Couple to honor cousin by bicycling in tandem

By tara petersen
Staff Writer

TARA PETERSEN Lindy and Tom Imranyi get ready to ride tandem at Thompson Park, Monroe.

MONROE — There are many ways to honor a loved one who died Sept. 11, 2001. For two former high school sweethearts, it is a 280-mile ride on a bicycle built for two.

Lindy Imranyi and her husband, Tom, both 27, are taking part in an organized bicycle ride from ground zero to the Pentagon in memory of her cousin, Bruce VanHine, a New York City Squad 41 firefighter who perished "doing the job he loved so much." The event is to take place over three days, Sept. 12 through 14.

VanHine was 38 when he died, and is survived by his wife, Ann, and two daughters, Emily and Megan. He had been a firefighter for more than 20 years. He began as a volunteer, and in 1990 joined the New York Fire Department full time.

The cycling event, called "Face of America," is sponsored by World TEAM Sports of Charlotte, N.C., whose program "brings individuals with and without disabilities together ... to encourage, promote and develop opportunities in sports for all people."

"They have a lot of inner-city programs, and programs for physically challenged athletes," Imranyi said. "Hand cyclists will be riding in the event as well."

The entry fee is $500 per person, and each rider is asked to raise $1,000. All proceeds support the organization’s charitable programs.

Tom Imranyi said he and his wife were looking for a way to get into shape, and they thought the event would be a great way to honor VanHine.

"We wanted something to motivate us into physical fitness," he said. "It was an achievable goal, and a worthy cause."

He also said they prefer structured events over riding around on their own.

"We like the organized tours. It’s the safe way to ride around New Jersey," he said. "They have buses pick up people that can’t finish. There’s outdoor campsites, tents, showers and food provided. If your bike breaks down, they’ll fix it for you."

Imranyi said she began riding tandem because when they used to ride on their own bicycles, "my husband was always so far ahead of me that we weren’t really riding together."

Tandem riding, she said, was both easier and more challenging.

"On straight (flat) roads, we really get the speed up, but on uphill climbs, it can be hard to coordinate," she said. "It takes a lot of communication."

She said her husband rides in the front, called the captain’s position, and she rides in the back, and is called the stoker.

She admits there are many challenges facing riders in a congested state such as New Jersey.

"A lot of drivers don’t really respect cyclists," she said. "A driver yesterday saw us and made a left in front of us anyway."

The Imranyis, who were both born here and graduated from its high school in 1984, have ridden in similar events before.

"We participated in a five-borough bike ride in New York," Tom Imranyi said.

"We were visiting family, and rode home from Stockholm along Route 206," Lindy Imranyi said.

This ride will be the longest, by far, and takes place over a weekend.

"We take a ferry from Wall Street to Sandy Hook, and then ride to Tuckerton on the first day," she said.

The second day takes bikers through Cape May, and on another ferry into Delaware, a total of 125 miles, before finally reaching Tuckahoe State Park in Maryland. They reach their Washington, D.C., destination on day three.

In general, they said they practice for the long ride in nearby Thompson Park, or by riding along the Delaware/Raritan River canal path.

Lindy Imranyi said they both enjoy being able to talk to each other while riding and getting in shape. She also likes that a lot of people look twice as they go past.