Barry Davis's
Cross Country Bicycle Ride
From Seattle to Provincetown
For The Jimmy Fund
Cross Country Bicycle Ride
From Seattle to Provincetown
For The Jimmy Fund
The Pan Massachusetts Challenge
The original 36 riders of the Pan Mass
Challenge in 1980.
Ken Coleman (L) receiving the very first
donation check from Billy Starr from the
original 36 riders of the 1980 PMC in the
amount of $10,200
Billy Starr, Founder and Executive Director of the Pan Mass Challenge, speaking in front of over 2,500 riders at the 2010 opening ceremonies in Sturbridge, MA
Boston Red Sox CEO Larry Luchinno (L)
receiving the ceremonial 2010 donation check from PMC Founder and Executive Director Billy Starr (R) at check presentationceremonies Nov 12, 2010 at Fenway Park
Riders of the PMC departing for Provincetown from Sturbridge (above) in 2009 and Babson College in Wellesley (below) in 2010.
Which way to go....which way to go. Since
2007, my family and I have been one of three crews putting up the directional arrows for the riders ofPMC to follow
along their route.
The Pan Massachusetts Challenge (PMC) is the largest, most successful athletic fund raising event for a single charity in the United States.
The PMC began from the thoughts of one man, Billy Starr of Newton, MA. Billy had lost his mother, an uncle and cousin to cancer in the mid-70's and wanted a way to honor their memories. After walking a portion of the Appalachian Trail with his friends, he came up with an idea of forming a bicycling fund raising event and make a donation from its' participants. In 1980, 35 of his friends gathered at the Springfield Mall on a early September Saturday morning and pedaled 220+ miles to Provincetown in two days.
A short time later, Billy met with the president of the Jimmy Fund, Ken Coleman, and presented Mr. Coleman with a check to the Jimmy Fund for cancer research and treatment at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA for $10,200. Since 1980, tens of thousands of bicyclists from 36 US states and 6 foreign countries have gathered in Strubridge or Wellesley, MA and ride upwards to 192 miles to Provincetown, MA. Over these 31 years, the riders of the PMC have raised and donated over $303 MILLION dollars for cancer research and treatment at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston Last year, just over 5,000 riders raised and donated $33 Million dollars alone for 2010.
And for the past five years, 100% of all money raised by the riders of the PMC went directly to the Jimmy Fund and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. In fact, today, all the money raised and donated by the riders of the PMC is considered "unrestricted funds" for the researchers and physicians at the Dana Farber. Meaning, researchers can request some of this PMC money to start new or continue existing research programs or to help families pay for treatment that would otherwise not be covered by their health insurance plans.
Since 2003, the Pan Massachusetts Challenge has had the support of the Jimmy Fund's long time supporter, the Boston Red Sox. Larry Luchinno, President and CEO of the Boston Red Sox and the other owners of the Red Sox have been a presenting sponsor of the PMC. Overstock.com and athletic shoe wear manufacturer New Balance have also become presenting sponsors of the PMC as well.
For me, I have been a PMC rider and fund raiser since 1982 when my dad brought home a PMC pamphlet from a local bike shop. I had never been on Cape Cod or ridden a bike on the Cape so I said what the heck. Back then, it took me one evening to raise the minimum, $350. Since then, I have become more involved behind the scenes in the PMC. I have stuffed informational envelopes in the pre-Internet days, help set-up the Sturbridge starting line prior to the arrival of all the riders, helped out at opening ceremonies constructing the set, lighting, running a TV camera and producing video's.
Today, I am the PMC's Road Signage Coordinator. I am responsible for the placement of all the directional arrows that the riders follow during the event weekend as they ride to their end point.
The PMC began from the thoughts of one man, Billy Starr of Newton, MA. Billy had lost his mother, an uncle and cousin to cancer in the mid-70's and wanted a way to honor their memories. After walking a portion of the Appalachian Trail with his friends, he came up with an idea of forming a bicycling fund raising event and make a donation from its' participants. In 1980, 35 of his friends gathered at the Springfield Mall on a early September Saturday morning and pedaled 220+ miles to Provincetown in two days.
A short time later, Billy met with the president of the Jimmy Fund, Ken Coleman, and presented Mr. Coleman with a check to the Jimmy Fund for cancer research and treatment at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA for $10,200. Since 1980, tens of thousands of bicyclists from 36 US states and 6 foreign countries have gathered in Strubridge or Wellesley, MA and ride upwards to 192 miles to Provincetown, MA. Over these 31 years, the riders of the PMC have raised and donated over $303 MILLION dollars for cancer research and treatment at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston Last year, just over 5,000 riders raised and donated $33 Million dollars alone for 2010.
And for the past five years, 100% of all money raised by the riders of the PMC went directly to the Jimmy Fund and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. In fact, today, all the money raised and donated by the riders of the PMC is considered "unrestricted funds" for the researchers and physicians at the Dana Farber. Meaning, researchers can request some of this PMC money to start new or continue existing research programs or to help families pay for treatment that would otherwise not be covered by their health insurance plans.
Since 2003, the Pan Massachusetts Challenge has had the support of the Jimmy Fund's long time supporter, the Boston Red Sox. Larry Luchinno, President and CEO of the Boston Red Sox and the other owners of the Red Sox have been a presenting sponsor of the PMC. Overstock.com and athletic shoe wear manufacturer New Balance have also become presenting sponsors of the PMC as well.
For me, I have been a PMC rider and fund raiser since 1982 when my dad brought home a PMC pamphlet from a local bike shop. I had never been on Cape Cod or ridden a bike on the Cape so I said what the heck. Back then, it took me one evening to raise the minimum, $350. Since then, I have become more involved behind the scenes in the PMC. I have stuffed informational envelopes in the pre-Internet days, help set-up the Sturbridge starting line prior to the arrival of all the riders, helped out at opening ceremonies constructing the set, lighting, running a TV camera and producing video's.
Today, I am the PMC's Road Signage Coordinator. I am responsible for the placement of all the directional arrows that the riders follow during the event weekend as they ride to their end point.
