Cambridge is the starting point for a 343-mile bicycle ride to New York for the 25th anniversary of 9/11, raising money for organizations that serve first responders and cancer survivors.
In the five-day ride, bicyclists queue on the MIT campus early Sept. 6 and head to Fenway Park in Boston for the ceremonial start.
Day 1 takes riders from Boston to Marlboro; Day 2 to Norwich, Connecticut; Day 3 to New Haven, Connecticut; Day 4 to Stamford, Connecticut; and the final day arrives at the 9/11 Memorial in New York City. Each leg is around 60 miles; the total distance was chosen to honor the 343 firefighters who died Sept. 11, 2001.
Research from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health suggests firefighters are 9 percent more likely to be diagnosed with cancer and 14 percent more likely to die from it than the general public, according to Livestrong, a cancer nonprofit founded in 1997.
“In the last 25 years, we have lost nearly 800 members of the FDNY to Sept. 11 and 9/11 cancer, and job-related cancer remains one of the greatest risks our firefighters face every single day,” said Nancy Carbone, executive director of Friends of Firefighters, one of the groups benefiting from the fundraiser with Livestrong and the Boston Fire Cancer Foundation. She referred to the Fire Department of New York.
Residents and cyclists can join to register to ride alongside first responders; volunteer at a water stop along the route; or donate financially to support first responders and their families.
Residents are encouraged to come out and cheer from their front yards or places of business, Livestrong said.
“This ride wouldn’t be possible without the communities that welcome it along the way,” said Suzanne Stone, president and chief executive of Livestrong, in a press release. “Every stop gives people an opportunity to honor the firefighters and first responders affected by Sept. 11 while supporting organizations that continue to serve them. We hope people will see this as a chance to come together around something that matters: honoring the heroes we lost, and standing with those still fighting today.”
To register, volunteer, donate or view the local route through Cambridge, visit 911ride.org.
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