LIer wraps 1,500-mile charity bike ride

Mission accomplished.

For Marvin Rostolder, the ride of his life is over, but the memories are likely to last forever.

The 69-year-old retired venture capitalist from Sands Point left Vancouver, British Columbia, on Aug. 10 and hit San Francisco -- the final destination of his 1,500-mile West Coast bike ride -- earlier this week. Along the way, he raised thousands for the Child Care Council of Nassau County and achieved a sense of accomplishment that often took extraordinary effort and steeled nerves.

"It's been more difficult than I thought," he said by phone. "The roads were not as conducive for bicycles as I thought when I was reading all the information about bicycle routes."

For much of his journey, he found himself on narrow mountain roads in poor condition, squeezing to the right side of eighteen-wheelers and oversized motor homes, vying for inches of road space and trying to avoid the sheer drop of 500 to 1,000 feet at the edge. "It was very frightening," he said.

People he met along the way sometimes were so concerned about this solo cyclist, they would call the hotel where he told them he'd be staying to make sure he had arrived safely.

Depending on the conditions, he rode four to seven hours a day, with panniers weighing 25 to 30 pounds, often laboring to reach his goal of 60 miles a day. Strangers offered encouragement and inspiration. "People were amazed I was doing this kind of distance for a charity and for children," he said. "That gave me more energy to continue, continue, continue because of the spirit of the people."

He was rewarded with breathtaking views of the coastline and he visited iconic American landmarks, like the Space Needle and Pike Place Market in Seattle, and the redwood sequoias. With friends from the area, he caught (and feasted on) Dungeness crab, but mostly, he was alone. His favorite spot? The famed Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon, where he arrived on his bicycle, played 18 holes (par 72) and scored 102, about 10 strokes higher than his norm. Not bad, he thought, considering he was wearing sneakers and using rented clubs on a difficult course.

His most exciting moment was seeing his cousin Esther Greer, who lives in Santa Rosa, Calif., about 55 miles north of San Francisco. It was their first reunion in many years, he said. Saturday is her 94th birthday, and before he heads home, he plans to celebrate it with her and her daughter, Beth Geligman, of Mill Valley, after crossing the Golden Gate Bridge.

"I'm really glad I did it," he said of his adventure. "I'm really excited about it. . . . Like I said, it's the ride of my life."

Read Marvin Rostolder's journal from his West Coast bicycle trip at childcarenassau.org