Survivors run and ride strong

Yellow was the color of the day Sunday as nearly 2,800 cyclists, walkers and runners — most of them cancer survivors or friends and family of survivors — raised money for cancer research as part of cyclist Lance Armstrong’s Livestrong Challenge.

They sported yellow shirts, socks, shorts, placards and, of course, Livestrong bracelets as signs that cancer (and pouring rain) could not stop them.

Some wanted to recognize loved ones’ fights against cancer or highlight the numerous families affected by the disease. Carl Perron of Hood River emphasized that melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer that he beat back, is often preventable by avoiding overexposure to the sun and treatable if caught early.

 – Excerpt from The Oregonian, October 1, 2007