Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Let the riding begin!
Bicyclists will once again ride across New York in an effort to raise funds for Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center.
One of the riders is WBEN's own Jim Stelianou, who will trade his space in the control room overseeing WBEN programming for a bike seat he's quite comfortable on.
Stelianou says he learned about it on the job. "I just happened to hear a little mention of it from a co-worker a couple years ago, and I looked it up on the internet. I happened to be out at a bar one night, and I met the gentleman, Terry Bourgeois. And he said, 'You should do it, you should do it.' And the next thing you know, I bought a bike," says Stelianou.
Stelianou says the trek starts in Manhattan. "Over the course of seven days, we go up to Albany and Utica. We hang a left there, and we head into the wind, as everyone says, because the winds always blowing that way," explains Stelianou. He says the ride is fully supported with local fire and law enforcement along the way helping to keep things safe when on the roads. Part of the ride will take them across the Empire State Trail.
Jim Stelianou
Stelianou says everyone knows someone who's been touched by cancer, and that motivates him to ride. "I have a few people in my life who have dealt with cancer, battled it, and that's kind of what motivates me. Each year I do this, I meet more people along the ride, that have a story that even further motivate me outside of my direct connections with family to cancer," says Stelianou.
Stelianou says the ride has raised $1.6 million. "Every dollar that gets donated turns into $23. So times 1.6 million times 23. And we've raised a significant amount of money for cancer research," notes Stelianou.
The ride ends in Niagara Falls next Saturday. "We invite everybody out to Old Falls Street for a big party that afternoon. And it's a lot of fun," adds Stelianou.
This will be Stelianou's fourth Empire State Ride. We'll be following Jim's ride across the state on the air on WBEN and you can help, if you're able, by donating to the effort here.
