Bailey Parker, morning show co-host on Virgin Radio, has been training rigorously this summer as she prepares to take on the Cops For Cancer Tour de Rock charity bike.
The 1,200 kilometre ride takes place between September 21st and October 4th, all the way from Port Alice at the northern tip of Vancouver Island back to Victoria.
Tour de Rock was started back in 1997 by a police officer who wanted to do something to raise money for children with pediatric cancer.
Over the years, the initiative eventually grew into what it is today, having raised nearly $54 million since its inception.
Though when it first started, Tour de Rock was mostly police officers and first responders, Parker says that some media personalities are invited to participate in the ride.
“They’ve involved the media over the last several years as a way to help spread awareness,” Parker told Victoria Buzz.
In total there are 17 riders who are split between the northern and southern regions of Vancouver Island, because some of those participating in the ride live and work up-island.
Last year, Parker’s co-host Johnny Novak was one of the Tour de Rock riders so she had a pretty good idea of what she was getting herself into.
“Pretty much as soon as Johnny started training last year, he said, ‘You’re doing it next year,’” said Parker.
“Then when I met his team, he’s like ‘Hey it’s Bailey, she’s riding next year,’ so I basically got volun-told into it.”
Parker says his experience has been invaluable thus far in her training.
“He’s been so great about answering any question that I’ve had, like ‘what is this going to be like?’ or ‘what should I pack for that?’ and the support side of that, because it is really helpful…when I’m having a hard day, I can vent to him about it and he understands exactly what I’m going through,” she explained.
In addition to Novak, Parker will be joining the ranks of other past and present Bell Media employees who have rode in Tour de Rock, including CTV reporters Anna McMillan, Scott Cunningham and Yvonne Cooper Raymond, among others.
When asked why Parker was so keen to take on this massive endeavour, she said, “I’m riding for the kids.”
“I want there to be a future where kids never have to go through cancer and have to deal with the heartbreak of that—and the loss of losing a kid with cancer,” Parker explained.
“I have a lot of kids in my life. I’m a proud auntie to many nieces and nephews, both biologically and through my friends, so just the thought of any of them ever getting sick is obviously devastating.”
As part of the leadup to Tour de Rock, Parker, her fellow riders and countless others have been engaging in fundraising efforts for the cause.
The goal of the event is to raise $1 million this year. Parker herself has set a goal of raising $10,000.
So far, she has raised 37% of that goal, at just under $3,700.
To help her reach her fundraising goal, Parker and Novak are hosting two upcoming trivia night events, on Friday, August 23rd and on Wednesday, September 4th, at Herald Street Brew Works and The Drake Eatery, respectively.
She says participants will be engaging in general knowledge, true or false, multiple choice, ‘name that tune’ and other questions, with each of the two trivia nights being completely different.
Additionally, there will be a silent auction taking place throughout each night with a spread of local items.
The winners will get a trophy along with bragging rights and a sense that they have helped contribute to children who are suffering or have suffered from pediatric cancer.
“Herald Street also brewed a beer, and one dollar from every beer sold goes to my campaign as well,” Parker told Victoria Buzz.
The beer they brewed for her efforts is a salted guava lager called ‘Pedal to Paradise’ and it will be on tap all month long at both Herald Street and The Drake.
Tickets for each trivia night is $10 a head, with all proceeds going towards Parker’s campaign and the ticket links can be found online for both the Herald Street Trivia Night and The Drake Trivia Night.
If people can’t make the trivia nights, they can still make a donation directly to Parker’s campaign online.
