility, a calming presence in the lives of those going through one of life's toughest challenges.

One of my Team Kinetic Karma teammates, Stephen, works as an architect for Dana-Farber and had a hand in the design and construction of this amazing facility. He gave my teammates and me a tour of the amazing facility. It's kind of amazing how they were able to make the entire facility non-hospital-like without limiting the abilities of the doctors and nurses to do their jobs (saving lives).

Here's a photo of the team on the Pan-Mass Challenge (PMC) Bridge to Progress, a skybridge that links two buildings at Dana-Farber. It showcases the PMC and its role in supporting innovative cancer research and compassionate cancer care at Dana-Farber. It was an honor to see our team's name inscribed on a plaque honoring PMC teams that had raised large amounts of money for Dana-Farber!

Dana-Farber decided to permanently commemorate the PMC through the construction of the Yawkey Center. Yesterday, Dana-Farber and PMC officials unveiled Pan-Massachusetts Challenge Plaza, which spans the length of the building along Brookline Avenue and is the first space people enter when visiting the center. The PMC is very worthy of this honor because it contributed $183 million to Dana-Farber's $1.18 bllion Mission Possible campaign. It's great to know that everyone who steps foot in the new Yawkey Center will be reminded of the PMC's important role in the fight against cancer.

If you've donated to the PMC in support of my rides over the past 8 years, you've had a hand in making the Yawkey Center everything that it is today. Of course though, the new building isn't enough to cure cancer. We are still riding and fundraising to ensure that cancer becomes history. Please make a donation today and be part of a cancer-free future. Our lives depend on it.