New York – Record Breaking Totals As Bikers Raise Money For Camp Simcha, Veteran Cyclist Joins Ride

Glen Spey, NY – A biking fundraiser for seriously ill children has broken the record for per-rider fundraising, according to organizers of the event which has an international group of over 300 Orthodox Jewish men pedaling their way through the mountains of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania in an attempt to raise money for children with cancer.

Bike 4 Chai is a two day, 180 mile event, with riders cycling from Piscataway, New Jersey, through Scranton, Pennsylvania and along the banks of the Delaware River before arriving in the Catskills at Camp Simcha in Glen Spey, NY.

This year’s event, which began on Wednesday morning and continues through Thursday afternoon, has raised $4,038,131.89 so far for Chai Lifeline, which sponsors a medically supervised summer camp for seriously ill children.

“It is amazing that 350 people can raise this much money,” Rabbi Sruli Fried, director of programs and services for Chai Lifeline, New Jersey, told VIN News. “By comparison, the Multiple Sclerosis ride out of New York had 10,000 riders and they raised a little over $2 million. This just goes to show the incredible nature of this event and the commitment of the community.”

81 of this year’s riders raised over $10,000 for Chai Lifeline, with five participants raising over $100,000 in pledges each.

While Bike 4 Chai attracts many riders from in and around the New York area, riders came from as far away as Philadelphia, Toronto, Baltimore, Detroit, Miami, Los Angeles, England and Israel.

A group of Canadian cyclists began their journey on Sunday night, biking in from Montreal to Piscataway to join the event.

Professional cyclist George Hincapie, a 17 time veteran of Tour de France and winner of three United States National Road Races, joined Bike 4 Chai for the second leg of the event, flying in from his home in South Carolina to show his support for Chai Lifeline.

“I’m truly inspired by the cause and the dedication of the riders,” said Hincapie, speaking at dinner on day one of Bike 4 Chai.

Bike 4 Chai was unofficially born when Dovid Egert, a Chai Lifeline volunteer from Lakewood, New Jersey, discovered that he would be unable to bring his bicycle on the bus to Camp Simcha just before the summer of 2009. Egert elected to ride his bicycle up to camp instead of taking the Camp Simcha bus, soliciting donations to Chai Lifeline for his 135 mile ride.

“He came into my office and told me he was going to do it and I told him he was crazy,” said Rabbi Fried. “He had a simple bike from Walmart and he did it, raising $10,000 in funds.”

There were 40 men, including Egert, biking their way from New Jersey to Camp Simcha in the first official Bike 4 Chai, held in 2010, and the number of riders pedaling their way to the Catskill to fundraise for Camp Simcha continues to grow annually.

“We had a long waiting list to take part this year,” said Rabbi Fried. “We could have taken on more people but we had no more hotel rooms available.”

Participants have the option of following either a 50, 75 or 100 mile route on the first day of the ride, which began with a 5 AM shacharis in Piscataway and culminated with dinner and Mincha/Maariv in Scranton. Day 2 consists of a 65 mile trek to the finish line at Camp Simcha in Glen Spey, followed by a barbeque with campers and staff.

Multiple rest stops are located along the way, fully stocked with snacks, beverages and two favorites among bikers: pickles and bananas, both of which are thought to prevent cramping.

“We have thousands and thousands of bananas,” said Rabbi Fried. “Bananas are key for our riders.”

Bike 4 Chai staff works in conjunction with state police units in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, as well as Hatzolah and Chaveirim.

Rabbi Fried estimated that Bike 4 Chai has a support staff of 175 including mechanics, communications people, medical personnel and support vehicle drivers.

For the many men who devoted countless hours preparing for Bike 4 Chai, the trip is a major undertaking and an opportunity to raise both awareness and funds for Camp Simcha.

“Serious, intense and time consuming training for months and then riding a grueling 180 mile course over two days requires an enormous commitment to this extraordinary cause, but arriving in Camp Simcha to the raucous welcome from the heroic campers and staff make every second of effort worth it,” said community activist Chaskel Bennett, who participated in Bike 4 Chai. “The sheer delight and joy the campers get when they see over 300 bikers ride into camp is something indescribable and I feel privileged to play my small role.”