Photo courtesy of Jeffrey S. Hall Photography
Dale Darnell has lived in Dublin for 29 years, and though he has firm roots in central Ohio, he is no stranger to travel.
It was actually at a global managers’ meeting in Rome, Italy when Darnell began to seriously think about participating in Pelotonia.
As a member of the The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center James Foundation Board, Darnell attended the Celebration for Life event in May 2010 and heard Tom Lennox, then CEO of Pelotonia, speak about the ride to end cancer.
It wasn’t until Darnell attended that global managers’ meeting in Rome in July 2010 that he felt the emotional connection and urge to ride. Suzanne Bednarchik, a co-worker from Gartner – an information technology advisory firm – who also graduated from OSU, told Darnell about her personal experience participating in Pelotonia.
“She planted the seed in my mind,” says Darnell.
After returning home, buying a new bike and riding around the community for a few weeks,
Photo courtesy of Jeffrey S. Hall Photography
Darnell officially announced to Debbie – his wife, who had been battling breast cancer for more than 20 years – that he was signing up to ride the full 180 miles.
With his official registration on Aug. 1, Darnell only really had three weeks until the ride. He was confident that he could handle the physical challenge, though he didn’t have much time to train. Darnell has been active throughout his life, having earned a football scholarship to play quarterback at OSU under Woody Hayes. Darnell left the Buckeyes after his freshman year to play baseball in the minor leagues as catcher and outfielder for the Boston Red Sox.
“I’ve been athletic almost my entire life, and even though I wasn’t riding outside (prior to signing up), I had an indoor stationary bike … so that was how I got my cardio,” says Darnell.
Darnell, confident that he was doing well physically, skipped a couple of the rest stops and water fill-up stations. He became incredibly dehydrated and had to stop for a rest.
“I found myself at the top of this hill at what I recall as an endless driveway. I had my bike propped up against the mailbox and I got off and was just sitting in the gravel with other riders,” he says. “My hamstrings were so locked up that I couldn’t get up.”
For a man who is constantly on the go, Darnell enjoys long car rides for the quiet moments of reflection they afford. This was a different kind of ride, but he couldn’t help but reflect while sitting in the gravel of that endless driveway.
“There’s always a sag wagon (a support vehicle that patrols cycling routes) around the corner to come and pick up any riders who can’t continue. I never felt in danger,” says Darnell. “I’m sitting there thinking about my wife, who is fighting so hard to live, and I’m in pain and I can’t move. … I can’t get up, but I know that I have help right there. Whereas she, outside of the help she got from the James to extend her life, had no one on the way to help.”
Though he was unable to ride all 180 miles, Darnell personally raised $3,600 his first year participating in Pelotonia. He was hooked. The following year, he organized Team Darnell, made up of friends and co-workers.
Just two days before Pelotonia 2011, Debbie passed away after 24 years of battling breast cancer. Team Darnell rode with heavy hearts that year, but losing his wife only affirmed Darnell’s commitment to Pelotonia and the ride to end cancer.
“The real reason I got involved was I really couldn’t do anything for my wife because I’m not a doctor, and I wanted to do something,” he says. “This was my way of doing something to help, to raise awareness for cancer, for Pelotonia and for the James.”
Darnell has participated each year since his first ride and doesn’t plan to stop, making this year his eighth Pelotonia. After remarrying and riding for two more years on Team Darnell, he joined his wife, Janice’s, peloton, and rode three more years with them. Janice plays a big role in Dale’s journey with Pelotonia, encouraging him to continue riding and searching for a cure.
Team Darnell generated a total of $220,000 during its three-year stint, and Darnell has personally raised more than $83,000 in all of his years with Pelotonia.
Darnell has lived in Birnam Woods at Muirfield Village for 29 years and spent a total of 10 years as president of the homeowners’ association. Naturally, Darnell saw this relationship with Muirfield Village as an opportunity to help raise money for Pelotonia and, in turn, for the James.
The Country Club at Muirfield Village donated a foursome to Pelotonia last year, and this generosity spurred Darnell to collaborate with Alissa Klein, membership and communications director at the club, to organize a celebrity golf outing to benefit Team Muirfield Village and Pelotonia in July.
Photos by Jeffrey S. Hall Photography
Darnell is retired from his position as a regional vice president at Gartner, and when he isn’t riding his bike or fundraising for Pelotonia, he enjoys spending time with his wife and their two Rhodesian ridgebacks, Pete and Derek. Darnell golfs often, is a Colo Member at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium and, when his location permits, Darnell likes to scuba dive.
The Darnells love to travel when they can. Their most recent trip included a stop in Alabama to visit Darnell’s daughter, Beth, before continuing on to a cruise in the Bahamas. His passport also boasts stamps from Monte Carlo, Italy, Germany, Spain, Greece and Tahiti during his professional life.
The next trip for the Darnells will actually be back to Rome, where much of Darnell’s current journey began years ago. Through his work on the James Foundation Board and years of fundraising with Pelotonia, Darnell has done much to support awareness and hope. His green Pelotonia arrows – each one a “badge of courage,” he says – only point toward one direction: a cure.
Jenny Wise is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
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