Heavy rainfall didn’t stop the RE/MAX Ride the Rim riders from cycling over Sutton Pass twice on Friday afternoon.
Seven cyclists made the journey from Port Alberni to Ucluelet and back in an effort to raise awareness and funds for Type 2 diabetes in children and promote healthy lifestyles.
The team’s arrival in Ucluelet has been an annual feature for roughly 15 years and RE/MAX Mid-Island Realty co-owner Carl Scott told the Westerly News it’s one of the most exciting staples on his calendar.
“We get really excited about having this happen and being involved in it and making sure that we can support it,” he said.
Scott and his partner Judy Gray were thrilled to welcome the team to town with a $500 donation.
“We support anything to do with children and children’s health and well being,” Gray said. “We are super excited that these guys, every year, come back and raise money for juvenile diabetes.”
Team member Robin Nadig of Port Alberni said rough weather made the Sutton Pass trek a tough task, but she was delighted to hear plenty of motivating honks from drivers along the way.
“We want to keep the awareness out there that Type 2 diabetes in children is preventable with diet and exercise,” Nadig told the Westerly. “It was raining pretty much the whole ride, but that’s not something we haven’t done before. We’ve had absolutely beautiful days and we’ve had rainy trips. This one just happened to be a rainy trip.”
She hopes the awareness raised by the ride helps motivate parents and children to “just make good choices” by exercising and paying attention to nutrition.
“I’m a real supporter of getting out and raising awareness,” she said. “It’s the lifestyle and it’s the choices that we want to promote.”
She added Ucluelet’s local RE/MAX office has been a key cog in Ride the Rim’s wheels since the annual fundraising event was first launched in the early 2000’s.
“Right from the start, RE/MAX was a huge supporter for us,” she said. “Both Judy and Carl have always backed us up. They want to support us to continue to raise awareness and we want to continue riding.”