HANOVER — Cheers from the rider’s tent and buzzing dragonflies greeted the Prouty Ultimate bicyclists as they crossed the finish line at Frances C. Richmond Middle School on Friday afternoon.

The 42nd annual Prouty, a fundraiser that brings in millions of dollars each year to benefit cancer research at the Dartmouth Cancer Center, kicked off at 6 a.m. on Friday morning with the Ultimate event — a 77-mile bike loop that crossed in between rivers and mountains on both sides of the New Hampshire-Vermont border. In addition to the two-day Ultimate, which is the only event that got underway on Friday, participants could also choose to walk, row or golf.

There also was a non-Ultimate biking option on Saturday and an option to participate virtually.

Typically, the Prouty Ultimate route is 100 miles, but because of the intense flooding the Upper Valley experienced this past weekend and last Monday, the route was adjusted down to 77.

Jaclynn Rodriguez, the executive director of the Friends of Dartmouth Cancer Center, who helped organize the event, said the altered route was essentially just a backward version of the 77-mile route the organization had already created for non-Ultimate participating bicyclists.

Almost everyone involved in the Prouty — volunteers, organizers, participants — have been affected by cancer in some way, whether it’s because they know someone who had it, lost a loved one or a friend to it or because they experienced it themselves. That’s not a surprise, either anecdotally or when you take a peek at the stats. According to data from the National Cancer Institute, roughly 40% of men and women will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their life, and there are currently around 18 million cancer survivors in the United States.

Take Danielle Dyer and her family. Dyer, of Lyme, crossed the finish line around noon with her adult son, Will, and was waiting for her husband, Alexander, to finish as well. She said this was her second Ultimate and Will’s first.

“Cancer has impacted our family stem to stern,” Dyer said. “My husband, our parents, other relatives, so it’s a big deal.”

She said her husband has since recovered and is “totally fine” now, but that it takes one experience with cancer to really stick with you. That type of experience is what forged the Prouty into existence in the first place.

It all started in 1982, when four nurses at the cancer center decided to bike 100 miles through the White Mountains to honor one of their patients, Audrey Prouty, who’d died after a nine-year struggle with ovarian cancer. The event has since led to over $52 million raised for cancer research and patient support, and its fundraising goal grows by the year.

In 2022, participants raised over $5.4 million, according to Rodriguez.

The goal was $7 million this year, and that mark was reached early Friday afternoon.

The organization announced Saturday that the event had raised a Prouty record-breaking $7.7 million.

Part of the reason for that $7 million goal, the organization stated, is to dedicate a portion of the money raised to support the expansion of the Cancer Center’s food pantry.

“A pilot program in 2022 provided 150 patients with almost 800 bags of food in the first 11 months,” a statement read.

“With 22% of patients struggling to afford healthy food, the need for expansion of the food pantry is critical.”

The money raised during the Prouty generally contributes to life-saving cancer research and patient care at the Dartmouth Cancer Center and supports Prouty Pilot research grants and the advancement of clinical trials, Rodriguez said.

The cancer center diagnoses more than “3,700 new cancers” within its system annually and serves more than 32,000 patients every year, through its six primary facilities and affiliated hospitals in New Hampshire and Vermont.

While there are fundraising requirements for participants in every event, Ultimate is the big bell cow — its fundraising minimums are $1,750 for “newbies” and $2,500 for “alumni.” It’s normal for Ultimate participants to form “teams” and raise even more.

Wes Leuthauser, 47, of Lebanon, who was in one of the first groups to finish the first day of the Ultimate event on Friday, is on one such team, Upper Valley Rowing & Friends. Leuthauser doesn’t even row, but he connected with the group when his daughter participated in rowing years ago.

As of Friday evening, his team had raised the most money, having garnered $338,506. Dyer’s team, the Sultans of Swing, had earned $50,114, which placed them right outside the top 10.

Leuthauser has participated “off and on” in the Prouty since 2004, and this year was his second time taking on the Ultimate event. He said he loves to bike and called the cancer center a “great” organization worth spending the time to fundraise for, especially because “none of us know when we might have to be part of it as a patient.”

It was hard not to notice the names written in black marker on Leuthauser’s forearms. “Jim,” could be made out on one arm and “Mom” and “Dad” on the other.

He explained that when he goes fundraising, he goes by “Tattoo Wes,” because he asks people if they’d like to share the name of a loved one or a friend they knew who battled cancer.

“I let people know, ‘Tell me who you want me to ride for,’ ” Leuthauser said. “(I) put their names on (my arms) and carry their memory for the ride.”

Ray Couture can be reached at 1994rbc@gmail.com with questions.