Riding for a Reason

On the morning of July 26, an eclectic group of bikers left from Rockville Centre on a two-hour trek to Montauk.

Some were dressed in jeans and t-shirts, while others looked more like the proto-typical biker, clad in leather jackets and bandanas. A few rode Harley Davidsons, while others cruised on BMWs or Suzukis, but what the 11 bikers had in common was that they were all driving 200 miles to and from the end of Long Island to fundraise for autism and breast cancer research.

The group, AML Bikers for Charity, is led by Rockville Centre resident Barry Koch and was established two years ago. The name — AML — stands for anti-money laundering as the group's founder, Koch, works in that field for J.P. Morgan Chase, as do other members of the clique. While some are former investigators of money laundering schemes, he explained, others are ex-government agents or prosecutors.

The group raised more than $7,000 last year for the Susan G. Komen and Autism Science foundations with a similar ride, and Koch said he hoped to pull in more donations this time. The fundraising efforts proved to be successful, as the group raised more than $8,000.

"It's something we are all touched by, or knew someone that has," Koch said about Autism and breast cancer. "We decided that both charities deal with illnesses that are close to our hearts."

The crew of 11 bikers left from a gas station at 8:30 a.m. and made it to Montauk around 11 a.m. Their trip took them all the way to the Montauk Lighthouse — the fourth oldest lighthouse in the country — where the crew stopped for lunch before their retreat home. 

"We figured to ourselves, let's take a day off from work and do some good in the world," Koch said.