Cancer Journeys Foundation CEO Robert Hess to Ride Virtually and Participate in Phil Gaimon's Cycling Gran Fondo

Cancer Journeys Foundation, an organization based in Manhattan Beach, CA, that has the goal of helping cancer survivors, has announced that CEO Robert Hess will be riding virtually in Phil Gaimon's Cycling Gran Fondo. Phil is a retired professional cyclist who is the author of two books who goes on an annual Cookie Fondo bicycle ride in Malibu to raise funds for the NoKidHungry.org charity. Due to COVID-19 risks, the 2020 event will be virtual, which means that all participants don’t have to go to Malibu but instead ride their bicycle anywhere they like. More about the role of the organization in the 2020 event can be gleaned from https://cancerjourneysfoundation.org/event/phil-gaimons-2020-cookie-fondo/.

Robert Hess says, “Phil Gaimon is a great guy and that he works with the NoKidHungry charity is really important. I'm riding to support Phil and his program and because cycling (any consistent exercise) is great for the body's immune system and helps prevent cancer recurrence. For me, Phil's Cookie Fondo is a clear win-win.”

Phil Gaimon was a professional road racing cyclist between 2009 and 2016. He announced his retirement from professional cycling towards the end of 2016. He had been writing books about bicycling during his professional career and he continued this even in retirement.

For 2020, because of the threat of COVID-19, rather than an in-person event, the organization is offering the Bake Your Own Cookie Fondo Kit, which is shipped directly to those who register for the event. The kit will contain everything needed for a cookie-themed riding weekend from the safety of the participant’s home kitchen and local roads. The kit will consist of pre-measured cookie ingredients, route planning tips, epic cookie swag, nutrition, and meal plans for before and after the participant’s ride.

While they were originally optimistic that the October date would be COVID-safe, they ultimately decided that while local officials may allow them to hold a compromised version of the event, it would not be an experience that would full comply with their expected standards and more importantly, there could a health risk for the community and the riders. That is why they decided to make it a fun ‘Bake Your Own Cookie Fondo’ for 2020 so that everyone will be participating remotely in 2020, with the hope that it will be held in the regular manner in 2021. The event will be held on October 24 and those who want to register for the Bake Your Own Cookie event can do so at https://events.com/r/en_US/registration/phils-cookie-fondo-malibu-october-782408.

Robert Hess explains, “In true Cookie Fondo fashion, we got creative and came up with a fun ‘Bake Your Own Cookie Fondo’ for 2020 that we think can provide a lot of fun in a responsible way. We hope you’ll join us remotely this year, and we’ll see you in real life in 2021.”

Robert Hess decided to ride in the event because he loves that Phil Gaimon is doing for the NoKidHungry charity; he loves cookies; he is always looking for a reason to ride his bike; and he will be using the event as an opportunity to practice hill repeats on the DVEN 2020 KOM challenge – San Pedro Hill.

For cancer survivors, the risk of cancer recurring is something they need to minimize. Depending on the type of cancer, the possibility of recurrence can be quite high. Cancer Journeys Foundation CEO Robert Hess has noted that more and more research indicates that routine exercise, such as riding a bicycle, is important in significantly decreasing the recurrence of cancer. He believes that bicycling is one of the best ways to exercise for cancer survivors because it lets the individual get outside and travel through a lot of attractive scenery. Furthermore, a regular bicycle ride usually takes around two to three hours and meets the guideline of doing 150 minutes of active exercise every week. Those who would like to learn more about this can do so at https://cancerjourneysfoundation.org/beating-cancer-with-a-bicycle/.