Cornfields, Camping and Camaraderie

While Hemophilia Federation of American has been hosting the Gears for Good National Ride from West Virginia to Washington, D.C., for eight years, the organization had a larger vision – use existing athletic and competitive events around the country to raise awareness of bleeding disorders and funds for the Helping Hands emergency assistance program. That’s when Team Resilience was born!

Existing events like the iconic RAGBRAI, a week-long cycling event drawing 20,000 riders a day to trek across the state of Iowa, is one example of an event Team Resilience joined to reach beyond Gears for Good. When 20,000 people are gathered in one place, it’s a great space to spread awareness about bleeding disorders!

This summer, bleeding disorders community members and their friends and family created a team of 11 riders who donned Team Resilience cycling jerseys to ride from the Missouri River approximately 500 miles across Iowa to the mighty Mississippi River, sharing their story along the way.

They understand what bleeding disorders families endure, and they chose to endure a week of heat and exhaustion, sleeping in tents, and miles and miles of nothing but cornfields. But the memories they made and the message they shared is invaluable.

The ride, which stands for Register’s (as in The Des Moines Register newspaper) Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, has been drawing cyclists from all over the world to the Midwest state since 1973. Team Resilience riders raised more than $11,000 for Helping Hands.