GAMBIER – This weekend, Knox County will once again play host to a sizable portion of Pelotonia, a bike ride fundraiser that begins in Columbus and has raised over $168 million for cancer research over the last 10 years.
Pelotonia will celebrate its 10-year anniversary this year, and chief operating officer Miguel Perez said that the ride has featured routes up to Gambier for the last several years.
This year, seven routes will go to Gambier, including a new 200-mile route. Three single-day routes and four two-day routes will pass through the village.
Single-day routes:
- The 55-mile route, which goes from New Albany to Gambier
- The 75-mile route, which goes from Pickerington to Gambier
- The 100-mile route, which goes from Columbus to Gambier
Two-day routes:
- The 135-mile route, which goes from New Albany to Gambier and back
- The 155-mile route, which goes from Pickerington to Gambier and then back to New Albany
- The 180-mile route, which goes from Columbus to Gambier and then back to New Albany
- The 200-mile route, which goes from Columbus to Gambier and then back to New Albany, featuring a route extension
The ride also features 25-mile, 35-mile and 45-mile routes that stay in the Columbus area and do not extend to Gambier.
Cyclists on the 180 and 200-mile routes will ride 100 miles to Gambier on Saturday, then stay overnight at Kenyon College dorms before riding back the next day. Participants will travel as far north as Butler in Richland County before returning to New Albany on Sunday.
As of Monday afternoon, 8,400 riders had registered for this year’s race, a number which Perez believes will rise throughout the week. Riders have raised over $12 million so far this year.
Perez expects increased ridership and fundraising this year. Last year was the first time the event surpassed the 8,000-rider mark, topping out at 8,022. In total, the event raised $26.2 million.
Perez said that this year’s donation deadline is not until October, and he estimates the ride will generate between $27 and $30 million.
“We have almost 400 more riders than we did last year, which is very significant when you think about the amount of dollars that each rider will raise,” Perez said. “It’s exciting.”
Because sponsor funding covers all event costs, every dollar that is donated by riders goes directly towards cancer research at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute.
Cyclists are required to raise a minimum amount to ride, starting at $1,250 for the 25-mile route and peaking at $3,000 for the 200-mile route. Perez said that riders will often raise more than the required amount to participate and bikers will often ride in teams – known as ‘Pelotons.’
Those who choose not to ride can also participate by being a ‘virtual rider,’ when someone donates but does not ride, or by being a volunteer.
Of the four new courses this year, the 75-mile and the 155-mile routes were ones that Pelotonia had brought back, while the 35-mile and 200-mile routes are brand new.
Perez said the 200-mile route had long been requested by the event’s most competitive riders.
“We had a lot of our riders asking for a double-century ride, 100 on one day and 100 the next, as if the 180 wasn’t hard enough already,” Perez said with a chuckle. “So we added this additional mileage, which is also pretty hilly and gets to some of the highest points in Ohio.”
Perez said that although riders typically look forward to the Knox County portion of the ride, as it signals the end of the first day, they are also quick to mention the hilly terrain.
“There are two options when you go out there, and there’s a big sign that says, ‘Hilly’ and ‘More Hilly.’ So it’s fun to hear people talking about the hills,” Perez said. “They’re definitely tough but the people have come out and cheered people on and it’s toward the end of the ride on that first day, so they know what they’re leading up to.”
Riders will typically put aside their grievances when considering the greater cause, however.
“This isn’t easy. It’s a big thing to do to train and to put all of your effort into this, and I think that’s why it’s been so successful. People are just really 100 percent in and really passionate about it,” Perez said. “So when it comes to the hills, you know, it’s like, ‘All right, I could complain about this hill or I could complain about taking chemo for six months. So let’s do it. Whatever it takes, let’s make it happen.’”
Along with providing four new routes this year, Pelotonia created an app to increase fundraising. The app, called “PULLL,” gives users a platform to post their fitness progress. Users can then boost each other’s activity, which donates money to the non-profit with each ‘like.’
“It brings cause and fitness-tracking together. It’s another way to get people behind our one goal, but this can happen anytime, anywhere, with anyone,” Perez said.
Because the app was also funded by sponsors, every cent donated by users goes towards cancer research. PULLL has been downloaded by users from 46 different states and 19 countries, Perez said. This weekend, Perez expects riders from across the nation to attend.
Although Perez has only been chief operating officer for a year and a half, he said he has been to every Pelotonia event. Perez said that Pelotonia has come a long way from year one, when 2,000 riders participated, and that this weekend will serve as an important milestone for the non-profit.
“I just think being able to know that someone chose to get on a bike, they chose to fundraise, they chose to ride – that money goes straight up the street to the university for the cancer research program. That immediately turns into studies that have affected people already and saved lives already in this short amount of time,” Perez said. “I think this is what the community has a great sense of pride about, that they did this.”
Pelotonia will kick off Friday with the Opening Ceremony in downtown Columbus. The ride will begin Saturday morning, except for the 35-mile route, which will begin on Sunday. To register or donate, visit Pelotonia’s website: pelotonia.org.
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