What Cycle for Survival does

Cycle for Survival is the official rare cancer fundraising program of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, founded in 2007 by Jennifer Goodman Linn, an MSK patient with MFH sarcoma, and her husband Dave Linn. The program operates a national indoor stationary-cycling event series hosted at Equinox clubs, with 16 event locations across the United States including a new 2026 entry in Philadelphia. It has raised over $450 million cumulatively since inception, with 100% of every dollar directed to MSK-led rare cancer research spanning more than 400 cancer types.

The core product offering is built around four event formats: signature Team Events (the main format), Studio Rides (a more individualized format now expanded to Seattle, Dallas, Miami, and Palo Alto), Corporate and Industry rides, and hosted SoulCycle rides. Supporting digital infrastructure includes online fundraising pages, a participant dashboard, and a bike schedule builder that enables both team-based and self-organized peer fundraising. The program operates with a lean staff of 18 employees headquartered in New York City, supported by an ecosystem of corporate sponsors (including Equinox as founding partner and NOBULL as the Official Performance Apparel Sponsor) and a community of more than 1 million MSK Giving donors and 25,000-plus annual participants.

Cycle for Survival's business model is fundamentally a donation-mediated pass-through: 100% of event-raised funds are directed to MSK research, with operational costs covered separately. Annual fundraising has scaled from $26M in 2022 to $36M in 2025 and is projected at $38M for 2026, with multi-year Leaders Circle commitments (gifts of $10,000+) and corporate sponsorship functioning as the principal revenue mechanics. Customer segments span individual donors (often with personal connection to rare cancer), corporate sponsors and team organizers, and the broader rare cancer patient community that benefits from the funded research.

Name

Cycle for Survival

Legal name

Cycle for Survival (operated by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center)

Website

https://cycleforsurvival.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cycle for Survival is the official rare cancer fundraising program of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, hosting indoor stationary-cycling events at Equinox clubs across 16 U.S. cities. It has raised over $450 million since 2007, with 100% of funds directed to MSK research.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Charitable Fundraising and Cancer Research Philanthropy

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Cycling/Spin Classes (HSADABAE)

Keywords

• Rare cancer research
• Indoor cycling events
• Peer-to-peer fundraising
• Nonprofit charity events
• Cancer research donations

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices17 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Fundraising Donations: Participants raise money individually and as teams through personal fundraising pages. Donors contribute via credit card through the Cycle for Survival website, with gifts immediately credited online. Offline gifts by check or money order are processed within 5-7 business days. 100% of all funds raised go directly to rare cancer research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
2. Corporate Sponsorship: Companies engage employees as riders, sponsor rides, or provide matching gifts. Corporate matching gift programs are encouraged. Custom sponsorship packages are available for interested companies. Sponsors include NOBULL (Official Performance Apparel Sponsor), Essentia (Official Hydration Sponsor), and others such as ICAP and Custom Ink.
3. Leaders Circle Multi-Year Gifts: High-net-worth donors make multiyear gifts of $10,000 or more through the Leaders Circle program to accelerate progress on rare cancer research.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Cycle for Survival is the official fundraising movement of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), hosting indoor stationary-cycling "Rides" at Equinox clubs and partner venues to raise money for rare cancer research. The organization funds MSK's research initiatives, clinical trials, and translational science programs, with 100% of every donation directed to MSK's rare-cancer research portfolio.

Product overview

Cycle for Survival is a fundraising program for rare cancer research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) centered around indoor team stationary-cycling events. The core offering consists of Signature Team Events (relay-style rides at Equinox clubs), SoulCycle rides, Studio Rides, and Corporate/Industry rides. Supporting the events are participant-facing digital tools including online fundraising pages, the Participant Center/Dashboard, the Bike Schedule Builder, and Participant Resources (logos, social media assets, email templates, virtual backgrounds). The program offers incentive programs like Exclusive NOBULL Gear for fundraising milestones and publishes an Annual Funding Report for transparency. Events are hosted at Equinox fitness clubs across 16+ U.S. cities, with a founding partnership with Equinox and corporate sponsorship arrangements with NOBULL (Official Performance Apparel Sponsor) and Essentia (Official Hydration Sponsor).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Signature Team Rides (Indoor Cycling Fundraising Events) Team-based indoor cycling events held at Equinox clubs and partner venues where teams of participants ride stationary bikes to raise money for rare cancer research at MSK. Targeted at individual participants who recruit friends, family, and colleagues as donors and co-riders.
• Corporate and Industry Rides Corporate-sponsored and employee team-based indoor cycling rides designed for companies seeking employee engagement, team-building, and corporate social responsibility programming tied to rare cancer research.
• SoulCycle Rides Boutique-format indoor cycling rides hosted at SoulCycle studios as a partner-venue variant of the standard Cycle for Survival Rides, offering a more intimate, premium-class experience for participants and donors.
• Online Personal Fundraising Pages Web-based personal donation pages that allow registered participants to collect pledges from their networks, track progress toward fundraising goals, and share team recruitment links.
• Leaders Circle (Major Donor Program) Recognition and engagement program for high-net-worth individual donors, family foundations, and institutional donors who make major gifts to fund specific rare cancer research initiatives at MSK.

Quantifiable outcome

• $450 million raised since 2007, including $38 million in 2026, $36 million in 2025, $26 million in 2022
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered major sponsor, flagship / founding partner, flagship / core beneficiary, minor sponsor and core research program.

• NOBULLmajor sponsorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025NOBULL is the Official Performance Apparel Sponsor of Cycle for Survival. Participants can earn exclusive NOBULL x Cycle for Survival gear by reaching fundraising milestones ($1,500 earns a hat, $5,000 earns premium gear, $10,000 earns 2 premium items). Teams raising $10,000+ per bike earn commemorative Cycle for Survival 20th Anniversary Tech Tee. This partnership was announced for the 2026 season (20th anniversary year).
• Equinoxflagship / founding partnerStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2007Equinox is the founding partner of Cycle for Survival, providing unwavering support since 2007. Equinox provides its world-renowned cycling instructors to lead rides, transforms its club spaces for events, and has helped grow Cycle for Survival from a local fundraiser to a national movement raising over $450 million. The partnership includes the Equinox Innovation Initiative, named in honor of Equinox, which awards competitive internal grants to MSK physicians and scientists for leading-edge rare cancer research ($3.6M in 2025).
• Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK)flagship / core beneficiaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2007Cycle for Survival is the official rare cancer fundraising program of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK). 100% of all funds raised go directly to rare cancer research at MSK. MSK is a global leader in cancer research, care, and education, recognized as one of the top two cancer hospitals in the U.S. by U.S. News & World Report for 35 years. MSK is home to experts in more than 400 types of cancer, including many so rare some hospitals have never treated them. All funding awardees are determined in close partnership with MSK leadership.
• Essentia®minor sponsorGTM or Marketing PartnerEssentia® is the Official Hydration Sponsor of Cycle for Survival. Essentia provides hydration products at events.
• Custom Inkminor sponsorGTM or Marketing PartnerParticipants can create custom team gear through Custom Ink using code 'cycleforsurvival' with 10% of sales donated to Cycle for Survival.
• ICAPminor sponsorGTM or Marketing PartnerICAP is listed as a Signature Sponsor of Cycle for Survival on the Team Captain Resources page.
• MSK Kidscore research programStrategic or Co-development PartnerMSK Kids is MSK's pediatric cancer program and the largest such program in the country. All pediatric cancers are rare cancers and are significantly underfunded. Cycle for Survival funding was integral to launching the Tow Center for Developmental Oncology (TCDO) within MSK Kids, a translational research hub that aims to discover and address the distinct causes of cancer in children and young adults.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Pan-Massachusetts Challenge (PMC): PMC is the largest single-charity athletic fundraiser in the U.S., raising over $1B cumulatively for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute through multi-route cycling events. Closest peer to Cycle for Survival in combining cycling events with directed funding to a single cancer research institution.
• Pelotonia: Pelotonia is a grassroots cycling fundraiser that has raised over $280M for cancer research at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center. Directly comparable to Cycle for Survival as a multi-day cycling event funding cancer research at a single anchor institution.
• Swim Across America: Swim Across America funds cancer research through open-water and pool swim events, having raised over $100M. Directly comparable as an athletic-event-driven nonprofit funding cancer research at partner institutions, paralleling Cycle for Survival's indoor-cycling event model.
• The Jimmy Fund / Dana-Farber: The Jimmy Fund is the official fundraising arm of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, hosting marathons, walks, and athletic challenges that support cancer research. Comparable as a cancer-research fundraising program tied to a single elite institution, similar to Cycle for Survival's MSK affiliation.
• Team In Training (Leukemia & Lymphoma Society): Team In Training is the LLS's flagship endurance-sport fundraising program, having raised over $1B through marathon, triathlon, and cycling events for blood cancer research. Comparable cause-based athletic fundraising model with a single disease focus.

Broad incumbents

• American Cancer Society (Relay For Life): The American Cancer Society runs Relay For Life and other community fundraising events supporting cancer research across multiple institutions. A broad incumbent in community cancer fundraising, contrasting with Cycle for Survival's single-institution and single-event-type focus.
• V Foundation for Cancer Research: The V Foundation has awarded over $350M in cancer research grants since 1993. A broader cancer research fundraising incumbent that complements Cycle for Survival's mission; V Foundation's funding model spans multiple cancer centers rather than concentrating on a single institution like MSK.
• Susan G. Komen:

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cycle4survival
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@cycleforsurvival
• Facebookfacebook.com/cycleforsurvival
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cycle-for-survival
• Instagraminstagram.com/cycleforsurvival

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cycle for Survival