By Cheryl Jahn

Ride for Change comes through town

Jul 20, 2023 | 3:45 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – “About 20 years ago, I was 300 pounds. I was a smoker, a drinker. I was living a very unhealthy life. And I was told you better change or you’re going to potentially pass away. And I did. But the mental side wasn’t improving.”

That’s when Matt Devine had an epiphany and ran seven marathons in seven days, raising $60,000 for children’s charity.

“But when I was done, I woke up a day after I was finished and went, Wow. It went silent. There was nothing for me to do. So, we said, Let’s do something really big this year. And that’s right across Canada, 13,000 kilometers up to the north, the hard way.”

From one extreme to another. Now Matt has cycled all the way from Halifax – more than 13-thousand kilometres – with support and backup from wife Nicole.

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“But I knew once he said his mind to something, he’s like a dog with a bone. He was going to do it come hell or high water,” says Nicole. “And regardless of the obstacles, that was something he wanted to do.”

But he says there’s more to making change than just the physical.

“When people are dealing, whether it be metabolically or mentally, they want to make a change in their life, just doing the physical side of it is very hard to sustain. That’s why most people quit because they don’t have that purpose. Once you find the purpose and you put together a smart plan that shows progression but doesn’t burn you out, you can actually achieve not only a better physical self, but it will also improve your mental health.”

But they are not travelling across the country for amusement. They are raising money for You Can Ride, Too.

“If you see a child get on a bike and ride it for the first time after never being able to sit on one and see their faces light up, it’ll bring you to tears.”

All the money raised here will help children facing physical barriers to riding a bike. Follow them on social media: devinetransformation on Instragram and the website www.rideforchange.ca