On May 12 The Terry Fox memorial in Victoria, British Columbia will bear witness to the beginning of a truly brave and challenging endeavour as fifth year business and biology student, Tanner Cookson mounts up for the ride of his life. For the following 60 days Mr. Cookson and his lifelong friend Dan Corso, who attends Northeastern University, will bike across the nation ending in St. John’s, Newfoundland to raise support and awareness for Lyme disease in Canada.

“It is a very curable disease,” Mr. Cookson explained. “Unfortunately it can be easily confused for something else and will often go misdiagnosed.” Tanner has seen the effects and puzzling nature of Lyme disease on friends in the past. Years of trips to specialist after specialist, almost twenty different doctors before it was diagnosed as what it truly was and treated properly. Mr. Cookson firmly believes that if this trip can make more people aware of Lyme disease and its symptoms, then far fewer people will be misdiagnosed and can receive the appropriate treatment and care that they need.

During the two month bike tour, Mr. Cookson and Mr. Corso will be stopping in at a variety of cities and locations to hold fundraisers and raise awareness of the disease to Canadians coast-to-coast.

Looking ahead to the trip, Mr. Cookson attributes much of his confidence and readiness for a challenge this great to his time at Trent University.

“Trent has always been supportive of these sorts of things. I have received a lot of encouragement from the Trent community,” said Mr. Cookson, who is a member of the Trent Excalibur rowing team. “I’ve always been athletic, I’ve rowed my whole life and I’ve never been one to turn down a challenge.”

Posted on Wednesday, March 4, 2015.