Cheryl Koehn

RBC Whistler GranFondo - COMPLETE!

On the home stretch - RBC Whistler GranFondo!

Hello, friends and supporters!

Since my last update, the rides have become tougher and longer—but my training partners and I can certainly feel the progress we’ve made from training session #1 all the way to #24.

Our second “rehearsal ride” took place this past Saturday. We combined three popular climbing routes across the North Shore and Burnaby into one big ride: 115 kilometres with 1,700 metres of climbing. For context, the RBC GranFondo Whistler is 122 kilometres with approximately 2,000 metres of climbing.

For me, the most important part of these longer rides has been testing my ability to stay in the saddle for more than five hours. The final 90 minutes of both rehearsal rides were difficult—bordering on painful—but I made it through. That bodes well for my ability to finish the Fondo, something that was far from certain when we began training.

Fingers and toes crossed!

Although training for a ride like this can be difficult, there are far more moments that make it fun and rewarding: time spent chatting with my riding pals; the beautiful scenery that Vancouver and the surrounding area offer in abundance; and finishing a ride to discover a collection of new Strava medals—because if it’s not on Strava, did it really happen? IYKYK.

And, of course, there’s the ice-cold beer shared with training partners after completing a big Saturday ride!

This final week before the Fondo is all about tapering: two light rides to keep my legs familiar with the road, two at home core and back workouts, plenty of stretching, a thorough bike cleaning and check and Fondo rider package pick up with 5,000-plus other riders.

Then comes the big ride.

On Saturday, I’ll wake at 4 a.m. and begin taking in the fuel I’ll need before the 6:10 a.m. start: water, black coffee, blueberries and oatmeal. Then I’ll get dressed and load up my cycling kit with everything I’ll need along the way—a dense energy bar, seven gels, a fruit bar, energy chews and two full bottles of water with electrolytes. I’ll also carry extra electrolyte powder for a water refill at Alice Lake.

Alice Lake is roughly halfway by distance—but it’s also where much of the hardest work begins.

That’s what makes this Fondo so challenging. Your body has already done a lot of work by that point, yet it still needs to find enough strength to tackle the demanding final 35 kilometres and 1,000 metres of climbing.

Am I ready? There’s only one way to find out.

I’ll check in again on Monday and let you know how I did! Thank you so much for supporting my MOVE campaign and following along.

When a Flat Tire Reinforces Your Faith in Humanity

Sometimes, when you’re working hard toward a goal, unexpected obstacles appear—things you have to overcome or find a way around. That was certainly true of my first of two Fondo “simulation rides.”

This past Sunday, my friends and I set out for our planned ride to Britannia. But just past Porteau Cove, I flatted.

Not the end of the world—unless you’ve forgotten the special tool needed to release the special wheel from your special bike.

That’s right: I had left the tool at home.

I didn’t want to throw a wrench—pun intended—into my friends’ ride, so I urged them to continue and told them I would find a way to meet them in Britannia.

Have you ever tried to get a taxi or rideshare on the Sea-to-Sky Highway? Two words: not possible.

So, I did the one thing my parents told me as a teenager never to do: I stuck out my thumb and tried to hitch a ride to Britannia.

To my relief—and sheer joy—two vehicles stopped within a minute. Faith in humanity reinforced!

A young couple in an SUV rolled down their window and asked whether I needed help. Boy, did I ever. Within minutes, my bike was loaded into the back, with me curled up beside it.

During the 15-minute drive to Britannia, we laughed about my predicament and chatted about our plans for the day, our work and our shared love of music. When they asked what inspired me to ride to Britannia, I told them about my #MOVEwithArthritisResearch campaign to raise money for arthritis research.

They asked me phone number and donated $50 as we pulled into Britannia.

Complete strangers performing not one, but two acts of kindness.

I unfolded myself from the back of their SUV, pulled out my bike, gave them both a hug and waved goodbye as they continued toward Whistler—the same destination I plan to reach by bike on September 12.

But that wasn’t the end of the story. I still needed to find the right tool to fix my flat tire early on a quiet weekend morning in Britannia.

Within minutes of being dropped off by my Good Samaritans, my friends arrived. Together, we began scouring the small village for the tool I needed.

And lo and behold, we came across Ian, the village caretaker—who just happened to have once managed a bike repair shop, had changed more than 1,000 tires in his day and kept a fully stocked toolkit in his work shed.

To say I was one lucky woman that weekend would be an understatement.

Once my tire was fixed, we thanked Ian profusely. I offered to send him some money—or at least buy him a coffee and muffin—but he graciously declined. Instead, he wished us well and sent us safely on our way back to Vancouver.

My first “official” week of the MOVE campaign was certainly eventful! I’m now in week five of my Whistler Fondo training cycle; the training is going well and the gains continue to come.

This weekend brings another simulation ride—this time, I’ll be sure to pack the special tool for my special wheel on my special bike. I’ll report back afterward!

If you haven’t yet donated to my MOVE campaign, I would be honoured if you would consider supporting it—or even starting a campaign of your own to MOVE for arthritis research.

Thanks for following along!

Fondo prep training: The gains are coming!

From the day you’re diagnosed, RA is a constant presence, whether you want it to be or not. There were so, so many bad days during my first few years. But as I moved closer to finding the right treatment regimen—thanks to advances in research and the development of new treatments—the bad days became less frequent and less severe.

That was partly because I sharpened my self-care skills and learned to manage the emotional and psychological baggage that comes with a chronic—meaning lifelong—disease. But it was also because, as a former high-performance athlete, I never stopped moving, even during the darkest times.

Sometimes, movement was severely limited because my joints were so full of inflammation that they were practically useless. On other days, I made it to my local gym, climbed onto a stationary bike and turned the pedals with zero resistance. But I did it—and that helped me feel, even just a little, like my old self.

Today, 37 years later, I’m still more active than most and able to take on physical challenges like training for and riding a fondo. But it takes a lot of planning: planning my rides, preparing my body to ride and, importantly, getting my RA ready to ride. I’ll talk more about that in my next update.

For now, I’m happy to report that, here in training week two, I can already feel the gains from the work I put in last week. Training sessions 7, 8 and 9 all went according to plan.

And today, s&*t starts to get real.

Today’s training ride includes those two dreaded words: “VO₂ max.” I’m already thinking about how great it will feel to finish those six three-minute intervals.

Drawing on a decade of Olympic-calibre training in another sport, I can say that approaching a workout with a positive mindset—and holding on to it throughout—makes finishing the work incredibly satisfying. It’s the best!

I hope your day is going well and that you’re ticking off the goals you set for yourself this week.

Training session #10, here I come! :-)

Are you MOVE-ing? I am!

Hey everyone!

I wanted to check in and let you know how my #MOVEwithArthritisResearch campaign is coming along.

As I shared in my last post, I'm raising funds while training for the 2026 RBC GranFondo Whistler on September 12. I'm #MOVE-ing with my friends Lynn Houle and Leah Brulotte as we prepare for the event. Tomorrow is training ride #6, and we're making great progress—although not without a little apprehension. 😊

Training for a Gran Fondo takes months of preparation. There are the usual things every cyclist thinks about: hydration, nutrition, electrolytes, rest, and making sure the bike is ready for every ride.

But when you live with rheumatoid arthritis, there's another layer of planning.

Can my body handle the training needed to even reach the start line of a 124 km ride from Vancouver to Whistler—let alone finish it? How do I manage increased disease activity while training? Which aches are simply part of getting stronger, and which are signs that I need to back off? Do I need to adjust my medications? Can I?

After living with rheumatoid arthritis for 37 years, I've learned that good information, research-driven care, and an incredible community of support make all the difference. They give me the confidence to answer the questions life—and sport—puts in front of me, and the belief that I can do hard things.

Between now and September 12, we'll complete 27 training rides before taking on the BIG RIDE—ride number 28.

If you'd like to support me—and the millions of people living with arthritis—please consider making a donation to my #MOVEwithArthritisResearch campaign. Every contribution helps fund the research that leads to better treatments, better care, and more opportunities for people with arthritis to keep doing the things they love.

Thank you for cheering me on every step—and every pedal stroke—of the way! ❤️

MOVE-ing for arthritis research

For 37 years, I've been living with rheumatoid arthritis—and this year, I'm taking on the challenge of riding the Whistler Fondo as part of Arthritis Research Canada's MOVE campaign! Every training ride is a reminder that research changes lives and gives people like me the chance to keep moving. While the climbs may be tough, they're nothing compared to the daily challenges faced by so many living with arthritis. If you're able, I'd be so grateful if you would consider making a donation to support this important research. Every contribution, big or small, helps move us closer to better treatments—and, one day, a cure.