HOW IT ALL BEGAN

On September 11, 2001 America was stricken with fear and sadness as they watched 343 brave New York Firefighters and countless civilians lose their lives. The weeks following after, the city was surrounded with firefighters, families, and public servants from around the U.S. who came to help clean and rebuild everything that was lost underneath the rubble.

Today, 10 years later, we are still rebuilding all that was lost that day.

On August 2, 2011 two Santa Clara Firefighters, Darrell Lee Sales and David Lombardo, will leave from the Santa Clara Bay Area to embark on a 4,000 mile journey to the Brooklyn Bridge in New York. How will they travel? By bicycle. Averaging 100 miles a day for 40 days, these two men will endure a physical and mental challenge thatmost people will never know; and it is all in the honor of the 343 Firefighters who died that day on September 11.

This endeavor started a few years ago when Darrell first thought to organize a motorcycle memorial ride across country. After mentioning the idea, Darrell's son Darrell Dean Sales, mentioned that he wanted to ride his bicycle from Santa Clara, CA to Brooklyn, NY on behalf of the 343 firefighters that died. David shared in their vision and was compelled to ride along with them. Their intrinsic desire to ride for the brotherhood they all share in, has now become an event designed to give back to two incredible organizations: The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation and the Santa Clara Firefighters Foundation (Better Things Program).

Along the way they will stay in Firehouses and churches, in a desire to connect and learn about how people of all backgrounds have been affected by such a tragic day. Darrell Dean, was laid off from San Jose Fire Dept. last June and was recently re-hired. Because of the re-hire he is now in a new academy and at this time does not know when he will be able to join this endeavor. He will be there to meet his fellow riders on September 10^th, and has committed to riding 100 miles a day on a stationary bike, wherever he may be.

How will they all do it? “A lot of firefighters that day in New York had to climb countless flights of stairs with gear on while fighting herds of people coming down. And when they finished their climb their real work started. Most never made it home to their families. So when it comes to the physical challenges of the ride, I’ll just keep those firefighters in mind when I’m riding," shares Darrell Dean.

Kick off for the event will be August 2, 2011 from Santa Clara Fire Station #2 at 7am. There is a group of individuals who will be riding with them the first day, and if you would like to do so, you are more than welcome to. If you would like to ride with them any other day during their ride, we encourage you to do so.

For complete details on their route, how to donate, purchase apparel, and other information please visit their website below. Bay2Brooklyn is working under Santa Clara Firefighters Foundation, which is a non-profit 501c3 organization.

http://bay2brooklyn2011.org/

Whether you are hear to cheer on these three men, make a small donation, buy a t-shirt to help the cause, or pray for their safety along the way, we invite you to share in this experience of Bay2Brooklyn.