Bobby Valentine will join a new team for Sunday's KIC It Triathlon in Stamford. The city's baseball icon will ride a bike as part of a team that includes Elissa Glucksman and her sister, Deena. They are the daughters of Kids in Crisis executive director Shari Shapiro.
Valentine, the former Mets manager who now works for ESPN as an analyst, joined the event this year as a co-chairman. Elissa and Deena "diehard Valentine fans" according to their mother knew of his interest in biking. When they reached out to ask Valentine if he'd participate, they were stunned by the positive response. "They were overjoyed when he said he'd do it,'' Shari says. "They got nervous when he interviewed for the Baltimore Orioles' job."
Elissa, 26, will swim the 1.5 kilometer (.9 miles) leg. "She's not real excited about meeting her hero in a wetsuit, goggles and bathing cap,'' Shapiro says. Valentine will pedal 40 kilometers (24.8 miles) beginning at Shippan Point, rolling through the corporate canyon in downtown, out to North Stamford and back to Columbus Park. Deena, 21, runs the 10-kilometer (6.2 mile) course to finish it off. The race finishes at Columbus Park, just steps away from Valentine's restaurant.
Shapiro's daughters have participated in the event in the past. The opportunity to team with Valentine was too good to pass up. It also helps the event to have Valentine's participation. His magnetic personality lends credibility to a competition that has quickly become one of the marquee events on the Stamford sports landscape. The triathlon benefits Kids In Crisis, which is based in Cos Cob. It provides temporary emergency shelter and counseling for families and children.
"Bobby V represents Stamford, and he's a good representative for us,'' Shapiro says. "We're looking for people who understand what the organization is all about, and Bobby reflects that. Even when he was managing baseball teams in Japan, he was still keeping connected to Stamford. His presence is always here."
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