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Motorcyclists raise cash and awareness of prostate cancer

In the unique and commonly misunderstood world of motorcycling, all kinds of things happen. Some are exciting and wild; others are just plain fun and satisfying. Motorcyclists also contribute to community building as a recent event in Kitchener, Ontario demonstrates.

The city’s third annual Motorcycle Ride for Dad promotes awareness and research for prostate cancer. This June, 370 riders participated in this one-day pledge ride. Police escorts guided us on a parade through Kitchener and Waterloo then onto a 200-kilometre (124-mile) poker run with stops in Elora, Orangeville and Guelph. It’s a fun-filled, family-oriented day sponsored by the Waterloo Regional Police Association and the Grand River Hospital Foundation. Other Ontario cities also organize this ride.

Preparations for the Saturday event started early. The General spent the Thursday before nurturing 120-pound pig and a lot of pork loins on his smoker. He was selling his famous pulled pork on a bun at the end of the ride in an effort to increase our final donation to Grand River Hospital. Meanwhile, thundershowers forecast for Saturday, plus a deluge of rain Friday night, left me panicked. Motorcyclists and rain don’t mix. Fortunately, Saturday morning arrived with the sky at least partially blue. The rain had stopped and it looked like the day was going to be salvaged. By 9:00 that morning, we had 370 registered riders.

Four of my five family members participated in the ride this year and it felt great. Wayne, my husband, rode his 1976 Honda. I rode the Harley, Electra Glide and for the first time, our 17-year-old daughter, Larissa, joined riding a Kawasaki, dual-purpose bike. She was slated to work but convinced a co-worker to trade shifts. Jill, the eldest, chose to ride as a passenger on a friend’s bike. The goal for us next year is for Spencer, our son, to join. We have another bike in the garage waiting for him!

The riders spent an hour following registration looking over each other’s steeds and listening to a cool local band. I spotted a bike with a paint job that matched my tattoo. I immediately went over to chat up the owner of the chopper and to his delight (OK, maybe mine) I pulled down the back of my shirt to reveal my frog. Perhaps there is a subculture of motorcyclists who love frogs!

But back to the ride, this was our first poker card draw location and Jill drew a three of spades. Wayne had an eight of something while I drew a Jack of diamonds. Not a bad start.

The parade took us through the downtowns of both Kitchener and Waterloo with police blocking 57 side streets to keep us moving along. Larissa was very excited with the new “club” she belonged to and commented that you belong without having to pay a membership. (All bikers wave to each other as they pass by and she thought this was so much fun!) At our second poker stop, Jill picked a three of clubs and smiled. My card, as well as Wayne’s, was useless.

Larissa, at this stop, returned home to go to work but vowed to do the entire ride next year. We continued with a couple of OPP officers and a bunch of friends in our group and wound our way through the Mennonite countryside to our next designated stop in Elora. Jill drew a three of hearts and was delighted. Three for three. Our other cards, once again, were of no consequence.

We continued to Orangeville where the employees of the local TD Canada Trust barbecued hamburgers and sausage, which they served with soft drinks, chips and apples. Jill drew another three and her poker hand was all of a sudden looking pretty good. Four threes!

The next hour of the ride took us through the rolling hills of the Hockley Valley and eventually to our last poker stop in Guelph. Here we would draw our last card and the prizes would be handed out for the highest pledges raised and the winners of the poker ride. Jill drew a five of hearts but for $2.00 she purchased another chance and drew another three!

The General had his smoker set up and I slipped on an apron. A few of us would help him sell pork on a bun for $2.00. At the same time we flogged the “IRONARSE BBQ sauce”. We had more than 72 bottles to sell at $5.00 each, not to mention T-shirts, pins, hats and numerous other souvenirs. The pork raised another $400.00 and a lot of positive comments.

Jill won the poker hand with five threes and the top fund pledge of the day was more than $2,000. In total, the event raised around $58,000 to fight prostate cancer. As I have mentioned before, the nicest people ride motorcycles.

Here are a few facts about prostate cancer. Each year, doctors diagnose 18,000 new cases and 4,300 Canadian men die of the disease.

There are an estimated one million men with prostate cancer in Canada. Most do not know they have it. In fact, it is rumoured that only 20% have been diagnosed and are being treated. The remaining 800,000 live with a time bomb ticking in their body.

Many men are hesitant to discuss possible prostate problems openly, even with their doctor, yet prostate cancer is the number one cancer in Canada in terms of incidence. One of the most positive things a woman can do for a male partner is to convince him to get a checkup, even make an appointment.