Miles 4 Melanoma

In its Spring 2009 Newsletter, the Melanoma Research Foundation announced the recipients of the annual research grants, including:

Dr. Soheil Dadras – Stanford University (Standford, CA)
Investigating the Role of Small Ribonucleic Acids (RNAs) in the Progression of Cutaneous Melanoma
Award in honor of Miles 4 Melanoma Pan-American Bike Ride (in memory of George Madzia), Kelly’s Dream, Wine Country Golf Classic (in memory of Joe Falso and Joe Roth) and Jessica Scruggs

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Today we received the Spot Satellite Personal Tracker device donated by Spot, Inc. It’s all set up and ready to go, so that you can track our progress exactly on the map.

You can go to http://tinyurl.com/miles4melanoma to see where we are (service no longer active).

Go to www.findmespot.com for more information about the Spot Satellite Personal Tracker service.

Thank you to Spot Inc!

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The Adventure Cycling Association’s nonprofit mission is to inspire people of all ages to travel by bicycle for fitness, fun, and self-discovery. Founded in 1973 as Bikecentennial, they are based in Missoula, Montana.

Adventure Cycling developed the Underground Railroad Bicycle Route in conjunction with the Center for Minority Health at the University of Pittsburgh to honor one of the most fabled paths to freedom in the world. The route celebrates the bravery of those who chose to flee slavery and the scores of Americans that offered aid on their route to freedom.

The Miles 4 Melanoma Pan-American Ride Team thanks Lois Moss of Walk+Roll for purchasing the maps of the Underground Railroad Bicycle Route from the Adventure Cycling Association for our use during the initial portion of our tour from Ohio to the Gulf Coast of the United States.

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Please feel free to join us on Sunday, August 24, 2008, the day of our departure from Cleveland, Ohio! Here is the schedule of events for the day:

• 10:00am – Depart from Lakewood
• 12:00 Noon – Arrive at Walk+Roll Cleveland in Rockefeller Park.
  • Meet the Miles 4 Melanoma team as they meet with representative from Tri-Flow / Sherwin-Williams.
  • Receive Tri-Flow product samples.
  • Learn about the Underground Railroad Bicycle Route
  • Ride/walk/skate on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard (closed to car traffic for the event)
  • See www.walkroll.com for more details!
• 1:00pm – Depart from Rockefeller Park
  • Ride with us to the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail! You’ll need to return to Rockefeller Park on your own (route details to be published soon).

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We are very pleased to announce a sponsorship by Triflow, makers of the well-known Superior Bicycle Lubricant. Triflow is based and manufactured right here in Cleveland, Ohio!

We use Triflow lubricant by the gallon at Century Cycles, and needless to say, it would have been on our trip packing list one way or another. In addition to providing products to use during our trip, Triflow is also providing us with clothing and very generous financial support for our trip expenses and to The Melanoma Research Foundation.

Thank you very much!

Tri-Flow is a division of The Sherwin-Williams Company.

Ray and I rode our bikes to visit with several Triflow personnel at their offices today. Here is a shot of us taking a break in downtown Cleveland just before our meeting:

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I normally wear contact lenses, but I figured on a bike trip like this, where we’ll likely have to deal with less-than desirable sanitary conditions, it would be safer and more convenient just to stick with glasses.

Several years ago, I purchased a pair of cycling-specific sunglasses from another high-end company, along with a clip-in prescription adapter. While the sunglasses themselves were decent, I never really felt that I could see as well as I should have using the prescription adapter. Plus, a big drawback of any clip-in adapter is that in wet or foggy conditions, both the regular lens and the prescription adapter fog up. You have to unclip the adapter, then wipe the fog off of both the regular lenses and adapter. By the time you get them put back together, everything is bound to be fogged up all over again!

So, I began looking for sunglasses that could be fitted with regular prescription lenses. At Century Cycles, we have sold sunglasses from Tifosi Optics for a number of years, and I have used several different pair of them myself, and been quite satisfied with them. A select number of their styles are available with their DirectFit Rx technology. I asked them if they would be willing to provide me with a pair, and they very generously agreed.

I chose the frame style known as the Czar, and also chose the polarized lens option for better protection in the blazing Central American sun. I received them on July 24, and have tested them out on several bike rides since then. I am enourmously pleased with the style, fit, comfort, and most of all, the vision quality. Thank you very much, Tifosi!

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I’m excited to report that Wilderness Trail Bikes (WTB) has agreed to provide saddles (seats) for our bikes. WTB saddles are my favorite, and I’ve been using them on most of my bikes for the past several years. I received the WTB Speed V ProGel saddle last week, and got it set up on my Diamondback Transporter right away, and it feels great.

A big thanks to Peter Pelychaty, the Eastern Regional Technical Manager for WTB, for making it happen.

WTB was founded in 1982 in Marin County, California, and provides high-quality components and accessories for mountain bikes, including saddles, wheels, tires, pedals, grips, and handlebars.

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The Melanoma Research Foundation announces its list of Named Research Grants for 2008. Because of the direct efforts of volunteers and donors, over $1,000,000 in grants are being awarded this year. Thank you for making this possible!

Second Year Career Development Awards

Dr. Alexander Krupnick – Washington University (St. Louis): Award in Honor of Katie Brennan, Dermatology Interest Group (DIG) of Texas Tech, Vanderbilt/Meharry, and Wright University, Karen Dolge, Tyler Feldman, William Gelston, Ian Maclellan, Beth Nagurny, and Ralphstock

Dr. Arati Sharma – The Pennsylvania College of Medicine (Hershey): Award in Memory of John Geltrude and Tricia Elaine Black by Teb’s Troops

Dr. Angela Hess – Bloomsburg University (Pennsylvania): Award in Memory of Kathy Domijan, Art Fuller, Robert Hansen, Mary Ellen Koutny, Chris Kutter, Paul Mikaulauskas, Kathy Salling, Deb Sandry, Whitney Watkins, Leonard E. Warren, and Jon Warrington

Dr. Jonathan Lee – UMDNJ/Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (New Brunswick): Award in Memory of Kent McCullough

Dr. Gregory Lesinski – The Ohio State University: Award in Memory of Judie Bailey, Tom Butler, Amanda Carter-Horn, Joe Falso, George Madzia, Gordon Meldrum, Amber Murphy, Murray Richardson, Carl Osterlof, Mike Revers, Bruce Schocken, Bob Whitman, and George A. Wilkins

Dr. Victoria Crotzer – Indiana School of Medicine: Award from The Bill Walter III Melanoma Research Fund and In Memory of Aaron Anchor and Jack Riemen

Dr. Kevin Brown – The Translational Genomics Research Institute (Phoenix): Award in Honor of 2007 Wings of Hope Recipient: Dr. Paul Chapman

Dr. Xiaowe Xu – University of Pennsylvania: Award in Memory of Kathy Bowers, Lucien Caron, Gary D. Cox, Kerry Daveline, Randy G. Johnson, Sara Pauli, Larry Poplawski, Dolores Ryan, Linda A. Transou, and Ken Ulrey

First Year Career Development Awards

Dr. Paul Antony – Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore): The Brenda MacDonald Melanoma Foundation Award

Dr. Susanne Schlisio – Dan Farber Cancer Institute: Award in Memory of Don Aronow

Dr. Soheil Dadras – Stanford University: The Two Faced Cosmetics’ Love Lisa Award

Dr. Karen Taraszka Hastings – University of Arizona: Award In Honor of Kelly’s Dream and The New Jersey Miles for Melanoma Walk

Dr. William Kim – The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: Award in Honor of Balmoral Turkey Trot, Cincinnati Miles for Melanoma Teams, Full Spectrum Dermatology, Dan & Pam Howard, and Dean Packer

First Year Established Investigator Awards

Dr. Edward DeFabo – The George Washington University (Washington DC): The Diana Ashby Award In Memory of Danny Federici of the E Street Band

Dr. Boris C. Bastian – University of California, San Francisco: The Susan Fazio Melanoma Research Foundation Award

Dr. Patrick Hwu – MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston): Award in Memory of James Robbins

Donor Designated Grant

Dr. Jedd Wolchuk – Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center: The Sohn Foundation Award

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