Suzanne Hand is on a roll. And in keeping with the finest traditions of her long-trusted court reporting business, that’s the literal truth.
The president of Suzanne Hand & Associates recently directed the evolution of a new, cutting-edge enterprise that lengthens her business’ fantastic services. And to celebrate, she geared up and hit the road for May 2’s Five-Boro Bike Tour, one of 32,000 cyclists wheeling their way through the Big Apple.
Attracting riders from around the world, the Five-Boro was a Bike New York event sponsored by TD Bank. The Bike New York organization promotes cycling and bicycle safety through education and events, and the Five-Boro is its crown jewel. “It’s more than just a cycling experience, it’s a cultural festival,” says Bike New York President Ken Podziba, gushing about the tour on YouTube.
Designed as a leisurely 42-mile roll through New York City (“doable for cyclists of all levels,” according to the Bike New York website, the trek was actually closer to 50 miles, Suzanne notes. “They had us park about five miles away,” she says, adding this was her first-ever bike tour and easily the longest ride of her life.
Starting in downtown Battery Park under summer-like conditions, riders headed north through Manhattan’s concrete canyons and a full-bloom Central Park. They crossed the Harlem River into the Bronx and then back over into Harlem, then steamrolled the FDR Drive and crossed the 59th Street Bridge into Queens. Moving north to Astoria Park and south through several industrial neighborhoods, the procession crossed the Pulaski Bridge into Williamsburg and took an extended tour of Brooklyn, ultimately arriving at the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge – a last, daunting challenge.
Some raring, some weary, riders finally coasted into Staten Island’s Fort Wadsworth, where a celebratory lunch and ferry ride back to Manhattan awaited. Suzanne, a self-described amateur cyclist who conquered the challenge with her friend and trainer Debbie, counts herself among the latter finishers – the weary. “By the end of the ride,” she says, “my shoulders were killing me.”
But “nothing hurt the next day,” Suzanne adds, and while it was a taxing physical challenge, the overall experience of the Five-Boro was “totally worth it and fantastic.”
“There were a lot of wonderful people from all over, and I saw a lot of great bike gadgets,” she says. “A few people had GPS devices designed specifically for bicycles. One guy had an iPod speaker attached to his bike frame that looked like a water bottle – he was just rolling through Brooklyn, listening to jazz.”
The ride also helped keep Suzanne sharp – no small consideration, with two thriving businesses to run, including the new state-of-the-art video-conferencing service Video Connect.
“It takes a lot of energy to run these businesses,” Suzanne says. “I have to stay in shape.”
In fact, she definitely plans to enter next spring’s Five-Boro and is already looking for like-minded riders to share the experience. “If you want to come along,” Suzanne says, “just email me!”