‘Incredible people’: Bike riders raise awareness of Parkinson’s in cross-country trek

Three cyclists hopped on their bikes for a trip through Red Rock Canyon early Sunday morning, but it wasn’t just any ride — it was part of a mission to raise awareness about Parkinson’s disease.

The three, who each suffer from the disease, are on the Las Vegas leg of a cross-country journey after logging 2,000 miles since leaving Virginia on May 1.

Bill Bucklew, 54, of Chicago, Steve Iseman, 58, and Li Jiang, 33, both of Toronto, were joined by riders Pat Donahoo, 66, of Las Vegas, Aiden Woodley, 21, of Chicago and Iseman’s son, Jett, 22, who do not have the disease, on the 31-mile bike trip that included the Red Rock Loop.

Known as The Long Ride for Parkinson’s, the purpose of the grueling trek, on paved and gravel roads, flats and hills, is to raise awareness about the nervous system disorder that usually affects people after age 60, causing limb tremors, problems walking and muscle stiffness, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The team, seeking to end their trip in San Diego before July 4, is out to show that having Parkinson’s doesn’t necessarily mean giving up challenging and demanding physical exercise or losing a positive outlook on life.

“So we started at the Boardwalk in Virginia and we’re well over 2,000 miles now, across the country,” Bucklew said. “We’ve been in at least six states and stuck our toe in maybe one or two additional and we’ve seen everything from incredible weather to beautiful vistas to incredible people who have helped us.”

The ride does have its ups and downs.

“We had one day where we’d done a tremendous amount of due diligence to see that it was paved road and it ended up being 75 percent gravel,” Bucklew said. “We had eight flat tires amongst the team and luckily we had enough inner tubes to keep going.”

“And then we’ve had days where we’re just mostly downhill descent, and you just feel great,” he said.

The riders rest along the way in hotels and Airbnb rentals, and a motor home that sleeps six accompanies them, said their volunteer driver, Mike Morris, 62, of Michigan.

Bucklew, who now is unable to walk due to his symptoms, said it’s extremely taxing for him each morning, when his muscles are very stiff and he must spend two hours stretching to find relief — as well as treating small blisters — prior to mounting his recumbent trike to resume the trip.

“We always try to get out around 7:30 a.m., but every day is different,” he said.

Power of exercise

Bucklew, Iseman and Jiang, who conquered the Appalachian Mountains, travel 60-something miles a day and have grown their muscle strength over the last month. That’s part of the group’s message: Exercise is great for battling the disease.

“We come from a variety of backgrounds, but the only thing that slows Parkinson’s disease currently is exercise,” Bucklew said. “So one of the things we’re trying to highlight is you don’t need to ride a bike across America to get the level of exercise to see an improvement. But all three of us have seen tremendous improvements in our own lives with the disease through regular exercise.”

His nonprofit organization, Uncorked Adventures, was created with the goal of raising awareness and funds for research to cure Parkinson’s. The organization is donating the funds it receives to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s and the Davis Phinney Foundation for Parkinson’s, Bucklew said.

Iseman, a devoted cyclist, said he is living proof that exercise is a great benefit to those with Parkinson’s.

Two years ago, he permitted researchers to conduct tests on his body before and after strenuous activity, “and they were able to conclude that not only can you arrest the development, you can reverse it. You can reverse it to a degree, and there is nothing else that has that sort of effect.”

‘We want to set examples for people’

Donahoo, an avid bike rider, and his wife, Cidney, 61, who has Parkinson’s, are both “ambassadors” from their Summerlin home for the Davis Phinney Foundation, serving as advocates for those with the neurological disorder.

Among the local events he has helped promote is Parkinson’s Awareness Night at Las Vegas Aviators baseball games, Donahoo said.

One day after visiting a clinic for her Parkinson’s in 2011, Cidney told her husband, “I’m going to ride my bike across Iowa,” he said. “I said, ‘If she’s going to do it, I’m going to do it.’ And we’ve done Iowa 11 times.”

Jiang said she was diagnosed with the disease at the unusually early age of 21.

“For many people with Parkinson’s, when they are diagnosed, they withdraw from their job, they withdraw from their family, friends, they withdraw from their hobbies and their world shrinks,” Jiang said.

But later she got into cycling weekly with Iseman in Toronto, and “now I like to try crossing the country with cycling,” Jiang said. “That’s a huge growth for myself.”

“We want to set examples for people so they can get inspired to do new things — to do things they love,” Jiang said.

Contact Jeff Burbank at jburbank@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0382. Follow him @JeffBurbank2 on X.