While most students are beginning their summers of working, vacations or summer school, another group's summer plans involve a 70-day cross-country bicycle journey for a charitable cause that could save countless lives.
Texas 4,000, a group of 42 UT students who are making a difference in the fight against cancer, will be leaving today at 9 a.m. The group will be cycling 4,500 miles from Austin to Anchorage, Ala., to raise money for the American Cancer Society and educate the public about cancer.
"Hopefully we can make a difference - maybe after people hear us they'll go get a checkup, and we can save some lives," said team leader Chris Condit, an electrical engineering senior. Condit, who overcame Hodgkin's Lymphoma, started Texas 4,000 after being inspired by Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong's battle against cancer. The team members were chosen from the best out of about 120 applicants.
Three of the team members are cancer survivors, and the rest have been affected by a friend or family member with the disease. The group's goal is to raise $180,000, and so far they have raised about $150,000. They will arrive in Alaska on Aug. 9, after which they will fly back to Texas.
The group met Monday at the Sun and Ski Sports store, which donated money so the bikers could get equipment at cost price. Friends and family came to help load the vans that will accompany the bikers and carry all their things. The group needs to be prepared, especially since they will start the ride in the Texas heat and finish in the much colder climate of Alaska.
"I'm very proud of Chris ... He's all about giving something back. He feels like so many people have given to him ... people were really supportive of him when he had cancer," said Mary Condit, his mom. Chris plans to make the trip an annual event and will be looking for more bikers for next time. Even though he is an engineering major, Condit hopes to continue working with similar projects after he graduates.
When not cycling, the group will be giving cancer presentations and doing volunteer work.
The group members say they are excited about the trip, but the adventure that awaits them is unpredictable.
"We spent much of the last week of finals calling the cities we're stopping at to find places to stay and eat at. We'll mostly be staying at churches and gyms, but there are a few days where we'll probably just be on the side of the road somewhere," said Seth Bonnecarrere, an aerospace engineering graduate who is going on the trip as a tribute to his grandmother who died of cancer.
Friends and family of the bikers say they will be praying for their safety.
"I'm mostly worried about them getting dehydrated and snake bites," said Holly Bryant, mother of Steve Bryant, a former president of UT Cycling Sports Club who helped the team with physical conditioning. "It's not about going fast, it's just about getting there safely," Steve Bryant said.
In preparation, the group has been training hard.
"We've been riding a lot, eating better than we do during the school year and trying to get decent amounts of sleep," said Dustin Barrientes, an undeclared senior. Barrientes' mother and grandfather both died of cancer.
To ease the burden on the towns, they have split up into two smaller groups and will be taking two different routes. One will ride up the West Coast and the other will ride through the Rocky Mountains.
The relationships among the group members have grown over the course of the preparations of their trip, Condit said.
"I know that such an intense physical and emotional experience like this makes you like family, like brothers and sisters," he said.
For updated information on the group and their progress, as well as their online journals, visit www.texas4000.org.
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