A year after battling breast cancer, Lynda Bouchard launched the 300 km for Life Rally to raise funds for the Integrated Cancer Centre of Laval. The 7th edition of this event brought together 140 cyclists who cycled, in early September, the round trip between Laval and Trois-Rivières.

Quilicot: How did you come up with the idea of creating this cycling challenge?

Lynda Bouchard: I had breast cancer in 2007. Working at the Cité de la Santé in Laval, I was fortunate to have my schedule adjusted so that I could undergo treatments every lunchtime at Notre-Dame Hospital in Montreal. There, I met a single mother from Laval who had lost her job as a waitress because of her cancer. She had no choice but to come to the hospital with her children by public transport, as she did not have a car. I felt privileged.

As I knew a cancer center was going to be built here, I wanted to raise funds for cancer patients in Laval. I am a simple executive assistant who was lucky enough to recover and decided to share that luck.

Why did you choose to focus this event on cycling?

L.B.: At the time, cycling had not yet experienced the boom it is seeing today. We wanted to organize an event that was out of the ordinary rather than setting up another golf tournament.

I had never cycled before, but cycling allowed me to express the fact that I felt alive. You want to live at 100 miles an hour, so you cycle at 100 miles an hour. It allows you to push your limits!

What will the money raised be used for?

L.B.: It will fund three sections: patient care and services, prevention and rehabilitation, and equipment purchases. We have raised approximately $600,000 since the beginning. We have notably contributed to the acquisition of a new scanner, a physiotherapy training program to help patients who can no longer lift their arms due to their cancer... When I was ill, the medication made me lose my muscle strength, so I had to follow a rehabilitation program. :

Y ou founded the 300 km for Life Rally in 2008. What is your assessment of it?

L.B.: It's one of the best experiences of my life. Dr. Patrice Lamoureux decided to be my partner in this madness, and I am very proud that people believed in our madness!

The only thing I fear is seeing the Rally threatened by government cuts. [Editor's note: Faced with the proliferation of charitable sporting events, the government wishes to bill organizers for the costs incurred to ensure their safety.] We will not be able to return the $40,000 or $50,000 in security fees to patients.

And then, it's getting harder and harder to raise funds. Large companies, which are donors, are increasingly scrutinized since the corruption investigations, and fundraising events are numerous. All causes are good. Those that affect children work well, but people forget that all the young patients at Sainte-Justine, when they come of age, are followed in services like that of the Laval cancer center. And as the population of Laval is aging, the cancer rate is high.

What keeps you going?

L.B.: Among our volunteers, there is a 42-year-old father who is being treated for his 5 th cancer. This year, for the first time, he will not participate in the challenge as a cyclist because he is too ill. We do it for these people, to give them hope.

Our cycling rally would not be a success without the support of our sponsors, who believe in our project. Quilicot, for example, lends us 4 employees who help us during the two days of the challenge.