When 25-year-old Seth Bailey of Riverside was near the end of his life, he told his parents he was afraid of being forgotten.
Seth died in 2003 after battling with soft-tissue synovial sarcoma. After his death, his parents began a yearly bike ride to honor Bailey and raise money for sarcoma cancer research.
Far from being forgotten, the Courage Ride is in its 20th year of honoring Seth’s memory. In the last two decades, the event has raised more than $1 million and brought together a community of sarcoma survivors and their families, as well as doctors and researchers working to understand this cancer.
Sarcoma is a rare and aggressive type of cancer that makes up 1% of cancer diagnoses.
“When they're diagnosed with sarcoma, many times, it's the first time they've ever even heard of the word,” said Dr. Ben Miller, a board medical adviser for Courage Ride and co-leader of the Sarcoma Multidisciplinary Oncology Group (MOG) at the University of Iowa.
Additionally, there are more than 50 different subtypes of sarcoma impacting bones, fat blood vessels and the tissue surrounding the nerves.
The Courage Ride organizers donated the first year’s proceeds to the Sarcoma Foundation of America. Following that year, they realized they wanted to keep these funds closer to home, and donated the money to the UI cancer center, where Seth received treatment. Dr. Miller says these donations have been critical to the cancer center’s research, with their focus on making the lives of sarcoma patients longer and better. Each year the cancer center hosts a sarcoma symposium the day before the Courage Ride, where researchers share their latest developments.
Jackie Bailey, Seth’s mother and founder of the ride, didn’t have a large support group of other people impacted by sarcoma when her son was diagnosed, but through the ride she has created that for other families.
“It feels both sad that they are going through that, but very hopeful that there is so much more. When we started there were no trials at all. There were no sarcoma doctors at the university,” Bailey said in a conversation with Charity Nebbe on Talk of Iowa. “Now there are a number of specific sarcoma doctors, and over 20 some trials... and that, that's the reason we started.”
The ride honors a different person living with sarcoma each year. This year’s patient honoree is 22-year-old Payton Pekarek. Pekarek was diagnosed with high grade osteosarcoma in March 2022, after a long journey involving multiple doctor consultations and two knee surgeries before being diagnosed.
Pekarek was in the middle of her second year of college at the University of Northern Iowa when she was diagnosed. Throughout her chemotherapy and treatment, she was steadfast in her commitment to education, and still graduated in four years. Her last treatment was in November 2022, and she received her bachelor’s degree this May.
After her personal experience as a patient, this fall Pekarek is headed to graduate school at the University of Iowa to become a child life specialist.
“I had a child life specialist visit me in the hospital every day I was in there — at least one a day, sometimes there was more — but I saw what they did, I firsthand experienced their services and resources,” she said. “And I knew that that is what I was passionate for now.”
Last year Pekarek rode in the Courage Ride for the first time as a participant. She said it’s an honor to be the face of so many people who have had similar experiences with sarcoma.
“This is going to be my second Courage Ride, so being the patient honoree just to me means being an advocate for those that are around me, for those who are fighting now, for those who will fight in the future and those who fought in the past.”
Event Details
This year’s ride starts on the morning of Aug. 10, with cyclists pushing off from Big Grove Brewery in Iowa City and riding southwest through Johnson and Iowa counties. The Courage Ride provides several maps, with lengths of routes ranging from 18 miles to 105 miles. Participants can register ahead of the event online.
There are typically 400-500 cyclists, and Bailey said the organizers want it to be accessible for all levels of fitness.
“It's not a race, it’s a ride,” she said.
The day will also feature several live music performances and a silent auction. The food and entertainment on these stops is open to the public, not just cyclists.
“It keeps growing and it's all out of love for each other,” said Leora Houghton, director of the Courage Ride. “The doctors and researchers are so heartfelt. And they come and talk to the folks, the families of folks have either passed away or have been treated. And it's just, it is a huge community all based on love and respect.”
To hear more of these and other conversations, listen to Talk of Iowa, hosted by Charity Nebbe. Sam McIntosh produced this episode.
