‘Community lightens any burden’: Parkinson’s cycling tour sets off from Victoria
Published 5:30 pm Monday, August 10, 2026
Lloyd Taylor was diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s disease at age 53 in 2022. The diagnosis was devastating for Taylor and his loved ones, but he refused to let it dictate the course of his life.
Instead, he took to the road — and his bike — embarking on an 8,000-kilometre journey from Victoria to Newfoundland to raise money and awareness for Parkinson’s disease.
The same year he was diagnosed, Taylor was approached by the Spinning Wheels Tour, the organization behind the cycling fundraiser. Not a cyclist at the time, he was initially apprehensive about taking on the challenge. But after some convincing, he agreed.
“I said, ‘Putting me on a bike is going to be like putting an egg on a spoon; Who’s going to pick me up when I fall?’ And (an organizer) said, ‘I will.’ That was my entrance to the community; somebody would pick me up when I fall.”
For Taylor, cycling became more than a weeknight hobby. It became a form of therapy, a way to connect with others and a means of reckoning with his condition.
“I have fairly severe tremors but when I get on the bike, the tremor almost completely stops, and that only happens when I ride a bike or when I fall asleep,” he said.
Since his first ride, Taylor has become a Parkinson’s activist, author and co-chair of the Spinning Wheels Tour, which launched its 2026 ride on Sunday morning (Aug. 9) from the Parkinson Wellness Projects parking lot in Victoria.
Setting off with a dozen riders – many of whom have Parkinson’s – Taylor was surrounded by supporters, friends, family and loved ones.
While raising funds is a major part of the tour, with donations reinvested into a variety of national programs promoting exercise and an active lifestyle for people with Parkinson’s, Taylor said raising awareness is just as important.
“There’s something about Parkinson’s that makes people withdraw, stay at home and hide,” he said. “They put these shaky hands in their pockets, thinking they can hide the symptoms, but they end up hiding themselves.
“We’re saying come on out of your house, come on out of your shell because life’s not over.”
But perhaps the most important goal of the Spinning Wheels Tour is the sense of community built throughout the journey.
“Community lightens any burden,” said Taylor, adding that no person should carry the full weight of their diagnosis alone.
“As you’re in a room with others and you understand you’re not alone and you can talk about symptoms,” he said. “It just lightens everything.”
This year’s tour is estimated to finish on Sept. 27 in Toronto.
To donate or learn more about Spinning Wheels Tour, visit spinningwheelstour.ca.