Carlos Franco

For Carlos Franco, biking for a cause is nothing new, and although 2014 will mark his first ever Bike MS: Tour de Farms, he has no concerns about fundraising or the ride itself. Why should he? As a member of the The Spidermonkeys—a Chicago bike club of about 100 members that takes part in organized group rides throughout the year—he is in excellent hands. The Spidermonkeys have participated in Bike MS every year since their creation, and Franco is happy to join them this year.

“Now that I’m a Spidermonkey, I understand that we do fundraising for Bike MS, so I signed up for it,” said Franco, who saw his participation in the event as a no-brainer. “I’ve always enjoyed fundraising for events, and I figured this was a good one to do.”

If there is a biking event in the Chicago area, you can bet The Spidermonkeys will be there, especially if it supports a good cause. In fact, the philanthropic nature of the team is part of what drew Franco to them in the first place.

“I was doing a Century ride a couple years ago up in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and when I saw the 312 area code on their jerseys, I inquired about it,” recalled Franco. “I thought it was a really cool team, and the more I learned about it, the more I wanted to be a part of it. They host great events and they all revolve around riding bikes—it’s an awesome group of people to ride with.”

Having an entire team behind you is very beneficial, especially when training for an event like Bike MS. Not only does being on a team make the training more fun, it makes it more effective as well.

“Obviously, if you’re riding in a group, you don’t want to be the slowest person or the one everyone is always waiting for,” said Franco. “It pushes you to get better, to train harder, and to be an overall better rider so you can contribute to the team.”

Franco and The Spidermonkeys train hard throughout the year to get ready for rides such as Bike MS. They bike whenever they can, and the training doesn’t stop when the temperature drops and snow takes over the bike lanes.

“You have to do something, otherwise you go crazy,” said Franco on their need to train. “If it’s above 40 degrees, we go out. Currently, because it’s too cold, we can’t really ride outside, so we take spin classes at the YMCA on Saturdays, and we do Vision Quest [a training facility for cyclists] on Thursdays.”

Being a member of a team also motivates Franco to raise more money. He has done solo fundraising in the past, but he says that being on a team changes the dynamic a bit.

“Now it’s a team goal,” explained Franco. “You want to be physically prepared, you want to participate, and you want to contribute with as much fundraising as possible. It helps being a Spidermonkey because now we’re all striving toward the same thing, and there is great energy that motivates you to raise money.”

On Saturday and Sunday, June 21 and 22, Franco will suit up with The Spidermonkeys for his first Bike MS: Tour de Farms with the goal of completing the entire two-day course. He has already completed three century rides in the past, so he is confident that Bike MS will be just another bike in the park. He does admit, however, that being on a team contributes to his poised disposition.

“I’ve done charity rides by myself, and when you’re doing it on your own the ride is more challenging;  you have to find others to ride with and draft for a while to make the ride easier,” said Franco. “But with the team, there’s a lot of support, you’re much more comfortable around great riders, you take turns pulling, and you’re riding faster. Doing it with the team is definitely better.”

Franco is looking forward to participating in Bike MS as he and The Spidermonkeys put their bikes and fundraising efforts into gear. Regardless of how hard he trains and how far he rides, Franco is excited about riding with his team as they do their part in making a difference in the fight to end MS.

“I do like doing the long distance rides, so I’m definitely looking forward to that,” said Franco about the event. “But also just being able to help—contributing, being a volunteer, and raising funds—is satisfying enough, you know? Just knowing that you’ve helped is good enough.”