My next book will be Long Ride: Cycling 4,000 miles with stage 4 cancer. It starts the moment my cancer got worse and ends after I cycled across the US.
The book is based on real events in 2017-2018. Three professional reviewers have helped me improve the book and said they enjoyed the story. I’m currently looking for ordinary readers to look over the story and let me know which parts work well and which don’t. Some people are hesitant to give comments about such a sensitive subject. If you feel that way, I’ll add that the “Steven” in the book is from 2018. Since that time, I’ve learned a lot, accepted my cancer, and enjoy life more than ever.
A one-page summary is below.
The book starts with a comment from my oncologist, in her actual words.
“You have every reason to think that you’ll live longer than average.” Dr. Carrington told me while I sat in an exam room.
“What’s average?” I asked.
She paused and softly said, “Three years.”
I broke down, and this story shares that sadness. But the story doesn’t dwell on sadness. A few lines later, it says I had stage 4 prostate cancer and adds a little humor.
Prostate cells must have testosterone, whether they’re healthy or cancerous. So, like most guys in my situation, my first treatment was a shot that turned off my testosterone, years before.
There are a few symptoms of having no testosterone. You might guess the first one. My sex drive fell to nearly nothing. I’d sometimes joke that if a dozen supermodels were standing around a new bike, I’d ask them to get out of the way, so I could see the bike.
My oncologists recommended a few treatments, but my cancer got worse before we could try them, leading to a search for another treatment. I worked out my mixed up emotions on intense bike rides. Then, a new medication worked. We didn’t know how long it would work, so I decided to cycle 4,000 miles across the US while my body still could, raising a dollar a mile for cancer research.
I made new friends, shared my sad news, cried a lot, and laughed a lot. I also met others who’d gone through tougher times than me. I needed their inspiration when cancer still scared me and when my insurance company tried cutting off the meds that kept me alive. Generous strangers also helped when I was lost, exhausted on 100-degree days, and stuck in intense storms.
One of those strangers held my attention more than most. Even with mixed up emotions, I instantly felt attracted to her. She was a German woman traveling the world alone. Sometimes, she seemed interested in me, but I was never sure, until we cycled together for 1,000 miles.
With all these emotional turns, the story shows what it’s like to pedal up a mountain, reach 51 MPH going down, and some of the best sights a 4,000-mile ride across the US has to offer. In this story, I take you along for the ride. And there’s a happy ending. I lived.
Thank you for reading the summary of my book. If you’d like to read more, click here for a sample chapter. If you have questions or would like to review the book, you can use the form below. If you’d rather not complete the form, you can use the discussion, at the bottom of this page.
Thanks for stopping by!
Steven Malikowski
Author of the upcoming book, Long Ride: Cycling 4,000 miles with stage 4 cancer.
Looking forward to reading the revised chapters. And really looking forward to reading the published – and personally signed by you – edition!!! 🙂
You definitely have a signed copy coming your way, Karl. The last chapters I sent you have changed a fair amount. One way is that I cut 2 of the first 5 chapters, since those 2 chapters moved too slow and didn’t add enough to the story. I’ve also revised all the chapters I sent you months ago. In any case, I’ll send the revised chapters to you next week. Thanks!