Today I rode 25 miles in Seattle for a cancer fundraiser called Obliteride. This was the 4th year that Obliteride has taken place, and over the course of 4 years it has raised over 8 million dollars to help with cancer research. 

A year ago while out camping, my family was sitting around the campfire and taking turns saying what things they’d like to do in the future. My sister S said that she’d love to join the Obliteride because she was inspired by a blog she read. The blogger, Jai, was the mom of a child battling cancer. I told my sister I’d love to join in. So a year later, my sister, my parents, my hubby, and I rode 25 miles for Obliteride.

So what exactly is the Obliteride? How does it work and who does it help?  Here is an excerpt from the official Obliteride page:

we remember who we’re riding for; the loved ones who lost their battle, those currently battling, for kids who will be impacted by this disease and all those survivors who are still with us today because of research happening at Fred Hutch. This bike ride is a journey where everyone is riding for the same thing – better treatments, better outcomes and better lives.

ALL ABOUT FRED HUTCH

Fred Hutch has been the proud home of Nobel-prize winning research, including the development and refinement of bone marrow transplantation. Bone Marrow Transplantation has boosted survival rates from nearly zero to 90 percent for certain types of Leukemia.

Over one million people around the world have received bone marrow transplants to-date.

Fred Hutch hosts the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI), one of the National Institutes of Health’s longest-running longitudinal study on women’s health. The WHI discovered a link between post-menopausal hormone replacement therapy and breast cancer. These findings and subsequent changes in clinical guidance have led to 20,000 fewer breast cancer cases per year in the US alone.

Fred Hutch is building on its pioneering roots in immunotherapy and doing new groundbreaking research in immunotherapy, which is all about rallying the body’s own immune system to fight disease. As a less-toxic alternative, immunotherapy presents a promising frontier in cancer treatment and hopefully, cure.

Fred Hutch investigators are forever exploring better, more natural, less toxic means to treat and ultimately obliterate cancer.

Check out this short video for more info.

Okay, I confess, I didn’t exactly train for this. Sure, I’ve been working out here and there, but not really biking. So that made for some seriously sore quads on the uphill climbs. Other than that, the ride was really enjoyable and fun. The scenery was incredible, and I’ve now added buy a house near Lake Washington onto my “someday” list. This was a very well organized event, clearly marked. This was so fun, but the coolest part by far is the fact that we raised over $1 million this year to help out with the fight against cancer. 

Want to donate to this cause? Here you go you wonderful person;) DONATE HERE 

…and maybe next year, you can ride for a cure!