4/2026: Wheels Newsletter
Wheels 2026: Celebrating Survivors!
Hi Wheels Rider,
This month we’re celebrating Brandon! In case you didn’t know, Brandon is Amber’s brother and a big reason for why Amber and family got involved with Wheels - oh so long ago. The picture above is Amber, Brandon, and their spouses. Read his story toward the end of this email.
As you know if you’ve been reading the newsletters, 2026 is about celebrating our survivors! We are collecting survivor stories and will include them in future newsletters. Please send your stories to me, Amy Goodner, by replying to this email!
Order Wheels Gear by 4/30!
Order link with pictures: 14799 - Wheels of Justice '26 – Primal Via
We offer FREE T-SHIRTS AND JERSEYS for all Wheels riders!
For anyone who raises $1,000 please add bibs or shorts to your order
For anyone who is committed to raising $2,500 or more, email amber@wheelsofjustice.com and we will share a discount code for a rain jacket or upgraded bibs or jersey! All are available for sale to those not able to reach the top fundraiser levels! Don’t forget to scroll to the bottom of the shop to get your t-shirt orders in!
Sponsor Deadline is 4-30, logos will be updated when all sponsors have committed.
Training Rides
We are still in need of training ride hosts. If you're interested in volunteering as a training ride host, please email or message Chris Sjaardema at 303-902-5809 csjaardema@gmail.com or Michael Johanns at 720-219-5260 hewhoeatsapples@yahoo.com.
Chris and Michael will provide any necessary guidance and support to ensure you feel confident hosting rides.
Current Ridesare listed on the Events page of the website: Events | Discover and Join Local Events — Wheels of Justice - Courage Classic
Saturday, April 18, 2026, 9:00 AM 11:30 AM, Pasquinel's Landing (map) (coffee and then the ride)
Upcoming Dates
WOJ Kick-Off Party! Wednesday April 22
5-7 pm at Children’s Hospital.(map)
Join us for our annual party to kick start the riding and fundraising season. Dinner & Drinks will be provided! 🎉 You're Invited to the Wheels of Justice 21st Annual Kick-Off Party!
Sign up on the Events page and also check out the 2026 jersey design: 21st Annual Kick-Off Party — Wheels of Justice - Courage Classic
Flamingo Party, Sunday, April 26,
12 - 5pm: Flamingo Decorating Party for Children's Hospital | Facebook
This is a fundraiser put on by partner team, Kick Cancer’s Ass.
Location: Anderson Farms ,6728 County Road 3 1/4, Erie, CO 80516
Sign up for the Courage Classic - either to WOJ or a Partner team!
July 18-19, 2026 Copper Mountain, Colorado
Courage Classic | Children’s Hospital Colorado Foundation
Earth Angel Fest
Saturday, August 15, 2026, 11am - 5pm,
Foxfield, CO 80016
Survivor Stories
Brandon
Original story By Tonia Twichell
Brandon Nuechterlein’s relationship with Children’s Hospital Colorado started in dramatic fashion 17 years ago when he arrived emaciated and nearly dead after a 26-hour flight from Asia.
A few weeks earlier, Nuechterlein’s mother had called Children’s from Phuket, Thailand, where doctors had ruled out the normal diagnoses of dengue fever and malaria.
“Leukemia,” the hematology-oncology fellow at Children’s had said. “He’ll need a bone marrow transplant.”
Thus the journey began to Denver, the family’s home before moving to Thailand to be near his grandmother when Nuechterlein was 6 years old. He went through two years of chemotherapy, infections and a bone marrow transplant (BMT) before coming to Children’s 17 years ago as a physician assistant working with kids who often remind him of his younger self.
There was nothing in his young life to prepare him for such an extreme illness. Being raised in a then-remote area of Asia, he says his childhood was “like Robinson Crusoe.”
When he was 15, he began having back pain and fevers, but dismissed it as a rugby injury until the symptoms worsened.
“I went from being a triathlete to not being able to take a flight of stairs,” he says.
Armed with Tylenol codeine, weighing 100 pounds at 5-foot-11, Nuechterlein became so ill on the flight to Denver that the crew discussed diverting to land in Las Vegas. “They didn’t want me dying on the plane,” he remembers.
Fire trucks and an ambulance met him on the tarmac, and he doesn’t remember much until he woke up with five central lines in his body.
Complications followed. There was some confusion as to what type of leukemia he had because tests in Thailand skewed the results. The verdict: bilineage leukemia—very rare and extremely aggressive.
Cord blood in Saint Louis was a match, but because he was adult-sized, there weren’t enough stem cells to cure him. He was fortunate to be one of the first to take part in a clinical trial in which doctors grew more cells to transplant.
“I did well,” he says, despite getting multiple infections and developing graft verses host disease. “And because you get the person’s immune system, you can also get their allergies. I made three trips to the ICU before I realized I had a peanut allergy.”
As traumatic as the hospitalization was, Nuechterlein, became intrigued and decided he wanted a career in BMT.
“It’s awful being sick, but it isn’t awful being here,” he says. “After seeing what the doctors did, their dedication, I knew I wanted to be involved.”
Enduring a near-death experience during treatment in Thailand may have helped him warm to his caretakers in Denver by eliminating his fear of dying.
“I was floating above everyone, and they were all running around like crazy. It’s just like you hear about; there were lights in the corner. I remember deciding this is really going to be terrible, but I’m going back. I was slammed into instantaneous pain so bad that you cannot imagine. After that, I knew I would live.”
The lack of fear continued into recovery, to his doctors’ consternation.
“The doctors teased me that they would take away my graft because I was jumping out of airplanes, (skiing) down mountains at 50 mph,” he says.
As soon as he was well enough to get his GED, he started classes at CU Denver, then, two weeks after graduating with a degree in psychology, he started on his physician assistant degree at Anschutz Medical Campus. He chose the PA route over an MD because he knew it would mean more time with patients.
Doing his rotations at Children’s was like coming home. “All the doctors here have treated me at one time or another.”
He tells every patient about his own disease and recovery.
“It gives them hope. It’s one thing to hear doctors talk about the numbers and survival rates, and it’s another thing to meet me. I had a very poor chance of survival. I was way sicker than most of them are. And it all turned out in the end.”
Joining the Wheels of Justice was a natural extension of this journey. It helped him to improve his own health and that of his friends and family as well. He has recruited over 30 riders to the team and the extended Nuechterlein family has now raised over $810,000 to support the CCBD.
