The 15th Annual Motorcycle Ride for Dad was a tremendous success over the weekend as over 1200 bikers took part in support of prostate cancer research and education.

One of those in attendance was Jerry Painter of Portage la Prairie who marvelled at the large crowd that showed up on Saturday. They began the ride at Earls Polo Park in Winnipeg.

"They say, 'Start your engines', and they all roar their engines and it was loud, crazy loud," says Painter. "This year was a little different because it was very busy on Portage Avenue. Once we got to the first stop, which is Assiniboia Downs, it started to rain. We got up to Gimli and it was 12 degrees, if you can imagine that, off the lake."

Jerry PainterJerry Painter

There was also a stop in Selkirk before the bikers made their way back to Winnipeg, wrapping the event up at Cowboys, Canad Inns. Manitoba weather was as to be expected, constantly changing throughout the ride. Painter notes they hit a wall of heat and wind when they got close to the provincial capital. He says it was a great event that shows prostate cancer has affected a lot of people.

"It makes you wonder how many men are faced with prostate issues, are being treated or they've had surgery or whatever, or are they just participants?" says Painter. "It's amazing because all those bikes, to control the traffic is the biggest thing."

Painter has his own reasons for being at the event. He was diagnosed in 2018 with low-grade cancer. After that, he was kept on a constant surveillance program where bloodwork is done every four months and you see the urologist on a regular basis. Every 18 months, he would get a biopsy. In 2021, it was discovered the cancer was now considered high-grade. He had two choices: radiation or surgery. He had his prostate removed just before Christmas in 2021.