The first sign of trouble was the knee pain.
When JJ Eizik felt it run down his leg, he began searching for answers. He went to one doctor after another, but no one could figure out what was wrong with the teenager's body. The tumor around his femur grew to eight inches by the time it was discovered.
"It was pretty large by the time they caught it," Eizik said. "Nobody was expecting I had cancer."
Eizik will be an inspiration to almost 500 riders on Thursday at the Bike4Chai charity event, which starts and ends in Vernon. The Monsey native has beaten cancer five times before his 30th birthday. He battled through more than 20 surgeries and the loss of his left leg. The disease took a toll on his life, but not his love for athletics.
Eizik will ride 80 miles on a handcycle to raise money for children with cancer or chronic illnesses. It's his way of giving back to a program that gave him so much.
To Eizik, quitting isn't part of his DNA.
"My message always is and has been: when you think you're done, keep pushing," said Eizik, 29. "It's a mental attitude that you have to develop, that I had to develop. It carried me through a lot of hard times."
Eizik will join about 40 athletes from Bergen or Passaic County in the 11th annual Bike4Chai. This year's event has raised more than $6 million for Chai Lifeline and its flagship program, Camp Simcha. The overnight summer camp takes care of children with serious illnesses.
Bikers will pass through its Sullivan County location on one of three routes, which are 80, 100 and 120 miles.
"(The camp) allows parents to have an opportunity for their child to have a normal summer," said David Roher, of Teaneck. "It gives the parents a break to know that their child is being taken care of."
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Roher is coaching four riders this year including Eizik, who he met in 2016. He offered to train Eizik after seeing him labor through a ride, then developed a program to train Eizik's arms like legs. Within two years, his student was able to cross the finish line after going 180 miles.
"I'm a special ed teacher so explaining big concepts to people comes naturally to me," Roher said. "Being able to reassure people with the big picture and being able to assess their skills and how to get them to their goals is part of my profession."
For Eizik, the annual event brings everything full circle. He spent six summers at Camp Simcha after getting his first cancer diagnosis at age 16. One year, he was asked to come to the starting line and encourage the Bike4Chai riders. Around that time, Eizik was getting into handcycling as a way to stay active.
"I rented a handcycle," Eizik said. "I went down and spoke with the riders the night before and in the morning I rode out with them. That was my first real ride."
Since then, Eizik has been hooked. Each year, he went farther and farther, increasing his speed along the way. In eight years, he's raised over $49,000 for the event.
"It's an incredible experience with the energy, the excitement and the camaraderie," said Yoel Margolese, the director of Bike4Chai. "It's taken on its own life."
"The first 10 miles don't really count," Eizik said. "You have to wake up your muscles. Then after that, I can just ride and ride and ride."
Roher and Eizik start developing a gameplan almost a year in advance. Upper body and endurance training is a key part of the repertoire.
Eizik says he enjoys the ride and the chance to inspire others.
"I hope that it shows (people) that when you're done, you're never done," said Eizik, who works as a professional chef. "There's always more fuel. You can always go further and you should. Hopefully people see that."
Sean Farrell is a high school sports reporter for NorthJersey.com. For full access to live scores, breaking news and analysis from our Varsity Aces team, subscribe today. To get breaking news directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter and download our app
Email: farrells@northjersey.com Twitter: @seanfarrell92
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