I’m running for safe streets… and need your support!

I’m honored and humbled to join Team TransAlt in the 2016 New York City Marathon this November. Casual readers of this blog know how important safe streets are to my experience as a dad, husband, and New Yorker. Longtime readers may also know that Marathon Sunday is my favorite day in the city each year, largely because of how it connects people in all five boroughs to their neighborhood streets like no other day. I’ve spent years cheering on runners from behind the blue tape as they stride down Fourth Avenue in Brooklyn, and have even used the early-morning street closures to have a little fun with my daughter and call attention to the need for more space for kids of all ages to roam — and ride — freely.

My daughter takes a pre-marathon spin on Fourth Avenue in 2013.

This fall, I’ll be on the other side of that blue tape, running in my first marathon (!) and I’m asking for your help.

In order to run I need to raise money, all of which will support the kind of advocacy work that makes this city better every day. Your tax-deductible donations will help an organization near and dear to my heart, Transportation Alternatives, which is filled with dedicated employees, passionate volunteers, and all-around amazing people, all working to make this city we love safe for people on two feet or two wheels. If you’ve ever walked around and suddenly stumbled across a new pedestrian plaza, TA probably had something to do with it. If you’ve ever biked to work and suddenly discovered your route now has a protected bike lane, there’s a good chance TA was involved. Even if you drive now and then — It’s okay! Don’t be ashamed! — that new 25 mph speed limit that’s keeping you and everyone else around you safe happened because of a lot of great people associated with Transportation Alternatives.

You can donate by following this link.

To sweeten the pot, anyone who donates $50 or more will be invited to join me on a group ride through Brooklyn. We’ll take some of the best bike infrastructure in the city to tour some of my favorite spots and perhaps stop for some snacks and beverages. I’m hoping to turn this into quite the social affair, so the more people who donate, the bigger and better we can make this ride. More details to follow, but the unofficial Brooklyn Spoke Tour de Brooklyn will happen in November after my legs have had a chance to recover.

Thanks in advance for your generosity and support! I will carry the message of safe streets with me from Staten Island all the way to the finish line.

Finishing the Brooklyn Half while sporting a little #bikenyc flair.