MELISSA'S JOURNEY

Cancer Sucks. I know first hand after being diagnosed with Her2Positive Breast Cancer in 2022.

After a year long treatment plan that included Chemo, multiple treatments of Herceptin and a Double Mastectomy I was given the good news December 2022 from my Oncologist that I am now Cancer Free. But anyone who has ever been diagnosed with Cancer knows that you are Never Free From Cancer.

Once I entered into the survivorship phase of Cancer I found that being active outdoors helped to offer me peace of mind and emotional healing. Staying active with fellow Cancer survivors is a double win for your mental and physical health.

That is why Jim and I are partnering with an organization called “Move Beyond Surviving”. They are a 501(c) non-profit orgnization dedicated to empowering breast cancer survivors to overcome the emotional, physical and mental impact resulting from their disease by physically challenging themselves in nature. By engaging in outdoor adventures like hiking, climbing and kayaking, a program like this can profoundly affect a survivor’s abiltiy to live a life in which they thrive.

Jim will be biking 2900 miles across the USA starting this March for six weeks. His ride will start in San Diego, CA and will end in St Augustine, FL. Bicycling has been a lifelong passion of Jim’s since childhood. In the last four years, he has pedaled nearly 20,000 miles in pursuit of one day bicycling across the United States. Many of these miles were during Covid and my year long treatment plan. This time in the outdoors and on his bicycle was the avenue where he found the peace and calmness he needed during a very stressful period in our lives. TO FOLLOW JIM ON HIS JOURNEY, SUBSCRIBE TO HIS WEEKLY EMAILS HERE.

We are looking for 44 or more-day sponsors and eight or more state sponsors. We are also looking for two or more VIP sponsors for the first and last day of the trip. If you choose to support my journey, pick a day or state, and type it into the Show your Support page of your donation along with your name. (Other donation options are available). I will look at these messages for inspiration and continued motivation throughout the trip. Together we will partner with other breast cancer survivors to find peace, calmness, and healing in the Great Outdoors.

STATES JIM WILL BE CROSSING

California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida

JIM'S SCHEDULE

Day	Date		From	To	Mileage	Elevation
1	3-Mar	Sun- Most Climbing	San Diego, CA	Pine Valley, CA	53	5667
2	4-Mar	Mon	Pine Valley, CA	El Centro, CA	75	2508
3	5-Mar	Tues	El Centro, CA	Wellton, AZ	97	1809
4	6-Mar	Wed	Wellton, AZ	Gila Bend, AZ	88	1125
5	7-Mar	Thur	Gila Bend, AZ	Casa Grande, AZ	75	1217
6	8-Mar	Fri	Casa Grande, AZ	Tucson, AZ	75	1297
7	9-Mar	Sat	Tucson, AZ	Tucson, AZ	Off
8	10-Mar	Sun	Tucson, AZ	Benson, AZ	65	3530
9	11-Mar	Mon	Benson, AZ	Bisbee, AZ	50	3497
10	12-Mar	Tues	Bisbee, AZ	Portal, AZ	84	2012
11	13-Mar	Wed	Portal, AZ	Columbus, NM	99	1758
12	14-Mar	Thur - Only Day in NM	Columbus, NM	El Paso, TX	73	949
13	15-Mar	Fri- Shortest Miles	El Paso, TX	Fabens, TX	40	651
14	16-Mar	Sat	Fabens, TX	Van Horn, TX	99	1850
15	17-Mar	Sun - St Patricks Day	Van Horn, TX	Ft. Davis, TX	80	2227
16	18-Mar	Mon	Ft. Davis, TX	Ft. Davis, TX	Off
17	19-Mar	Tues	Ft. Davis, TX	Marathon, TX	54	1135
18	20-Mar	Wed	Marathon, TX	Sanderson, TX	54	818
19	21-Mar	Thur - Furthest Miles	Sanderson, TX	Del Rio, TX	119	3997
20	22-Mar	Fri	Del Rio, TX	Camp Wood, TX	80	1815
21	23-Mar	Sat	Camp Wood, TX	Ingram, TX	80	4785
22	24-Mar	Sun- Palm Sunday	Ingram, TX	Fredricksburg, TX	40	1609
23	25-Mar	Mon	Fredricksburg, TX	Fredricksburg, TX	Off
24	26-Mar	Tue	Fredricksburg, TX	Austin, Tx	89	4989
25	27-Mar	Wed	Austin, Tx	LaGrange, TX	78	2315
26	28-Mar	Thur	LaGrange, TX	Navasota, TX	88	3562
27	29-Mar	Fri	Navasota, TX	Cleveland, TX	76	2536
28	30-Mar	Sat	Cleveland, TX	Lumberton, TX	69	793
29	31-Mar	Sun - Easter	Lumberton, TX	DeRidder, LA	82	1117
30	1-Apr	Mon	DeRidder, LA	DeRidder, LA	Off
31	2-Apr	Tues	DeRidder, LA	Villa Platte, LA	78	856
32	3-Apr	Wed	Villa Platte, LA	St. Francisville, LA	80	884
33	4-Apr	Thur	St. Francisville, LA	Amite, LA	88	3382
34	5-Apr	Fri	Amite, LA	Wiggins, MS	83	2911
35	6-Apr	Sat	Wiggins, MS	Moss Point, MS	75	1526
36	7-Apr	Sun- Least Climbing	Moss Point, MS	Gulf Shores, AL	71	483
37	8-Apr	Mon - Eclipse Day	Gulf Shores, AL	Gulf Shores, AL	Off
38	9-Apr	Tues	Gulf Shores, AL	Ft. Walton Beach, FL	75	683
39	10-Apr	Wed	Ft. Walton Beach, FL	Chipley, FL	87	2018
40	11-Mar	Thur	Chipley, FL	Midway, FL	79	2207
41	12-Apr	Fri	Midway, FL	Madison, FL	76	1960
42	13-Apr	Sat	Madison, FL	Alachua, FL	84	1445
43	14-Apr	Sun	Alachua, FL	Palatka, FL	65	1300
44	15-Apr	Mon- Last Day	Palatka, FL	St. Aug, Beach, FL	34	217

We are asking individuals, companies or groups to sponsor parts of his ride to raise funds for “Move Beyond Surviving”. If you choose to sponsor a day or state, select from above and list in the message box during the donation process. Together we will partner with other breast cancer survivors to find peace, calmness, and healing in the Great Outdoors.

PEDAL FORWARD. LIFE'S A RIDE!

JIM DID IT!!! Even though Jim has comleted his coast-to-coast ride, there's still time to show your appreciation while supporting Breast Cancer Survivors.