Many who have had a personal experience with cancer can tell you that a journey like the Pacific Crest Trail can easily be a metaphor for a battle with cancer. The road is long with many ups and downs, and most times you don’t know what is on the other side of the next ridge. Some days it will hurt and you can’t imagine what victory will feel like. Other days will be filled with the full appreciation of the simple yet magnificent beauty around you—beauty that you would not and could not see if you weren’t on the path, walking two miles per hour.
While he isn’t a world-class cyclist, Ryan was endowed with an almost stubborn determination. On the day he received his first chemotherapy nearly four years ago, he went to the gym and logged three miles on the treadmill after the treatment. Even today when lack of motivation tries to grab hold of him, he reminds himself of those days when he didn’t have the option of getting up and logging the miles. It is this determination along with Ryan’s lifelong love of the outdoors that makes this a more understandable, if not logical, endeavor.
Ryan’s reasons to direct his fundraising support to the LAF are twofold.
1. It is a way to say thanks to a man who has served as an inspiration for thousands of cancer patients and survivors, including himself
2. The LAF’s focus on the oftentimes overlooked aspect of survivorship
As Ryan recovered from his second surgery on June 28, 2005, he had the opportunity to witness much of Lance Armstrong’s historic ride to a seventh straight Tour de France victory televised on the Outdoor Life Network (now Versus) throughout most of July. Seeing what someone could do after a brutal battle with a life-threatening disease was a source of inspiration to Ryan and helped fuel his motivation to get healthy again. Additionally, despite the best efforts of his doctors, Ryan wasn’t prepared for the frustration, fear, and fatigue of his recovery period. In many ways, his recovery was the most difficult part of his cancer experience because the finish line was unknown. The LAF recognizes and understands the inherent challenges encountered on the road to survivorship and the importance of this cannot be overstated.