Cyclist’s trek raises money for leukemia and lymphoma
Two months ago Michael Young wasn’t even interested in
bicycling. Today the 39-year-old Hollister resident is training to
make a 100-mile ride around Lake Tahoe in June to raise money for
the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Cyclist’s trek raises money for leukemia and lymphoma
Two months ago Michael Young wasn’t even interested in bicycling. Today the 39-year-old Hollister resident is training to make a 100-mile ride around Lake Tahoe in June to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Dubbed America’s Most Beautiful Ride, Young and a number of other riders on the national Team in Training squad will make the 100-mile trek from Truckee that will wind around Lake Tahoe before heading back.
“To me, this ride is very important because 75 percent of all the donations go directly to finding a cure,” said Young, who needs to raise $2,400 in time for the June 3 event. “It’s for a good cause, and it helps people like me get into shape.”
The reason behind his decision to sign up for the ride is one that’s near and dear to his heart. A few years ago a close friend and co-worker of his had a daughter who was stricken with leukemia and passed away after a one-year battle with the disease. She was only 14.
“I saw all of the heartache he went through,” said Young, who has two children of his own. “He went through some rough times. It was real hard on him. He had to take a lot of time off work, too.”
To prepare for the challenging ride Young has been riding on weekends from his home in Hollister to Paicines where he heads up Panoche Road before making the trip back. In all, it’s about a 60-mile ride.
“I’ve already lost 20 pounds doing this,” said Young, who works as a subcontract engineer for a company that works on Air Force projects at Moffett Field in Mountain View. “I also ride 15 miles everyday.”
Just two months ago, Young didn’t even own a bicycle and wound up purchasing a Klein Bicycle for $200 that he found on Craigslist.
During the race the thoughts of his friend and the young girl that passed away is what will inspire him to keep going and finish the challenging ride, which not only includes a number of steep climbs but a lack of oxygen at such a high elevation.
“That’s the one thing that the coaches that train us all say. They tell us that they can train us for the hills and mountains, but they can’t train us for the elevation,” Young said. “But I know I’ll be fine. In the 20 years that they’ve been doing this ride everyone, with the exception of those people that got injured, has made it to the finish line.”
Although his friend is proud of him for signing up for the ride, the two seldom talk about the event because, as Young says, it is clear that the thought of the disease rekindles some “sore moments” for his friend, who Young chose not to identify.
Although the two don’t talk too much about the loss, Young knows that his friend’s daughter will be his major focus during the ride.
“That’s what is going to be in my head the whole time,” he said. “Besides the pain, too.”
Each rider is representing someone who either actively has the disease or is in remission.
John Bagley can be reached at [email protected].
How to Help
To help Michael Young in his quest to raise $2,400 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, send a check or money order payable to the society to P.O. Box 651, Hollister, CA 95024 or call Michael Young at 831-524-1411 to learn more about the ride.
