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Boardman cyclist Carl Foote is turning miles into memories and milestones.
Starting today, he will embark on the Magical Memory Tour (MMT 2026), a 700-mile, two-week bicycle journey around the entire perimeter of Lake Erie.
His mission is to raise critical funds and awareness for the Cure Alzheimer's Fund with 100% of those donations going toward research.
Foote, 74, will launch from Ashtabula, pushing west through Cleveland and Toledo before heading north into Monroe and Detroit. From there, the international journey crosses into Windsor, Ontario, tracing the Canadian coastline down to Buffalo before looping back to the starting point in Ohio.
"Every mile of this ride represents a step forward in the fight against a disease that affects millions of families," Foote said. "The Magical Memory Tour is about keeping those memories alive and supporting the scientists working tirelessly to find a cure."
This isn't Foote's first long-distance charitable trek.
In 2022, to commemorate his 1972 ride across America, he rode from New Jersey toward Crater Lake in Oregon. Time constraints ended that ride in Idaho Falls, but that trip encouraged him to ride U.S. Highway 62 from Niagara Falls to El Paso in 2024 as MMT2024 (72 over 62).
Upon completion of that tour, he learned that a friend of his from the local bicycling club, the Out-Spokin' Wheelmen , 50 years prior had ridden around Lake Erie and that was the impetus for planning this ride.
This Lake Erie tour aims to bring local communities together across three states and two countries to back Alzheimer's research. All the proceeds raised through the tour's GoFundMe campaign will go directly to the Cure Alzheimer's Fund, a nonprofit organization where every single dollar donated is funneled straight into breakthrough scientific research.
How to Support and Follow the Journey:
• Donate: Contributions can be made directly via the official campaign page on GoFundMe.
• Follow live: Track route updates, daily mileage milestones, and stories from the road by searching for the "Magical Memory Tour" online.
Local residents, business owners and fellow cyclists along the Lake Erie perimeter are encouraged to cheer Foote on as he passes through their towns.