Riders set off on 25th annual Tour de Rock
After months of preparation, the 25th annual Cops for Cancer Tour de Rock is officially underway.
Riders were in Port Alice on Saturday for the first leg of their 1,200-kilometre journey down Vancouver Island to raise money for pediatric cancer research.
This year, CTV News Vancouver Island's Anna McMillan is one of the riders making the journey.
"I'm so excited to finally get on the road," she said at a kickoff event Saturday morning.
"This morning has been so positive. I haven't cried once during training, and I've cried three times today, I think because everything's just starting to feel really real. Being surrounded by this good energy and really getting to start to know the stories of the kids that we're riding for means a lot."
This year's event is the first one since 2019 to ride the full route from Port Alice to Victoria. In 2020 and 2021, a modified Tour de Rock was held due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"It's been a couple of years since we've been able to do this," said Jennifer Ames, co-chair of the Tour de Rock steering committee.
"To see the riders ready and excited … It's really lovely to see."
This year, riders are aiming to raise $600,000 through the event. Over the last 25 years, the Tour de Rock has raised more than $26 million dollars for the cause.
The ride will conclude in the capital region on Oct. 7.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction overturned by N.Y. appeals court
New York's highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction, reversing a landmark ruling of the #MeToo era in determining the trial judge improperly allowed women to testify about allegations against the ex-movie mogul that weren't part of the case.
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment that is banned at Queen’s Park.
CTE: Researchers believe widespread brain injury may contribute to veteran suicide rate
Researchers are working to better understand if some Canadian military veterans may be suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE -- a disorder previously found in the brains of professional football and hockey players after their death.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
New deep-water channel allows first ship to pass Key bridge wreckage in Baltimore
The first cargo ship passed through a newly opened deep-water channel in Baltimore on Thursday after being stuck in the harbor since the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed four weeks ago, halting most maritime traffic through the city's port.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.