Ortonville- About 40 family members and friends of Ken Dockery stood in the town square at the corner of Mill and South streets June 10 awaiting the arrival of the former Ortonville resident.
Cheers and applause broke out as Dockery, riding a bike and clad in a lime-green T-shirt that read ?2005 Inspire Hope Tour? crested a hill on Mill Street and rode toward the crowd. Children waved signs that read ‘Good Job, Dad,? ‘I’m proud of my Uncle Kenny,? and ‘You finished the 2005 Inspire Hope Tour.? The 90-degree heat didn’t appear to faze Dockery as he broke a yellow ribbon crossing the finish line and ending his 512-mile journey from central Pennsylvania.
‘How does 500 miles feel?? someone asked. ‘I don’t want to sit for awhile,? Dockery responded, smiling.
That Dockery was able to do it at all, however, is considered a blessing by him and his family. Just over three years ago, he was told by doctors to make a living will and set his affairs in order.
It was March 2002 when Dockery, now 37, began having trouble breathing. He was having chest pains and heart attack symptoms.
‘I couldn’t get enough air,? he says simply.
He went to a hospital near his home in Paxton, Pennsylvania, about 60 miles north of Harrisburg. Doctors told him his heart valves were worn out because of a birth defect he had been unaware he had? bicuspid aortic valve and stenosis. His valves were too small and he was missing a third flap.
By August he was really going downhill.
‘They were working on it, but weren’t sure exactly what to do,? Dockery recalls. ‘Where I live, it wasn’t the best of care.?
In October, Dockery went to the Cleveland Clinic, ranked the number one cardiac care center in the country ten years in a row according to U.S. News & World Report.
‘When I got there, the Cleveland doctors said I only had about three weeks left to live without something being done,? Dockery said. ‘That set me back. I was bad, but I didn’t know I was that bad.?
He needed a double valve transplant. The Baptist minister begged the doctors to let him have Christmas with his wife and four children because he wasn’t ready in case he didn’t make it through the surgery.
‘They wouldn’t do it unless I had my will made,? recalled Dockery, who was placed on medication to keep him alive until after the holidays, enabling him to also do Christmas-related tasks for his church.
On Jan. 8, 2003, Dockery had the rare surgery, called the Ross Procedure, in which doctors replaced one aortic valve with his own pulmonary valve and replaced another with a human donor valve. It gave Dockery a new appreciation for transplant donors.
‘I had a donor card prior to this, but just thought it was a good thing to do,? Dockery said and then laughed, ‘Now that I have received (a transplant), I’m really an advocate.?
Dockery was home in Pennsylvania six days after the operation. He did eight weeks of rehabilitation, including weightlifting and using a rowing machine. He had a rapid heartrate? 120 beats a minute. Doctors recommended bicycling instead of medication. He was also depressed, something the doctors had told him to expect following the operation.
Dockery began biking in April 2003 on what he describes as an old Beach Cruiser bike. He says his neighbor was so embarrassed he gave Dockery a girl’s bike his daughter no longer rode. Not long after beginning his bike regimen, Dockery noticed his heart rate was improving, as well as his mood.
‘Biking and being active really helped to bring me out of (the depression),? Dockery says. ‘If you can exercise, it’s really a diversion for your mind.?
While riding one day, Dockery had an idea? he could ride all the way to Michigan, back to his hometown of Ortonville where his parents still live, as a fundraiser for the Cleveland Clinic.
‘Everyone thought I was crazy and I would kill myself,? remembers Dockery. ‘But I decided to go for it anyway.?
He trained for nine months, beginning in August 2004. A month before he began his ride, he went to the Cleveland Clinic for a check-up and they gave him the go-ahead. He wrote a letter to his friends and family, letting them know of his plan to stop at the Cleveland Clinic on his way to Michigan to donate whatever money he raised.
He began his journey May 30 on a Trek-1000, the same brand of bike that 6-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong rides ‘but much cheaper. I think he rides the $7,000 model, mine cost $500,? says Dockery, laughing.
He made a stop at the Cleveland Clinic on June 6, presenting his doctor with a $3,000 check. The funds will go toward building a new $300 million heart center. The hospital has raised $210 million for the center thus far.
Dockery averaged about 50 miles per day on his trip, but says he’s not sore. He trained really hard and felt good. His wife, Renee, followed behind in a truck as Dockery biked through the forest of northern Pennsylvania, remote areas and the city of Cleveland. Along the way, he had three flat tires, but met plenty of helpful people, some who even gave donations for the cause on the spot.
‘The people I’ve met has been the biggest highlight,? says Dockery. ‘People have fixed my bike, given me free campsites and really been nice.?
The goal of his ?2005 Inspire Hope Tour? was just as the name says? to inspire hope, especially, he said, in young people with heart disease.
‘I just really think there is life after heart disease,? says Dockery, who plans to begin a new church in Cleveland. ‘You can only do what your doctor tells you to do. Live your dream. Life is short. We’re always waiting and saying we’re going to do it tomorrow. There might not be a tomorrow.?
Now, at the town square, Renee says, ‘I’m very proud he was able to do this, because two and a half years ago, he couldn’t have? he was so sick. To be at this point in the journey is an amazing thing.?
Next year, Dockery wants to bike 450 miles from Sault St. Marie to Port Huron. But for now, after making his 519-mile trip, he makes it clear what his intentions are.
He’s riding home ? in the truck.