Wheelin' Warriors of the North: Cancer survivor rides for those who can't

She rides because she can.

With every push of the pedals, first-time Wheelin’ Warriors of the North rider Terri McConnachie, a cancer survivor, will take a deep breath and acknowledge those she loves who have lost their lives to cancer.

“‘Ride with pride for those of us who can’t,’ my friend and colleague, Ron, said to me just before he passed away recently,” McConnachie said. “And that’s exactly what I am going to do.”

McConnachie, who was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2021, will join the Wheelin’ Warriors of the North in the Tour de Cure, a 200-kilometre bicycle ride from Cloverdale to Hope over two days, Aug. 24 and 25. Proceeds from the event will go to the BC Cancer Foundation and funds raised in the north stay in the north.

In her first day of fundraising, McConnachie met her goal of raising $2,500 and promptly raised her goal because, of course, there’s no such thing as raising too much money for cancer research.

“And if I can do this ride, anyone can do this ride,” McConnachie said. “I am so filled with gratitude that I am here and able to do this. It’s hard to get started but once I’m there I just take a deep breath and I am amazed at what my body can do. Look what I can do. I am upright and there’s the sun and the wind and I feel so much gratitude and a lot of that is about the people who didn’t make it and I am taking a deep breath for them. That’s for you Ron, that’s for you Darlene, that’s for you Dad. I’m sorry you didn’t get this chance. I made it, you didn’t and that’s not fair. Every day is gratitude.”

McConnachie thinks back to the time of her diagnosis and said it was triggered by another health issue and through that her cervical cancer was discovered.

“I think the hardest part for anybody who knows there’s something wrong is the period of time when you know you’re sick but you don’t know what it is,” McConnachie said. “It’s all the tests, it’s that whole long time where you don’t know and you are literally along for the ride. That was the first time in my life where I realized I had no control. I was a leaf floating on the stream just bobbin' along. I was quick to realize how much one human being had to count on the knowledge and expertise of others and how these people bring it – I never felt so supported in my whole life. Nobody wants to get cancer but if you are stuck with it, thank goodness we live in this province, in this country, in this time, because there’s been so many advances made. Not long ago people with my kind of cancer would not have survived it. So, again, so much gratitude.”

The feeling of not being in control didn’t sit well with McConnachie, so she kept a journal. On the outside of her journal it said ‘she thought she could, so she did’.

“I still have it, it’s sitting in my cabinet,” McConnachie said. “I don’t feel I have to look at it but it has every appointment and every detail of treatment and test result in it and that was my way of managing things.”

McConnachie’s advice for those going through it?

“Oh my God, don’t doom-scroll through Google,” McConnachie said. “That is the worst thing you can do.”

The best thing McConnachie did during that most difficult time was to accept that she had stage 2b cervical cancer.

“Every time I went to the gynecologist my test results would get worse,” McConnachie said. “I finally told her that I wasn’t coming in any more because every time I did it painted a worse picture. The doc looked at me and said ‘Terri, you have cancer whether we keep testing you or not, being informed doesn’t change it.’ Oh my gosh, it was a game changer for me. I thought ‘she’s right, I have cancer.’ And what are we going to be about it? Let’s work on it. You being ignorant of it doesn’t change your status. You just gotta face it. Isn’t that just the weirdest thing? I had to hear that from her to accept it.”

The Wheelin’ Warriors group was founded by Karin Piche, a nurse, who started the group in November 2012, right after she lost a friend to skin cancer. She is captain for the Tour de Cure team to raise funds for the BC Cancer Foundation.

This year's fundraising goal for the team is $150,000. Since 2012 the Wheelin’ Warriors of the North have raised $1.7 million in total and this year’s target is to surpass $1.8 million. Funds raised will go to the BC Cancer Foundation and all the money raised in the North stays in the North. The funds go to BC Cancer to equip the centre with critical technology, expand its research capabilities and attract world-class experts. It also supports the Patient Comfort Fund, which provides resources for patients travelling to Prince George for treatment.

“In the beginning I used the ride as an outlet for my mourning,” Piche explained. “Since then, my reasons for continuing to ride and to captain this amazing team have grown and evolved to encompass so much more. I ride to create space for people to mourn their losses, and also to celebrate life's accomplishments and subtleties. I ride to raise money for the BC Cancer Foundation, the largest fundraising event supporting BC Cancer. Each year our team has consisted of some very inspiring and dedicated teammates ranging in age and experience, but all share a common goal: a passion for fundraising in support of cancer research and care.”

The team that includes 53 people is always grateful for any donation. To make a contribution visit tourdecure.ca/team/WheelinWarriors24