Ridgefield Riders Join 10th Annual CT Challenge This Weekend

By Tom Chiappetta

Ridgefield cyclists will be well-represented in the 10th annual CT Challenge bike ride this Friday and Saturday, as no fewer than 20 residents will take to the roads, riding varying distances, in support of cancer survivors. The ride has raised more than $10 million since starting in 2005, to support the Challenge’s Center for Survivorship in Southport.

Team Ridgefield, led by co-captains Nick and Kate Lieder, are a devoted team of 12 cyclists who love to ride, and believe in the CT Challenge’s work. They have received strong support from the Ridgefield Bicycle Company and The Ridgefield Fitness Club.

In addition to Nick and Kate Lieder, Team Ridgefield team consists of Carly and Christopher Lieder; Tim, Bryan and Caroline Bunt; Anne Crane; Scott Edwardson; Sue and Aelish Johnstone; and Valerie Schneiderman.

“It’s hard to believe that this year marks the 10th year of the CT Challenge Charity Bike Ride,” two-time cancer survivor Kate Lieder said. “It is also the 10th year that Nick and I will be riding and the 8th year for our children, Chris and Carly. In that time the CTC has accomplished so much and has helped thousands of cancer survivors lead happier, healthier and longer lives by providing important resources in exercise, nutrition and emotional support.”   

Ridgefield resident Stan Galanski heads up Team Navigators, currently the third highest team fundraiser. Stan’s squad includes Ridgefield's Todd Cody, David Maher and Daniel Westcott.

Rounding out the Ridgefield riders to date are: Drew Berman; Aron Cooper, Team Marshall Wace; Joseph Visinski; and Michael Walker, Team Walker. 
 
Registration for the bike ride is still open for new riders and teams. With over 950 riders and more than 90 teams already registered, the two-day ride hopes to exceed last year's record $1.6 million raised. A 100-mile ride on Friday kicks off the fundraising event starting in Lakeville, CT and finishes in Westport. The Saturday ride has options for 10, 25, 50, 75 and 100-mile rides, which all start and finish at the Fairfield County Hunt Club in Westport.

For more information on the ride and to register go to bike.ctchallenge.com.

Close to 100 survivors will be riding in the Challenge's signature event, which has its opening ceremonies and survivors tribute Saturday morning. Bobby Valentine, the former NY Mets and Boston Red Sox manager and current Sacred Heart athletic director, is the honorary co-chair along with 11-year-old Maya Oberstein, a cancer survivor from West Hartford who lost her leg to cancer. The bike ride funds the Challenge's Center for Survivorship in Southport that provides support services and nutrition and exercise education for cancer survivors.

The CT Challenge (CTC) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping the 14 million cancer survivors in Connecticut and throughout the U.S. rebuild, improve and prolong their lives through mind-body health, exercise, nutrition and community-building support programs. The CTC opened the Center for Survivorship in 2012 as an incubator for best practices in cancer survivorship care. Last year, almost 54,000 cancer survivors benefited from CT Challenge programs, including the survivors from all 50 states and more than 70 countries who visited the CT Challenge website at www.ctchallenge.org.