This was my 13th year riding in Pelotonia with Girls with Gears and it remains a deeply meaningful experience as every year there is someone new in my life who has been given a cancer diagnosis. Every damn year.
More than 8,000 riders participated this weekend – and many of those were first timers, including my husband Paul Mollard. I was so proud of him and the thousands who put in the effort to ride the miles – from 17 to 165. Every hill is a reminder of the cancer journey, and every rider makes an impact. The camaraderie felt is unmatched as the ride is not a race and the only thing anyone is trying to beat is cancer.
The experience riding is deeply enhanced by the 3,000 volunteers who give of their time throughout the weekend. What a massive mobilization of people and positive energy. From the volunteers who checked us in and shouted “first time rider” for my husband to the team from Huntington who stood at the corner of Broad & High cheering as we rode past. Every rest stop and every event included people who care about the cause. Thank you.
The impact of Pelotonia is fueled by the donors who have contributed more than $339 million for cancer research since 2009. Every donor who supports a rider and every sponsor who makes a major gift collectively invests in the vision of a cancer-free world.
In 2023, the Pelotonia Research Center opened, which includes the Pelotonia Institute for Immuno-Oncology that has launched hundreds of clinical trials and published thousands of peer-reviewed articles. The doctors, researchers, clinicians, medical students, and all those who work in the field are using the dollars raised to solve the complexity that is cancer.
Pelotonia’s leadership includes wonderfully talented people like Joe Apgar and Doug Ulman but the heart of the organization is Cindy Hilsheimer who was part of the founding story and remains central to the ongoing impact. Countless lives have been saved because of Pelotonia and what a legacy of leadership that is.
All of this comes together – the Pelotonia organization and research center with the riders, volunteers, and donors – to create hope for those living with cancer and for all of us that a cancer-free world is possible.
I’ll ride for that.
