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Ty Conklin, B.J. Crombeen ride a tandem bicycle in the name of charity

Ty Conklin

St. Louis Blues goalie Ty Conklin (29) takes a drink during the second period in an NHL hockey game against the Detroit Red Wings in Detroit, Wednesday, March 24, 2010. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

AP

I really can’t get enough stories about athletes becoming actively involved in community service. Any player can throw some money at a problem to give off the appearance that they care, but it’s another thing when they sacrifice that cash and their time.

When you throw in hockey players riding a tandem bike with a needy child, forget about it.

St. Louis Blues players B.J. Crombeen and Ty Conklin did just that this Saturday morning, helping to kick off charitable efforts as part of the Tour de Unite at Francis Park in St. Louis. NHL.com captured the scene.

On Saturday morning, St. Louis Blues forward B.J. Crombeen and goaltender Ty Conklin learned a different sort of teamwork -- one that involves two people balancing and pedaling together to ride a tandem bicycle.

The two players helped kick off the Tour De Unite at Francis Park in South St. Louis, an event designed to raise money for the Delta Gamma Center for Children with Visual Impairments, the Disabled Athlete Sports Association and the Recreation Council of Greater St. Louis.

“Just coming here, seeing the kids and how much fun they have when they get on the bike...obviously, they have a tough time being able to do everything,” Crombeen told the Blues website. “To be able to do something like this with them, to see their faces and the enjoyment they get of out of it, it’s a lot of fun for us.”

Crombeen and Conklin began the event riding a tandem bicycle with a child from the Delta Gamma Center.

“It’s a great event that supports great causes and great people,” Conklin told the Blues’ site. “It’s a pleasure for us to do this. It’s not something we’re forced to do. It’s something we want to do.”

Really, the only downer with this story is that there aren’t any photos of the two hockey players riding that tandem bicycle with a child. Still, it’s a great thing to hear about and a reminder that the majority of athletes are normal people with abnormally developed physical skills. Sometimes these nice deeds go unreported, so it’s important to remember that buried underneath the stories of greed and crime are moments of genuine generosity and kindness.