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Fitness fundraiser for canine causes

Workouts and whippets fill Jake Rae’s daily life. Not just whippets, but German Shepherds, and other dog breeds as well.
Jake Rae and his friends have planned a fundraiser for needy dogs. STEPH IANNACCHINO

Workouts and whippets fill Jake Rae’s daily life. Not just whippets, but German Shepherds, and other dog breeds as well.

The Welland man and a group of his friends are planning to sweat for a good cause on Sunday, October 16, at Bilt Fitness, located at 129 Hagar Street in the Rose City. It’s a fundraiser called Cals4Canines, running from 9 AM until 6 PM, with proceeds going to Niagara Dog Rescue and the Travelling Tails K-9 Foster Facility.

“Dog shelters and rescues have been filling up,” Rae told the Voice. “During the pandemic, lots of people bought pets when they were stuck at home, but once Covid started to subside and they went back to work, many surrendered their dogs because it didn’t fit their new lifestyle.”

Beginning on the Saturday night, Rae and three friends — Steven Nunes, and father and son Brian and Brady Lee — will begin their fitness challenge on Assault Airbikes, a high-tech version of the traditional air bike, which uses variable levels of air resistance, and has an onboard display that calculates calories burned during exercise. Rae and his pals plan to rack up 40,000 calories expended.

The guys plan to ride overnight, accumulating calories prior to the fundraiser’s official opening on Sunday at 9 AM. Three Assault Airbikes will be available for the general public to ride and contribute towards the calorie count. The cost is $29 for ten minutes on the bike.

Food and refreshments will be available all day Sunday outside the gym, and Niagara Dog Rescue will be present, along with dogs available for adoption. For further information on the fundraiser, contact Rae at [email protected]. The

Event’s GoFundMe page can be found at https://gofund.me/9de894ca

   


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Don Rickers

About the Author: Don Rickers

A life-long Niagara resident, Don Rickers worked for 35 years in university and private school education. He segued into journalism in his retirement with the Voice of Pelham, and now PelhamToday
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