\n<\/p>\n
Mel Erwin is pragmatic about what it took to get her on a bike. \u201cI have one and a half lungs. I\u2019m on a treatment drug. I don\u2019t identify as sporty. I wouldn\u2019t have done it without a goal.\u201d<\/p>\n
This Sunday the 57-year-old will roar up the Campsie Hills north of Glasgow in a \u201ccamp as Christmas\u201d sparkly cape alongside her partner, Sarah, and 3,000 other participants.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s all part of the inaugural Tour de 4, a charity ride conceived by Sir Chris Hoy with the aim of challenging assumptions about those living with stage 4 cancer.<\/p>\n
The roaring is literal: during months of training, Erwin has found vocalising \u201creally helps\u201d on steeper inclines. And the pink and gold sequins encapsulate the spirit of celebrating each day woven through the event, a hallmark of Hoy\u2019s approach to his own stage 4 prostate cancer.<\/p>\n
The six-time Olympic gold medallist stunned the UK late last year when he revealed that his cancer was incurable, with a prognosis of between two and four years to live.<\/p>\n
Hoy\u2019s honesty and grace in sharing his circumstances moved Erwin, who has been living with stage 4 lung cancer for five years. \u201cIt\u2019s rare that people speak out about having stage 4 cancer. The shame, the confusion, it\u2019s not something we speak about,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Hoy describes this unique event, where those living with stage 4 cancer will cycle alongside their loved ones to raise funds for cancer charities across the UK, as \u201can opportunity to push limits\u201d.<\/p>\n
Different routes and levels of participation are tailored to the individual\u2019s physical capacity \u2013 from riding a static bike for as little as one minute in the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome in Glasgow, to three outdoor routes of increasing length and elevation.<\/p>\n
<\/span>Chris Hoy in 2008. His \u2018honesty and grace\u2019 about living with stage 4 cancer moved Mel Erwin to take part.<\/span> Photograph: Steve Parsons\/PA<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not about being the fastest,\u201d Hoy has reassured participants. \u201cIt\u2019s about preparation, about showing up, riding your way and being part of something bigger than all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n This notion of it being a movement inspired Erwin, who lives in east London, to get involved. \u201cIt\u2019s about being part of a community. It\u2019s really isolating having cancer \u2013 stage 4 cancer in particular,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Hoy\u2019s motivation is \u201cto shine a spotlight on what a stage 4 cancer diagnosis can look like and demonstrate that it is possible to live well and lead a happy life alongside this devastating diagnosis\u201d.<\/p>\n It\u2019s an attitude that resonated powerfully with Christine Lote, from Bristol, who was diagnosed with stage 4 bone cancer on her eldest daughter\u2019s third birthday last June. In the \u201cwhirlwind of overwhelm and heartbreak\u201d that followed came Hoy\u2019s announcement and his memoir All That Matters. Lote, whose daughters Sophie and Chloe are now two and four, appreciated how Hoy had written about \u201cnavigating your diagnosis as a family\u201d.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/p>\n Get the day\u2019s headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: <\/strong>Newsletters may contain information about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. If you do not have an account, we will create a guest account for you on theguardian.com to send you this newsletter. You can complete full registration at any time. For more information about how we use your data see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.<\/span><\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n <\/span>Christine Lote, who was stage 4 bone cancer, will take to Scotland\u2019s Campsie Hills in the Tour de 4.<\/span> Photograph: Adrian Sherratt\/The Guardian<\/p>\n \u201cLooking back, I\u2019d like my girls to see I was part of something that did challenge me, at a time where I could have easily not been so willing,\u201d she said. \u201cI want to set that role model for them \u2013 to be positive and you can still achieve things.\u201d<\/p>\n A particular achievement for Lote, who trained on the Bristol and Bath railway path, has been re-learning to pedal with a prosthetic after her right leg was amputated below the knee.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been such a focus this year,\u201d she said. \u201cObviously, I can\u2019t completely forget about the cancer when I\u2019m out there cycling, but I\u2019m not thinking too much about the \u2018scan-xiety\u2019 and other stuff, I\u2019m thinking about the cycling.\u201d<\/p>\n Many people who have experience of cancer describe a brutal loss of trust in their own bodies \u2013 because cancer can often hide undetected. For Erwin, the training has eased this. \u201cThere\u2019s something about keeping the wheels turning, the fact that my muscles, thighs, heart, lungs, everything is working in synchronicity.\u201d<\/p>\n Hoy, Lote and Erwin acknowledge that not everyone with stage 4 cancer can manage a physical challenge like this, and the event is organised around inclusivity. Lote has gathered a list of names from her Instagram page of people who would have loved to have taken part but are now too sick, and will carry it in her cycle jersey.<\/p>\n \u201cUnfortunately, many people I know and love aren\u2019t well enough to do this challenge,\u201d said Erwin. \u201cMe and Christine both know one day that will be us. We\u2019re doing what we can now to raise awareness and to celebrate. But it\u2019s also painful, that\u2019s the reality. On the day, there will be tears because we\u2019ve lost people along the way and one day people will lose us.\u201d<\/p>\n