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Dinner highlight on coast tour

Corporal rides in Cops for Cancer
Chris Bolster

Riders from the annual Cops for Cancer Tour de Coast are looking for public support to help raise money for pediatric cancer research, and will be pulling into Powell River Friday, September 20.

Corporal Ken Hees, an RCMP officer with the Powell River detachment, is riding the 900-kilometre tour over nine days this year. Prior to starting his training for the ride, Hees had not ridden much since he was a teenager. He kicked into gear and this summer logged over 1,000 kilometres in the saddle. Cops for Cancer supplied the bicycle that Hees will ride which saved him “a huge expense.”

He said that while he has always kept himself “in half-decent shape, cycling uses totally different muscles and it’s a different kind of conditioning. I haven’t found a flat stretch here for more than 100 metres. I’m still looking.”

More than 100 cyclists from law enforcement and emergency services are braving all types of weather as they make their way through four different Cops for Cancer tours on Vancouver Island, Northern BC, the Fraser Valley and the Coast.

The 16th annual Tour de Coast starts in Coquitlam today, Wednesday, September 18 and riders will be stopping in communities along the route which will take them up the Sunshine Coast, over to Whistler and then back through the Lower Mainland. They will make presentations to schools and community groups about pediatric cancer research and support services for children with cancer.

Each rider is collecting at least $6,000 for the ride and the money goes to the Canadian Cancer Society. Funds will also go to support Camp Goodtimes, an empowering summer recreation program provided at no cost for children affected by cancer and their families at Loon Lake in Maple Ridge. Since 1997 Cops for Cancer has collected $27 million.

Hees has collected over $5,000 and is well on his way to meet his minimum for the ride. He has been fundraising since last spring and is hoping that when the tour visits Powell River it will help put him over the top.

The annual community spaghetti dinner fundraiser at Powell River Town Centre Hotel takes place on Friday evening and will include a silent auction, 50/50 draw, balloon pop and head and facial hair shaving events. The event will be emceed by Bill Hopkins.

Hees said he has heard past riders and people with the cancer society say that Powell River is their favourite stop on the tour. “I think it speaks volumes for this community,” he said.

Dinner tickets, available at the hotel and police station, are $15 each and children five years and under can attend for free.

Donations for Hees’ ride can be made at the event or online. Readers can search for Hees personal page on the site to view his fundraising progress.