No experience on a road bike didn’t deter Mary-Ellen Somerville from leaping at the chance to ride in this year’s Tour de Rock.
“I’ve always been passionate about volunteering and fundraising,” said Somerville, an RCMP constable two years into her first posting at the Sooke detachment. “From a police officer’s perspective, Cops for Cancer Tour de Rock is all about helping kids who are struggling with cancer and their families.”
Somerville has known about the Tour de Rock for about 15 years, dating back to the time her kids were in school.
“I thought it would be a great way to give back when I became a police officer,” she said.
She has a personal connection as well that provides additional motivation.
“I have two friends that lost a child to cancer, one aged four and the other one aged nine,” she said. “I thought about them a lot when I was applying for the Tour de Rock.”
The event, which began in 1997, involves a gruelling 1,200-kilometre fundraising ride from Port Alice to Victoria over 14 days to raise money for the Canadian Cancer Society’s childhood cancer research and support services.
The riders have been training for about two months for 10 hours a week, spread over three days outside of regular work hours.
“Even when you’re training hard after a night shift and you’re exhausted, it doesn’t come close to what the kids with cancer and their families are going through,” she stressed.
Although Somerville credits the Tour de Rock training team for their help in improving her riding skills, she’s already taken two spills off of her bike.
“The second one was in the Victoria Day Parade in front of a bunch of kids,” she noted with a self-deprecating laugh.
The tumbles haven’t slowed down her fundraising efforts toward the team’s goal of raising at least $1 million this year.
The first major event is the inaugural Guns Versus Hoses Charity Slo-Pitch Classic, which will pit the Sooke RCMP against Sooke Fire Rescue.
Sooke Lions Club is putting on a barbecue, Sooke Harbourside Lions will have cotton candy, and Sooke Oceanside Brewery is hosting a beer garden.
“I’m very grateful for their support,” she said.
Plans at this point include a home run competition open to all ages, a spinning home run race for kids eight to 10, entertainment, games and prizes, with more attractions in the works.
“We’re looking to add a carnival and some other things like bouncy castles,” Somerville said. “I want to make it a fun event for the whole family, whatever their age.”
She’s also looking for sponsors and silent auction donations for the event, which gets underway at 11 a.m. on Sunday, June 23 at Fred Milne Park at 2249 Sooke River Rd.
Anyone interested in helping out with a donation or sponsorship should contact mary-ellen_tdr@outlook.com.
In addition to all that’s going on, Somerville said she’s growing more anxious by the day to meet her honorary rider, Marley, an 11-year-old student at Sooke Elementary School.
“I’m really looking forward to the opportunity to get to know her before the ride.”
