ORGAN DONATION
Bicyclist raises awareness for heartfelt cause
For most, a 750-mile bicycle journey from Cleveland to Boston would seem impossible.
Not for Richard Gates. The 57-year-old heart transplant recipient, who is from Boston, embarked on his “Tour De Second Chance” from Cleveland on Tuesday in order to raise awareness about organ donation.
He and his wife, Barbara, stopped in Buffalo on Thursday after completing a 90-mile leg of the journey from Erie.
Along the way, the two arranged to meet other transplant recipients and those still on a waiting list. He said the ride is meant to honor his heart donor, inspire those who are still waiting and encourage others to become donors.
“Someone gave me another chance,” he said. “I try to keep that in mind.”
Although Gates, a professional musician, was fit and trim as he parked in Niagara Square during rush hour Thursday, it wasn’t always that way. In 2000, he was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, a disease that causes weakening of the heart muscles.
The condition, which claimed his mother a generation ago, made him refrain from almost any physical activity. That was tough for Gates, who had run 12 marathons prior to his diagnosis.
Since his 2004 transplant, he had gained back much of his original strength; he has spent the last several months training for the trip.
“There is a physical life [after a transplant],” Gates said. “That’s important.”
Much of Thursday’s journey was on Route 5. Gates biked past roadside diners, vineyards and an old drive-in theater. At one point, he was almost blown off the road by a truck. Each day’s journey is structured around the 14 medications he must take at least daily. The couple’s next stop is Rochester. Barbara said that each day on the trip has been an adventure, and she has supported her husband as he pedals east.
“Now that it’s happening, it’s unfolding in its own way,” she said.
To read Gates’ blog about his journey, visit www.tourdesecondchance.com .
