Who knew riding a bike could save lives?
Cheering and peddling their way along Main Street in Callander, four teams raised a total of $6,000 during the Big Bike for Heart and Stroke Foundation fundraiser. The event was a first for the community.
Noel Gauthier has a personal reason for participating in the ride.
“I had a heart attack last fall,” said Gauthier, who inherited his heart problems from his parents.
“It just hit me out of the blue. Actually, I was standing behind my lazy-boy and bang, that was it. I’m not feeling too bad right now. It’s coming along. I’m a brand new man.”
His wife Donna Gauthier is the area captain for TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly).
The non-profit support group for people trying to get healthy had the honour of being the first team in Callander to ride the bike. It raised $950 for the fundraiser.
Her husband’s heart attack in October was a wakeup call.
“There was no warning whatsoever. It’s a real life-changer, and it really makes you appreciate organizations like this. We’ve all heard of it. We’ve all contributed before, but now it’s front and centre,” said Gauthier.
“And we know that, as women, we’re going to exhibit different symptoms. It’s amazing how far medicine comes every year, and the treatment you get here, there’s no time wasted. You’re taken care of.”
Julia Tignanelli, Heart and Stroke Foundation Area Coordinator Nipissing District, says heart disease is still the leading cause of death in North America.
“Five times as many women die of heart-related diseases than of breast cancer. Every seven minutes in Canada, someone dies of a heart attack or a stroke. Heart and stroke are two of the top three killers of Canadians, and over 80 per cent of premature heart disease and stroke can be prevented through healthy lifestyle changes,” explained Tignanelli.
“So that’s part of what big bike is really all about. They’re coming out as a group, they’re getting on the bike, they’re doing something active together as a team and it’s just promoting that idea that you should get your body moving and do something active every day. That’s going to significantly cut down your chances of having a heart attack or stroke.”
Events like big bike help fund advancements being made through research.
“A lot of what we’re doing now is genetics-based research. One of the initiatives we’re funding right now is what they’re calling regenerative medicine. What they’re becoming able to do is take cells from your own body and transplant them into a damaged heart muscle, so that the heart can begin healing itself. So far you can repair damage that’s been done, but you can’t reverse damage. Now we’re starting to be able to do that,” said Tignanelli.
“They have also been developing techniques that actually correct congenital heart defects in a fetus. So they can go in and correct the heart defects before a baby is even born, which is really amazing. So these are all things that are coming out of research that we’re funding at the foundation.”
A total of 35 teams from the area registered to ride the 30 seat bike over the course of four days.
The bike is back in North Bay Thursday and Friday beside the museum.
Based on the success the bike had in Callander, the plan for next year is to include stops in Sturgeon Falls and Mattawa, possibly adding Powassan to the mix.
Close to $70,000 was raised in North Bay last year.
