Partnering for cerebral palsy research

The Pedal with Pete Foundation is a not-for-profit 501 c (3) organization established by Pete Zeidner in Kent, Ohio to raise funds for cerebral palsy research.

Our Mission

Our mission is to raise funds for research to discover better prevention strategies and treatment protocols to improve the quality of life for people who live with cerebral palsy, their families and caregivers.

Our Vision

Our vision is a world where preventable cases of cerebral palsy are prevented, where treatable cases of cerebral palsy are treated, where curable cases of cerebral palsy are cured, and where every individual impacted (child and adult) by cerebral palsy can reach their fullest potential in life.

Our History

The Pedal with Pete Foundation was founded in Kent, Ohio by Pete Zeidner. Even with an extreme case of cerebral palsy, Pete rode a recumbent bicycle with joy and purpose (click here to see a video of Pete riding his first recumbent bike). He started the Pedal with Pete Foundation in 1993 with the goal of raising one million dollars for cerebral palsy research.

Timeline

Grants

Pedal with Pete provides seed grants to researchers with novel ideas on how to prevent, diagnose, or treat cerebral palsy. 

Board of Directors

A team of volunteers work to raise funds for cerebral palsy research.



Information

The Foundation’s policy, annual reports, and financial documents are available for review.


Pete’s Story

Founder of the Pedal with Pete Foundation, Pete had an extreme case of cerebral palsy.


Over $1,000,000 raised
for cerebral palsy research

Annual fund raising events began in 1995 in Kent, Ohio. In 2001, a second annual Pedal with Pete event started in Columbus, Ohio. Events have since expanded to include Emmetsburg, Iowa as well as in Northeast Ohio. Pete’s initial goal of raising $1,000,000 was reached in 2015.

The Pedal with Pete Foundation is run completely by volunteers and, thanks to community donations supporting the events, over 80% of every dollar we raise funds cerebral palsy research.

For over 25 years the Foundation has been a consistent funding source of critical seed grants for cerebral palsy research. This reputation is the result of the hard work and support of the loyal volunteers, donors, and ride participants that make up the Pedal with Pete family.

Pete’s perseverance, and the perseverance of many others with cerebral palsy, continue to inspire us.

Cerebral Palsy Research is under funded.

Cerebral palsy is the most common childhood physical disability and occurs in 2-3 per 1000 births. Despite its relatively high frequency, cerebral palsy research funding is lower than that of similar disorders. Improving cerebral palsy prevention, detection and treatment benefits the individual with the disorder and the lives of their caregivers.

Research into cerebral palsy provides new knowledge about:

Disorder prevention
Early detection
Effective medicines
Improvements to surgeries
New therapies

Individuals with cerebral palsy benefit from a fuller understanding of this disorder through better treatments and effective diagnoses.

Cerebral palsy research is expensive.

These costs can be prohibitive for scientists and doctors, unless they receive grant funding. Grant funding typically comes from large organizations such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health.

Costs can include:
Resources to perform experiments
Stipends for researchers
Care costs for research participants
Partnerships with other organizations


To receive this funding, researchers write justifications for why they want to perform certain experiments and explore their area of research. This requires preliminary data that shows their research is likely to produce results.

Seed grants are crucial.

Many researchers have novel ideas for cerebral palsy research without preliminary data. Without data, these individuals struggle to receive grant funding, and sadly these novel ideas will not make it into hospitals and doctors’ offices.

To get this preliminary data, researchers can sometimes obtain a seed grant. Seed grants are smaller amounts of money provided to researchers with novel ideas so they can obtain data. This early work can then be used to obtain a larger grant.

Seed grants are thus critical to bring new ideas to the front of research. Pedal with Pete provides seed grants of up to $25,000 to researchers with novel ideas on how to prevent, diagnose, or treat cerebral palsy.

Partnering for cerebral palsy research.

Our many donors, riders, walkers, volunteers, and sponsors of the Pedal with Pete Foundation have raised over $1,000,000 in the past 26 years.

Our funds have gone to a variety of research centers around the world, including Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus and the Case Western University in cooperation with the Cleveland Clinic.

Channeling Determination

The Pedal with Pete Foundation is completely run by volunteers and works hard to keep costs down through generous donations of supplies from the community, over 80% of every dollar raised goes directly to cerebral palsy research.

Events

Annual fund raising events are held in two locations

Columbus, Ohio


Marysville High School

Columbus@pedalwithpete.org

EVENT INFO

Emmetsburg, Iowa


Palo Alto County Fairgrounds
Emmetsburg@pedalwithpete.org

EVENT INFO

100% volunteer supported

The Pedal with Pete Foundation is completely run by volunteers and works hard to keep costs down through generous donations of supplies from the community, over 80% of every dollar raised goes directly to cerebral palsy research.

VOLUNTEER