David Marceau

Has it been Five Years Already?

Tuesday 16th Apr 2024

It is a beautiful sunny morning here in Connecticut today.  The high is expected to reach 67°.  The kids are all off from school and laying in their beds.  What a great day it would be to chill out!  Maybe I will later.  Right now, I’m sitting at my computer at 7:00am because I feel the need to rally to a cause.

I started doing the DGR in 2017 because it looked cool, everyone riding classic or vintage-styled bikes, dressed like someone out of Mad Men.  Oh, and maybe I could raise some money for a worthy cause while I was at it.  Then, I had a health scare which in many ways reshaped my outlook on life.  The Ride took on new meaning.

2024 is the five-year mark for me being cancer free.  I have not posted about this on social media because I am not looking for accolades.  My doctors and good genes had more to do with my recovery and sustained health than anything I did.  But it is a milestone nonetheless, one which now inspires me to knock on some doors and shake some trees to raise more funds for the DGR than I have before.

Your donation will help with prostate cancer prevention and men’s mental health.  Cancer is one of the leading killers of men and prostate cancer is the top form of cancer in men.  Another of the Top Ten Killers is suicide.  Men are four times as likely to take their lives than women are.  Yet, men are half as likely to seek mental health treatment.

Let us do something about this!  Select an amount and click the Donate button to show your support.  Funds go to the Movember Foundation, I receive nothing, by the way.

Thank you for reading and thanks in advance for your generosity.

Where to?

Wednesday 10th Apr 2024

On May 19th I will participate in my sixth Distinguished Gentleman's Ride.  The DGR raises funds and awareness for men's health, both physical and mental.  More on that in a future post.

Each year I ride in a different location with different people.  It provides me an excellent opportunity to tilt the handlebars on some roads I would not otherwise have the opportunity to experience while hearing some new stories from the other riders I meet, all while contributing to a worthy cause.

The DGR journey has taken me to New Haven and Enfield in Connecticut, and New York City, Rhinebeck, and Barryville in New York.  Now, for the first time I will ride in Massachusetts, in the Great Barrington Ride.

This location has a special place in my heart.  As a kid I spent four summers at a sleepaway camp in Great Barrington.  Three decades later my own children attended the same camp.  In a strange coincidence, my current home and the summer camp are both just off the same road, Route 7, albeit 60 miles apart.

The town is also directly in line with the route I would take to ski in southern Vermont.  I always smile and relive those summers of my childhood when I drive through.  The DGR Ride will certainly be a walk down Memory Lane.

I eagerly look forward to participating again this year and have already made the first donation.  Please also tap the Donate button and give what you can. 

I'm Riding for Men's Health in The Distinguished Gentleman's Ride

Wednesday 10th Apr 2024 On Sunday the 19th of May 2024, I'm riding in The Distinguished Gentleman's Ride with fellow men and women across the globe to raise funds and awareness for prostate cancer and men's mental health on behalf of Movember. Men die on average 6 years earlier than women and for largely preventable reasons. The number of men that are suffering is growing, and we need to do something about that. So, before I press my tweed and polish my boots, I'm asking you to join me in raising funds and awareness for these causes by donating what you can for this meaningful cause and to help the men we love, live happier and healthier lives.