Brains on Bikes Rolling Into D.C.

Sweet success: Brains on Bikes' Gundy Hennig and Anne Feeley will finish their three-month journey July 17.

When we heard about brain cancer survivor Anne Feeley’s 4,170-mile cycling trip across the U.S., we were inspired. After being diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor in 2006, doctors told Feeley that her chances of survival were slim. The median survival rate of a glioblastoma multiforme tumor, a diagnosis she shares with the late Ted Kennedy, is 15 months. “Brain cancer was a wake-up call for our whole family,” Feeley says. “The shock wasn’t that I was going to die, but that I had forgotten that I was going to die. We all are. Life isn’t a dress rehearsal.”

After chemotherapy and radiation treatments, Feeley has been in remission for four years. As a survivor of a disease that few people live long enough to fight for, Feeley decided to launch Brains on Bikes, a three-month journey from San Francisco to Washington, D.C., to raise awareness and funds for brain-cancer research. With her friend and trainer Gundy Hennig and dog Walter by her side, Feeley’s journey comes to a close July 17 with a gathering at the Capitol Reflecting Pool at 12:30 pm (click here to RSVP).

Having been diagnosed with one of the most underfunded cancers, Feeley wanted to put a face to the disease and inspire hope in other survivors. “I came up with the idea for Brains on Bikes during my third walk with the American Brain Tumor Association in 2009,” she says. “As I talked to participants, I realized that I couldn’t find any other survivors who had lived as long as I have. Most of the people walking were loved ones, participating in memory of those that had died. I realized that we needed to put brain cancer on the map.”

Feeley was always fit as a mom, wife and baker, but her interest in long-distance cycling, competition rowing and mountain climbing took off during her cancer treatments. Looking to focus on something other than the pain, she started working with a trainer five times a week, and eventually started doing yoga. “I began my exercise routine while the staples were still in my head. Some days I cried all through the yoga class, but I did it,” says Feeley. After just a few months, she began competing in running, cycling and mountain climbing events.

“When I first attempted running, I could only manage seven steps. We slowly worked at it and less than a year later I finished a half marathon. My finishing time wasn’t great, but I finished and I felt wonderful. I learned that working toward specific challenges is essential for me.”

To help raise awareness about brain cancer and inspire hope in other survivors, join Feeley on Facebook, Twitter and her blog, and donate to Brains on Bikes on brainsonbikes.org. Every dollar raised will go to research and patient support for four different organizations, including Accelerate Brain Cancer Cure, American Brain Tumor Association, Stand Up to Cancer and UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center.

You can start your own cycling journey by using Google’s new bike map feature, which allows you to get step-by-step directions for bike trails, lanes and bike-friendly roads. Have you ever cycled for a cause?

Photo credit: Brains on Bikes