Arnold Lim/Pirjo Raits
Black Press
The West Shore will be abuzz with the Cops for Cancer Tour de Rock arriving on Wednesday (Oct. 1).
Day 11 of the Cops for Cancer Tour de Rock brings the team of riders back to Sooke including Sooke resident and West Shore RCMP Staff Sgt. Steve Wright.
Wright won’t be riding into town, however, having gone down in a multi-rider crash in the fog between Ucluelet and Tofino on Sunday. He suffered serious enough injuries, including a reported separated shoulder, to render him unable to ride but is staying with the team for the remainder of the ride.
On Tuesday Wright said he was doing fine and the crash generated more attention than he was wanting.
“Finishing the tour is the most important thing to me. It’s a team effort and we’ve trained together for seven months. I’m very excited to be finishing with the team,” said Wright.
He also said the injury is not as bad as they once thought.
It was family that was on his mind when he received a special surprise on his way into Ucluelet, where a tap on the shoulder caught the veteran cop off guard.
“Standing at the top of Hydro Hill and reflecting on people who have been affected by cancer, I was standing and thinking about (family),” he said. “It was a beautiful and calm moment and I got this tap on my shoulder and I turn around and there is my lovely daughter standing there. There couldn’t have been a better time, at a time I needed a hug she was there to give one to me. It was definitely one of the highlights of my Tour.”
His time has been especially rewarding, he said, because he has been able to do it with his family by his side.
“I wouldn’t have been able to do this without their support. The whole process has taken me away from them for extended periods of time. Knowing they support me and have helped me along this process has helped me be stronger, but be a better person as a result of that.”
His daughter, Sarah, said surprising him on tour and being there with her father alongside the journey has been a gratifying experience she hopes to contribute to as her father joins the team in the final stretch.
“I look forward to seeing him as he makes his way through (to) the finale (at Spirit Square) Oct. 3. I am really proud of him. We both have a lot of family members and friends who have been affected by cancer, so to be able to spend so much time fundraising for people affected by cancer just makes me very proud to see he’s doing something like this,” she said. “I’m proud to be able to call him my dad and he has been doing an amazing job.”
To date Wright has raised more than $30,000 and said it is enough to send 20 children to Camp Good Times. He credits Jane Beddows, Donna Fraser and his wife Ailsa.
To donate visit tourderock.ca.