Cyclist rides for young cancer patients
Dean Smith is no stranger to challenge.
A Fleetwood resident and former competitive cyclist, Smith, 57, has claimed state titles in road racing and spent decades competing fiercely.
But one of the most difficult trials of Smith’s life came in 2014 when his mother, Margaret, was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer.
“It was a huge cancer,” Smith said. “There was no way to treat it, so we helped her through those late stages.”
He said that despite her body failing, his mother’s spirit of optimism couldn’t be broken, and she faced the ultimate challenge with an unshakeable strength.
“She knew it was a terminal thing, yet she was still happy to spend time with me and play Rummikub and tell stories of her childhood,” Smith said.
Seeing his mother’s resilience taught Smith a powerful lesson: that any obstacle can be overcome, the pain endured turned into knowledge that can benefit those still struggling.
Now, Smith is leveraging his expertise toward a new challenge: pedaling beside cancer survivors through a 1,200-mile bike ride from Key Highway in Baltimore to the Florida Keys.
Smith will be one of more than 20 riders participating in the Ulman Foundation’s Key to Keys event, a nationwide cycling journey aimed at raising awareness of young adult cancer.
“When this opportunity came up of being able to do something I really love, and raise money for the foundation, it was basically a no-brainer,” Smith said.
The Ulman Foundation was started by Doug Ulman, who battled cancer as a college student. It has aided more than 8,000 young adults and adolescents, an age group whose diagnoses create unique issues with social isolation, fertility
preservation and limited finances, according to the foundation’s website.
Bikers must raise at least $4,500 in donations to ride in Key to Keys. The funds cover housing assistance, scholarships, fertility insurance and other support services geared toward young cancer patients.
Cyclists will average 40 miles to 60 miles daily for the event from April 23 to 30.
At night, riders — many of whom are cancer survivors — will stop at hospitals and other locations to offer guidance and encouragement to young adult cancer patients.
Smith said that surpassing the trials of biking vast distances daily holds some symbolic parallel to shouldering the burden of a cancer diagnosis.
“We know the destinations, but we don’t know the route,” Smith said of the ride. “And that is purposeful. They want the team to give up some control, much like someone faced with cancer, and just have some faith that people are going to guide you through.”
Enduring the physical gauntlet of cycling across the country — some days up to 160 miles — while also engaging with the reality of a deadly disease can summon powerful emotions, Smith said.
“A couple people have cried, they said, when they got there,” Smith said. “They’ve done so much physically, but what they’ve carried with them emotionally has been a huge thing. And they’re able to let go.”
Smith said one rider, who lost his daughter to cancer when she was 18, brought her ashes to Key West on a previous Key to Keys ride.
“He carried her ashes the entire journey and spread them in Key West,” Smith said. “It was one of her favorite places to visit.”
Smith said this year will be his first time riding in the event.
“For me, it’ll be a feeling of physically having accomplished quite a bit, but emotionally doing something even more challenging,” Smith said. “That is helping provide encouragement and support to patients faced with quite a challenge. Being able to reach out and help people, it’ll be an amazing adventure.”