62-year-old man starts nationwide bike ride to stop cancer

The COVID-19 pandemic was just beginning to take hold over the United States and the rest of the world when Bill Couzens felt the nudge to begin a healthier lifestyle. So he bought the last electric bike in the shop, the Traverse City Record-Eagle reported.

The gregarious 62-year-old has suffered much loss. So much loss, in fact, that it is a wonder he can smile and laugh and joke as much as he does. However, he embraces life and all it offers — the good, the bad and the in-between — because he’s witnessed firsthand how it can all be cut short, the paper noted.

“Cancer is not supposed to be an expected stage of life,” Bill told the Record-Eagle. “The grief is real and so are the lessons going forward. Unfortunately, it is how we learn about moving on.”

So he launched Less Cancer, a charity focused on stopping cancer before any more lives are cut short or turned upside down. He operates the organization on less than $200,000 annually, most of which comes from donations received from an annual bike ride event.

To read more about Bill’s efforts to inspire “older, chubbier dudes” to get healthy, visit www.record-eagle.com.

For more information about his charitable organization and how to join the Less Cancer Bike Ride for America 2021, visit www.lesscancer.org