The “Tour of Hope” bicycle journey made it’s way through Iowa earlier today, making a mid-morning stop in Mason City. The event is wheeling across the country to try and inspire Americans to learn more about cancer research. Twenty cyclists from 18 states were selected from 12-hundred applicants to join six-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong in his cancer awareness campaign. One of those cyclists was John Fee from Delran, New Jersey, who is riding in memory of several members of his family who have battled cancer. Fee says being selected to help Armstrong spread the word about fighting cancer is a dream come true. He says he was overwhelmed to be selected and says he’s been overcome with a tremendous amount of pride and fulfillment. Fee says everyone on the tour has encountered several cancer survivors and their families, as well as those who support cancer research.Fee was asked if there was only one message he could give to people, what would it be? He says he would challenge everyone who has a family member who may have cancer to pick up the phone and ask them to call their doctor and ask if there’s a clinical trial for their type of tumor. Fee says everybody should talk to their doctor about the best way to detect cancer early before it’s too late. He says the message they’re trying to spread is early detection, screeing and being in tune with the risk factors and your body. Before stopping in Mason City, the tour when through west-central Iowa, turning north at Ames, then heading northeast out of Mason City to make a stop in Ossian this afternoon. One of the 20 riders on the tour is 46-year- old Colleen Chapleau of North Liberty. Chapleau is a skin cancer survivor who works with patients undergoing bone marrow transplantation as the associate director of the Iowa Marrow Donor and Transplant programs at the University of Iowa.