Two veterans will cycle approximately 213 miles from Albany to Long Island on Oct. 23-24 for Tour de Valor, with two fellow veterans providing vehicle support and communities invited to welcome the team along the route.
The Dwyer Coalition for Military Veterans & Families plans to start the 213-mile ride at noon Oct. 23 from the Albany County Veterans Service Bureau at 420 Western Ave. in Albany. The route ends the next morning at the Pfc. Joseph P. Dwyer Memorial in Rocky Point, Suffolk County, according to an Oct. 21 announcement from the New York State Department of Veterans' Services.
The confirmed route does not list a stop in the Finger Lakes. It runs through Albany, Greene, Ulster, Orange, Westchester, New York City, Nassau and Suffolk counties. The trip is expected to take about 22 hours, traveling through the Hudson Valley, across the Bear Mountain Bridge, through New York City and onto Long Island. Arrival times are estimates that may change with pace, traffic, weather, road conditions and stop duration.
Where the ride is expected to stop
An Albany meet-and-greet is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. before the noon departure. The first stop is expected at 2:45 p.m. at the West Athens-Lime Street Fire Company, 919 Schoharie Turnpike in Athens. The team is then expected at Ulster Hose Co. No. 5, 2333 U.S. Route 9W in Lake Katrine, at 5:10 p.m., followed by Middle Hope Fire Department, 5172 Route 9W in Newburgh, at 8:35 p.m.
The Fort Montgomery community stop is expected at 10:40 p.m. Its host location remains unconfirmed; the American Legion at 136 Old Route 218 in Highland Falls is listed as the alternate. Riders are then expected at the Buchanan Fire Department, 3159 Albany Post Road in Westchester County, at 11:45 p.m.
The riders are expected at FDNY Engine 95/Ladder 36/Foam 95, 29 Vermilyea Ave. in Manhattan, at 3:10 a.m. Oct. 24. Later estimates put them at Manhasset-Lakeville Fire Department Company 4, 97 Jayson Ave. in Great Neck, at 5:40 a.m., and the Cold Spring Harbor Fire Department, 2 Main St., at 7:40 a.m. The finish and ceremony at the Dwyer memorial, 621 Route 25A in Rocky Point, are planned for 10 a.m.
At each stop, organizers invite people to write the name of someone important to them on Tour de Valor banners. Fire departments and other community partners are supporting the route, while law enforcement agencies will provide escorts, the coalition said.
Riders and purpose
The riders are Gavin Walters Sr., the coalition’s founding executive director and an Air Force veteran, and Todd Dorris, a Navy and Army veteran who is program coordinator for Dwyer Vet2Vet of Putnam.
Support drivers Justin Riccobono, an Army veteran, and Lionel Durant, a Marine Corps Persian Gulf veteran, will provide vehicle and logistical support and coordinate scheduled stops. Organizers say the ride is intended to promote peer support, connection and mental wellness among veterans, service members, National Guard members, reservists, military families and caregivers.
The state Department of Veterans' Services is supporting the initiative. Commissioner Viviana DeCohen said wellness includes physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health, and the ride offers another way to encourage military-connected New Yorkers to seek support when they need it.
New York's Joseph P. Dwyer Peer Support Program connects veterans with fellow veterans for confidential, nonclinical support. It was named for an Army combat medic from Long Island who served in Iraq and died in 2008. The coalition said the program's statewide network and community partners will be highlighted along the route.
Supporters can follow the team during the ride through live Garmin tracking linked by organizers. More information is available from the Dwyer Coalition. Veterans and families seeking benefits or services can contact the state Department of Veterans' Services at 888-838-7697.
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to news@fingerlakes1.com.
