By Jarret Bencks
jbencks@eagletribune.com
June 21, 2009 12:50 am LONDONDERRY — Anthony, Matt, Mike and Brian Galluzzo will all be riding in the Pan-Mass Challenge in August, but maybe at different paces. The three brothers — Anthony, 22, Matt, 20, and Mike, 16, all of Londonderry — and their cousin — Brian, 26, of Andover, Mass., will ride in the 192-mile cancer fundraiser to honor their fathers. Tony Galluzo, father of Anthony, Matt and Mike, and Joe Galluzo, Brian's dad, are both survivors of nasopharyngeal cancer, a rare form of the disease. Over the past few years, some combination of the relatives have ridden in the annual bike event in honor of Joe and Tony. But this year, Matt might be riding a little ahead of the pack. Since last year's PMC, he's been regularly riding his bike — and running and swimming — as he prepares to enter an ironman competition in Florida. "Every year after the PMC, I say I want to keep riding," he said. "Last year, I really started." But before any of them can ride in the two-day race from Sturbridge to Provincetown, they have some fundraising to do. Each rider needs to raise $4,200 for the Jimmy Fund. The three brothers sent out hundreds of letters to family and friends, seeking donations, but they expect it to be a little more work this year with the economy the way it is. "It's definitely going to be harder this year with people tightening their belts," Anthony said. The race itself has struggled this year. So far, about 5,200 riders have signed up for the 5,500 available slots, according to a PMC spokeswoman. "Everybody is a little concerned," spokeswoman Jackie Herskovitz said Friday. "Typically, we're sold out by now and we are not this year." Last year, the road race raised $35 million for the Jimmy Fund. The race is a prominent source of revenue for the fund, and the money is especially needed now because less money is coming from the federal level, Herskovitz said. Joe and Tony both received treatment at the Dana-Farber Institute in Boston and are now in remission. But the brothers still are active with the institute, participating in a case study that aims to detect such cancers sooner. Joe said he could remember when the PMC first started in the late-1970s as a small road race. "I had business friends ride in it, this is when it first started, and there might have been 100 people," he said. "Now there's thousands." Tony twice rode in the race with Anthony in 2002 and 2003, after first being diagnosed with cancer in 1999. The cancer returned, pushing him out of the race in recent years, but he has since gone back into remission, and his sons still ride each year. All the children said they look forward to the race each year as a way to give back to the institution that helped their fathers beat cancer. "It's been great to give back to help the doctors that helped my dad," Brian said. ÔÇæÔÇæÔÇæ Join the discussion. To comment on stories and see what others are saying, log on to eagletribune.com. Want to help? To sponsor the Galluzzos in their Pan-Mass Ride, visit www.PMC.org, and enter their rider eGift ID number. NameRider number Michael GalluzzoMG0197 Matthew GalluzzoMG0143 Anthony GalluzzoAG0074
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