One of three pairs of knitted socks I made for the 2024 tour.

So the Tour this year is on July 19th and 20th, which puts it just one short month away. And this is the first post to mention the Tour Alberta for Cancer or my associated fundraising campaign. I am remiss.

There are certainly reasons for that–my life has seen some fairly profound changes as I ended my career break and re-entered the workforce–but it’s about time I wrote something given this is a particularly special Tour for me as my wife Lenore rides with me for the very first time!

But I also need your money!

Each year we riders raise a minimum of $2,500 for the Alberta Cancer Foundation, an organization to which I have a person connection given how cancer has impacted my family and friends. While my campaign this year is going surprisingly well despite a lack of effort on my part–as of this writing I’m at over $1,800, which ain’t bad!–I still have some work to do.

The Raffle

To that end, like last year I’m leveraging my knitting skills and holding a raffle where a lucky donor will win a pair of hand knitted socks! Here you can see samples of my work. Not bad, right? Trust me, you’ve never worn a more comfortable pair of socks than ones hand knit to your exact specifications!

The format this year is the same as last year, though this year there’ll be one fewer draw due to the compressed timeline. Specifically:

  1. For every $25 CAD donation, you will get one entry in the raffle.
  2. For every referral you provide that results in a donation, you and the donor will both receive an entry!

I’ll then draw a winner on:

  • Wednesday, July 2nd
  • Wednesday, July 16th

With all tickets from those who haven’t won in the first draw carried over to the final draw.

And rest assured, for my early donors, you won’t be left out. All donations prior to this announcement will be grandfathered in to the draw.

Winners will receive a hand knit pair of socks by yours truly! All socks will be custom knit to size (I’ll supply instructions for how to measure your foot) and your preferred length, using a choice of sock yarn from my stash.

Additionally, depending on the number of held tickets, there’s a chance for some bonuses!

  • Holders of four or more entries will have their choice of any yarn they’d like (subject to availability in Canada, of course).
  • Holders of six or more entries can also select their choice of pattern!

So how do you enter?

Simply visit my tour page to donate and indicate you’d like to enter into the draw, either in your donor message or privately (my contact details are at the bottom of this page).

For referred donations, just let me know who referred you.

So donate today, because the earlier you donate, the more chances you have of winning!

Wait, did you say Lenore?

Yeah I kinda slipped that in there, didn’t I?

My wife Lenore has been an utterly tireless supporter of my participation in the Tour. Whether it’s encouraging me to get out and ride or reaching out to donors in our network, not to mention driving me to the event, finding accommodations, and cheering me along at the finish line, she has been a huge part of the success of my campaign every year.

In past years on event day Lenore would often come out a little later in the hopes of greeting me at the finish line. But last year she joined me for the start of the event and what she saw transformed her.

It’s hard to capture the energy before the ride begins. You have the humming crowd of riders so eager to get going, an energy that you’ll find familiar if you’ve done a large group event like this one. But it doesn’t stop there. Whether it’s the speeches by survivors or those living with cancer, or the Yellow Flag riders–participants who have survived or are living with cancer–demonstrating their immense bravery and determination, or the always emotional ghost bike–a way to honour past Tour participants that we lost in the previous year–there’s an emotional intensity that’s hard to describe. Being there as a witness, Lenore knew she wanted to be a participant.

And so this year she rides with me, and I cannot tell you how amazing it has been to see her blow clear past her own expectations and find a joy, not just in participating in the Tour, but in rediscovering a sport that she used to love!

In fact, already she completed her first 60k training ride, something that might have been unimaginable just a few short months ago!

So yeah. This year is pretty damn special!