Ride Across America. Fight Cancer.

Join a group of young adults on 70 day, 4,000 mile bike ride across America this summer to raise funds and awareness for young adult cancer. Spend your summer meeting lifelong friends, seeing the country in a new way, and offering hope, inspiration and support to the cancer community along the way.

A lot goes into the 4K for Cancer. Here is a quick snapshot of some important things to know:

Sign Up Process

How do you sign up?

It’s easy! Click here to sign up. You’ll pay a $100 registration fee that counts towards your fundraising minimum. Not ready to sign on? Click here and drop your info and we’ll reach out to answer any questions you have!

What are the requirements?

Our program is for young adults, 18-26 years old. Looking for those with a love for adventure and giving back, and no previous cycling experience is needed!

Logistics

What is the daily mileage covered?

Riders bike between 50-120 miles per day (avg. 75-80 miles).

Am I responsible for carrying my own gear?

I don’t know… are you? Just Kidding! Support vehicles will carry gear and luggage.

Where do we stay?

Churches, schools, gyms, YMCA’s, rotary clubs, and the occasional campsite through National Parks – anywhere that provides a safe place for our teams to rest their heads at night.

What do we eat?

I hope you like pizza, sandwiches, and granola bars! Don’t worry a home cooked meal is right around the corner – hosts typically provide breakfast and dinner. For lunch, participants seek out food donations from restaurants and grocery stores.

Gear

What if I don't have a bike?

Don’t worry! We’ll supply the bike. Once a rider hits the $1500 fundraising goal, they’ll be eligible to receive their sweet ride. – Important things to note though: If a participant’s bike breaks or is damaged while training or on the trip, they are responsible for the repairs – Ulman will not replace or repair bikes before, during or after the ride. If a participant withdraws from the program prior to reaching the minimum fundraising goal (and prior to the trip’s start), they must return their bike.

What else is provided?

All the swag! Three cycling jerseys. A branded t-shirt, long sleeve shirt, sweatshirt, and duffle. Safety is important too! You’ll be given a road ID and two reflective bands at orientation.

What biking equipment do I need?

Safety comes first! All riders must have a helmet and bike lights. But we also recommend purchasing cycling shoes, cycling shorts, water bottle cages, and more. Check out our gear guide for more advice.

What else is important to have?

Each 4Ker is different, but there are some must-haves we recommend: sleeping bag, sleeping pad, quick dry towel, toiletries, small pillow. Check out our gear guide if you’re interested in seeing the entire packing list recommendations.

Fundraising

What is the fundraising minimum?

$5,000 big ones (or 500,000 pennies). Fundraising tips and tricks, plus frequent check in calls with our awesome staff, will help support your efforts.

Where does the money raised go?

Donations are 100% tax deductible and help provide the Ulman Foundation’s free programs and services supporting young adults facing cancer.

Mission

What types of service events can I expect?

This is where you change lives. Cook a meal, tour a cancer center, chat with patients. You’ll get to share your why and see our community grow.

Leadership

What leadership opportunities are there?

We have 5 different leadership positions – Director (2), Leg Leader (6), Mechanic (1-2), Mission Coordinator (1), Media Coordinator (1). Read our leadership guide to learn more about each position.

Can I receive college credit through 4K?

You sure can! Check out our credit opportunity site to see how to get started.

COVID-19 2022 Policy

What is the COVID-19 policy for 2023?

At the Ulman Foundation, our highest priority has always been supporting the wellbeing of the community we serve – young adults impacted by cancer and their loved ones, and those who serve them. In the midst of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, protecting physical health – especially that of the most vulnerable – becomes even more important.

The 4K for Cancer unites young adults from different communities to travel cross-country on a journey to inspire, raise hope and awareness, and support the Ulman Foundation’s free programs for young adults impacted by cancer. We are pleased to have had a safe and successful 2021 4K for Cancer and we’re planning for the same in 2022. While unlikely, the 4K for Cancer as it is traditionally held could be postponed based on current protocols and guidelines provided by experts in order to ensure the safest environment for the broad Ulman community, .

The Ulman Foundation team has developed “safe to ride and run” criteria based on protocols and guidelines and will continue to evaluate the safety of the 2023 4K for Cancer. Should the 2023 experience not be able to take part as originally planned participants would have the option to defer to 2024 or participate in an alternate experience. The alternate experience would be built with the input from riders and runners and based on current recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), our partner hospitals, and state regulations.

Interested in Joining the Fight?

Applications are open for the summer of 2023! Interested? Fill out the form below for more information.

Hear It From Alumni

For me the 4K is a time to heal. A time for me to honor the loved ones that I have lost to cancer. It is also a time for me to slow down from my busy life and enjoy all the beauty that our country has to offer. It has been an adventure of a lifetime.

Zack Ross

Team Portland 2015

The 4K teaches lessons unable to be read in a textbook, carried out through an experiment or written in a paper. To take yourself out of your normal setting, be it class, work or the comfort of home, is the invaluable experience the 4K gives. It challenges you to dig deeper than you ever have before, listen, learn and rely on those that are different from you, and use the stories of those you meet along the way as inspiration to achieve a goal. If offers clarity about life that is incomparable to any other experience, causes you to think and act outside of your comfort zone and teaches that as a team you can, and will, change a world — even if it’s just a single person. The 4K has forever changed who I am today, from how I approach a challenge to how I commute to work in the mornings. I encourage anyone who longs to see the world and change it for the better to become part of this family.

Haley Coleman

Team San Diego 2014

I went into the 4K expecting an incredible experience and left with a beautiful and supportive family that I can depend on forever, as well as a refreshed perspective on life. The amount of personal growth that came from pushing our boundaries every day is astonishing and the effects of the 4K are felt every single day since it has ended. I’m the best version of myself I’ve ever been and I owe everything to my teammates and the mountains we climbed together.

Jeremy Pope

Team Portland 2016

Before 4K, I thought I knew what it meant to be a cancer survivor but I was so wrong. 4K taught me what it means to live beyond my diagnosis and gave me a way to turn my experience as a survivor into something positive and an opportunity to help encourage others to do the same.

Sonja Wagner

Team Seattle 2015 & Team San Diego 2016