One hundred eighty five bicycle riders left Fenway Park after an opening ceremony in Boston last Sunday, when the First Responder Ride for Resilience got underway. The first annual fundraiser honors the 343 New York City firefighters who lost their lives during the 9/11 attacks 25 years ago, while raising awareness of the occupational cancer and mental health challenges first responders continue to face.

The 343-mile trek will end at the 9/11 Memorial in New York City on Thursday afternoon. But before that, the procession for the LiveStrong sponsored ride left from the Omni New Haven Hotel in Connecticut at 9 a.m. Wednesday morning with a police and firefighter escort.

“Today was the roughest start … the hills,” said Kyle Coffman, a participant from Colorado. “As soon as we left New Haven it was up and down. So far, the entire ride out of Fenway has been great. We’re rolling through towns. I jumped into Long Island Sound at one stop. We’re taking it all in.”

Just before 10:30 a.m., the large group of cyclists rolled into Monroe, Conn., where a rest stop was available at the Monroe Volunteer Emergency Medical Service’s headquarters on Jockey Hollow Road. Bicycle racks were set up in the parking lot, along with two port-a-potties, a snack table, water jugs to refill bottles, and a mechanic’s area for the bikes.

Cadence Sports, an event company based in Buda, Texas, set up the rest stop for the event, one of four stops along Wednesday’s route.

“The LiveStrong organization and Cadence Sports reached out to us asking if we wanted to be a rest stop and we’re honored to support this amazing event and other first responders and their families,” said Monroe EMS Chief Craig Rosenberg.

According to research from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, firefighters are nine percent more likely to be diagnosed with cancer and 14 percent more likely to die from it than the general public.

The ride brings together first responders, cancer survivors, and community members to raise funds benefiting Friends of Firefighters, the Boston Fire Cancer Foundation and Livestrong, expanding access to cancer survivorship and mental health programs for first responders and their families.

At the rest stop, the Stevenson Volunteer Fire Co. parked one of its trucks in front of the building for the occasion, and Lisa Pane, administrator for the Monroe EMS, and her daughter-in-law Cynthia Pane put out cupcakes they had baked to complement the selection of snacks for riders.

The table with the water jugs also had packages of Raspberry Lemonade Propel, Gatorade electrolytes.

“We have pickle juice for cramps and spoonfuls of honey if they need a burst of sugar,” said Brian Kines, of Cadence Sports.

Kines staffed the rest stop with Hector Martinez and Merlyn Townley, who is one of three mechanics for the ride.

Mechanic Merlyn Townley, left, tries to find a leak in a tire.

“All kinds of things happen on the road,” Townley said, “either they get a flat or they crash into each other. I patched a tire with a dollar bill and Krazy Glue, because I didn’t have a tire. That rider rode to the next rest stop, where he got a replacement tire.”

Another common repair is when a bicycle falls over, bending the derailleur, a device that moves the chain between different sprockets to change gears. “I’ve bent back several a day,” Townley said.

Of the three mechanics for the First Responder Ride for Resilience, one is from Queens, another from Philadelphia and Townley hails from Burlington, Vt. Each starts their day at a rest stop and, after cyclists leave their stop, the mechanics go to the next one to help out there.

Townley said they start as early as five to seven in the morning and work as late as 10 p.m. to midnight. “We’ll continue until there’s nothing left to work on,” he said. “It’s a lot of work, but it’s totally worthwhile.”

Ireland’s Bravest

Martinez wore a T-shirt that said, “5 Days, 343 Miles.” He said many of the participants in the bicycle ride were firefighters from Ireland, joining other cyclists, many of whom are also first responders, from all over the country, including New York, Connecticut, Iowa, Texas, Colorado and California to name a few states.

Eamos Fennell grew up on the Emerald Isle, but now lives in San Diego. “My brother John is coming. He’s a firefighter in Ireland,” Fennell said.

A group of Irish firefighters held up their country’s flag while posing for a group photo with Monroe First Selectman Terry Rooney.

“On Behalf of the town of Monroe, it’s not every day that we get people from across the country, and other countries, coming through our town,” he said. “And on behalf of LiveStrong, Friends of Firefighters, thank you for all that you’ve done in your communities and in your countries. I’m a first selectman here in town, but I come from a firefighter family and a law enforcement family, so I highly respect what you do.”

“And let’s not forget why we’re here,” he continued. “One of the most tragic events that happened in our nation’s history since Pearl Harbor and the fact that we don’t forget, and we remember the sacrifices that those men and women made that day, and the sacrifices that their families still live with. I pay homage.”

FDNY Engine 316
Stephanie Wowk, of Smithtown, Long Island, is a firefighter in the Bronx.

Stephanie Wowk, of Smithtown, Long Island, wore a white FDNY shirt while riding.

“I’m a firefighter in the Bronx and I love endurance sports,” she said. “My father was on Engine 316. He was at Ground Zero in 2001 and he retired in 2006 with respiratory issues, so I’m riding for him.”

Wowk’s cousin is also a firefighter in House 316.

“Just meeting everybody has been exceptional,” Wowk said of participating in the First Responder Ride for Resilience. “People are from Ireland, California, Texas — literally all over.”

Each day ends with an overnight stay at a hotel and a chance to bond with other riders. Coffman said, “we have dinner together, breakfast together.”

Before he arrived at the rest stop, Coffman’s wife, Emily, and mother, Rayann, who is from Austin, Texas, waited at the end of the Monroe EMS driveway to cheer on the cyclists, which also included Coffman’s father, John.

A cancer survivor, John Coffman now serves as a LiveStrong board member and volunteer. Rayann said her husband is an avid cyclist, who has also participated in the LiveStrong Challenge, a cycling event in Austin.

“This event has been amazing,” Rayann said of the First Responder Ride for Resilience. “I’ve never been a part of anything like this. It’s like we see the brotherhood that goes with firefighters.”

Martin Packham, of Austin, Dr. Jake Kelly of Anchorage, Alaska, and Rocky Naccarato of Wallingford were among the first cyclists to arrive at Monroe’s rest stop.

“It’s a great event. It’s an honor to do it,” Naccarato said of participating.

Packham praised Cadence Sports for its role in the ride. “They’ve been fantastic,” he said, “great route, great planning, great logistics.”

Dr. Kelly is a cardiologist who said he participated in the ride to, “focus on cancer prevention and treatment for first responders.

“The support from the first responders has been incredible,” Dr. Kelly said of those he encountered along the ride. “They stop and wave. There’s a lot of positive energy and even some escorts in smaller cities.”

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