Riding the Divide

Hi y'all! My name is Dylan Gonda and I will be attempting the hardest mountain bike race in the world in the summer of 2016! Before we get into the details of the race here is a little background on who I am. I am originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico but have called Atlanta, Georgia and Portage, Michigan home as well. Currently I am a second-year student at Northern Michigan University studying Human Centered Design and Engineering. I've been obsessed with bikes my whole life and have been racing for the past 6 years. I recently came across a documentary called Ride the Divide and as a result became dedicated to riding the Tour Divide.

The Tour Divide (http://tourdivide.org/) is a self supported 2,745 mile mountain bike race from Banff, Alberta, Canada to Antelope Wells, New Mexico. Being a self-supported race means that I will have no help throughout the race. My goal is to complete the race in 21-28 days, which means I will be riding 100 - 130 miles a day on some of the roughest and most remote roads in America! Pretty awesome right? Riding in the wild west for three weeks requires a lot of gear also. That's where you guys come in! since I can't get support while doing the race your funds would help me get the necessary gear (GPS tracker, maps, etc..) as well as supply food for the trip. These funds will make the trip a success as well as help spread my message of colorectal cancer awareness and the need for research. 

For those of you who do not know my Dad has been battling colorectal cancer for over a year now. He was my inspiration for getting into riding bikes and racing and he is my biggest supporter for this challenge. He has overcome so many of his own challenges in spite of a late-stage cancer diagnosis and he continues to thrive and fight. During my race I will be raising awareness of colorectal cancer as well as raising funds for its research. The Lisa Fund at Fight Colorectal Cancer uses 100% of what is donated for important research focused on late stage diagnosis.  http://fightcolorectalcancer.org/do-something/support-research/lisa-fund/.

If you are a member of an organization or business that matches donations to non-profits please consider also donating directly to the Lisa fund at https://give.fightcrc.org/fundraise?fcid=520727. 

I expect to need $1,500 to $2,000 for food and supplies for the race and the other half of the funds will be donated. If I surpass my goal, all additional funds will go directly to the Lisa Fund.

THANK YOU!