John Delaney, Director Ride to Remember

He Started a Bicycle Trek That Honors the Fallen and Impacts the Living

John Delaney
Photo by Bob Zemba, Simple Truth Imaging

John Delaney remembers, in vivid detail, the day his colleague, Springfield Police Officer Kevin Ambrose, died.

It was June 4, 2012, and Delaney was having lunch with his wife when his phone started blowing up. Ambrose had been shot in the line of duty, responding to a domestic disturbance.

“I raced to Baystate Medical Center and went into the ER, and when they saw me coming in, they directed me right to the room where a team of doctors and nurses were working on him,” Delaney recalled. “When I got in the room, Kevin was lying there. And within 30 seconds to a minute, the doctor pronounced him dead. It was kind of tough to take.”

He also recalled listening to dispatch from the hospital parking lot, to all the 911 calls still pouring in. “The world didn’t stop, and the police officers couldn’t stop just because they just lost one of their own.”

Delaney was tasked with planning Ambrose’s funeral — attended by some 5,000 police officers — and a celebration of life afterward, but he and some colleagues wanted to do something more to commemorate their friend. The death later that summer of Westfield Police Officer Jose Torres, who was struck by a truck in the line of duty, got them thinking about a broader event to honor fallen officers. “My friends and I were bike riders, so we said, ‘why not do a bike ride in their honor?’”

They planned a route from Springfield to Boston and figured maybe 50 people would participate, but about 170 signed up, and the Boston Police Department helped out by closing off the route to cars from Boylston Street to the State House.

“I’m riding along guys that I’d worked with for years, state troopers, police officers from around Western Massachusetts, and they’re all crying, strong guys that really show no emotion while they’re working, but they showed emotion that day,” Delaney recalled.

The initial organizers — Delaney, Officers Mike Goggin and Eddie Vanzant, and Gary Kennedy, who owned Competitive Edge Ski & Bike — knew this should be a regular event, but what they didn’t know was that, 14 years later, Ride to Remember would grow into one of the biggest cycling events in Massachusetts, drawing more than 500 riders per year and raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for worthy causes while honoring the memories of local fallen heroes from the ranks of police officers, firefighters, and corrections officers, as well as the families that must carry on after they’re gone.

“Every year, we ride for somebody to make sure that their family becomes part of the Ride to Remember family. And we let them know that we’re never going to forget. So every year we do the ride, we remember their names; we have signs with their pictures emblazoned on them along the route,” Delaney said. “We’re making sure that the average citizens that we protect and serve every day know that these cops gave their lives to protect them.”

Service in His Blood

Delaney understands the risk, sacrifice, and sometimes deep loss that come with public-service careers.

“I guess public service was in my blood. My grandfather died fighting a fire in Springfield. He was an acting deputy chief, but a captain in one of the station houses. He was always one of the first ones in, and he died fighting a fire. I never met him. That was way before I was born.

“And then my dad died when I was 10. He was in the Navy, also serving the public and the safety of citizens. So I guess that ran through my blood.”

“I’m riding along guys that I’d worked with for years, state troopers, police officers from around Western Massachusetts, and they’re all crying, strong guys that really show no emotion while they’re working, but they showed emotion that day.”

Delaney retired as a Springfield Police sergeant seven years ago — again, acutely aware that many officers don’t make it to retirement — and continues to teach at American International College. “I’m teaching young kids what it’s like to be a cop, hoping to mold them to become good police officers. And I continue on with this ride to make sure people don’t forget. That’s the only reason why I do it.”

He credits his wife, Gabriela, for being his “right hand,” not only helping with copious planning on logistics, supplies, and more, but grounding him when he becomes stressed.

“Every year I do this, I say to her a month before the ride, ‘this is the last year; I can’t do it anymore,’ because it’s stressful to feed everybody, hydrate everybody, transport people, make sure people are safe. We can’t publicize the route because I fear something might happen to the riders because there are a lot of crazy people out there. A lot goes into this ride, and I don’t sleep the night before the ride, but I pedal every mile, every year.”

Seven years into retirement from the Springfield Police Department, John Delaney has remained deeply involved in Ride to Remember.
Photo by Bob Zemba, Simple Truth Imaging

Ride to Remember is no longer a one-way trek to Boston, instead embarking on a different round-trip journey every year, always starting and ending in downtown Springfield. This year, it will head to Hartford and back, not for the first time; other years have employed routes that head to Worcester or wind around Western Mass.

“As we’re planning the route, we have to go to every jurisdiction that we hit along the way to get permits, to let them know we’re coming,” Delaney said. “It grew from 170 to 500. That’s a lot of people on a bicycle. If you see it in person, it just goes on forever. We have police officers on motorcycles, escorting the whole way, and we never have to stop. All the local jurisdictions help out. They’re all on board, and they meet us at each border.”

But the riders do stop for at least four rest and refreshment breaks, and everyone stays together; it’s not a competitive event, but a communal one.

“You don’t have to be a cop, fireman, or corrections officer to do the ride. Everybody can do the ride. Our oldest person that does the ride every year is 85 years old, and they start at 16, 17 years old,” he explained. Three Peter Pan buses follow along, and if anyone can’t keep up or finish a leg, they can put their bike on a truck and get on the bus, where volunteers offer hydration and massages; an ambulance also trails the pack for more serious concerns. Those on the buses can rejoin the ride at any stop.

“It’s more than just a ride. It’s a powerful tribute to the dedication and sacrifice of our local law-enforcement officers and first responders who put their lives on the line every day.”

“These are weekend warriors; they’re not like Tour de France professional bikers. We only go 13 miles an hour, which is a conversational pace. I highly encourage people to take part in this. People come up to me after every ride and say, ‘this is one of the best days of my life.’”

That’s because they’re pedaling for a reason, he added. “There’s camaraderie. You’re riding alongside people you don’t know, most of whom are first responders, and they develop friendships as they’re pedaling along. And if you get a flat tire, Competitive Edge changes it in 30 seconds, like it’s a NASCAR pit stop.”

Mutual Aid

Ride to Remember, which takes place on Sept. 6 this year, charges just $200 to participate. A winter indoor event has been added in recent years, which takes place this year on March 2 at Scantic Valley YMCA in Wilbraham and costs $45. But corporate sponsorships, including PeoplesBank, Country Bank, AFC Urgent Care, and Domino’s Pizza, among other partners, are critical.

Riders gather in downtown Springfield, as they do at the start of every Ride to Remember.

Over the years, proceeds have supported many causes in the region, including Christina’s House, On-Site Academy, Square One, multiple police and firefighter memorials, several neighborhood playgrounds and soccer fields, and other community-based initiatives.

Shannon Mumblo, who founded Christina’s House and was honored by BusinessWest as a Woman of Impact in 2021, when she served as the nonprofit’s executive director, was one of three individuals who nominated Delaney as a Difference Maker this year.

“It’s more than just a ride,” she wrote. “It’s a powerful tribute to the dedication and sacrifice of our local law-enforcement officers and first responders who put their lives on the line every day.”

Those aren’t just words for Mumblo, who backs them up by organizing the ride’s 100-plus volunteers every year, Delaney said. “She gives them jobs, makes sure the rest stops are manned, helps collect the donated food … she’s a monster. She does everything, and with a smile on her face.”

With the support of people like that, as well as his dedicated wife and everyone else who contributes to the event’s success, it’s no wonder Delaney stressed, multiple times, that this Difference Makers honor isn’t his alone — not by a longshot.

And, again, the community impact is huge. Ride to Remember has supported Christina’s House — which takes in homeless mothers and their children and helps them return to independence — to the tune of about $250,000 over the years. Ambrose’s widow, Carla, chose that nonprofit as one of the ride’s supported causes because, Delaney said, Ambrose was a family man.

“I can remember when I was a younger cop, and we would come across women with kids sleeping in the bus station. We had no avenue … where do you take those people? It was definitely a void that needed to be filled in the community, and Christina’s House is filling it.”

As noted, other nonprofits have benefited from the ride as well. “We donate to a charity that helps police officers and counsels them through post-traumatic stress,” said Delaney. “If they witness a shooting or if they witness a baby dying, that weighs heavy on a cop’s shoulder. A lot of times, they have nowhere to turn, so we donate to that. I’m very proud of the charities that we donate to. All of them are based here in Western Massachusetts.”

He said the ride is deeply personal to each rider in their own way.

“A really good friend of mine, Sal Persico, was a police officer in Florida, and he came up here to live. I coached his daughters in soccer. He was my best friend; he was like my brother. He did every ride with me, but he died of a massive heart attack, taken way too early in life. I ride for him every year. His family is like my family.

“So every year, before the ride, I always give a little speech after a prayer, and I say, ‘the Ride to Remember means a lot to a lot of people. Everybody out here that’s riding, remember somebody that you’ve lost, that you’ve loved in life. It could be a father, uncle, grandmother, best friend, or the police officers. While you’re riding, remember that person. That’s what it’s about.”

Delaney still does plenty of riding on his own time. “My friends and I will go out and do 100 mikes a week. It’s just part of our nature.”

But even for those who can’t say the same, Ride to Remember is a very doable — and deeply meaningful — effort, one that truly makes a deep impact in the region. Just like the Difference Maker who helped start it because he wanted to keep some heroes’ memories alive.