This year's Closer to Free ride is quickly approaching, with more than 1,600 people riding bikes to benefit the Yale-New Haven Smilow Cancer Hospital.
“You’re riding with thousands of other people all at the same time so you have be able to ride at a slower speed at the start with a lot of people around you,” said Matthew Feiner, owner of the Devil’s Gear Bike Shop on Orange Street in New Haven.
Organizers approached Feiner to help launch the bike ride fundraiser seven years ago.
“It’s very emotional for me,” he said. “It’s very personal. I’ve lost, I’m getting a little choked up, I’ve lost a lot of family members and close friends to cancer and so to come out and do this is to pay homage and pay honor to them, but also to raise money for Smilow and cancer research.”
Bike techs from Devil’s Gear will be stationed along the four routes to troubleshoot problems for riders.
“A friend of mine from Austin, Texas, his motto was 'I don’t have the legs, I don’t have the lungs but I have the time' and that’s what this event is about. You have the time. It’s not a bike race, it’s a bike ride,” Feiner said.
The ride starts around 6 a.m. on Saturday, September 9, at the Yale Bowl. Some people will proudly wear survivor jerseys, while others are riding in memory and honor of loved ones.
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All of the money raised goes toward patient care and research at Smilow.
