WATSONVILLE — A team of 21 firefighters arrived in Watsonville Monday after a 70-mile bicycle ride from Half Moon Bay.
It was one leg of a 484-mile ride that began Sunday in Sausalito and will end Saturday at Santa Monica Pier.
The annual Fire Service Cancer Awareness Bicycle Ride was created to raise awareness of, and funding for a crisis that until recently went unchecked.
It is sponsored by National Fire Velo Cycling Club, a riding club made up largely of firefighters but open to any rider.
To participate, riders each raised at least $1,000, all of which will go to support firefighters with cancer and raise awareness about the high rates of cancer that affect the profession.
Every day, firefighters across the world tackle catastrophes that would send most running in the opposite direction.
Whether it’s traffic collisions, medical emergencies or conflagrations, these are battles for which they are paid.
But behind the scenes the firefighters battle high incidents of cancer, which are thought to be caused by the gasses, smoke and other substances to which they are exposed during their careers.
In the fire service industry, some 63 percent of firefighters are being diagnosed with some form of cancer, said Cindy Ell, founder and president of Fire Fighter Cancer Foundation, Inc.
“Their time clock for exposure starts the minute they step into a fire station,” Ell said.
That’s when exhaust from fire engines can fill the room without the proper ventilation, she said.
According to Fire Velo Cycling Club President Jim Berklite, the San Francisco Fire Department lost 14 firefighters to cancer last year.
While firefighters being killed while battling a blaze garners news headlines, it is cancer that claims more lives, Berklite said.
“We want to raise awareness about firefighter deaths,” he said.
The Fire Fighter Cancer Foundation, Inc. has also begun to look at how firefighters’ careers affect their families, and how lifestyle changes such as diet, exercise and stress levels can help prevent cancers.
According to Berklite, fire departments across the U.S. are increasingly requiring annual physicals to track health changes over time, and to catch early indicators of cancer, Ell said.
While Watsonville Firefighter John Bridges is not participating in the entire ride, he rode the 70-mile stretch Monday as a show of support for the team.
“It’s a good cause and it raises awareness,” he said.
Watsonville Fire Captain Rick Pettigrew, who was on his fourth ride, said the need to spread information is so great that he has volunteered to speak at community events throughout the state.
By doing so, Pettigrew said he hopes to help keep his fellow firefighters safer on the job.
“Our job is to come home safe to our families every night,” he said.
Firefighter Tony Pigehetti of Santa Barbara said the Watsonville stop is the favorite among the riders, and described it as “world famous.”
“This ride is just a great way to show that you care and want to learn how to help keep people safe,” he said. “These firefighters here know how to treat all of us right.”
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For information, visit www.firevelo.com.
