Team Fox Cycle/Spinning Event

Andrew Allen of Great Neck and NYSC of Great Neck will hold an indoor charity bike ride on Sunday, Dec. 6, to raise funds for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF).

Great Neck resident, Andrew Allen along with Dana Goldthwaite, general manager of the New York Sports Club, located at 15 Barstow Road, have organized a fundraiser scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 6 for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF).

Great Neck’s Michael Brannigan Finishes in Great Cow Harbor Race

On Saturday, Sept. 9, Michael Brannigan, 12-year-old autistic son of Great Neck Park District Memorial Field Supervisor Kevin Brannigan, placed 58th overall (out of 4,800 finishers) with a time of 38:00 minutes in the Great Cow Harbor 10K Race in Northport. He also placed 49th overall male finishers.

The Great Cow Harbor 10K Race is considered one of the top 50 10K Races in the United States for its difficult course. Seasoned runners from all over the country and many from other countries come to this renowned race. For a 12-year-old boy to come in the top 100 overall and the top 50 males overall is an astonishing, amazing feat.

Jonathan Lenchner Swims Across Strait of Gibraltar: Swim for Africa

On Aug. 26, one month short of his 50th birthday, former Great Neck resident and Great Neck South High School alumnus Jonathan Lenchner swam across the Strait of Gibraltar from the southern tip of Spain to northern Morocco. Dr. Lenchner is a research scientist at IBM’s T.J. Watson Research Center in Hawthorne, New York. He completed the 33 km (13.6 mile) swim, in rough conditions, in 4 hours, 44 minutes, together with Philipp Tiedt, a former IBM colleague. Dr. Lenchner is the 18th American to have completed the crossing. He was a member of the Great Neck South Class of 1977, where he swam under Coach Ray Brecht and was also a member of the cross-country running team.

Coast Guard Boating Safety Course

Qualified U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary instructors from Flotilla 12-01 will teach the Boating Safety and Seamanship Course at Weber JHS, Room 205 on Port Washington Boulevard in Port Washington. The course is for beginners and experienced sailors, and will begin on Wednesday, Oct. 7 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. and will cover various aspects of boating skills, including equipment requirements, buoyage systems, and the basics of navigation. Part I starts Wednesday, Oct. 7; fee $75. Part II begins Wednesday, Nov. 11; fee $25. All classes begin at 7:30 p.m.

To register for this class, contact the school at 767-5470. For more information, call Ted Prager at 840-7116, or send an email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Check the flotilla’s website at www.a0141201.uscgaux.info for information regarding the Coast Guard’s safe boating courses, and the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary.

Cyclists Raise Money for The NephCure Foundation

Seven individuals, including Jason Katz and Dean Friedman of Great Neck, rode in the City to Sand 100-Mile Ride bike race on Saturday, Sept. 12, on behalf of 6-year-old kidney disease patient Matthew Levine of Melville and raised over $62,000 for The NephCure Foundation.

Katz led the way with $47,297 raised, while Friedman gathered $12,825 in donations.

They were joined for a portion of the ride by Steve Cronin of Great Neck, Matthew’s uncle Ross Levine, Jason Margolis, Bryan Black and Mike Collins. The group tallied $2,800 in donations.

Second Annual Alan King Pro-Am Tennis Tournament

The 2nd annual Alan King Pro-Am tennis tournament benefiting the Wheelchair Sports Federation was held at The Wildwood Pool & Tennis Club in Great Neck on Sunday, Aug. 30. The event was a great success with more than 700 people attending throughout the day. The event was again hosted by Morris S. Levy, who brought the tournament to Wildwood last year from the New Jersey shore, where it was held the prior five years. 

Winthrop Hospital Walk To Remember October 3

In recognition of National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness month, which aims to increase the community’s understanding of the grief associated with the loss of an unborn or newborn child, Winthrop-University Hospital’s Perinatal Bereavement Team will host the Sixth Annual Walk to Remember on Saturday, Oct. 3, at 9 a.m. at Field 5 of Eisenhower Park in East Meadow.

Clifford Fishler Places in Maccabiah Games

Clifford Fishler, 17, a senior at Great Neck South High School, joined the United States Fencing Team for the World Maccabiah Games, placing in the top 8 for the individual epee event which included many highly ranked world fencing competitors. Every four years, the United States brings hundreds of athletes for various athletic events, with a total of 8500 athletes from 60 countries in this Olympic style event. The 17-member fencing team included mostly Division 1 colleges that competed against the skilled Russian, Israeli, and German teams. Clifford was a silver medalist in the team event.

Blazing Trails 4-Autism 4-Mile Run/Walk

Organizers of the 2nd annual Blazing Trails 4-Autism 4 Mile Run welcome Brickwell Cycling & Multisports and its proprietor Andrew Motola back as a sponsor for the second year of the event.

Among many fabulous prizes being provided by this very generous sponsor, Brickwell will once again be donating a 2010 Cannondale CAAD road bike valued at more than $1000 to be given out as the super raffle prize to a lucky participant in the Run.

This year’s Run will once again be based at the Great Neck South High School/Middle School campus, but to accommodate what could be as many as 1000+ runners and walkers, the race committee has laid out a vastly improved course which will start on the L.I.E. Service Road and proceed down Lakeville Road into some very nice local neighborhoods before returning for the second half of the Run on the scenic campus paths and the exciting finish on the High School track.

Also new this year, the 2009 Run/Walk has been selected to be a part of the USATF-Long Island Grand Prix of Long Island Road Races.

Park District Team Competes in Optimist Regatta

On Tuesday, Aug. 4, six participants from the Great Neck Park District’s Optimist Sailing Program competed in the Green Fleet Optimist Regatta hosted by the Manhasset Bay Yacht Club. The event took place in Manhasset Bay on a windward-leeward course that was approximately 1-mile long. The sailors had to race once around the entire course, which started at Manhasset Dock, also known as “Worry Wart” Dock. The participants, between the ages of 10 and 14, included Chloe Cristian, Arianne Greenstein, Ashtyn Greenstein, David Schisler, Rupert Stuart-Smith and Joseph Sassoon. Coaching them were Douglas Reynolds, assistant director of the Steppingstone Sailing Program, and Joseph Feinsilver, head coach. The Great Neck Park District team was 6 of 40 entries. The whole team crossed the finish line in the front section of the competitors. But, everyone was a winner in this regatta, receiving shirts and medals. After enjoying a nice lunch, the team each sailed their own Opti boat back to Steppingstone Marina. Join the Great Neck Park District Sailing Program next summer.