Glenn Frommer, a 60-year-old from Vail, Colo., embarked on a 5,300-mile bicycle trek from San Francisco to Boston this summer to raise awareness and funding to fight polycystic kidney disease.
As of July 1, he was halfway through the journey as his route hit a grueling point where he needed to bike 60 miles a day through the hot, wind-swept Kansas plains, the Great Bend Tribune reported.
In addition to Glenn, more than 600,000 Americans suffer from the illness, but few people know what it is, he said. Polycycstic kidney disease causes multiple fluid-filled cysts to grow in the kidneys. These lead to the choking off of kidney functions, high blood pressure, renal failure and eventually death, Glenn explained.
“There is no cure, there is no treatment. It worsens as you age,” he added. “The only options are dialysis, a kidney transplant or you die.”
With a goal of raising $500,000, Glenn and his wife, Beth, are taking donations and selling merchandise along the route. Beth also drives the motorhome which serves as a support vehicle.
Most of the time, he rides by himself, but others have joined Glenn on occasion during the 100-day trip traversing 18 states.
The full story is available at the Great Bend Tribune.
To learn more about Glenn’s mission or to help him reach his fundraising goal, visit www.rideforpkd.org.
After closing his business and enduring several painful years of uncertainty regarding what to do with his life, Greg founded Forward From 50 to help men and women over 50 to live more purposeful lives by pursuing things they are passionate about. A Wisconsin native, Greg currently lives in Arizona.