Pedal the Cause recently added two new awesome team members and we’re thrilled to introduce you to them. Meet Jules McCormick, Senior Community Engagement Manager and Darby Eyermann, Community Engagement Coordinator and join us in welcoming them to the #PedalFamily!

Jules McCormick, Senior Community Engagement Manager

What do you love about your work?
Event planning isn’t for everyone, but it’s the job of a lifetime for me. While there are some very long, stressful days weeks, I am grateful most days, I stumbled into this career path and the opportunities I have had over the last 15+ years.

I enjoy the variety of my career choice. You could be checking out a new venue, demoing new technology, meeting with clients, designing future swag, and brainstorming ideas all in a single day. Being creative, exploring my creative vision, then seeing an idea be turned into reality, from concept to execution.

Why are you excited to be joining the PTC Team?
The universe sent me through some difficult doors before I walked through Pedal’s door, but with my feet firmly on the bike pedals, my heart open, I feel I am exactly where I am supposed to be. Like many, the Big C has impacted too many loved ones in my life. And while I don’t have the attention span to sit in a lab and study cancer cells, I am fortunate to fight cancer using my unique set of skills and talents by contributing to Pedal’s mission and goals.

Pedal the Cause is more than world-class and the region’s top cycling event. It’s a way of life, a celebration, and a movement fueled by the courage to end cancer.

What are your hobbies and favorite weekend activities?
Playing outdoors in nature keeps my heart beating and my feet dancing. I enjoy hiking, horseback riding, backpacking, camping, cycling, ice skating, stand-up paddleboard, bouldering, skiing, canyoneering, and prob a few others I am missing. Count me in if I can do it outside with friends or alone in nature!

My biggest favorite and love? Animals. I have two dogs and two horses, who live right outside my kitchen window. Animals get me out of bed daily (barn chores every AM) and keep me active. They constantly remind and show me how to enjoy life every day. Future goals involve rescuing more dogs and livestock animals (read, I am dying to rescue a mini donkey and highland cow) and giving them a safe and happy place to land for the remainder of their time on this spinning ball we call Earth.

Where are your favorite spots to ride in STL or beyond?
I love gravel trails tucked beneath shady trees. My weekly stomping grounds are trails around the Wildwood/Al Foster area, Chesterfield Levee Trail, and the Katy Trail, especially when I can stop with friends at Good New Brewing for a Bloody Mary and vampire pizza.

Tell us about your bike (does your bike have a name or a fun story?)
My fierce cyclocross bike is named Blackberry. She was awarded her name based on her rad coloring and because I miss my old Blackberry phone with the rollerball. If you know, you know.

Anything you want to share about your connection to cycling?
While I have always enjoyed riding my bike significantly as a child, cycling has only stepped into a more significant focal point in my adult life in the last two years. In the Spring/Summer of 2020, I underwent chemotherapy for my SLE Lupus. The treatment was brutal (this isn’t a group I have to explain how much chemo sucks to) in many ways, but one of the most significant difficulties for me was my ability to stay active, to keep moving my body. I’ve been an active person my whole life, I love to move and try new things.

Due to the large amounts of edema on my body at the time (mostly in my lower half), running and hiking became increasingly difficult. I needed something that could still move my body and legs but wasn’t weight-bearing. And that’s where cycling started playing a more significant role in my life. Cycling has led me to new friendships, which led to new opportunities with my career and ultimately led me to work with the Pedal Team on the event in 2021. I am beyond excited to be a part of the Pedal Family.

Favorite meal from a Taste the Cause partner?
We’re gonna find out on 9/23 this year!!

 

Darby Eyermann, Community Relations Coordinator

What do you love about your work?
I love making relationships with people in the community and truly seeing the difference I am making from my job!

Why are you excited to be joining the PTC Team?
I am so honored to be a part of Pedal the Cause because I have seen the change Pedal is making in the community and in people’s lives. This team is very dedicated and hardworking, I am excited to contribute to this organization and fundraise for cancer research in honor of my parents who are cancer survivors, and all affected by it.

What are your hobbies and favorite weekend activities? 
My favorite thing to do on the weekends is go to my family’s ranch in Owensville with my friends and family we fish, have bonfires, ride ATVs, and spend quality time together. I love doing anything outside such as, hiking, running, or even sitting on a patio with good food and drinks.

Are you a cyclist or spin enthusiast?
I am not a cyclist, but I will gladly take up this hobby. I love running, hiking, and swimming.

Favorite meal from a Taste the Cause partner?
Sugarfire, I love their southern comfort food!