Brewster Cheers On PMC Riders From Behind ‘Da Hedge’

BREWSTER – Carrying on a longstanding tradition started by campers and staff at the old Cape Cod Sea Camps, Brewster residents came out early Sunday morning to cheer on the riders of the Pan-Mass Challenge as they passed through town.

Though the Sea Camps are a thing of the past, the cheering section — known as “Da Hedge” — continues as “a demonstration of our respect” for the tradition, select board member Mary Chaffee said. It’s also a chance to show that the town-owned property is a vital part of community life, she said.

Building on the first town-sponsored event last year, this year’s celebration at Da Hedge drew several dozen people who held signs, shouted greetings and rang cowbells as the cyclists sped by. The tradition was started by Otis Moyer, now 84, a former camp director; he joined the annual bikeathon in 1994 to support his wife, Ingrid, who was battling breast cancer. Over the years, he helped lead a large team of riders and supporters from the Sea Camps who raised millions for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Campers were encouraged to cheer at the edge of the roadway.

“About the third year, we thought, this has got to have a name,” he said. A football fan, Moyer called the cheering session Da Hedge in honor of Da Bears of Chicago.