3 days ago
Cross-Canada bike ride raising Parkinson's awareness, research funds
The Spinning Wheels Tour west team is seen in a photo from Aug. 9, 2025. (Facebook/
A number of Canadian cyclists are riding across 10 provinces and to three coasts to raise awareness and research funds for Parkinson's disease.
The Spinning Wheels Tour is a two-month, cross-country bike ride that'll see riders travel through the Prairies and up to Churchill, Man.
A dozen cyclists set out from Calgary on Wednesday, almost two weeks after leaving Victoria.
They were led by Torontonian Lloyd Taylor.
'It's amazing and something I didn't really expect,' Taylor told CTV News. 'Our first day, a couple stopped us to ask us a question. Turned out, the guy's father had Parkinson's, and he opened up the floodgates.'
'That's what this ride is about: the people we meet each day.'
Two groups are simultaneously participating in Spinning Wheels: one that left the east coast and the other — Taylor's — that departed from the west.
An estimated 300 riders will participate at some point on the route, though he points out 'some days it's just two of us pedalling down a lonely road.'
Parkinson's — a currently incurable disease — impacts about 110,000 Canadians.
Though Canada has the highest per capita diagnosis rate in the world, Taylor worries it still doesn't get enough attention.
'We just want people to know why they should care,' he said. 'The disease makes you retreat, curl up in a ball and stay on the couch. Yet the opposite is what's needed.'
The ride hopes to raise about $200,000 of funds for research and community programming.
It'll be passed out to national, provincial and local Parkinson's programs in the places the riders visit.
'It really is nation-wide in terms of the difference it's making,' Parkinson Canada's Scott McMillan said. '(The money raised) goes into research into cause and cure, as well as ways to alleviate symptoms or stop the progression of Parkinson's.'
McMillan applauded the cyclists for heading into lesser-populated areas of the country.
He said he believes the outreach is vital 'so no one feels like they're going through it alone.'
Riding benefits
There are benefits to the cycling tour beyond awareness and fundraising.
Those riding with the disease — like Taylor and fellow Toronto resident Li Jiang — point out being on the bike is a massive physical boost.
'I've been living with it for 14 years, and I need to share with people that being active is so important to manage your symptoms well,' Jiang said. 'I started biking four years ago with these guys, and I really started from not balancing on the bike — falling on my first ride with them — to now I can ride 100 kilometers every day.'
'I first got on the bike and the symptoms all disappeared,' Taylor added. 'I phoned my wife at the end and said, 'you can't believe it, I rode all day and the symptoms are gone.' She said, 'then you better keep riding.''
To learn more about Spinning Wheels and the work being done by Parkinson Canada, visit the tour's website.
