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Cyclists ride coast to coast on special mission

Three Georgia men are cycling 3,600 miles to raise money for a local nonprofit.

Dubbed “The Blaze Brothers,” the trio will cycle for 36 days from Tybee Island to San Francisco. The trip is a fundraiser for BlazeSports America, which provides adaptive sports for kids and veterans with physical disabilities.

“These are kids that can’t get their bodies to do the things that we take for granted,” cyclist and volunteer BlazeSports coach Michael Higgins said. “They work twice as hard, and they do it with joy and enthusiasm.”

The money raised from the ride will help fund 25 sports programs, clinics and camps.

“We all have a disability, but we don’t let that define us, and at Blaze we acknowledge that and work through it together,” BlazeSports participant Cathryn Gray explained.

Gray was thrilled to hear about the cross-country trip both her coach and former pediatrician will be making.

“Dr. (David) Bergman helped me get over sickness when I get little and gave me and my mom advice about cerebral palsy," she said. “I was so excited because they’ve been training so hard and it’s such a good cause. Blaze is like my second family.”

Bergman says he is drawing strength for the ride from his young patients and hoping his effort will send a strong message.

“For them to see me doing this and the three of us together, it shows friendship; it shows overcoming any type of challenge in your path,” he said.

The cyclists will be updating a blog throughout their ride and are still accepting donations.

“When we face those mountains in Colorado, I know those Blaze kids are pulling for me, and that’s going to be all the motivation I need to get up over that summit,” Higgins said.

Bergman says he and Higgins will be riding the entire way with cyclist Vik Nat meeting up with them in Colorado.