About 610 cyclists made their way into Olds on Saturday, June 22 as part of the MS Bike – Airdrie to Olds tour to raise awareness of multiple sclerosis (MS) and money for research.
MS Bike manager Paula Miller was happy with the turnout of the event.
“Everything was amazing, the forecast for the weekend was meant to be filled with rain and wind but we were only faced with cooler weather on Saturday for the riders,” Miller said. “So that was a little bit harder for them and took a little bit longer but they enjoyed the challenge.”
The fundraising goal for the event was $618,000 but after this weekend that goal was surpassed and participants have now raised over $716,000.
“This year our fundraising was actually out of this world. They really did an excellent job this year,” Miller said.
The number of cyclists that participated this year is up from previous years and Miller says that it likely has to do with word of mouth from cyclists who have participated in the past.
“I really believe that it’s when cyclists are encouraging their friends and family to join them once they see the experience and they can really see what a difference this is making,” Miller said.
Cyclists cruised into Olds in the afternoon and in the evening, a dinner was put on for the participants, sponsors, and volunteers of the event.
A local woman, Terri Verhulst who was diagnosed with MS back in 2015 participated in the ride and was ecstatic about her experience.
“It was amazing, it was such a great weekend. It was super tiring and I’m super sore but it was an amazing experience. I would recommend it to anyone,” Verhulst said.
Verhulst says that participating in a ride for that long and for that distance gave her a sense of pride. “It gave me a great sense of pride actually as tiring and as difficult as it was at some points.
“I mean we had 30-kilometre winds facing us the entire time so it was a long day.
“But at the end of the day, it was such an overwhelming sense of pride that I had,” Verhulst said.
What stood out to Verhulst the most about the ride was the diversity of the participants.
“There was a 13-year-old girl there with her mom who was training to be a cyclist and she kicked butt and there was like 70-year-old men with wooly socks pulled up to their knees,” Verhulst said. “I was just so amazed by the different types of people that came out to support this organization.”
Verhulst had such a good first experience with the bike tour that she and her husband have already registered for next year’s event.
Miller highlighted that people can already register adding, “there’s always next year to register and join, so to be part of the fun you got to come join us.”
