PROVINCETOWN — The Pan Mass Challenge, which took place during a heat wave on the weekend of Aug. 6 and 7 this year, calls itself a fundraiser first and a bike ride second.
To be clear, the ride is big — it has three finish line options for routes covering as many as 211 miles in two days. But the donations the event brings to cancer research and treatment at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute are even bigger: this year the PMC raised more than $50 million. With a total of $831 million donated since 1980, the Challenge has raised more money for charity than any other athletic competition in the U.S., according to the PMC website.
This year there were more than 6,000 participants with 2,950 finishing in Provincetown. Riders can choose between 16 route combinations that include single-day or two-day trips ranging from 25 to 211 miles. The three finish lines are in Provincetown, Wellesley, and Foxborough. That’s more participants than the ride has had in the last two years, when the event was restricted by the pandemic, but fewer than the years preceding the pandemic, according to fundraising intern Matt Najemy.
Truro police said they responded to just one incident of an injured cyclist. During the event, police officers monitored traffic on Route 6 but did not shut down any roads. —Emma Madgic
