Etienne Michon is fundraising
Riding for Lyme Disease Awareness
This is the 2025 update to a fundraising effort started in 2024.
At the end of last year, I started raising funds for Lyme disease awareness by running different races in France. I was touched and moved by the people who decided to support my effort; but also by the connections that this initiative created, within and beyond the Lyme disease community.
I have been training for weeks with a special objective in mind to keep raising money — this time, exclusively on the bike.
My last years before Lyme were marked by a lot of great running experiences; and early in my Lyme remission, I chased the same high. But fairly quickly, I realized that cycling actually felt more aligned with who I am now. I am done chasing my old, pre-Lyme self; I feel the happiest and more aligned on a bike, and I am ready to hop on the saddle and do things I’ve never achieved before. And I believe that’s something that is key for people healing from Lyme — this disease is a transformative experience, and it’s ok to emerge from it changed. Actually, I truly believe that despite the suffering it inflicts on patients, it can also be a chance, an opportunity to see the world, and one’s life, in a fundamentally different way. I am fully aware this is easier to say as someone who has hit some form of remission; but around me, I have seen it countless times in Lyme patients.
On a bike - my happy place
Who I am:
My name is Étienne, and I have been living with Lyme disease since 2019. When I first got sick, I went from being an amateur athlete, passionate about the outdoors, hiking, cycling, and running, to someone for whom even going grocery shopping or taking out the trash became a real struggle. My body was unraveling before my very eyes, while just weeks before I was in the best shape of my life and completed my second marathon.
Faced with overwhelming fatigue and a wide range of symptoms (neurological, physical, cognitive…), I first experienced a long period of medical uncertainty and a diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome that I temporarily accepted… Before following the voice deep inside me that told me something else was at play there. Months later, I was finally being diagnosed with Lyme disease and several co-infections, including Babesia.
For a long time, I thought I might never run again. After several years of treatment, and with the support of my loved ones, I found my way back to health and now consider myself in remission. I want to use my (partially!) regained energy and my determination, stronger than ever, to raise awareness about Lyme disease. My goal is twofold: to prevent new cases and to support those whose lives have been deeply impacted by this disease. Although more and more people are talking about Lyme disease, it remains poorly understood and surrounded by controversy.
Why I am fundraising:
That’s why I’ve decided to take on a new athletic challenge on the bike, and to use this opportunity to raise funds for organizations supporting Lyme patients. I may be a Frenchman currently living in France, but I am fundraising for 2 charities, one in France and one in the US:
- In France, a charity called France Lyme, that does a lot of work around patient advocacy and awareness
- In California, the Bay Area Lyme Foundation, as I contracted the disease while living in California, in the San Francisco Bay Area. Having lived there for 6 years, this is a place that is still near and dear to my heart, and it’s where I have had my most joyful outdoor memories.
This GoFundMe is dedicated to the Bay Area Lyme Foundation Fundraiser.
What your money will contribute to:
Awareness and patient advocacy work in California or in France, depending on where and how you’ll decide to donate if you do!
Through these efforts, I hope to raise awareness and, above all, to show that it is possible to regain a normal life, even while having Lyme disease.
My next adventure is Along, a 3-day bikepacking event linking Paris to Dijon in 3 days, covering 450km in the process. This one means a lot to me for a number of reasons — first of all, I have lived in Dijon for a few years as a teen and a young adult, and I have numerous formative memories there. Most of my family still lives there and it’s a city and a region I love dearly. Recently, I have learned how to appreciate it even more seen from a bike. Second of all, this will be my first foray into (light) ultra cycling, and my first multi-day event. I have been preparing with a mix of nervousness and excitement, but I am looking forward to the experience.
The event will be self-supported and is fully self-funded — donations go towards charities, not towards my project.
The Along route, from Paris to Dijon
Going further:
Follow me on Instagram to learn more about my fundraiser progress, my training and my incoming races and challenges cantspelletienne
My Lyme disease origin story on Medium
Lyme Disease 101
What do do in case of a tick bite
Thank you for your time and support,
Étienne
- K
- C
- A
10 supporters
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