North Vancouver cyclist reaches one million feet vertical gain climbing Mount Seymour for charity
Travis Streb has climbed the mountain nearly every day in 2017
In 2017, Travis Streb of Deep Cove in North Vancouver has climbed over one million vertical feet (304,800 m) for charity. Most days this year he’s tackled the 12 km climb up Mount Seymour that totals 921 m vertical gain to achieve the milestone which was reached on Saturday.
“For me, it’s about purpose,” he explained to CTV News. “This year has been about what can I do to leave this world in a better place than I found it.”
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Streb’s consistent climbing efforts have been to raise money for pancreatic cancer research. Identifiable by his pink bar tape which give his charity effort it’s name, so far he has raised over $11,000 for the BC Cancer Foundation’s research towards the disease. Streb believes the best way to fight pancreatic cancer—which has a six per cent survival rate—is by consistently donating money to fund research.
“One of the reasons it’s so important is that there are so few survivors,” he said. “So there’s no one left to tell the story or raise money.”
That consistently is reflected in his efforts on Seymour. The ride up to the top of Seymour from his home totals about 1,000 m vertical gain and he’s managed to fit the ride in consistently despite his day job as a facilitator and executive coach. In June, Streb climbed Seymour nearly 10 times in one day to complete the Everesting challenge (climbing 8,848 m in one ride).
Explaining the challenges of being consistent with climbing the mountain, Streb said, “You get anxiety about it because if you miss a day, you think ‘I got to find a way to get that extra vertical in this week,’ and mentally that’s a little draining.”
Streb rides for the Glotman Simpson Cycling club whose founder’s mother-in-law died of pancreatic cancer. The club have raised over $2 million for research through their Cypress Challenge. Streb hopes his efforts give those diagnosed with the disease hope. While he’s achieved the one million feet milestone, Serb intends to continue riding the mountain to continue raising awareness.
“Despite overwhelming odds, it is possible to make gains,” Streb said. “That’s really the story for me and pancreatic cancer.”
Visit pinkbartape.com for more information and donate at the BC Cancer Foundation.
