Fourteen students from Western Kentucky University are about to set off on a 3600-mile bike ride across the country, raising thousands of dollars to find a cure for Alzheimer’s Disease. Biking from San Francisco, CA to Virginia Beach, VA will be no easy task, and we caught up with Gabe Hitz (President) and Jack Blair (VP) to hear about the journey, their motivation, and get insight into what they’ll listen to along the way!
AfterShokz: Tell us a little about yourself, your school, and your Fraternity Brothers
Bike4Alz: We are all members of the fraternity, Phi Gamma Delta, or FIJI at Western Kentucky University (WKU). Thirteen of the fourteen people going on the 2019 ride will be starting their junior year in the Fall, and we have one lone soon-to-be-senior. We're also all from Kentucky, except for Gabe.
AfterShokz: Why are you biking 3600 miles for Alzheimer's?
Bike4Alz: Alzheimer’s is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States and almost every person knows someone who has been affected by the disease. Numerous riders have had grandparents, great-grandparents, close friends, or other family members who have passed away from the disease. There is currently no known cure for Alzheimer’s, so this makes our drive to bike every day even greater. There have been recent developments in Alzheimer’s research, which is encouraging to know we are making a difference.
AfterShokz: Who came up with the idea?
Bike4Alz: Bike4Alz's first mile came during the Summer of 2010. Our founder, Tyler Jury, experienced the pain of losing his grandfather to Alzheimer's. Tyler and five of his fraternity brothers, inspired by the recent death, crossed the country on bikes to raise money for Alzheimer's research. Their first ride raised over $60,000, and since then we've had five more rides and have raised over $300,000 towards finding a cure for this awful disease.
AfterShokz: How has the fundraising been going? What can people do to help?
Bike4Alz: So far, Team 007 (named after James Bond), has raised more money pre-ride than previous teams. We are on pace to be the most successful ride in Bike4Alz history and should reach our initial goal of raising $70,000 for Alzheimer's research. You can help Team 007 by donating through our Crowdchange or by going to the Bike4Alz website. On our website, you can also find our itinerary, if you're interested in meeting us along the way and making a donation in person. We’d love to meet you!
AfterShokz: What do you think your biggest challenges will be on the journey?
Bike4Alz: Previous riders have told us that the second week of the 10-week journey will be the most difficult. Coming off of being sore from our first full week of biking, we immediately hit with the mountain ranges in Eastern California/ Western Nevada. On our fifth day biking, we climb 12,000-feet in elevation and go back down it the same day. That will be a real test of our endurance, both mentally and physically.
AfterShokz: Tell us about your training up to this challenge.
Bike4Alz: Honestly, training hasn't been going as great as we'd like. Of course, we've been improving our diets, working out our legs, and running to build up our endurance, but there are only a select few of us who have been biking almost every day to get used to being on a bike for ten weeks straight. Some of us have only been on the bike a handful of times. We have recently completed a 42-mile trial run to work out the day-to-day aspects of riding and sticking to a schedule. Other than the trial run, the furthest any of us have biked in a single ride is about 30 miles. We'll be in for a rude awakening as we'll be averaging around 68 miles a day.