Pedaling for and from the Heart

Submitted by Ken Simon

Meet Team Mandell JCC Israel Ride 2013 Team Member- Ken Simon

I'm Ken Simon and the upcoming trip to Israel will be my sixth since 1999. I have spent my Professional career as a Criminal Defense Attorney. Most of those years were as a Public Defender for the state of Connecticut.  

In March of 2011 following a Biopsy of my Prostate I was hospitalized for the first time in my life for three days with a life threatening infection. I then learned I had Cancer.
This caused me to think deeply about what I wanted from my future.

 

I had watched far too many colleagues reach retirement age and then carry on until they became sad caricatures of themselves or retire and then die shortly thereafter. I wanted neither.  So I quietly planned my retirement and did in fact retire in October of 2011 at age 60.

 

Meanwhile there was still the issue of Cancer to deal with. A second biopsy in November of that year confirmed that action was required and I planned surgery for January 24, 2012. My brothers and I planned a ski trip with our daughters to Colorado. A wonderful trip ended with my first real ski accident, flying home with 6 broken ribs and a collapsed lung. That was my condition 2 weeks later when I had my surgery.

 

Moshe Pinchover, who will ride with us in Israel had started getting me out on the bike that previous fall and floated his idea about the Israel Ride and we started training. The accident and surgery put a crimp in my training. The nurse, following the surgery, asked me what I would do for exercise to rehab. I told her I'd be back on the bike in 3 weeks. She laughed and said "I don't think so." She was right. It took 4 weeks to start riding indoors but by 6 weeks I was riding miles. I put on 2500 miles last year but we didn't make the trip for many reasons. This year was going to be the year. I've done 3000 miles since April and I think I'm ready.

 

I am thrilled to be making this trip with my friend Moshe, my brother Mel, and my new found JCC cycling buddies. We will see friends and family in a land so amazing and wonderful that it defies description. The only thing lacking is peace with it's neighbors. If, in some small way, this ride can help in that regard, then I feel that it will be successful. I want to thank everybody who has helped motivate me along the way by either encouraging words or generous donations or both. 

 

Am Yisroel Chai!