The Prairie Women on Snowmobiles (PWOS) organization has been raising money for breast cancer research and equipment, through its mission snowmobiles rides, since its formation in 2002.
But there has never been a stop in Estevan, even though local snowmobilers have participated in the ride in the past.
That will change in 2018, when the PWOS will travel throughout the southeast, and wrap up its Mission 2018 tour in Estevan on Feb. 9.
Kelly Kim Rae, the president of the PWOS, said they haven’t been through southern Saskatchewan for quite a few years, but they wanted to include it for the 2018 tour.
“Since our main objective is to get the message about early detection (out there), as the best survival tool for breast cancer, as well as safe snowmobilng, we need to reach as many people as we can,” she said.
Mission 2018 kicks off on Feb. 3 in Regina, and the ride will start the following day. Among the other communities on the route are Kisbey, Kenosee Lake, Redvers, Gainsborough, Carnduff, Oxbow, Arcola, Lampman, Stoughton, Midale and Torquay.
The PWOS will have coffee, lunch or evening stops in each community. The coffee stop is a quick, 30-minute break in a community. Coffee and snacks are served at the event, which is open to the public.
The riders, executive members and the pit crew are introduced, a history of the PWOS is read to the audience, and the public can interact with one of the 10 riders.
Lunch stops are a little longer, but have a similar format.
An evening stop, like the one in Estevan, usually includes a banquet, and is held in partnership with a local snowmobile club or a service group. In the case of the Estevan banquet, it will be hosted by the Estevan Snowmobile Club.
The public will be invited to the banquet. Rea said the banquets can bring anywhere from 30 to 200 people.
“I hear the Estevan Snowmobile Club is going way out of their way,” said Rea. “It’s going to be a huge, exciting bash.”
The PWOS don’t ask for funds raised from the evening, but lots of organizers donate some or all of the proceeds back to PWOS.
Since the visit to Estevan will be the final stop for Mission 2018, the PWOS will reveal how much money it raised for through the mission.
A pinning ceremony for cancer survivors is held at all stops.
“We invite any survivors in the community to get a special pin that was designed specially for Prairie Women on Snowmobiles,” said Rea. “We will pin any survivor in the group who comes forward and announces they’re a survivor. They get a hug – we’re big huggers, we hug everyone – and a congratulations. It’s a big thing to beat cancer nowadays.”
Rea said she was encouraged to hear that Estevan received a few inches of snow last week. But if there isn’t enough snow on the ground to operate their sleds, they have a truck and trailer, which will be used for transportation and for storing the sleds.
“We still make the route,” she said. “We still make every single stop, either on the sleds or in the van. The sleds are there, people still get to see them.
“We get to spend more time in each stop, which is nice because it doesn’t take us so long to get from stop to stop.”
Estevan Snowmobile Club president Dave Heier said the club is excited to host the PWOS for their final day of the tour. In addition to the banquet and the announcement of the final total, there will be a silent auction, a cabaret with a live band and more.
The club is looking for sponsors, gifts in kind and donations for the event.
“We’re hoping that about half of the proceeds will go to the Prairie Women on Snowmobiles, and half will be retained by the club to be put towards the purchase of a second groomer,” said Heier.
Heier said club representatives went to the annual meeting for the Saskatchewan Snowmobile Association this year and met with three PWOS members who made a presentation. At that time, Heier invited them to come to Estevan.
“I said ‘It’s time to come south, and I guarantee you will have the best party you’ve ever been to (in Estevan),’’” said Heier.
A week later, the PWOS contacted the local club and agreed to come to Estevan.
The mission has raised more than $2.3 million since its inception for the Canadian Cancer Society’s breast cancer research efforts, and $150,000 over the last four years for the Saskatchewan Cancer Agency for the purchase of equipment. Ride participants have the option of which organization to support.
“The nice thing about the tour organizations that we’ve teamed up with is they have given us the ability to choose the researcher that we sponsor, and to choose the equipment that we purchase,” said Rea.
Most of the riders are cancer survivors, she said, and the rest have been touched by cancer.
“That’s what makes these women want to do this ride,” said Rea. “They want to bring the awareness, they want to raise the funds and they want to see an end to the disease.”
The ride is draining. It covers 1,400 kilometres in six days. And it’s emotionally exhausting due to the interactions with the public.
But it doesn’t compare with the experience that a cancer patient has to face.
Only one person is back from last year’s team, but Rea said they’re experienced riders who are eager to hit the trails.
Each participant had to raise at least $3,000 by Dec. 1.
Rea, who is a cancer survivor, was a rider in 2016 and became the president of the PWOS in 2017. She said the ride is a “life-changing experience,” not just because of the snowmobiling and the fundraising, but the opportunities to interact with the public.
“You learn so much about the disease and the cures and the research that’s going on,” said Rea. “I love to meet people … so meeting the nine others that were in my group that I never met before until the first day of the ride was exciting.”
Rea believes that one day a cure will be found for cancer, and then the PWOS will be able to ride for fun rather than for a fundraiser.
