Engineer, economist going the distance for charities

We take it as a given that an economist and a computer software engineer have lots of brainpower. But how about pedal power?

They think so. Michael Crowell, the senior economist for the state labor department in Hicksville, and John Morris, who works in the collider accelerator department at Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, are planning to start a 600-mile bike ride next week, from Montauk to Niagara Falls, to raise money for three charities -- the Parkinson's Disease Foundation, Smith Haven Ministries, and the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, a human rights and social justice organization.

But wait. Morris, of Miller Place, is 54, and Crowell, of Ronkonkoma, is 50. Crowell didn't even own a bike until he graduated from high school, and the most cycling Morris has done is a 350-mile ride out West.

But the two friends have raised $853 already. Morris' mother, Marye Morris, was progressively weakened by Parkinson's in the last years of her life.

The two men plan to make the trip in 11 days, starting next Wednesday. Crowell will be riding a Rans Rocket recumbent bike, and Morris will be on a Fuji Touring bicycle.

"One reason I'm doing it now is that I'm 54," he said. "I don't know how much longer I'll be able to do this."

They have a website should you want to view their route, or contribute to the causes. Click here to find them at http://niagarabycycle.info.