Abington Alum Rides ACS Bike-a-Thon ... for 30th Time

Written by Mischa Arnosky

For some riders, it must be quite the feat — making the 60-mile trip from the Ben Franklin Bridge to Buena, N.J. For Abington Senior High School Alumnus Daniel Ely, it could just be another Sunday. 

Ely, an attorney from Conshohocken, will be participating in this year’s American Cancer Society Bike-a-thon on Sunday, July 14 … like has been for the past 29 years.

That’s right. This is Ely’s 30th trip, which means he’s participated in over 73 percent of all of the ACS’ Bike-a-thons.

The thing is, Ely isn’t riding as part of some inspirational journey. He doesn’t have cancer

“You know, I think everybody knows someone who’s been affected by cancer in some way, but I was not inspired by a ‘cancer story,’" Ely said.

Ely said one of his friends got him interested in cycling in the early ‘80s.

“It was right at the time when the movie ‘Breaking Away’ was really popular,” he said with a laugh.

And, because of this, he’s raised thousands of dollars for the American Cancer Society kind of as a byproduct for his love of the 60-mile trek.

Ely, who lives close to the Schuylkill Trail, said he rides about two to three times a week, maybe logging 20 miles at a time. He's done the race in as little as three hours, but said "these days, it takes about four to four-and-a-half hours."

Ely and his black Cannondale road bike will have some company on the trip. This year, his 16-year-old son will be accompanying him. It’s the second year that his son has participated in the race. And … his younger daughter will be joining both of them for the last 20 miles of the race.

“My 16-year-old son — for him, I’ve been doing this race as long as he’s been alive,” Ely said. “They know that I do this, and it’s a part of me. It’s such a special ride because it allows other people to join at different intervals.

“The thing is, at the start, there are thousands of riders, and you pick up more riders along the way, and so it’s actually one of the best moments of the ride, when they shut down the Ben Franklin Bridge for half and hour and it’s just packed — like four lanes wide going east with bikes for like a half hour,” Ely said. “That’s really what makes it a special ride. It makes it so it’s easier to go farther than you thought you could, because you’re riding with a huge pack with great energy.”

For more information on the American Cancer Society’s Bike-a-thon, click here.