Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Putting his mettle to the pedal for a good cause

He bicycled across the nationto raise awareness of epilepsy. It was his way to fight the disease that impairs 326,000 including his son.

By RITA FARLOW
Published June 18, 2006

Along the way, he's had five flat tires and a gear shift bent from a flying piece of metal road debris. He's traveled over dirt roads and along highways without bike lanes.

He's contended with dust and thunderstorms and choking smoke from forest fires. Fenster's been undaunted; not even Alberto could stop him.

"On Tuesday, I biked through eight squalls, where the winds must have kicked up to 45 miles in my face," he said. "The rains were stinging, but I knew that these kids don't give up, so how could I?"

The kids that inspire Fenster are the 326,000 youth - including Fenster's 12-year-old son Nyle - living with epilepsy in the United States. To raise awareness of the childhood disorder, Fenster has spent the past six weeks bicycling from Seattle to his hometown of Aventura on Florida's east coast.

By Wednesday, Fenster had logged 3,570 miles on his trusty, red Felt f90 bicycle, and landed for the night at the Wingate Inn Hotel in Clearwater. The next morning, the 45-year-old author and tennis pro was preparing to head to St. Petersburg and points south on the last leg of his 3,840-mile journey.

Fenster hopes the trip will help him gain support for the nonprofit organization he's creating, called Destiny Maker.

"I am asking people to be a destinymaker for children whose destinies are unsure,'' Fenster said.

Fenster's son Nyle has suffered from epileptic seizures since he was 2. Medication has helped limit the frequency of the seizures, but there is no known cure for the disorder.

"He has seizures probably everyday of his life, but he goes to a regular school and a regular camp. He's a very courageous child,'' Fenster said.

One of Fenster's first goals for the nonprofit is to establish a Destiny Maker "teammate program," in conjunction with the Epilepsy Foundation of South Florida. It's essentially a buddy system, where seizure-prone children will be paired with unimpaired students who will be there to help should a seizure occur.

"When a child feels safe, that in itself is medication - to not have the anxiety, the fear, that at any given moment I could have a seizure,'' Fenster said.

Fenster also hopes the agency will be able to establish after-school or summer camp sports programs for epileptic children. "Anytime you can bring sports to children, you basically bring out pride and courage,'' Fenster said.

A longtime athlete himself, Fenster spent 28 months training for the grueling journey. First, he parked his car and started biking - everywhere. Riding a stationary bike helped him prepare for the steep inclines of mountain roads. Swimming and tennis helped raise his endurance.

Fenster said he travels light and covers an average of 100 miles per day on flat terrain (74 miles per day in the mountains). He has been taking photos that are posted on his Web site, www.destinymaker.org, and hopes to write a book about his experiences once he gets home.

Fenster left Clearwater Thursday morning with clear skies and a goal of traveling the last 270 miles in three days. He wanted to be sure to make it home by Saturday, which would have been the 48th day of his trip. Just in time for Father's Day.

[Last modified June 18, 2006, 07:45:37]