Cyclist pedaling for a cause passes through SE Iowa

On a brief stop through Southeast Iowa, Michael Myers met five people whose lives had been touched by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.

He stopped in a gas station to grab an iced tea — and received a donation from a stranger, moved by the cause Myers is raising awareness for.

Myers, from Marshfield, Massachusetts is passing through Iowa on a 4,000-mile cross-country cycling trip to raise money for the organization ALS One, which funds research for the disease.

He decided to take the trip earlier this year when he learned one of his co-workers at his new job, Leo Cooney, had been diagnosed in 2017 with ALS, a rare neurological disease with no cure.

Leo’s story hit home for Myers, whose own father had multiple sclerosis, a disease similar to ALS in many ways.

“I’m thinking about my dad and what he went through, and what his family must feel, and I said, ‘You know what Mike, you’re either going to do something or you’re not,’” he said.

He told his boss, Leo’s brother Tom Cooney, about his idea to raise money biking across the country, and the journey was set in motion.

Myers started his trip on June 16 in Astoria, Oregon, and is making his way back to Marshfield, near Boston.

He rode from Oskaloosa to Ainsworth on Tuesday, passing through Washington, on Day 49 of his trip.

Myers started with a goal of raising $30,000, which he met before he left. His total has risen to $86,000.

He hopes to reach $105,000 by the time he’s done.

Myers has done long-distance cycling tours for the past 30 years. This isn’t his longest trek — in 2003, he completed a cycling tour around Europe, visiting 24 countries.

His tours have brought him through 41 states so far. Myers said he tries to add a new state on each of his cycling trips — this is his first ride through Iowa.

He’s taking the majority of the journey alone, camping in parks or sleeping in churches and schools. It’s his goal to go the entire trip without sleeping in a hotel.

“I don’t mind cycling solo, you’re more free to do what you choose — go as long as you want, stop when you want to eat, want to drink,” he said.

Myers bikes wearing a bright jersey that says team Leo on the sleeve, and ALS one on the front. He says it attracts a lot of attention and questions when he passes through a town.

“Sadly, a lot of people have a connection to it, and that’s what really breaks my heart. It’s hard, but that’s why we’re doing this,” he said.