The countdown is on for the Fireflies West 15th annual cycling ride benefiting City of Hope Hospital’s Leukemia treatment and research for a cure. The Fireflies West traverses the California countryside from San Francisco to Los Angeles over five days–October 6-13–with its core group of amateur cyclists made up of production industry members, including RSA Films U.S. president Luke Ricci, a former directeur sportif, and RSA director Jake Scott. The cyclists share a passion to raise money to beat cancer, the discipline to train for eight-hour days of riding and all-too-common connections to the devastating consequences of cancer.
Fireflies was founded in 2001 in Europe by a small group of cyclists including Scott, who cycled from London over the Alps to the Cannes Lions over eight days. That ride is now in its 18th year and today includes hundreds of riders who’ve raised over $2 million for leukemia research and treatment. From the outset, RSA Films has been the Fireflies Tour’s premier sponsor. The Fireflies has grown to five continents, including tours in Patagonia, Australia and New Zealand as well.
SHOOT connected with Scott and Ricci to reflect on Fireflies which is marked by the rallying cry, “For those who suffer, we ride!”
SHOOT: Luke, you’ve done the ride multiple times–from England to France, and from San Francisco to Los Angeles. It’s no small feat physically. Why do you keep coming back?
Ricci: I hate cancer and love riding my bicycle. 2023 will be my seventh tour since 2012 and what keeps me coming back is the cause of raising money for City of Hope for cancer research and treatment and the sense of community that embodies the Fireflies organization. Cycling has been a massive part of my life but riding in preparation of The Fireflies Tour and raising money for a good cause puts my fitness hobby into a more meaningful and gratifying context.
SHOOT: Jake, you were a founder of the original Fireflies ride across the Alps. How did it happen, i.e., what were the circumstances which led to founding the Fireflies ride? Why was it important to you to make this happen?
Scott: It’s an immense honor to be a founder!
My mother Sandy Scott was very involved in Leuka and approached Messrs Adrian Moat and Nick Livesey [directors] about doing a charity ride to Cannes. At that time, “The Fireflies” didn’t exist, Leuka being a London based charity committed to fighting Leukemia and Lymphoma as well as funding The Catherine Lewis Centre at Hammersmith Hospital.
Producer Tim Page had signed up immediately. All three were experienced cyclists. I show up at RSA London, having just said goodbye to my brother-in-law, who was terminally ill with non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Ady and Nick invited me to join and without hesitation, I agreed!
The ride was six weeks away. Pro skier Chris Haworth joined us in Switzerland and on a rainy morning in June 2001, with our back tires in the edge of Lake Geneva, we set off for the French Alps.
SHOOT: Is there any one thing you remember most about that first ride over the Alps?
Scott: Rain!!! Early on that first morning, Nick was unable to hold a corner on the slick tarmac and went over a fence into a field of cattle and a very ornery bull. About 20 minutes later I somersaulted over my handlebars, head first into a deep, slurry filled ditch. Funny as this seems in retrospect, it gave us all pause. We hadn’t even climbed our first mountain yet and already had two crashes. It dawned on us then that what we were doing was potentially dangerous, let alone epic, so we pledged that even if one of us was for any reason unable to continue, the rest would make it to Cannes. Because someone faced with a life threatening illness can’t just “get off the bike.” The ride came to symbolize individual perseverance in the face of adversity. It was then our motto was born, “FOR THOSE WHO SUFFER WE RIDE!”
SHOOT: Is there a story from a ride that you can share which has stayed with you–be it funny, poignant, surprising, etc.?
Ricci: After a tremendous and long day in the Alps in 2017, I reached the top of Col du Glandon in the scorching heat and was absolutely shattered. I laid down on the pavement at the summit and countless marmots, little alpine squirrels, were darting all around me. I had saved a chocolate croissant as a treat for myself and when I was about to eat it, a marmot dashed out and snatched it from right in front of me. I leapt up to chase it, but the little furry pest pranced out onto an open field and devoured the entire croissant, all while making unflinching eye contact with me.
SHOOT: What is the value of stepping outside your routine to team up with colleagues and competitors, and dedicating time for physical training, raising money and being part of a ride for good?
Ricci: It is easy to become engrossed in our own personal professional pursuits. The ride has given me a purpose that is philanthropic. It’s nice to have an outlet that allows me and all of the members of the production community to have something greater–a cause for good.
SHOOT: How has the Fireflies ride made the industry–in particular, the production industry–better?
Ricci: The Fireflies ride is a great equalizer in that it breaks down barriers between professional competitors and lets us bond. The production industry is a complex landscape and the ride has helped create relationships in the industry which make it easy to share ideas and strategies and thoughts about our business.
SHOOT: What are the ways someone can be a Firefly or support the Fireflies and its efforts to raise money for cancer research?
Ricci: The Fireflies is an inclusive organization that welcomes new and experienced cyclists alike. If you want to join, or if you don’t like to wear skin tight clothing and ride bicycles, and would like to help with a donation visit here.
SHOOT: What has been your biggest takeaway or lessons learned from your Fireflies experience? We ask this question in the spirit of what are among the things you walk away with first and foremost from the experience; what has made a lasting impression on you or what has resonated for you?
Ricci: There is a lot of suffering that cancer causes and it affects so many people and being able to help chip away to support solutions to this global health crisis gives me a sense that I’m contributing to something bigger than myself and positive in the world.
Scott: It’s really about the fellowship and connection made in the mission. Pretty much everyone who rides sadly comes with a story related to cancer, either personally or close to home. A hell of a lot of dedication goes into training and preparation for the ride(s) but at its core, it’s an act of love.
