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BARRYTOWN - The busy summer of activity on the campus of the Barrytown Conference Center in upstate New York continued unabated on Monday, July 31, with more to come. A production crew, on the campus from July 10-28 shooting an independent film (see related story) had no sooner moved out when the Empire State Riders (ESR) came in for a one-night stay.

On Tuesday, August 1, Generation Peace Academy (GPA) began a week-long “leaders training” workshop at Barrytown, which will end just about the time the XIII Blessed Cultural and Sports Festival rolls in on Wednesday, August 9 for a five-day stay.

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The stopover at Barrytown was the second day of the 7-Day, 546-mile bike ride, which started at Battery Park in lower Manhattan on Sunday, July 30, and will end on Saturday, August 5 in Niagara Falls. The 100 riders participating in the event are doing so to raise money for cancer research at Roswell Park Cancer Institute, the oldest cancer research institute in the U.S.A., located in Buffalo, NY. Roswell Park began serving patients in 1898.

Each rider is committed to raising a minimum of $3,500 for the institute on top of their $100 entry fee. In return, the riders are provided three meals a day, snacks and water, a tent and mattress for sleeping, a portable shower unit and towels, and a mobile bike shop where bikes are “tuned-up” and maintained after grueling, day-long rides.

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The shortest ride is Day 1, a 56-mile jaunt from Manhattan to Stony Point; Day 3 is the longest, a 90-mile trek from Barrytown to Schenectady. After that, it’s all downhill, with rides of 84, 85, 78 and 75 miles over the last four days.

“All the funding goes for clinical trials, patient treatment and research,” said Tom Johnston, Operations Manager, The Ride for Roswell. “We have people from California, Oklahoma, Missouri; people who are looking for an adventure with a mission. This way they can support a cause and have fun doing it together with other people.”

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Empire State Riders announced having raised $500,000 through the 2017 ride. If you are interested in joining the fun in 2018, go to The Ride for Roswell or send Tom an email at thomas.johnston@roswellpark.org.