“The Ride to Conquer Cancer has taught me that ordinary people can be heroes. We just need each other to make it happen. We are all in this together…”
– Todd Kemper
JOIN US!
Consider joining our team, creating your own, or riding for a loved one. For more information, or to get started, click the link below!
OUR MISSION
Our mission is simple: We are raising funds that will go directly to research and compassionate care that benefits women facing cancer here in Alberta.
THE RIDE
To learn more about the Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer benefiting the Alberta Cancer Foundation, click the link below.
2018 Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer
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2018 Fundraising Campaign
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MEET THE 2018 LEGION
Todd Kemper
Founder, Team Captain
Todd is Linnea’s widow and our team founder. He is a professional biologist, retired hooligan, horrible swimmer and aspiring triathlete from Edmonton, Alberta. This cause is his passion and this team is his extended family. He also has a bike-buying problem…
Mara Erickson
Assistant Captain; Team Unicorn, Beer Tester
Mara is, simply put, a magical individual. She is family, and she was there to support Linnea and Todd both through the long and arduous cancer journey. That takes a strong individual, and Mara is exactly that. She is a devoted teammate and also a purveyor of tasty treats! Mara bravely offers to sample and select our post-ride beverages for us. #BeerHero
Sebastian Makowski
Assistant Captain; Polish Weather Forecaster
Sebastian has been in Linnea’s corner for as long as she can remember. He is consistently one of our strongest riders and team motivators. But if he ever promises you a day of “sunshine and lollipops”, man… you’d better pack a parka.
Jill Metcalfe
Assistant Captain, Bartender
Jill is an old friend of Linnea’s and one of the finest human beings you will ever encounter. She brings an endless energy and enthusiasm to the Legion, and she makes a Moscow Mule that kicks like…well, a mule. We are pretty stoked that Jill has decided to return to make her second appearance with the squad, and this year she will be acting as our Calgary-area social committee and co-captain!
Beatrice Morison
Assistant Captain; Fashion Police
Beatrice is Todd’s “Sista from another mista”. She is also our road bike scrutineer and fashion police. MTB pedals on your roadie?? She ain’t gonna stand for that. Is that a visor on your helmet?? Prepare to be mocked. Sock game not quite on-point?? Bea is going to make sure you know about it (and the rest of the team does too). This is Bea’s third Ride to Conquer Cancer and we all follow her example. We also follow her up hills, because nobody can catch her. She has legs of steel and an unstoppable heart.
Jeff Ball
Jeff is an ardent backcountry adventurer, skier, and cyclist. He likes bikes, he likes beers, and he likes a good adventure so he was a pretty natural fit for the Legion. Unfortunately for us, he’s also a pretty big fan of “type 2” fun… it probably comes from his Saskatchewan “hold my beer and watch this” upbringing. We’re pretty sure he’s also got some “type 3 fun” stories and we are a little terrified of where he might take us, but pretty stoked to have him on the squad!
Jillian Cameron
Thea Carpenter
Superstar, Scapegoat
Thea is a long-suffering victim of Todd’s workplace harassment. She is to the Canadian Wildlife Service, what Tibor Jankowski is to the Springfield Nuclear Powerplant… that is to say: a hard-working, dedicated, professional who is wrongly used as a scapegoat by the unqualified fat bald guy (no idea who that could be in this particular situation). Joking aside, Thea is a remarkable human being and we are super stoked to have her on the squad this year!
Lacey Cormier
Dog Handler
Lacey was the dog park social coordinator back with Linnea and Todd first got their puppy. Ever since then, she has been a part of Todd’s life. In 2017 she supported our efforts by being the team’s unofficial dog walker, freeing up time for Sunday morning training rides. This year she’s taken the leap and joined us in the saddle and we couldn’t be more pleased! We know Linnea would be.
Stephen Dalley
Team Second-Best-Looking-Bald-Guy
Stephen is hands-down the second best looking bald guy on our team… He is also hands-down the fastest and fittest bald guy on the team. He works hard and he rides hard. It’s hard to get to know him because it’s hard to catch him… We love having him on the squad!!
Stephane Fontaine
Team Chef, Stylist
Stephane is our resident hair guru and team chef. His positive attitude nourishes our team (almost) as much as his delicious pulled pork. This man pulls some mean meat… These days he’s sporting frosted tips and a highly questionable ‘stache, so he may be exploring alternative careers in 90’s boy bands and/or pornography. We just don’t know.
Diana Gaviria
Latin influence
As a member of the Alberta Cancer Foundation, Diana could have joined any team she wanted…but she chose us. She tells us that she’s delighted (and a little terrified) to be joining us for the big 10 year anniversary of the Ride to Conquer Cancer. Diana’s own mother, Maria, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2013; Diana will be dedicated this ride to her mom (who will be 5 years cancer free this August!) and all the amazing staff at the Cross Cancer Institute. There couldn’t be closer cause to our hearts. Oh, and don’t let the sombrero fool you – D is 100% columbian and will be channeling Rigoberto Uran on the ride. Don’t know? Google.
Kairsty Hopwood
Inspiration.
Kairsty and Todd went to elementary school together, longer ago than either one is willing to admit. She was inspired to join the team after hearing Jared’s new-found love of riding. Kairsty came to amaze us all with her endless reserve of positive energy. She is about as tough as they come; there were some hard days and hard climbs out there in 2017, but we don’t think we ever heard a negative peep out of Kairsty. Rockstar.
Caitlin Mader
Poet Laureate
There once was a girl from the west
So maybe her rhymes aren’t the best
But she’ll write you a poem
If you bring her goal home
Cause we all hate cancer of breast
Anne Owens
Team Den Mother
Anne is our hippy den mother. She nourishes and supports us, but beware if she thinks you are standing in our way! In addition to being our team den mother she is also a real mother to two wonderful daughters and a kind neighbor, generous with patience, advice and whisky.
Katie Robertson
Team Spokesperson
Katie is a tireless entrepreneur, a solid athlete, and by far the most tattooed member of our ranks. Originally from southern Ontario, she is now a prominent member of Edmonton’s food and philanthropy scene. She trained with us in 2017 and for some reason, despite the previous exposure, she has decided to join us officially in 2018!
Rod Scanks
Rod is married to Lori, and is the second man in her life… in 2017 he volunteered as one of our support crew and obviously he thought it would be more fun to be riding alongside us that driving alongside us! We couldn’t agree more. Rod is an avid mountain biker, and we are pretty stoked that he’s taking up road riding just to be a part of this crew. He’s already started shaving his legs!!
Victoria Snable
Head of the Peleton
This year, Victoria is coming out all the way from “the Six” to, once again, be an integral part of the Legion. Known for her infectious laugh and, in Todd’s words, “other assets”, we’re glad to have her back!! Victoria rides for her biological brother, but she rides alongside a band of brothers and sisters who will always have her back. No pun.
Cam Stevens
Rotating or sliding piece in a mechanical linkage
Cam is connected to Linnea, and to the Legion, on multiple fronts. He’s also a helluva guy and we are stoked to have him on our team. With three kids and a busy career we know we are lucky that he has donated his time and energy to this ride. Maybe it’s all the beer we feed him? Don’t tell his wife.
Kristin Trempner
Trouble
Kristin is mischief personified. She has a quick wit, a great laugh, and boundless energy and enthusiasm. If you’ve ever called the Ride office, chances are you spoke to Kristin. She worked at the ride for years before leaving to pursue other adventures. So we were thrilled when she decided, of all the teams she’s interacted with, to join the Legion. We were also pleased to see that, despite living in close proximity to the “Saddledump”, she knows which hockey team to support! Just don’t EVER let her talk you into doing shooters…
Allyson Tilley
Allyson is the proud mom of a dedicated bike family, and a total animal nut. This will be her third Ride to Conquer Cancer, though she swears that she really prefers to ride shorter distances. She assures us that she isn’t doing this because it comes easy to her, she’s doing it because she knows that every dollar and every turn of the pedals makes a difference. Allyson rides with her heart as much as her legs, and that’s why she’d a perfect fit for this team!
Emily Upham-Mills
It was a difficult decision, whether or not to let degenerate hippies that used to work for Todd on the team. He was pretty opposed to it. We’ll see how it works out.
Dragomir Vujnovic
Machine
Dragomir, “Drajs” (pronounced D’rice), or simply “The Dragon”; Call him whatever you want. He is a machine, a man of wisdom and emotional intelligence. In 2017 he quietly did the Ride while undergoing chemotherapy for his own cancer. A very good oncologist told me: “given his treatment protocol…no normal human would be able to ride.” She knew he was no normal human. Not only did he ride, he consistently rode at the front of the pack. To say that he is a machine is giving too much credit to machines. We love this guy and we are thrilled to report that he’s back – and healthy – for 2018.
Troy Wellicome
Mini-Todd, Team Wolverine
So, uh…the thing about Troy is this: he has a great haircut, a great sense of fashion, and although he’s a little bit shorter than Todd he makes up for with vicious tenacity. Like a wolverine, he is tougher than his size lets on. He’s also a great friend and a kind man. We are delighted that he finally decided to join our ranks in 2017!
Sylvia Wood
Sylvia claims to have no claim to fame, but we’ve ridden with her enough to know that she is just being modest. She’s a strong rider, xc skiier, skater… you name it she does it, and she’s fitter than most of us because of it!! Unfortunately, she’s also got Saskatchewan in her blood and is an unapologetic and long-suffering Rider-Prider. I guess we can forgive her for this one small lapse in judgment, because all her amazing qualities more than make up for it. Welcome to the Team, Sylvia!
Lori Zaparniuk
Diesel-powered Ukranian
Lori is our team badass. She speaks her mind and commands respect. And who wouldn’t respect an accomplished runner, cyclist and triathlete? Lori has completed the New York Marathon, the Vineman Tri (full ironman distance) and countless other events. She’s so badass she took an iceball off the temple in a snowball fight and came up smiling…. Todd’s dog likes Lori more than he likes Todd and it drives our poor captain nuts!!
2018 SUPPORT CREW
Ben Montgomerly
SAG support, Director of Inapropriate Social Media
Ben tirelessly shuffles our gear, our asses, and our refreshments from one place to another, and still finds the time to stop and make inappropriate posts on our social media platforms (like, REALLY inappropriate posts…). It’s why we love him.
David Owens
SAG Support, Hydration Technologist
David is our guy at Sherbrooke Liquor (appropriately enough our top sponsor….). He was relegated to support crew in 2016 after suffering an injury in an MTB crash, but made the ride in 2017. For some reason he liked the support role better and will be returning in 2018 to drive the Sherbrooke support vehicle and keep our bikes and our riders well lubricated. WIN.
Ben
Logistics coordinator
The numbers look good!
Gimli
Motivational Guru
Rest day is critical, guys.
Bridgette
Team Betch
Haters gunna hate