November 27, 2007 – It’s considered to be the world’s longest and biggest charity adventure, and if all goes according to plan, it will raise millions of dollars for children’s cancer charities across Canada.

The Sears National Kids Cancer Ride will take cyclists from Vancouver, B.C. to Halifax, N.S. next June, with stops across the country at cancer centres along the way. The total distance is 7,600 kilometres, which will be covered in 19 days from June 2-20, 2008.

The event is being organized by the Coast to Coast Against Cancer Foundation, which was founded in 2002 by Jeff Rushton. The foundation and its associated fundraising events and efforts have raised more than $4.5 million for the cause. But the foundation wanted to step it up, so the National Kids Cancer Ride was a natural, although very big, progression.

“Just getting the route scheduled and figuring out the rest stops for each of the rider groups and the distances has been a big challenge,” said Rushton. For those wanting to take part in the ride, there are four different ways you can join.

Between 75 and 100 individual solo riders will be accepted for 2008. They will be split into three groups and ride the first part of the route “” from Vancouver to London, Ont. in three- to five-hour shifts. Then they will each ride the full distance from London to Quebec City, Que. before resuming the shift riding from there to the finish in Halifax. In total, each individual rider will cover approximately 5,000 kilometres in just 19 days.

For riders who are up for a less daunting challenge, there’s also a National Team Relay options for teams of six to 10 people. There will also be 25km-225km stage rides along the way where cyclists can join in with the national riders, as well as 5km community family rides.

Registrations have already starting coming in and the focus now is on filling the solo and National Relay Team spots.

“For the first year, we’re looking for people [who] are passionate about the cause, and we’re looking for them to be almost co-developers of the program and ambassadors,” Rushton said. “They don’t have to be elite cyclists, but people who lover to ride and are committed to raising money to fight childhood cancer. We’ll provide the training to get there.”

In order to hit the fundraising goals, the entry fees and fundraising minimums for the national riders are significant, but include all meals and accommodations, massage therapy, mechanical assistance, pre-event training through Can-Fit-Pro, event gear, cycling outfits and much more.

For the solo riders, the fee is $3,995, with a $12,500 fundraising requirement or $1,000 with $25,000 in fundraising. The cost for relay teams is $4,995, with a $30,000 fundraising requirement.

More importantly, the money raised will go to Canadian children’s cancer charities that support children and their families who are battling the disease.

While Sears Canada has come on board as the event’s title sponsor, a number of other major sponsors have also thrown their support behind the ride. What the organizers are really looking for now is help from the bike community and volunteers from across Canada.

“We need bike shops signing up to take a portion of the ride for mechanical support, helping to supply training rides for the riders and those kind of things, and we are looking for volunteers who want to a part of this great adventure,” Rushton added.

For more information on the ride, visit www.nationalkidscancerride.com.