Living Proof

In this episode Kristin and Bill speak with 15-year Living Proof rider Carie Capossela of Team Carie's Crew about what it means to be part of the PMC Living Proof community and some memorable moments from past PMCs, including a truly special moment with another Living Proof rider during a very soggy PMC 2018.

The PMC Living Proof® community is made up of riders and volunteers who are undergoing cancer treatment or were previously treated – Living Proof of the progress made in supporting cancer research and treatment.

Living Proof riders and volunteers are celebrated during PMC weekend at Mass Maritime Academy in Bourne on Saturday and at Babson College in Wellesley on Sunday.

In 2019, more than 960 Living Proof riders and volunteers participated in the PMC.

(photo credit: Casey Photography)

Transcript

Announcer:   0:00
This is The PMC Podcast with Kristin Brandt and Bill Alfano on today's episode we welcome, PMC Living Proof Rider Carie Capossela. Now, here's Kristin Brandt and Bill Alfano.

Kristin:   0:21
You're listening to The PMC Podcast. This is Kristin Brandt, and I am here virtually with my co-host Bill Alfano. How are you today?

Bill:   0:29
Are you here virtually or my virtual?

Kristin:   0:33
I'm Well, you're not virtual.

Kristin:   0:34
You're very real. So that's a good question.  

Bill:   0:38
Yeah. Hi.

Kristin:   0:40
It's a whole new language we're coming up with right?

Bill:   0:44
Everything is virtual.

Kristin:   0:46
We're zooming.

Bill:   0:50
It's a virtual zoom which are, I think, contradictions, is the same thing  of It's an oxymoron or contradicts. I guess. At least we don't have acronyms this week.

Kristin:   1:00
That's true, although I have probably used the information from that show. I don't know, five or six times. I'm just so smart now.

Bill:   1:10
Yeah, I'm with you. We got a lot of response on that. That was good.

Kristin:   1:13
That's awesom. Well, this week we are being joined by Carie Capossela, why don't you tell us a little bit about Carie before we lead into the interview  

Bill:   1:23
background

Bill:   1:24
I'll give is Carie is a breast cancer survivor, so she is a PMC Living Proof rider. She's gonna tell a little bit about her journey as well as some special moments from the PMC itself.

Kristin:   1:36
Sounds good. Let's come back with Carie.  

Kristin:   1:38
All right, we're here with Carie Capossela. Hello, Carie. Thank you so much for joining us.

Carie Capossela:   1:43
Hi. Thank you so much for having me.

Kristin:   1:46
So why don't we start by having you tell us about your involvement with the PMC? How long have you been involved in What is your involvement?

Carie Capossela:   1:54
I guess I'll start by saying I'm a cancer survivor. So I My involvement started in 2006. I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001, and at that time I didn't know anything about the PMC,  And I was going through chemotherapy, and it was summertime. And my oncologist, who I adore was training for the ride. And he mentioned to me before one of my treatments, and he said to me, You know, I'm training for this bike ride and it's this is this awesome event and you should do it. You should you know, you should try the PMC And you know I'm bald. I feel terrible. I have an IV out of my arm. I'm, you know, nervous wreck. And I'm thinking, OK, that's a great idea. Maybe not today. Um, no. Let's come back to this another day. But I kept it, you know? I kept it in my head, and I think I sort of send it. I set it is a a mental goal to come back and find out more about it and ride

Kristin:   3:01
you. I was gonna say, Were you a rider? Were you a cyclist at the time?

Carie Capossela:   3:08
No. So I was not a bike rider. I was not about rider. I hadn't been on a bike in many years. And what I decided, was, when I hit my five year survival, which is a benchmark with breast cancer in particular that I was going to give back and I was going to ride the PMC. And so at that point, I decided I was gonna go buy a bike. And so that alone was an experience. Um, and I actually laughing, thinking about it because I marched myself into Belmont Wheel Works that Okay, I need a bike. And I practiced around the building a couple times and the guy looked at me and I was wobbly and I kind of like, almost fell off a couple times and he said, You're gonna ride the PMC And I said, Yes, I am I swear to God. And he's like, Okay, and you know, and I haven't stopped since. So I will tell you that that I'm coming up on my 15 right this year. So that was and my 20th cancer survival year next year. So that would be a big ride for me next year.

Kristin:   4:20
Congratulations. That's amazing. I think it's interesting that your your doctor sat there looking at you. You're not a rider, per se, and you know, it would be a great idea. You should ride 200 Miles. Good goal.

Carie Capossela:   4:38
Yeah, he you know, and I think that says a lot. I you know, one of the things about the PMC that that I love in particular for me as a cancer survivor, someone who who lived through it, who benefited from Dana-Farber, who I consort. I come at it from a lot of different angles, right? And I love to see my doctor ride, and he's still rides, and I can tell you that almost like clockwork Every year I ride one leg of the ride with him and it's we don't plan it, it's not. We don't start at the same place. I will not have spoken to him in a while and inevitably we will land in the same position and we'll ride side by side. I was seeing him at lunch. I always have my photo and it's amazing.

Kristin:   5:28
So Bills raising his finger like something. But I am not letting him Okay,

Carie Capossela:   5:34
all right. I love it

Kristin:   5:36
important because so I'm a This is my fifth year and what astounds me It's for the size of it, how many people I run into on the route, people who you know, one of my daughter's teachers had breast cancer and no coordination with her, no idea where she was. And suddenly I come rolling up and I look over and she said, Mrs Brandt,  Oh, my goodness and we stopped it. I love that. What is your doctor's name? Maybe we can give him a shout out

Carie Capossela:   6:09
so we can and he His name is Eric Winer, and he is the head of breast oncology, and he doesn't like when we give him a lot of individual attention because it is a group effort there, and I, you know, I know that to be true. And there's many other doctors who ride there and a lot of them I cross paths with. And, you know, Eric is obviously very, very special to me. Um, you know, I get choked up thinking about him right now, so he, um that's really special time for me when I can see him on that ride. So I would say, um, the reason I ride every year is to honor my cancer. So And I do and I show up every year and I bitch and moan about training and I, you know, ask ask Billy Starr about that. I am. It's true. Every year I threaten to retire, I say I'm too old. I I moan about the weather. I'm you know, I lag behind. I have a little bit of residual, um, long term side effects from radiation that affect my lungs and my my heart rate. I get accelerated heart rate. I've been, you know, I see a couple specialists on that. I mean, it's frustrating to me. I'm competitive, but I get my ass on that bike and somehow I get I get to the finish line and I do it and and it's the most amazing weekend

Carie Capossela:   7:42
of the year. It never disappoints  

Kristin:   7:46
Before we started talking, we compared notes on Children. You said you have two that are in their early twenties. Um, so they watched you go through this and also now do the PMC. What do you think they think of Mom going from non rider, too? I just rode further than I'd be happy to drive.

Carie Capossela:   8:07
That's a good question. My, you know, my kids. My kids were one in three when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. So I, you know, they were babies. They were not aware of the cancer, but they grew up with me and cancer because I made it my life and I made it my work. I got very involved at Dana-Farber. I started a pro, co founded a program there for young on breast cancer are another one called soulmates mentoring women. I have coached and mentored hundreds of women through their process, so there they're very familiar with the cancer piece of it. Um, also, the PMC became such a huge part of our life and our family that they've grown up with that as well. So they rode the kids rides I helped run the Wellesley a ride for years. My, um, soon to be ex husband, um, Rob also is rider. Um, my sister, my brother in law, lost his mother to breast cancer. So we, you know early years it was it was just the four of us and then our team, you know, we built our team one of the greatest. It's hard to put pinpoint one great moment. There are so many great moments. But I had the honor of riding along, son my side alongside my son in 2014 the year of the rain. And we'll just I don't know how to describe it. Other is

Bill:   9:43
it was it was a mild mist.

Carie Capossela:   9:46
So the rainstorm was his first year of riding and I was so excited to have him riding alongside me and the weather was the worst. You know, I don't for anyone. Anyone who was there, it's it's hard to describe in that moment. I saw a strength in my son and the meaning of the PMC come out in ways that I didn't even realize. He had a strength that got me to the finish line that year. What I was completely falling apart. I think he saw in that moment the strength that I had and I saw the strength that he had and it was it was the most powerful. I would say moment between the two of us to date because I was ready to get off my bike. I'm ready to throw my bike out. I was ready. I was losing my mind. He is the one that got me to the finish line. And so coming back to original question, I think you know, that was what we both saw in that moment was the power of what that ride really meant. It was so much bigger than the rain.

Bill:   10:59
I don't know What's going on here? There's a lot of dust or something in my room. My eyes are really watery right now. So

Sponsor:   11:10
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Bill:   11:24
Let's switch gears. Let's get back to to you. Let's get back to PMC Living Proof community. Kristin alluded to the term in the phrase you know, PMC Living Proof. It's riders or volunteers who are either currently going through or have gone through cancer treatment. You know, starting with the diagnosis and through treatment. Some are out of treatment. Some are still in treatment. But if you don't mind Carie, can you tell us a little bit about what the Living Proof community means to you as far as being a part of it, and even into any I don't know, traditions or things that you do through PMC Weekend as a Living Proof member?

Carie Capossela:   12:08
Yes, so so riding as a member of the Living Proof community is it's different. I you know, I have always taking that very seriously um and while I ride with team, you know, I ride with I train with the group of women from Wellesley, and they're my. We call ourselves the BGs is the biking goddesses. Then I have my Carie's Crew team. We ride for. We raise funds for the young and strong program at Dana-Farber, and it's you know, it's always a question of you. Who are you actually riding along side and you know how is this gonna play out? Um, for me, I am always grounded in my my cancer. And I'm always grounded in my survivorship and my my Living Proof connection. And so I'm I'm a little slow. I dilly-dally a little bit of the the rest stops. I look forward to running into all of my people along the way. And I look for the faces and my my fellow cancer survivors, people going through treatment when I get to MMA You're tired, There's a whole lot of emotions going on. It becomes very important to me that I and there for the Living Proof ceremony. And that has really taken shape over the years. In the early years, it wasn't as important to me. I feel like I just I wasn't sure about it. And I can tell you that it has become such a major part of my PMC week and experience that I will not leave MMA. Until I get through  the PMC Living Proof the Living Proof ceremony,

Kristin:   13:57
I was going to say to take a step back For those who may not be familiar. Uh, what is the Living Proof ceremony.

Carie Capossela:   14:04
Okay, so Living Proof ceremony is at, I think that 6 p.m. On we all meet by the flagpole. And it's the coming together of all the riders and volunteers who have had cancer. And who are Living Proof and we congregate and we do a group photo and somehow John Deputy (photog) and Bill directs us in a week we got in. This group is ever growing. We we take a photo and then Billy gives a toast. And there's music. The last few years it's been music, and it's it's been beautiful. Um, what's special about the Living Proof gathering is the routine of it. Um, and I have a couple of, you know, personal stories for me, you know, seeing looking for and seeing the same faces, sitting in position next to the same people. There's something about that that that gives you control. It gives you connection and, you know, cancer takes away control. Um, and it and it does some things to you. But when you come out of it and you can you can look forward to that to these connections with people who can share in that. And you know that that they're doing okay and there by your side and you're showing up for them and they're showing up for you your embraced by this whole community. And this is why we're all riding. It's big, you know? And And I started to say, You know, the reason I brought up me and the rest stops is because, you know, a lot of people I ride with they're, they're rushing to get to the finish line, you know, they want to get the right done. They're worried about the heat they're worried about, which is all true. But everybody has learned for me, it's different. You know? I'm I'm in the moment. I like to stay in the moment of of these people around me that have had a cancer experience. And so I start that way and I finish that way. And the highlight is for sure this Living Proof photo and experience.

Bill:   16:07
Yeah, and you know, just for context with Carie mentions MMA. It's the Mass Maritime Academy. So that's that's gonna be the finish line, you know, PMC two day ride. That's gonna be the finish line for anybody who rides on Saturday, regardless of where they start from And then you know she's talking about, which is the traditional and and larger Living Proof celebration, which happens at the Mass- Maritime Academy on Saturday evening around six o'clock. We also do one Sunday morning pre start. So for for riders, um, who were riding Sunday just Sunday, Um, you know, if they're part of the Living Proof community, whether the riders or volunteers as Carie said, we want to make sure that they're a part of this also. So we've over the last few years in particular, we've kind of really built up the Living Proof ceremony that happens at Babson College on Sunday. Um, you know, we have a different speaker every year from the Living Proof community, and, you know, it's it's it's the same feeling there. I just want to throw that out. Carie, I wasn't even sure because you do the 2-day ride I didn't know if you knew that we did the Sunday one.

Carie Capossela:   17:14
It's true, And you know what? I really didn't, um and thank you for clarifying that, and I'm gonna I'm gonna share one story. If that's okay with you about the power of the Living Proof experience for me. I was. I was a speaker at opening ceremonies in 2010 back when it wasn't televised, and I was, you know, I was this survivor, sort of keynote speaker, and that was a great honor. And it was a great year for me. And the next year, at the Living Proof photo, this man came over to me and he had tears in his eyes and he looked at me and he said, Oh my gosh, are you Carie Capossels?  And I said, I am And he said, and he started to cry and he said, I just want you to know you're the reason I'm here right now and I said, Tell me more And he said I was in that audience and I heard you speak in 2010 and I had survived the cancer. You know, I've been riding for a few years and he said, and then I had another cancer come back, he said, And that was going to be my last year. I wasn't going to ride anymore, he said. And I have listened to your speech over and over and over again, and you are the reason I got back on my bike and you're the reason I am so right on the PMC. I swear to you when I tell you, I see next him. Every year we hug, we cry. We I mean, it's I can't even say anything more than the power of that relationship I have with Andy. Um, and it's our special moment that we have together. It happens right there at the flagpole and, you know, and I and I, that's just It's a very, very, very special moment to me.

Kristin:   19:12
the Living Proof program a little dusty. What did you say Bill? Dusty in here? Um, I've had a chance to talk to some other Living Proof members or members of Living Proof. How do we say that? Right, The Living Proof community. And one of them was talking about how, for someone who's newly diagnosed meeting members of Living Proof is something that they can look to to say this person made it through. I don't know how, you know, I met a young mother with breast cancer, and I'm sure who is dealing with it now, and I'm sure to be able to look to someone like you who said Yes, that was me, but now here I am must be so powerful and comforting and inspirational. I can imagine beyond the connections you're making with those who have been coming back year after year.

Carie Capossela:   20:11
Um, yes. I mean, I, you know, personally speaking, I believe in that so much. I think that, you know, it's like parenting, right? You have parenting groups, and it's always good to have parents around you that, you know, that are sort of one step ahead of you that know how to do that? That Know, a little more than you do that, the parents in a way that that you can, um, you know you can use as a guide. And I think I think dealing with cancer is such a frightening, overwhelming place to be. And I think that when you have, when you have someone who you can look at and talk to, that's that's been through it on. And I said, I spend a ton of my personal time doing that, and so I value that so much. And I think visually seeing someone be healthy and have your hair grown back and you know, people. I mean, I have a lot of hair. I know the rest of you won't be able to see that. But  

Bill:   21:10
show off.  

Carie Capossela:   21:11
I was bald I was. I mean, you have to understand. I had so much hair when I was younger that my uncle Bill doesn't have. I doesn't have, as much, But I my uncle used to call me Brillo. This is the truth, because my hair was such a part of who I was and I lost all my hair. Okay. And that was so, um, it's so upsetting. And even that alone when you see someone when you see these people year after year and you see the hair growing back and you see you're the visual excuse me on someone is it's just powerful, you know, and you can feel it, you know you could feel it.

Bill:   21:55
So, Carie, as you know, I'm a sports fanatic. I guess most people know that. And there's all these names of plays and things. There's there's the catch. There's the immaculate reception. There's ghost in the post like if you're an NFL fan. You know all those things in my PMC world. I have, um, have some of these things. One of them in my mind, I just simply call the story. Um, and it it you play the pivotal role in this story, and it's all about Living Proof. Um, it's really why we asked you to jump on this podcast for I'm just gonna turn it over to you.

Carie Capossela:   22:34
Okay, so So in 2018 and Bill, I'm gonna ask you to maybe help me if I forget. Yeah, sure. 2018. It was raining a lot at MMA, And it was which doesn't usually happen usually at MMA. A. Somehow it's it's bright and sunny. And this this year, it happened to be raining the whole time, right? There was question is whether or not they were going to do the Living Proof celebration So there was back and forth about it. There was communication back and forth, and it was very it was a last minute call to go forward with the photo. The rain look like it was letting up. We're all, you know, congregating over there. So we get over there, we all you see are people were, you know, looking like drowned rats When I get there, what?

Kristin:   23:28
to be clear, because I was there that year. It wasn't raining It was a deluge and the muddy muddy rivers running through the tents that were supposed to keep us dry. I remember watching the volunteers are out in the rain Bbqueuing for us. I mean, this wasn't just right rain.

Carie Capossela:   23:47
I have selective member loss. I think they call it which, by the way, I think is the only reason why we would go on and have more Children. What is like So yes, I think that that's all true. Thank you for that reminder. I can't remember the exact moment. I don't know if it was the photo. I don't know. I feel like it was the toast. But at some moment it was like the rain stopped. Yeah, it was magical. 

Bill:   24:17
It was divine intervention. Whether you believe in religion or God. Or anything, that's it had to be that

Carie Capossela:   24:22
it was bizarre, like all the sun and the rain Stop. We're there. We're taking Our photo music is playing. Billy's talking the toast. It was like this whole thing. It was absolutely beautiful. It was a beautiful moment. It was, you know, it was a honor to be there and we enjoyed it, and it was It was wonderful. And okay, so now the next step for me is Bill Alfano was driving the car, my car, and I'm getting in that same car and he is going to drop me off at my home that I own in Dennis on the cape because I've now decided I no longer need to sleep in a tent at MMA. In which I did for about 10 years and wanna sleep in my own bed. And he's gonna drop me off there and grab my bike, ok fine

Bill:   25:07
don't forget. Don't forget to Lou's. It's important. 

Carie Capossela:   25:09
Oh no, the Lous I will never forget the Lous

Kristin:   25:11
Wait. So you sleep in a tent?

Carie Capossela:   25:14
I did sit in a tent for years.  

Kristin:   25:16
Yes. Wow. Okay, that's a whole another podcast.  

Carie Capossela:   25:19
We can come back to that, But I love the tent until the morning we woke up, you know, underwater. But you know, then the tent stopped. So then I, you know, got tonight. Listen, I you know, we all make the PMC what it is for us. And so I now the last few years have come to my home in Dennis and which is basically right off the route. So okay, so I'm now jumping in the car. I am. You know, at the end of Living Proof, I have Bill driving my car. I'm the passenger in the car and he's got his two homeboys in the back who are named Lou and Lou. And that's the truth

Bill:   25:59
and they are cousins.

Carie Capossela:   26:01
It's now starting to rain again, right? So we're packed in the car and I'm not even really paying attention except that Bill now have the window down. And he spoke his seat, talking to a woman. It was come to the one to the window and and she's clearly upset and Bill Automatic. It is just on he is. He is now fully in his role. He's PMC, he's he's figuring out what is upsetting this woman, and she he learns that she's missed the Living Proof ceremony because she thought it had been canceled

Bill:   26:36
and she got bad information or misinformation. Unfortunately, I think go ahead

Kristin:   26:42
and then I remember this because we have a friend, a couple of teammates who are Living Proof, and I remember there being this is there, isn't there? Should I go back to the dorm? Should I go to my house. Should I say it like it was Really? It really was as fast as you described it. Which was o h we're doing it now,

Carie Capossela:   26:59
right? Right. And it was this thing. So she had missed. She had missed the moment and she cared about it enough.

Bill:   27:06
It was her first. Carie, wasn't it?  

Bill:   27:08
Did she no thought or something?

Carie Capossela:   27:10
Yeah. Right. So it was her first. Um it was her first ride as a Living Proof club member. Not her first PMC  ride. Correct. OK, so she basically she was upset. And Bill's first comment. Was You know what he said? Listen, What? Let's, um I think there's some extra shirts over there. Um, Lou, number one? Can you get out of the car and can you run out? Can you see if there's a next a shirt for our friend here and so Sure, sure. I can do that? And then Bill says, Well, actually, you know what? I'm sure there's still some champagne. Lou number two, why don't we give her a bottle of champagne? Okay. Great. And then he quickly, like within. I don't even know how many seconds he actually, he looks at me. And he says, actually, um, we have someone here who is a member of the Living Proof community. Carie. And he said, I know. Why don't we Why don't we get Carie? And why don't we do a private ceremony with you? What would would you? You know, Would that be a good idea? You know, what was what was so beautiful about this was it was like clockwork. None of us planned it. None of us discussed it. And I just jumped out of the car. I was like, Yeah. Oh, no, that's a great idea. And so I jumped out of a car. We just all the four of us. And now, by the way, the rain has started  

Bill:   28:40
The skies have Opened up

Carie Capossela:   28:42
but we don't care. We don't. I can't Even we don't care. Because this woman this represented so much. This was I knew her story. I could feel her story. I listened to her story I wanted to hear about, You know, she had just finished treatment. She was so excited to ride. She really wanted to be, um, at this this ceremony, because of the power of the people, which is you know what we just talked about? And and she was heartbroken, you know, to miss it, and I could see it in her face. It's like being told it's like. It's when you get told you cancer or when something doesn't come out the way you think it's going to. You know, your expectations are high. We had that. It was the it was. I don't know, Bill. You can give your two words about it, but it

Carie Capossela:   29:30
was such a

Carie Capossela:   29:30
moment of connection for all of us that was unplanned. And to me, it represented so much of the PMC in that moment and every single level it was. It was me, the rider. It was the cancer survivor. It was Bill, you know, the staff. It was the Lous the volunteers, who saw firsthand with the power of what they were doing Really was. And we basically just like we had her, you know, we just we had her way, held her space. I shared some words with her. I don't know what they were I listened to her. We stood out there, we took pictures with her camera on her phone and we don't have her name. And so I hope she hears this. She will. She

Carie Capossela:   30:17
will come and find me at the Living Proof

Carie Capossela:   30:19
circles. please. Because

Carie Capossela:   30:23
we can't find her

Carie Capossela:   30:25
for the life of

Carie Capossela:   30:25
me and Bill in any of us. You know, we don't remember, right?

Bill:   30:29
That's right. Yeah. I mean, I don't I still don't know what happened outside of the car when you and her were having, like, your private toast. I don't I don't mean private is in, Right. Um, you didn't let us, but I think one of the things that's yeah, unbelievable about Living Proof is I think non Living Proof people involved the PMC. Understand that Living Proof? When When you guys were doing your thing. Whatever it is, it's It's about you. It's for you. We leave everybody alone in that group. Like when you got out of the car and you went and talked to her and you gave her a hug. Um, that was the two of you. I'm not a Living Proof member. My two buddies aren't Living Proof members and we had nothing to do. We got the T shirt, we got the champagne and we put you in position to do your thing

Kristin:   31:14
What does he say As someone outside of it, It feels sacred. It feels like something that we as riders and as volunteers. We can help get you, in that space and that's what you're talking about, But. Then it's It's for us to step back. Because it is, not our space.

Carie Capossela:   31:35
So there's a couple of things I'll say here of one is one of one of my, you know, hash tags or now, so to speak. Although back when I was diagnosed with cancer, there were no hashtags. Listen to things, you know, you think about what's important and you think about what comes out of your cancer experience. And, you know, in my case with breast cancer in particular, um, it can always come back. A lot of people who get through cancer, the active treatment, the inactive treatment, I mean, there's lots of different stages of living with or beyond breast or any cancer, and some people don't understand that when you're with this group, you get to be in that place where everybody gets it. You know, we all have our own experience, but one of my hash tags getting back to that has always been find the gifts. I say that to every person I talk to you, that I coach a mentor, that I I you have to find the gifts because there, there, there, there, and this. You know, there's a lot about PMC that's a gift. But this moment to me was a gift because, you know, it's raining. You're broken. You know, geez do I really want to ride tomorrow. I don't know. It's you know, it's all these thoughts going through your head, and then it's a good reminder. This

Carie Capossela:   32:58
is why we're

Carie Capossela:   32:59
doing this. That is a gift. So to me, I view that as a gift, and I did. And you know, Bill, you're right. I did. I had some private words with her, you know she needed she needed to share her story. She absolutely. She wanted to share her story. She wanted someone to know that she was there, that she had gone through the treatment, that she had gotten her bike that day, that she had gotten to that finish line and she was showing up. And that's what we all do for each other in Living Proof. That's it we show. up,

Kristin:   33:29
it's friends who show up on the side of the road and you're riding by and you're like, Wait with that My friends who wait They showed up, right?

Carie Capossela:   33:37
It's crazy. It's showing up. It's showing up. That's exactly what it is.

Kristin:   33:42
I think there is not much more to say other than we show up. And, um, I think that's a great way to wrap this up. I'm gonna thank you Carie so much,

Bill:   33:52
Thank you, Carie.

Kristin:   33:52
And, um, hopefully, hopefully hopefully I will see you out on the route in

Kristin:   33:59
August  

Carie Capossela:   34:00
and thank you for having me and giving me this opportunity and, you know, talking about it just I can feel it inside, you know, And there's a lot going on right now. Uncertainty and the world is different, right? But this sort of brings brings it all back to what what really is important. And I have an excitement within me about getting back with my bike, you know, and doing it all over. And whether it's this year on the road or next year or whatever it is, you know, the PMC is not going anywhere, and cancer is not going anywhere. And So we have to keep showing up.

Carie Capossela:   34:44
Well said Carrie. Thank you.

Kristin:   34:47
All right, we're back. It was so nice to be Carie. I feel like that's the best part of this PMC podcast for me is all the people that I've gotten to meet that apparently I'm riding right past. But didn't you know, have a chance to chat with?

Bill:   35:01
Yeah. I have a feeling you and Carie may wind up being a lifelong friends, At least at least two powerhouses out on the road, that's for sure.

Kristin:   35:10
There you go. Well, definitely And it's funny when she was talking about the fact that, you know, she takes her time she enjoys it. I would say that really describes the team I'm on and my team leader. So I'm gonna make sure we make that connection also.

Bill:   35:24
Yeah, it was Ah, great stuff. I really appreciated it. Carie. Coming on.

Kristin:   35:28
All right, well, let's wrap this up. You can find information about Living Proof and links from this episode by visiting PMC dot org slash podcast. You can also connect with us on Twitter and Facebook and Instagram. If you like our show, please help spread the word until three friends or leave a review for us on your favorite podcast listening app  until next time. Remember, there's a lot riding on us.