Name: Melanie Marsland
Age: 47
Occupation: General Manager/Owner Northfield Racquet & Fitness Club
Hometown: Waterloo, Ontario
Family: Married with 2 kids 12 & 15 years of age
Your biggest physical accomplishments to date:Trekking at 14,000 ft+ elevations between Cusco & Machu Picchu in Peru; Training for the Sears National Kids Cancer Ride
It’s all about the kids
Some people say this is my mid life crisis while others think I’m just a little crazy. I have never run a marathon or even cycled more than 150 km in one day. But I love challenges & I have always been physically active. Over the past 10 years I have cycled with a group of friends who have secretly enjoyed raising the distance bar each year. What started out as 25 km sprints have developed into75-100 km rides over 2-3 consecutive days. But never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined cycling 3000km in 15 days.
When I heard about the Sears National Kids Cancer ride, I knew I had to participate. The thought of riding across Canada to raise awareness and funds to eliminate childhood cancer, was an opportunity I didn’t want to miss. Like many people, cancer has affected my family, friends, employees & particularly over the last year, it has made me re-evaluate what is really important to me. We have one life and we need to make the most of it. The timing of this ride couldn’t have been better.
I am very proud to have been selected as a 2010 national rider. It is truly an honour. This will be my greatest challenge to date. But no matter how hard the training will be over the next few months or the actual ride itself, these kids will continue to inspire me. This is my chance to make a difference and move us one step closer to eradicating childhood cancer. This ride is all about the kids.
"Only a life lived for others is a life worth while." - Albert Einstein
