Hopkins student has much riding on cross-country trek

Even avid bikers might be daunted by a 4,000-mile trek across the U.S., but not Caitlin Leach, of Freehold Township. The 20-year-old Johns Hopkins University junior is gearing up for the 4K for Cancer, a nonprofit group that organizes cross-country bicycle tours to raise funds and awareness in the fight against cancer.

Howell High School graduate Caitlin Leach, 20, tries out her new 9-speed road bike in preparation for a 4,000-mile bike ride from Baltimore to San Francisco. "Each rider bikes 4,000 miles and raises $4,000 to be donated to the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge and a cancer treatment center in Baltimore," she said. "Our mission is to inspire young people to engage with communities in the fight against cancer by spreading awareness, raising funds and fostering hope. Students plan the trip, cycle across the country, and volunteer within the communities they travel."

Starting in Baltimore on May 31, the 27 students will bike through 12 states, and expect to arrive in San Francisco on Aug. 1. Family members are part of the send-off and arrival festivities on both coasts.

"When we leave Baltimore, all of our family and friends get up early in the morning and go with us to the Inner Harbor where we dip our back tires into the bay," Leach said. "Then, two months and 4,000 miles later when we arrive in San Francisco, our families are there waiting for us. Tradition dictates that we put flowers in our helmets on arrival day and stick our front tires in the Pacific. Then, everyone just dances around and jumps in the ocean — it's a rite of passage to show that you made it."

What could inspire a college student to spend her spring break fundraising and getting in shape instead of sunning on a tropical isle?

"One of my good friends did the 4K last summer," Leach said. "He never ran out of positive things to say about the experience. And like everyone else, I have been closely affected by cancer. I lost both my grandmothers to cancer, and when I was a preteen, my best childhood friend was diagnosed with melanoma. The cause for this ride really hits home for me."

One night while in D.C. last fall during an internship with Rep. Rush Holt (D-12th District), she rode a tandem bike with friends.

"It was fun and felt natural to be on a bike, so the 4K popped back into the forefront of my mind," she recalled. "I went online and found out the deadline for applications was the next day — I felt it was a sign."

Leach is no stranger to travel. As a student at Howell High School, where she was a member of the Scholars Center for the Humanities, she joined the People to People Ambassador Program, a group that organizes teachers and students for travel abroad.

"We went to England, Ireland and Wales in summer 2004. I fell in love with traveling and seeing other places," Leach said.

In 2005, she spent the summer in Bologna, Italy.

"We took immersion classes in Italian and attended a cooking school," she said. "We lived in apartments in the heart of Bologna in its main Piazza Maggiore. I got to experience life as an Italian, and ate as much gelato as possible during the trip," she quipped.

For the January intersession during her sophomore year at Hopkins, she studied biology in Ecuador, which included excursions to a rain forest and hiking in the mountains.

On her upcoming trip, Leach will be a member of a team with support personnel, so her safety and health concerns are minimal.

"We have vans that come along with us and have first aid supplies," she said. "Also, we have 'leg leaders,' who are in charge of contacting towns in advance to find out where hospitals are and getting phone numbers for local emergency services. Everything is very well planned. And hopefully we'll have no need for our medical information."

"Cait has always approached everything she has ever done with determination and a smile," her father, David, said. "When she told me that she was going to bicycle from Baltimore to San Francisco, I had concerns about her safety, as any parent would. When she told me it was to raise money to fight cancer, I just couldn't tell her about those fears."

"Caitlin has often said how proud she is of her brother, Brendan, who has never let Crohn's disease stop him from following his dreams," said mom Maureen. "I knew that she would work hard to prepare and would never complain, because she feels so committed to helping others who are sick. We are enormously proud of her. Her oldest brother, David, has been so moved by Caitlin's commitment that he has signed up for a local 20-mile bike ride to raise money for cancer research."

Despite the support personnel, team members take care of their own equipment.

"We are each responsible for maintaining our bikes each night when we finish that day's ride. We have spare tires and tubes with us in the support vans to aid in any on-the-go maintenance. Also, we have preplanned stops at bike shops along the route, so we can get the supplies and assistance we may need."

The trip is well organized, with stops along the way at churches, YMCAs, community centers or schools.

"After riding anywhere between 60 to 120 miles a day, depending on the terrain and conditions, we will arrive at our destination for the night," Leach said. "The community comes out for a potluck dinner and the 4K team gives a presentation on cancer early detection, prevention and safety measures. Then we meet the locals and have dinner with them. We'll sleep in sleeping bags on the floor in these community centers, and the next morning the same local residents give us breakfast. Before we leave in the morning, we have a group meeting to discuss the route, water stops and weather conditions. Also at this time, we dedicate that day's ride to someone whom we know personally or met along the way who is battling or has already battled cancer."

Besides prepping for the physically demanding aspects of the journey with stationary bike training, running and yoga, Leach, like all team members, was required to raise $4,000. After reaching out to family, friends and local businesses, she has met her goal but hopes to exceed it as most riders do.

Funds raised primarily benefit the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge in Baltimore.

"The Hope Lodge is a home-like center run by the American Cancer Society," Leach said. "It's completely free to adults and their caregivers for basically as long as they need to stay. Many of the families are from Maryland or Delaware, and driving back and forth each day to HopkinsHospitalwould be taxing, especially when people are feeling very sick. Some families stay for a few days at a time, while some are there for weeks.

"I met a man at the Hope Lodge from Ohio who had been there a year ago battling cancer and had met the 2008 4K team. He was back for a checkup when we visited, and he was so thrilled to meet the new team. He spoke so fondly of the past riders he met at the lodge and was glad to see us continuing their work. He even offered his home to us if we go through his part of Ohio."

Another beneficiary is the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, a branch of Hopkins Hospital.

"Some of the most cutting-edge cancer treatments are being studied there," Leach said.

Knowing what a worthwhile cause the 4K for Cancer is eases concerns about any challenges the 4K bikers will encounter.

"I'm always reassured by the riders who have come before me," Leach said. "They all survived and are better people for having done it. Also, this sounds corny, but I think about all the people who are battling cancer right now, the struggles they go through on a daily basis. If they can persist and fight through that, I can persist and fight through biking 4,000 miles."

Leach's goals of service to others through the 4K for Cancer parallels what she believes will be her career choice after she graduates with a bachelor's in political science next year: a career in government. To gain some real-life experience in the field, she has served as an intern for Rep. Holt.

Last fall she was selected as an Aitchison Fellow within the university's Political Science Department. Fellows get to live, learn and work in Washington, D.C., at an internship of their choice. Leach worked as a summer intern for Holt here in New Jersey before her fall fellowship stint in the congressman's D.C. office.

"In the beginning of the summer," she said, "I learned about health care and Social Security-related casework — what Rep. Holt can do to help people who are having problems with their health insurance or receiving proper payments from Medicare, and so on. Later in the summer, I got to help plan and organize projects such as town hall meetings. I really enjoyed hearing what issues people care about; I think that's the beauty of representative government and why I'd ultimately like to settle my career in government.

Anyone interested in supporting Leach in her cross-country trip may do so in two ways: online donations through the organization's homepage, www.4kforcancer.org (click on Caitlin Leach's name), or by check made out to "4K for Cancer" with Leach's name on the memo line. Checks should be mailed to 4K for Cancer, P.O. Box 4730, Baltimore, MD 21211.

Supporters are encouraged to follow her progress and adventures before and during the 4K via her blog: http://caitlinleach4Kforcancer. blogspot.com.