Over the river and through the woods, up mountains and across the state he’ll ride.

Eight days and 920 miles of cycling will take Berks native Tyler Knabb through Pennsylvania as he pedals to raise money to fight childhood cancers.

Setting off from Baltimore today, the 2008 Exeter High graduate will cycle a heart-shaped route, weaving through nearly a dozen regional Penn State campuses along the way.

Tyler, a Johns Hopkins student taking Penn State courses online, will ride for The Hope Express, which supports THON, Penn State’s 46-hour dance marathon and yearlong fundraising eff ort to combat pediatric cancers. It’s a mission that hits home for the 24-year-old, who lost his mother, Carol, to cancer on his 14th birthday in 2003. A decade later, in August, Tyler’s close friend, Michael Chobot, passed away from leukemia at age 26. “I wanted to come up with something that would tie together my abilities and something I could share and give back,” Tyler said of the decision to ride across the state. “I would’ve done this anyway for my mom and Michael.” To make the ride more symbolic, Tyler plotted the heart-shaped route that will connect him to at least 11 Penn State campuses. He’ll ride for four days, take a day off to rest and then take part in the THON 5K in State College. After that, he’ll ride another four days before returning home to Baltimore. He’ll be joined at diff erent legs of the trip by family and friends. “It’s going to be a lot of fun,” Tyler said, acknowledging with a laugh, “It’ll be tough going through the Appalachians twice.” By last week, Tyler had raised more than $2,200 for The Hope Express, well on his way to his goal of $3,000.

“There’s absolutely nothing about this ride that has to do with me when it comes down to it,” he said. “I want it to be about who I’m helping. I hope it means a lot to other people, that they can feel proud about the things that they do and try to give back and motivate others.”