Route 66 has been a backdrop for millions of Americans' summertime travels, but this spring, the 'Main Street of America' has played host to a cycling squad with a lofty goal.
This weekend, the nine-man W.A.R. on Wheels team -- Wishes, Awareness, Research -- will wrap up a 36-day, 2,499-mile trip from Santa Monica to St. Charles, Illinois, traced through cities along the historic Route 66, with an aim to raise $2,499,000 -- $1,000 per mile -- for the fight against pediatric cancer.
Each day of the journey, which began April 27, has been dedicated specifically to children who are either battling or have succumbed to the disease. Day 1, a 72-mile ride from Santa Monica to San Bernadino, was a tribute to Adan, Michael, Jmarrion and Shantell; each ensuing day has been inspired by another group of children, listed on the team's website. (The team has varied in size since the start of the trip, with some riders joining for various stretches.)
The beneficiary organization is Cal's Angels, a St. Charles, Illinois-based nonprofit named after Cal Sutter, who was diagnosed in 2005 at age 12 with Acute Myelogenous Leukemia. Sutter succumbed to the disease in 2006, and the foundation in his name was formed the following year.
According to its website, Cal's Angels has since brought hope and support to thousands of children with cancer and their families, including W.A.R. cyclist Brad Beetham, whose daughter, Madi, was diagnosed in 2014 with Stage 4 Lymphoblastic Lymphoma.
And while Madi successfully completed her treatment in 2017, Beetham— a father of five children— rides on this year in continuance of his support of the fight.
“As much as we’re going to be challenged doing this physically — my legs may feel like they’re going to fall off — I would dread being in the (support) van driving 15 mph for seven or eight hours a day,” Beetham, of Yorkville, Illinois, recently told the Chicago Tribune.
Beetham, a board member for Cal's Angels, has also spearheaded a Facebook Live strategy that's kept donors and fans connected with the team across the country -- even when it became tricky to remember which state they were in. Each broadcast is simply filmed, vertically, on a cell phone, with Beetham and other team members speaking directly to the camera.
"Hey everybody, I just wanted to go live really quick ... a lot of tired people," he said on a recent broadcast from "Clinton, Texas -- er, geez. Clinton, Oklahoma."
"We had a really strong wind today ... I'm going to walk around and show you some tired bodies," Beetham says, circling the lobby of a La Quinta inn. "I'm going to come over here to Ian, who's mixing (a recap video) ... can I show some secret, back, behind-the-scenes stuff?"
While the trip will culminate in a celebration this weekend in St. Charles, there's been no shortage of behind-the-scenes style activities. The trip has brought the team to some famously remote locations around the country, including a cursory stop in Amboy, California -- Population 4.
The team makes light of their mostly rural journey in an update shared to their website from Joplin, Mo., last week:
"I tell ya what, if cows had Instagram and Twitter we would have 100,000 followers and a whole bunch more text to give dollars. These animals are so attentive to us riding by."
The team welcomes followers of all species to their Twitter and Instagram accounts: @waronwheels1.
To donate to the W.A.R. On Wheels, you can visit www.waronwheels.us or text GIVE2CALS to 20222.
