Cayman Attorney & Cyclist to Race Across America

After conquering Mount Everest and Denali, Guy Manning is looking to tackle his next athletic feat.

This time the Cayman attorney will join a four-man cycling team in the coast-to-coast Race Across America. The men plan to cover 3,000 miles, cross 12 states from California to Maryland and ascend 170,000 vertical feet in just seven days.

Each cyclist will use the race to raise money for a separate charity. Mr. Manning has chosen the Cayman Islands Cancer Society, where he serves on the board of directors.

As a member of the society’s financial aid subcommittee, Mr. Manning said he has witnessed both the need and the generosity of the Cayman Islands. “The number of financial aid patients goes up every year. We’re over 200 now. There’s a big financial need to be met. All help is appreciated,” he said. “We also see people’s generosity on a daily basis. [Cayman] can be a very generous place.”

The society’s average financial aid recipient earns $800 a month, said operations manager Jennifer Weber.

“We all live in this community. We all know how expensive things are. To say people are living paycheck to paycheck doesn’t begin to explain how few dollars there are to go around,” she said.

She said Mr. Manning is a prolific fundraiser for the society, having raised more than US$100,000 in each of his charity climbs.

When Mr. Manning climbed Mount Everest for charity in 2013, he carried a list of 56 Cancer Society financial aid recipients to the summit.

“He took that list in his chest pocket all the way to the top of Mount Everest and brought it down. He was astonished we could have so many financial aid patients,” Ms. Weber said.

In June, Mr. Manning will ride alongside Craig Nobel, racing for Children’s Tumor Foundation, Sudarshan Ratnavelu for MacMillan Cancer Support and Russell Crumpler for Ellie’s Wish.

Show your support for Guy Manning & the Cayman Islands Cancer Society, donate here!

Read more at the Cayman Compass