Benefit ride falls through, but dreams will continue

"It didn't go as smoothly as planned — at all."

Thomas Drayton was staging for a 465-mile "border to border" ride beginning Sept. 12 to raise awareness about the benefits of regular physical exams. Had he had them he might not have been diagnosed with a rare form of thyroid cancer last September that's untreatable.

Sadly, Drayton needed urgent surgery to remove his gallbladder Sept. 4 after two days in the emergency room brought on by gallstones. He suspects one of his cancer-related medications caused the new health challenge.

Drayton had intended to leave Grand Portage on day one of his five-day ride to New Albin, Iowa.

"Unfortunately it didn't come to fruition," he said this week.

After recuperating from surgery, Drayton tried to salvage his adventure Sept. 28 – "to make up for the big ride," he said — with a plan to roll about 100 miles a day over several days, looping on the paved paths of Elm Creek Park Reserve. Even that was cut short. He managed 88 miles before a technical issue with a pedal produced knee pain.

Drayton said he has brighter hopes for 2022 and beyond. Maybe a one- or two-day event that would include participants, and maybe fulfilling a dream of riding across every state.

Still, he managed to raise nearly $5,000 through a GoFundMe for Thyroid Cancer Survivors' Association.

"I have these big dreams," Drayton said. "I want to make an impact. I want to make it epic."

In the meantime, he has continued to ride his road and mountain bikes and enjoyed the fall weather. He also is working with his oncologist to find possible clinical trials to combat his final-stage medullary thyroid cancer.

"Physically, I feel great," he said, "but I am still in the same boat, with no treatments."