CFC TEAM CELEBRATES FAMILY, FRIENDS & FUNDRAISING AT 2022 BIKE MS RIDE
There’s a slogan on the Bike MSⓇ website: “Bike MS is more than the ride of a lifetime.” While that may sound like overblown marketing-speak to some, to the dedicated riders on CFC’s 2022 Bike MS Team, it’s just the truth. The 2022 Bike MS Colorado event, which took place June 25-26, marked the eighth year participating for several of the team’s riders. For others, it was their first time out. But those first-time riders? They’ve already said they want to do it again next year.
Colorado’s annual two-day Bike MS ride is an ambitious effort, extending from Westminster to Fort Collins and back. On average, riders cycle between 68 and 82 miles each day. Initially, many riders worry that these distances aren’t within reach — that they won’t be able to finish. But each year, CFC’s riders show what they’re capable of. This year’s team included CFC Construction Manager Duke LaFore, CFC Director of Operations Steve D’Aragon, CFC Safety Director Shawn Burke, CFC Chief Estimator Tyler Laib and his wife Felicia, Andrew Brodeur (of CFC trade partner Frontier Fire Protection), and added friends and family.
Team Captain Tyler Laib, for whom the 2022 event was his 8th consecutive, explains, “It’s a very well-supported and well-organized ride. You always feel safe, and they do such an amazing job at all the rest stops. There are so many snacks, lunch is great, and we drink plenty of pickle juice! Everyone jokes that this is a ride where you consume more calories than you burn. My wife says I make it sound too easy, but I think of it as five 15-mile rides. While many people have a hard time fathoming 75 miles, all the support and rest stops make it an attainable feat.”
Obviously, the ride is also a fantastic opportunity to raise money and awareness for an important cause — the fight against multiple sclerosis (MS). CFC’s 2022 team was proud to raise $7,185; to date, 80+ CFC riders have raised more than $57,000 for the cause. Indeed, many of CFC’s riders have been inspired to ride from a personal connection with MS through a friend or family member.
In fact, the founding of CFC’s team was inspired by a different type of family connection. Tyler, who started CFC’s team in 2016, first participated in Bike MS in 2015. His Uncle Gordy — a retired structural engineer, first coaxed him into signing up. In fact, in 2019, at 80 years young, CFC team member Gordy was proud to be the oldest person to complete the Colorado Bike MS ride. He remains one of Team CFC’s biggest supporters!
According to Bike MS, the event is the world’s largest fundraising cycling series, with ~75,000 cyclists and 6,000+ teams participating each year in 68 rides across the United States. Bike MS raises more money than any other cycling event for any other cause. To date, it has raised more than $1.4B toward combating MS. Teams like CFC’s are the cause’s “fundraising powerhouses,” raising 85% of Bike MS funds. The 1,549 riders in the 2022 Bike MS Colorado event raised a total of $1,940,841.
This year, overcast weather and mild temperatures made the ride even more manageable for CFC’s team. Explains Tyler, “Everyone felt good at all the rest stops. And when we arrived at CSU at the end of day one, the skies broke open and the sun came shining through. It was perfect timing for cracking open the cold beers they have waiting for you, and celebrating another great ride.”
Interested in joining — or donating to — CFC’s 2023 Bike MS team? Please email Tyler Laib to learn more. CFC proudly supports a range of charitable and community organizations, viewing these opportunities as another way we can help build stronger communities.
