Calgary motorcycle enthusiasts dress up in 'Sunday Best' to raise awareness for men's health
A group of Calgary motorcycle enthusiasts showed up in style Sunday, wearing their finest three-piece suits and vintage attire in an effort to raise money for men’s health.
After two years of disruption and social distancing, the 11th annual Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride (DGR) was finally able bring more than 120 riders out for the fundraiser event.
Kickstands went up at 1 p.m. Sunday as the group of motorcyclist rode through the southeast community of Inglewood.
A little more than $20,000 was raised, with proceeds going to men’s prostate cancer research and suicide prevention, through the Movember Canada charity.
Deborah Kearns attended the event this year in memory of her late husband, Dave, who passed away from prostate cancer in 2019.
“Dave was heavily involved in motorcycling and this was a great cause that was dear to him, mostly because of mental awareness,” Kearns said.
“Dave did the ride four or five times before he had passed and the last one, he had brought his sidecar. He would be so impressed if he were still here, it would have meant the world to him.”
The DGR is an event held in more than 100 countries and 800 cities world-wide. It was created in Australia by Mark Hawwa, who wanted to combine his love for motorcycles and fashion with fundraising efforts.
In Calgary, event organizer Brian Smith says the awareness surrounding men’s health has grown substantially over the years.
“Prostate cancer is such a killer and we’ve also noticed that men have an extremely high suicide rate so we thought we should dedicate some of our fundraising to both of those causes and help men with their mental challenges,” he said.
“It’s become a pretty popular event because it’s so much fun, everybody dresses up, you get to show off and we always get a chance to meet each other through a social event at the end.”
More than 1,500 riders across Canada participated in this year’s event.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING | Police identify Saanich, B.C., gunmen as 22-year-old twin brothers
Mounties on Vancouver Island have publicly identified the two gunmen killed during a shootout with police at a bank in Saanich on Tuesday as 22-year-old twin brothers Mathew and Isaac Auchterlonie.

Delays, changes and lost lobster: Canadians share their travel horror stories amid flying frustrations
CTVNews.ca asked Canadians to share their travel horror stories as cancelled flights, delays and lost luggage throw a wrench in Canadians' summer travel plans, due in part to staffing shortages at Canadian airports. Some report sleeping at airports and others say it took days to get to or from a destination.
Gas prices see long weekend drop in parts of Canada, but analysts say relief not likely to last
The Canada Day long weekend saw gas prices plummet in parts of the country, but the relief at the pumps may not stay for very long, analysts say. The decreases come after crude oil prices slid in June following the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes, sparking fears of a recession.
TD 'significantly' downgrades home sale, price forecasts
A new report from TD says Canadian home sales could fall by nearly one-quarter on average this year and remain low into 2023.
Anti-Taliban law could be tweaked to get more humanitarian aid to Afghans: minister
A law outlawing any dealings with the Taliban, which charities complain is impeding their ability to help needy Afghans, could be adjusted by the federal government to give more flexibility to aid agencies.
Biden intends to nominate a conservative, anti-abortion lawyer to federal judgeship, Kentucky Democrats say
U.S. President Joe Biden intends to nominate an anti-abortion Republican lawyer to a federal judgeship, two Kentucky Democrats informed of the decision say.
Russian forces press assault on eastern Ukrainian city of Lysychansk
Russian forces pounded the city of Lysychansk and its surroundings in an all-out attempt to seize the last stronghold of resistance in eastern Ukraine's Luhansk province, the governor said Saturday.
'You do not want this' virus: California man with monkeypox urges others to get vaccinated
A California man has posted a widely-shared video in an attempt to educate people about the monkeypox virus outbreak, to encourage people to get vaccinated if they're eligible and to make it very clear: 'You do not want this.'
'Ungrading': How one Ontario teacher is changing her approach to report cards
An Ontario high school teacher plans to continue with an alternative method of grading her students after an experiment last semester in which students proposed a grade and had to justify it with examples of their work.