Yesterday I completed the greatest physical feat of my life. A group of 6 Rockies men did the Mt. Evans challenge. We rode from Denver to an elevation of 14,270 ft at the peak of Mt. Evans. It was hard and exhilerating at the end.

This was an incredibly significant event for me because I am a cancer survivor who is fighting to regain his athleticism. I made a goal years ago to become something better than I was before cancer. Since I can say hands down that climbing that mountain on a bicycle was the greatest physical feat I have ever completed, I can now say that I have achieved that goal.

I dedicated the Evans climb foremost to John Stiles. He was a young man who developed the same disease I did and at the same age. He was also treated by the same doctor and hospital. His death helps me to realize my second chance in life. His father gave me his Eagle Scout patch on the morning of ATLAS to carry to Anchorage. John Stiles name and memory are on their way to Anchorage and yesterday I biked it up the highest paved road in North America. I reached the summit after multiple points of exhaustion and showed that the human spirit can run on empty.

A cancer patient must keep going when they bottom out if they are to survive. Giving up on the mountain equated to letting cancer win. I made it up the last 2 miles only because I refused to give up on what John's name means. His name means that we have work to do and that we must not back down. Ever.