Source: Cabin Radio
The Spinning Wheels Relay Team will be travelling to two Beaufort Delta communities next week as part of a cross-country tour to raise awareness about Parkinson’s disease.
Two teams of riders who live with the disease began cycling for the cause in Newfoundland and British Columbia in late July. The following month, a third team started the northern leg in Yukon.
Now, a team will head through the NWT as riders look to collectively cover a distance of 10,000 km across all provinces and two territories.
Five cyclists and a support driver end their Yukon ride on Sunday. They will then cycle past Nataiinlaii Territorial Park on the Dempster Highway south of Fort McPherson before arriving in Inuvik on September 10.
The Parkinson’s Association of Alberta will help them stage a “pub night” with members of the community.
The cyclists will travel the 138 km to Tuktoyaktuk on September 12, accompanied by members of Inuvik Cycling Club. A “ceremonial dip” in the Arctic Ocean is in the plan.
Spinning Wheels says its riders are raising funds through events organized in locations that are part of the tour, with the goal of “reinvesting the funds raised back into these communities to help build support and awareness for areas that are lacking such resources.”
“Many Canadians diagnosed with Parkinson’s hide their symptoms and tend to retreat from life,” Lloyd Taylor, co-chair of Spinning Wheels, was quoted as saying in a news release.
“They become isolated from friends and family and experience depression and anxiety. In the North in particular, resources for those living with the disease are in short supply.
“As a person living with Parkinson’s, I am excited to cycle into communities throughout Northwest Territories and the Yukon to show the power of exercise and community.”
Spinning Wheels has partnered with another group, Dancing with Parkinson’s, to offer warm-ups, cool-downs and dance breaks as the cyclists hit the road.
On September 17, all three teams from the northern, western and eastern routes will converge in Collingwood, Ontario for a final ride to Ottawa. On September 28, a celebration awaits the teams at Parliament Hill.
