Blue skies meant a record number of bikes and pledges at the 8th Annual Prostate Cancer Motorcycle Ride for Dad on Saturday.

A total of $33,444 was raised by 115 bikers, surpassing last year’s $25,000 total by a long shot.

“This is our biggest ride so far. Last year, we had 101 riders,” said Claire Vincent-Viau, special events co-ordinator with the Northern Cancer Research Foundation.

“A lot are loyal supporters of the ride. They’ve been here since Day 1. It just grows and grows and grows.”

Unfortunately, the event experienced another first — its first accident.

A female rider lost control of her motorcycle on Garson-Coniston Road, about three kilometres from the Highway 17 intersection. She suffered minor injuries and was transported to St. Joseph’s Health Centre for treatment.

This meant the ride’s return trip was delayed by about an hour.

Since 2001, more than $200,000 has been raised by this event. All of the money raised stays in the region and is applied specifically to prostate cancer programs — including research, treatment and patient care.

This year, the organizing committee presented several riders with “captain’s club” awards for the amount of pledges they’ve gathered over its history.

Howard Mercer received the highest honour, a pearl award, for raising more than $20,000.

“It’s pretty amazing,” Vincent-Viau said.

Bruce Eyre, a member of the Northern Ontario chapter of the Blue Knights Ontario X and chair of the Prostate Cancer Motorcycle Ride for Dad, started the local fundraising event at the request of the Northern Cancer Research Foundation.

“As a chapter, we were asked if we were interested in doing something. We talked it over and said, ‘Yes.’ Women’s cancers are always in the news … prostate cancer is very seldom talked about,” he said. “It’s something for Sudbury and by Sudbury, I mean the area served by this centre.”

Besides generating funds, the ride is also a vehicle for breaking down taboos surrounding prostate cancer. “We are encouraging all men to get tested,” Eyre said. Men can get a PSA blood test, which measures a substance produced by the prostate gland called prostate specific antigen (PSA).

Some experts say all men older than age 50 should get their blood tested on a yearly basis, while others council against it as it may detect slow growing cancers that would not ordinarily cause problems in their lifetimes.

A third camp says men should make the decision themselves, weighing the pros and cons the test brings with it.

Many riders also take part because it gives them an excuse to enjoy what’s becoming an increasingly popular pastime. A number of other local motorcycle groups, including the Canadian Motorcycle Cruisers, Freedom Riders, Harley Owners Group, Sudbury Cruisers and the Sudbury Wings, as well as individuals, participate in the annual 120-kilometer ride through the region.

Eyre has been riding for 38 years. He got his first taste for motorcycles while working for what was then the Sudbury Regional Police Force.

“It got into my blood and became part of my life from there on,” he said. “I have a Yamaha Venture. I’ve taken trips down to the east coast and the United States. Anywhere I go, it’s a summer vehicle.”

It’s a more economical way to travel, costing about one-third the cost of what Eyre pays to fuel his van.

“I really do think they’re a great thing. Whether it’s motorcycles or the step-through kind of thing … people can run them for $10 a month,” Eyre said.

As for their reputation of being an unsafe mode of transportation, that depends on the rider, he said.

“I, as a rider, consider them safe. But I, as a rider, do know that if I get into an accident, I’m coming out second best. In that way, they are more dangerous. On the other hand, a motorcycle rider rides and thinks all the time.”

His definition of a bad rider is one who zips in and out of traffic.

“A good rider adheres to the rules of the road and does what he’s suppose to do,” Eyre said.

Unfortunately, due to the medication he was on, Eyre was unable to participate in this year’s ride.

Besides raising money for a great cause, Vincent-Viau can’t get over the camaraderie the event generates.

“They’re here for one goal — that’s to raise funds for prostate cancer,” she said. “But, as well, they’re all bikers, so its like one big, big, big family. That’s what I find so amazing. They see each other once a year. They just party.”

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CANCER STATS

Besides generating funds, the ride is also a vehicle for breaking down taboos surrounding prostate cancer.

“We are encouraging all men to get tested,” Eyre said.

Men can get a PSA blood test, which measures a substance produced by the prostate gland called prostate specific antigen (PSA).

Some experts say all men older than age 50 should get their blood tested on a yearly basis, while others council against it as it may detect slow growing cancers that would not ordinarily cause problems in their lifetimes.

A third camp says men should make the decision themselves, weighing the pros and cons the test brings with it.

Many riders also take part

. Prostate cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in men, according to the Northern Cancer Research Foundation; . Approximately one in seven men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer each year;

. The latest health status report issued by the Sudbury and District Health Unit found prostate cancer accounted for 13 per cent of all cancers diagnosed in the district’s area and five per cent of local cancer deaths from 1999 to 2003.