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Lake Tahoe bike ride raises $4.7 million for cancer research

Team in Training raised more than $4.7 million for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society at America's Most Beautiful Bike Ride.
Courtesy of Bik the West / Captivating Sports Photos

Several thousand cyclists made the 72-mile trek around Lake Tahoe on June 3, participating in Bike the West’s 27th annual America’s Most Beautiful Bike Ride.

For the past two decades charity program Team in Training has been bringing riders to Tahoe to raise funds for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and with more than 1,000 riders at this year’s event, the group has surpassed the $100 million mark.

“After 22 years I think they have brought over 27,500 trained athletes, and this year they surpassed — with this event — raising over $100 million,” said Bike the West Ride Director Curtis Fong.



Team in Training, which is the largest charity endurance training program in the world, according to its website, brought 1,035 riders from 47 different city chapters to this year’s ride, raising more than 4.7 million.

The rest of the roughly 2,000 riders tour the lake for other various organizations, according to Fong, or simply for the challenge of circumnavigating the lake.



The event began and ended in South Lake Tahoe, and took cyclists on a clockwise route around Tahoe. Team in Training riders rode an additional out-and-back route to Truckee, making for a 100-mile trek. With 3,000 riders on roadways around the lake, Fong said the only incident he heard of from aid stations was from a pair of riders clipping wheels, creating a minor spill.

“That was the only report I had of anybody touching wheels or going down,” Fong said.

Bike the West will return on Sept. 9 with another event taking cyclists on a tour around the lake with the 16th annual Tour De Tahoe. For more information or to register, visit BiketheWest.com.

Justin Scacco is a reporter for the Sierra Sun. Contact him at jscacco@sierrasun.com.


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