This year, a new element to the event is that the lead car on the first day of the ride will be navigated with a portable GPS navigation device from TomTom – the TomTom GO 910 – which features map information from Tele Atlas.  This is the first year this technology will be used to guide the Challenge’s lead car and thousands of riders – providing route accuracy as well as information regarding points of interest, such as the water stops, on the route.  Additionally, the route is available for TomTom customers to download onto their units (via the TomTom blog) – enabling them to manage their route individually.

Fortythree Hundred Cyclists from Around the World will Ride to Raise $24 Million for Cancer Research

NEEDHAM, Mass. — On August 5 and 6, 4,300 cyclists from 36 states and six countries will ride across the Commonwealth in the 27th annual Pan-Massachusetts Challenge (PMC) with the goal of raising $24 million for cancer research. Since the PMC’s 1980 inception, PMC cyclists have raised and contributed more than $145 million for cancer research and treatment at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute through its Jimmy Fund.

The PMC is so respected in cycling and fundraising circles that each year people travel from all over the world to participate. Cyclists choose between eight different routes, ranging from 70 to 192 miles. The camaraderie shared by cyclists, volunteers, and supporters is among the PMC’s greatest attributes. Doctors at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute joined their patients as teammates, riding for a unified goal. In 2006, 211 cancer patients and survivors will ride on the PMC team. Thousands of riders have lost loved ones to the disease. Still more rode in honor of those in treatment.

 Connecting athleticism to charitable fundraising was a new idea in 1980 when PMC Founder Billy Starr and 35 of his friends rode across Massachusetts and raised $10,200 for cancer research. Today, athletic events raise $1 billion each year, funding crucial programs at health and human service organizations across the country. The PMC leads the pack. The bike-a-thon raises and contributes more than twice the amount of any other athletic fundraising event. It is also the most efficient. The PMC’s 3,883 cyclists raised a record $23 million in 2005, a sum that represents 99 cents of every rider-raised dollar.

 The PMC fundraising minimum is between $1,300 and $3,300, depending on the route chosen, yet the average PMC cyclist raises over $5,500. This commitment to the fundraising portion of the PMC journey is a testament to riders’ dedication to the cause and their belief in the PMC mission. Hundreds have been members of the PMC family for more than 20 years. The PMC averages an annual 70 percent rider retention rate, and because of the high demand, registration for most routes closes within weeks of opening each January. From organizing luggage and unloading trucks to cooking meals and manning waterstops, more than 2,300 PMC volunteers fill jobs that are typically paid positions, thus enhancing the event’s efficiency and culture of giving. The PMC is presented by the Boston Red Sox and Overstock.com. NECN provides pre-season and PMC weekend television coverage, and another 200 companies support the event through donations of goods, services, and money.

 The PMC is nationally recognized as a model in fundraising efficiency and it is Dana-Farber’s largest contributor.  “The PMC has made what we do at Dana-Farber possible,” says Edward J. Benz Jr., MD, president of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. “When they write the history of how cancer was conquered, the PMC will be in chapter one.” For more information about the PMC, visit www.pmc.org