Tour de Ganze Mishpacha (The Great Escape)

3/20/2014 24m 50F

So it happens that I've travelled to help a sibling with caretaker duties, which has the side effect of moving me from a secure distance from my ganze mishpacha into the Ground Zero of family [ties, fetters, restraints, handcuffs, irons] on LongGuyLand.

The last time I was here for more than a few days I was also playing caretaker, and then I would escape to my bike which got me away from the internecine intrigues and helped me keep my head. That my father was dying wasn't epic; that's a universal that you can't be surprised by - but the family foolishness took way more out of me than his death. That was a hard time and the bike got me through it.

Maybe this is why I loved riding a bike when I was a kid; it let me go "away" to other neighborhoods across the city.

Today I busted loose and got to ride south towards the Atlantic. In a park in Merrick, there's a fairly new sculpture near the entrance to a bike trail, looks like it's about to have a dedication in the spring. It's as nice a cyclist sculpture as I've seen.

EDIT TO ADDThanks to RustyRed for more info on the sculpture:

October 24, 2013, Huntington Station, NY – On Sunday November 3, 2013 at 2pm Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano will unveil the “Celebrate Life” sculpture in memory of a bicyclist at Cedar Creek Park in Seaford, New York.
In the summer of 2009, 19-year-old Matt Scarpati went out for a bike ride on the Wantagh State Bike Path and never came home. Matt was fatally struck by a drunk and speeding 44-year-old motorcyclist, who is currently serving a prison sentence of 3-9 years in an upstate correctional facility.

The Foundation hosted a Bike Tour in June 2010 on the Wantagh State Parkway to mark the coming installation of the guard rails that now protect 4.5 miles of the bike path. We were presented with a ghost bike, the loving effort of Matt’s friends to create a memorial at the site of the crash. However, New York State would not allow the ghost bike to be placed on or near the site. We turned to Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano, who has supported our efforts to work with Nassau County Parks and Recreation.

Through the efforts of noted sculptor, Michael Alfano, (http://www.michaelalfano.com) we were able to see a photo of Matt on his Colnago, transformed.

Rode south on the trail along the Wantagh Parkway to Jones Beach. This isolated toll plaza always reminds me of the scene from the first Godfather movie when Sonny gets killed.

Rode to the east end of Jones Beach via Lot Six. Rode the boardwalk westbound into a brisk wind. It was great to see the ocean, that's always a restorative for me. I haven't been down here in quite a few years. Near the Meadowbrook Parkway I exited the beachfront and joined the beginning of the Loop Parkway, just to see what the logistics of bridging over to Long Beach looked like. (Looked eminently possible, just not permissable)

Reversed and really enjoyed the tailwind. Back north to Wantagh Pkwy. Continued past the place I'm staying, found a Starbucks, borrowed a cup of Wifi for a bit.

Kudos to YC for explaining Ganze Mishpacha (the entire family)