By Linda S. Humphrey

Although Dr. Ken Strike prefers to have his head literally in the clouds rather than his feet on the ground, his life is anchored in principles and passions.

In his downtime when the board-certified radiation oncologist isn’t treating cancer patients, he can be found paragliding in the airspace around his Andersonville, Tennessee, home, or climbing a high mountain.

Ken’s other interests include riding on- and off-road—and sometimes in the mud—on his Kawasaki KLR-650 motorcycle. He enjoys sports fishing, kayaking, hiking, and one time, he and his wife, Patti, “hammered out” a two-seater RV-6A airplane.

“I got my pilot’s license when I was 28,” said Ken, 57, who was born in St. Petersburg, Florida, where he lived until his parents, Thomas and Jacquelyn Strike, moved the family to Morristown, Tennessee. Ken has two sisters, Linda and Melany.

Not Letting Health Issues Be a Game Changer

At age 33, his love of flying was interrupted when, because of a heart issue, he received a pacemaker and could no longer be a pilot.

“I put all those aviation dreams on hold until we established ourselves in east Tennessee while I became more confident and comfortable in my ability to take care of the family,” said Ken.

Ken discovered paragliding about 12 years ago. He said he was, at the time, one of only three or four people in Knoxville enjoying the sport.

“It’s really begun to balloon with the advent of social media, videos, and X Games. There are now about 15 of us in the area who fly periodically and are having a great time. It’s wonderful, just like a bird,” he said, referring to sitting in a harness suspended below a fabric wing.

There is ample airspace for paragliding around his property. Ken, Patti, and their daughter, Cori, live on their farm with two dogs, 20 goats, 20 chickens, and two cats.

“Patti takes care of all of that. She also has beehives and produces honey.”

Dr. Strike, Bruce Henry, Greg Livengood and Jeff Shelton in August, 2019, at the top of Mount Elbert, the highest peak in Colorado and the second highest in the lower 48 states with an elevation of 14,433 feet. Photo was taken by a passerby hiker.

Following Father’s Foot Steps

Ken said that when he was younger, he didn’t experience a call to the medical field, even though his father was a primary care physician from 1958 to 1976.

“Dad was a Type 1 diabetic. He started out in radiology, and I remember him saying how terrible it was looking at X-rays all day,” Ken said. Eventually, his father developed a following with diabetics.

“He had a drawer next to his bed where he kept his stethoscope and other items. Many nights I would hear that drawer open and close as he went on calls.”

The younger Strike’s call to the medical arena came after a college counselor recognized his exceptional abilities in math and chemistry and suggested that he attend medical school.

“I didn’t necessarily want to be a doctor, being called out at night with that rigid schedule. I knew I didn’t want to be a lawyer or go into education. I didn’t want to sit at a desk.”

Medical school agreed with Ken, and, in 1986, he earned a degree in biophysics from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. From there, he attended Wake Forest Medical School from 1986 to 1990. He did one year of post-graduate surgery training at the University of Tennessee, 1990 to 1991. He attended the University of Cincinnati, a public research university, from 1991 to 1994, after which he began practicing radiation oncology. In the beginning, before computers, he would handwrite the necessary doses for his patients.

Too Much for too Long

Over the past 29 years, Ken has enjoyed private practice in several locations, including South Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. In 2017, after 15 years in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, he suffered burnout from what he said was too much for too long. After almost 400 days in a row without a real break, he retired—somewhat—for about a year.

“I was seeing sometimes 100 patients a day and didn’t have the time to even speak with them about their treatment,” he said. “It was about 10 seconds and on to the next one. I wanted more.”

Saying No to Total Retirement

Ken cut back on his work schedule and completely retired for about a year, but he found that he missed the office, personal interactions, and being looked to as the captain of his own ship.

In 2018, Ken came out of retirement to accept an offer to practice part-time at Athens Regional Cancer Center in Athens, Tennessee, a three-hour round-trip drive from his home.

“Here at the center, I can take time, get to know my patients, and talk to them as long as needed.”

Risk Taker at Heart

Ken admits to being a risk-taker. In August 2019, he and three friends climbed Mount Elbert, Colorado’s highest peak and the second-highest peak in the lower 48 states, with an elevation of 14,433 feet.

“That was very cool,” said Ken.

Dr. Ken Strike in 2018 riding the Foothills Parkway on his Kawasaki 650. Photo: Jim Benson.

The Next Passage

What’s currently on Ken’s wish list is riding the Trans America Trail on his motorcycle. The original route starts in eastern Tennessee and makes its way through Mississippi, Arkansas, and the Ozarks, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, and finishes on the Oregon Coast.

“In regard to motorcycles, I remember always wanting one,” said Ken, But the words of my mother still ring true to my ear. As an emergency room nurse, she came home every night and told me all the gruesome stories of kids who lost arms and legs and eyes and tongues to the evil motorcycle. I bought my first adult motorcycle five years ago and have been having a blast.”

Ken said he plans to ride the eastern part of the trail beginning this May, followed by riding from North Carolina’s Outer Banks to Cherokee, North Carolina. “The western part will probably have to wait until next year.”

Ken doesn’t spend much time fretting about getting older. His days are filled with a good balance of what brings him satisfaction and joy.

Dr.  Strike paraglides in the air space around his Andersonville, Tennessee home. Photo: Cody Bock

Turning 50 Changed His Outlook

“When I passed the threshold of turning 50, my outlook on life changed quite a bit,” he said. “Throughout my late 20s through my 40s, I was a workaholic—working 12-hour days and six or seven days a week, trying to make sure everything was in line and perfectly set up. A couple of things happened to change my perspective.”

Kevin said with age should come financial independence and emotional maturity. “Sand in the hourglass was mostly sitting at the bottom already, and I wanted to go out and experience things while I am still young, active, and healthy enough to enjoy them—thus, the paragliding and riding my motorcycle.”

Wise financial investments over the years also enabled Ken to enjoy freedom from money pressures, for which he credits his father’s shared wisdom.

Focusing on What’s Important

Ken said this is a wonderful time in his life, and he wants to focus on what is absolutely important—or not. He wants more time in the streams, fishing, and crabbing. He wants to go flounder gigging down the coast of South Carolina with, he said, the wind blowing the last few remaining hairs off his head. He wants more time with friends and family, especially more time with his daughter.

“I want to be a more integral part of Cori’s life. I want to watch her grow up and have the opportunity to really participate in the last few parenting events that I have responsibility for before she is out on her own and I am a figure in her rearview mirror.”

Ken said he wants to always see the humor in everything because, in the grand scheme of things, we will be checking out pretty quickly.

“If you can’t laugh at the absurdities of life, I can’t imagine it would be worth it.”