Take a hike — and maybe a bike ride, too — to get a jump start on the Terry Fox run next month.
All you need is a willingness to ride 360 km in one day, from Sun Peaks to the foot of Mt. Terry Fox in Valemount, on Sept. 2 and then hike up the mountain (all 8,500 feet of it) on Sept. 4 for the Mt. Terry Fox Trek.
"Terry believed in team, stating repeatedly throughout his run, 'I am only one member of the Marathon of Hope,'" said his brother, Darrell Fox, in a release.
"Riding 360 km in one day may be a little ambitious but is really nothing compared to running 42 km a day on a prehistoric walking leg, modified crudely for running. Let alone repeating that marathon 143 days in a row."
Fox said he and the 25 other cyclists who will be joining him will work together, drawing on Terry's story for inspiration at every turn of the pedals.
This will be the second annual cycle to the Mt. Terry Fox Trek; the first marked the 35th anniversary of the Marathon of Hope last year, and was a symbolic 350 km.
"Darrell always says he likes to follow in Terry's footsteps as much as he can by being challenged," said Jessie Alder, marketing manager for the Terry Fox Foundation, though she acknowledged the cyclists might balk at adding 10 km to the ride every year.
They'll have just a day to recuperate before trading their cycling shoes for hiking boots for the 18-km trek up the mountain.
Organized and led by Patricia Thoni, a Valemount resident and Yellowhead Outdoor Recreation Association member, the trek is a challenging one but there are three routes of varying degrees of difficulty.
Recreational hikers can do a four-hour return trip (4 km one way) that includes a 2,600-foot elevation gain. The mid-level route is slightly shorter than last year's 7-km hike, with a 5,800-foot gain.
The Summit/Monument route is an 18-km round trip intended for serious hikers only. Reaching the Terry Fox monument requires a 12-hour trip.
Darrell will be joined by his siblings Fred and Judith for the full monument hike.
There is still time to join the cycling trip on Sept. 2 and/or the trek on Sept. 4, or to donate, by visiting www.terryfox.org.
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