Mark Willoughby is back for his second Ride with JDRF: here’s why!

How many rides have you completed with JDRF?
Just the one, in Nashville last year.

What motivated you to join the Ride team originally?
Well, firstly, my daughter Jovana (9 years old) was diagnosed in 2011. Every mile I ride, I ride for her and for all the other folks who are Type 1, including my nephew Ari and my good friends Kris B, Scott S and Chris J. But I was also motivated by a dear friend, Barry Kaplan, who has no family connection to Type 1 but who has now completed two JDRF rides. Barry planted the seed in my mind in early 2014 and really was instrumental in getting me hooked on riding and the JDRF rides in particular.

What keeps you coming back to the Ride program/what is your favorite part about being on the team?
The mission to find a cure, the camaraderie with the other riders, the feeling of taking part in something that is so much bigger than yourself and the sheer enjoyment of being out on the road with a bunch of super nice people. What has taken me by surprise about riding is the teamwork aspect of it. I have always played team sports, I still play soccer, but I always regarded riding as a solitary, individualistic sport. How wrong was I?! It is incredibly team-oriented and I can see myself riding into my eighties, if I am lucky enough to get that far. And with respect to all the other coaches out there, we also happen to have the best JDRF ride coach ever: Mark Gilliam – the GA team couldn’t do it without Coach Mark!

What advice would you give to someone who is thinking about doing the Ride with JDRF for the first time?
Bite the bullet and do it! It will be challenging yet one of the most incredibly fulfilling things you’ll ever do. You’ll meet great people along the way and if my experience of the Nashville ride was anything to go by, you’ll dig deeper than you ever thought possible and find things out about yourself during the process. You’re capable of achieving more than you think, and it’s because of the reasons you’re riding and the people you’re riding with and for. Those will get you over that finish line

Tell us a fun fact about you.
 I’m the only Irish-born rider on the GA JDRF team, but I may be the loudest, outside of Barry Kaplan and Barry Falcon. 🙂 I also won the customized bike in the 2014 JDRF raffle, after my first ride!