While Thursday, Dec. 3, was his day off, Sedona Fire District firefighter Mark Feeney was at his home station, Station 3 in the Village of Oak Creek, for 12 hours. From 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Feeney rode his stationary bike as part of a Toys for Tots fundraiser.
Over the 12-hour window, Feeney covered 382 kilometers, which translates to over 237 miles. More importantly, the fundraiser, which started with a goal of $2,500, easily exceeded that, raising more than $4,300 for the fundraiser that began on Thanksgiving Day and ran until Thursday, Dec. 10.
“It’s been amazing the response we’ve had from the local people to help the kids out,” Feeney said. “It’s kind of crazy. I came up with this silly idea to ride my bike and the people are behind it. It’s really cool to see it come to fruition and for us to exceed the goal. It’s nice to look down on my phone and see notifications that someone has donated.”
“The way that the community has come together for this is great,” he added. “It’s different times with COVID. This year we went for something different. Normally we stand outside of Safeway and Clark’s. We normally do around $2,300 to $2,500. For us to do this in the first year of doing something different — it’s really encouraging.”
While it was a virtual ride, Feeney wasn’t exactly alone. Different firefighters on their off days came by to ride on another bike for parts of his ride. Additionally, using the Zwift program, there were thousands of other bikers throughout the world riding on the same trail as Feeney. The program also creates various slopes and weather-related challenges.
Feeney’s challenge this year came about largely because of the difficulties posed by COVID-19. He also expressed a desire to do it again in future years.
“It would be up to management and Toys for Tots if they were supportive,” he said. “But from what we’ve had this year, we haven’t hit any roadblocks.
“There were a lot of moving parts and it came together pretty well. Myself and Chief ‘Buzz’ Lechowski have been heading it and making sure that everything is smooth. Next year it could be something bigger and better or maybe something completely different. Just something to help the kids in the community is definitely where our head is at.”
Lechowski added that now that more is known about it, the marathon ride might be something that more firefighters will be interested in next year. He added that having more riders could set up the possibility of relay teams, instead of one guy handling the entire ride.
Feeney acknowledged that he was tired and sore throughout the ride. But it’s a sacrifice he was happy to make if it helps more kids enjoy the Christmas season.
“I don’t mind,” he said. “Even though it hurts, it goes for a good cause. As a kid, I always looked forward to getting stuff on Christmas. I was fortunate enough that mom and dad could provide that. So it’s been good to help out those kids.”
