Riding with a legend
Cash, a Landrum resident and Tryon business owner, has been riding and competing at a high level for years. Hes been a top finisher in his age group in the Duathalon World Championships.
Severals years ago he began combining his love for cycling with a new found passion for helping those with cancer.
That passion was ignited when Cash met his hero and the man who created LAF, Lance Armstrong.
Cash and five other cyclists got a chance in 2006 to join Armstrong on an 8-day, 350-mile tour through northern Italy. Along the way, Cash got to know the person behind the legend and learned about Armstrongs efforts to fight cancer.
Having trained on steep slopes such as the Saluda Grade, Cash also got a rare opportunity to ride alone with the bike racing legend. When the 7-time Tour De France winner wanted to make a long, steep climb on the first day, Cash was the only one to join him.
Cash took in the spectacular views with Armstrong, and learned which lines to take on the mountainous curves while riding the 60 kilometers back down on Armstrongs wheel. Later, Cash even got a chance to take a spin on Armstrongs bike.
That same year the Palmetto Peleton Project began in Greenville to support LAF and Cash jumped in to help.
Since then Cash, whose sister is a cancer survivor, has been one of the top grassroots fundraisers, or “LAF warriors” as Armstrong calls them. Cash has raised more than $30,000 “just here in Tryon” through people sponsoring him in events such as the Climb for Cancer and other races. His efforts have earned him invitations to join Armstrong in his annual Ride for Roses in Austin, Tx.
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New season
Tomorrows Climb for Cancer kicks off a season of fundraising for Cash that will continue until September 18. Thats when the LAF warriors turn in the funds theyve raised to help with cancer treatment and research.
Nearly all of the funds raised from Cashs Climb for Cancer and the Palmetto Peleton Project stay local, going directly to the oncology department at Greenville Hospital.
In the first year of his Climb for Cancer in 2009, Cash raised about $3,300. This year Cash is hoping to do even better and he may have a few extra members of his “cycling family” by his side.
He says some cyclists he knows decided to make the trip here and join him after hearing about Justin.
“I have this incredible family and extended family and a cycling family,” he says. “I always knew I had lots of friends, but Ive really been encouraged by how much support Ive received.”
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Four miles up
In total, Cash plans to ride about 84 miles tomorrow morning. He is aiming to complete each trip up, which is a little more than four miles, in about 25 minutes. The descent will take about seven minutes.
The first trip, he says, will be slower and somewhat “ceremonial” as everyone follows behind a police escort up the mountain.
After that, Cash says, it will be time to “put the hammer down” to make sure hes finished and off the road by 3 p.m. “Ive got to finish in six hours so Ill have to get moving,” he says.
During and after the race Franklin McKaig of the Tryon Youth Center is providing pizza to eat there or to go with all proceeds benefiting LAF.
In addition, a silent auction will be held between 3 and 4 p.m. at the Tryon Youth Center on Hwy. 176. The auction will include a wide variety of items, such as sports memorabilia (cycling, football, baseball, Nascar), original artwork and more. All donations received at the auction are tax deductible.
For additional information on how to help, contact Cash at Natures Storehouse, 828-859-6356 or naturesstore@windstream.net. You can also contribute directly by visiting http://austin2010.livestrong.org. Click on “Donate” and type in John Cashs name.
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Recovering
Prior to his sons death, Cash had been training for the national championships in Richmond, Va. in two weeks, but he pulled out of the race because “my heart just wasnt in it.”
Cash, who routinely rides about 250 miles per week, says he hopes to get himself ready to qualify for the world championships in Edinburg, Scotland in September.
For now, though, he says “all that is on the back burner.” Instead, he says, hes focused on his first event back on a bike tomorrow and his mind is clearly with Justin.
Tomorrows Climb for Cancer comes just four weeks after his son passed away at the age of 32. Justin died on March 11 of natural causes at his home in New York.
“He was really in a peaceful place. He was content in his job, content with his God and content with his family,” says Cash. “He was the best son anyone could ever have. It was such a special gift God gave me to be his father. He was the best.”
Cash says Justin was a gifted artist, not an athlete, but he admired his fathers passion for athletics and knew what it meant to him.
“Its my therapy. It helps me get through each day,” says Cash. “If Justin was here today, he would say, Dad, get back on the bike.”
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