With a little help from my friends
By our Head UX Designer and (one of our) resident cycling fanatic, Sarah.
Sarah’s PMC Route — Moving
On Saturday, August 5th at 5:30am, I and thousands of riders started our 112-mile journey from Sturbridge to Bourne, MA. I rode a Copenhagen Wheel, and it helped me do something I never would have thought possible a year ago. More on that in a minute. First, a bit of back story.
In January of 2015, my life took an unexpected turn. I was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. Days after my diagnosis, I was having surgery. Throughout the rest of 2015, I’d face hospitalizing illnesses, chemotherapy, and more surgeries.
All of this took a huge toll on my life, and my body. I was unable to do the things I loved the most — design, code, and ride a bike. I had no idea how to navigate this difficult time. I was completely reliant on my family and an incredible community of healthcare practitioners who took control and helped me.
I owe all of these people my life.
In 2016, I had finished chemotherapy and started to put my life back together. This included a new job, working with the awesome team here at Superpedestrian, where I get to combine the things I love! In April 2016, I was officially declared cancer free and I’ve been working on rebuilding my strength and fitness — with the help of the Wheel.
As a newly minted cancer survivor, I’ve been eager to find ways to give back and support organizations that helped me through my battle. And to that end, an incredible opportunity was offered to me this summer — to ride Copenhagen Wheel in the 36th Annual Pan Mass Challenge (PMC). PMC is a massive bike-a-thon that takes places every year in Massachusetts to raise money for cancer research. More than 6000 cyclists take part in this two-day event raising over $40 million!
Riding with so many other people is a real thrill. You meet all sorts of riders from all walks of life, and hear their stories — some, cancer survivors like me, others who have lost family or friends to the disease, others who just want to help — everybody has an inspiring story. Many riders also wear decorations on their helmets, like Kermit the frog, or pin photos of the names of people affected by cancer for whom they ride.
Along the route, thousands of people line the roads showing their support, shouting out thank-yous, offering water, a spray of a water hose, fruit, iced coffee, and beer. Kids stick out their hands to give you hi-fives, and police stop traffic so you can ride through intersections. There are signs with people’s names to cheer you on. So many smiling faces. It’s a constant reminder of why we ride.
Copenhagen Wheel Difference
Some might call it cheating, others mechanical doping, I call it A-MAZ-ING. I’m sure you are thinking, “Wait. A Copenhagen Wheel can’t go 112 miles on a single charge?” And you’re right, but not as right as you might think.
My ride was supported by two of my awesome team members, Tom and Austin, who met me at water stops where I could swap between two bikes and get a replacement Wheel if I needed it. It made me feel like a pro-cyclist, having team members waiting for me, smiling even though I made them get up far before sunrise.
The Wheel added significant power to my ride, especially during the uphill portions. In some places, like around mile 65 (see graph above), it was multiplying my power nearly 10 fold!
We planned to swap Wheels every 30 or so miles — our estimated battery range was calculated based on riding primarily in an urban environment. But the Wheel performed beyond expectations. As you can see from the graph, they had a lot of juice left in them after they were swapped out. The Pan Mass Challenge is not an easy ride. It’s a lot of hours in the saddle, but also has a fair amount of climbing. At the first water stop, 25 miles of hilly terrain into the ride, my Wheel still had nearly 50% of its charge left! Across the rest of the ride Wheels continued to exceed my expectations.
Most people who sign up to ride in this event spend weeks, if not months, training. With just a couple of weeks notice, I would never have been prepared to ride 112 miles on my regular road bike — not to mention the fact that I’m still regaining my strength and stamina after treatment.
This is where Copenhagen Wheel made all the difference. Instead of feeling like riding against a wall, the Wheel made strong winds just a refreshing breeze. The first section of the ride has a lot of elevation change, with the Wheel intelligently putting out different amounts of power depending on where I was riding and how I was pedaling. I was definitely tired at the end of the day, but overall, I still felt pretty great.
At the end of the day, before we made it into Bourne, there was still one particularly annoying climb into town. A pack of cyclists in matching kits rode up alongside me and asked about the Wheel. As I explained how it worked, one asked me, “So, does it really help you climb hills? How much can it really do?”. I told him, “Just watch.” Then I flipped my Wheel into Turbo mode, stood up on my pedals, and flew up the hills. I didn’t see the guys for the rest of the day!
This was really a ride of a lifetime for me. It was the longest bike ride I’ve ever done, supported an organization I truly believe in, and maybe most importantly, showed me that I really am on the road to good health and getting my strength back. Cancer devastated my body, but the Copenhagen Wheel has helped me get back on a bike sooner, taken me further than I could ever have expected, and proven to the best rehabilitation tool I could have asked for.
Thanks to the team for all their support. Special thanks to David Fialkow, managing director at General Catalyst and chairman of the PMC, for his generous donation, and to Billy Starr, the founder and executive direction of the PMC.
And thanks to the Copenhagen Wheel for making this experience such a fun one for me!
Until next time!
