Content warning: this story contains mention of a suicide attempt.
In an incredible show of strength, Bronx-based mental health advocate Alex Moreno pulled a car for more than two miles along Pelham Parkway South on Sunday, Sept. 14, to symbolize the often-unspoken burden of depression and suicidal thoughts.
Using only a body harness and straps attached with carabiners, Moreno pulled a blue Kia Forte sedan (with a person inside controlling the brakes and steering) from the train station at Pelham Parkway and White Plains Road up to Eastchester Road in front of Jacobi Hospital, a total of 2.14 miles. The feat took just under two and a half hours.
Dozens of friends, followers and community members turned out on the warm day to cheer him on, as did members of the 49th precinct, who shut down traffic and joined the cheering squad.
One of those present was Lani Krasniqi, a social worker who worked with Moreno as a 12-year-old and hadn’t seen him since. She said she saw his plan to pull the car on social media and showed up to surprise him.
“He’s come a long way,” Krasniqi told the Bronx Times. After a difficult childhood in foster care, she said Moreno now embodies the attitude of “I can achieve amazing things, and so can you.”
When they saw each other, Moreno and Krasniqi hugged and cried, a moment that was repeated several times among those who came to show support.
Before hooking himself to the car, Moreno told the Bronx Times that he may be the only person to attempt this stunt. Although he is a personal trainer, he said he trained for over a year and a half, mainly by pulling his sister’s SUV. But he had never gone more than about five blocks, so even he wasn’t sure how the two-mile stunt would go.
Moreno said he finds “the craziest ways” to raise awareness of mental health and suicide prevention — actions that are sure to get people’s attention.
For instance, in 2021, he bear-crawled on all fours for 13.1 miles across the Brooklyn Bridge, and his social media is full of videos of him standing in parks, train stations and Times Square holding encouraging signs, such as, “This is your sign to keep living” and “Make your mental health a priority.”
Moreno said the stigma around these issues is especially common in Hispanic and Afro-Latino families, and men in particular. Leveraging his platform of more than 14,000 followers on Instagram and TikTok, he said he’s determined to break the silence.
“Mental health is not something people speak about,” Moreno said. “We’re told to put Vicks [VapoRub] on it, and it’ll be okay.”
‘This is my time’
Moreno’s struggles to pull the car for 2.14 miles in just under two and a half hours was highly symbolic of what people go through daily and demonstrated the importance of a loving support system.
The uphill leg of the journey was especially difficult, and Moreno had to unstrap from the car several times to sit, rest, hydrate, stretch his burning leg muscles and change sneakers. Supported by his girlfriend and close friends, who were filming the stunt for a forthcoming documentary, Moreno finally made it up the long incline to Williamsbridge Ave. at about 1:45 p.m. From there, he pushed through mainly downhill and flat sections.
When Moreno finally reached Eastchester Road at about 2:10, he collapsed on the street, overcome with exhaustion and emotion. His friends picked him up off the ground and moved him to a bus bench, where he explained the backstory that led up to that day.
Moreno described growing up in foster care, surviving sexual assault, becoming homeless while in college and the experience of “having a kid and losing a kid.” He said he attempted suicide four years ago, but his sister found him without a pulse and took him to Jacobi, where he vowed to never end up in that situation again.
“That’s why I raise awareness, because I don’t want nobody else to feel how I felt,” Moreno said.
As he pulled the car, he said enduring the physical pain and exhaustion was difficult, but mental toughness was just as important — especially when a passerby told him repeatedly to give up.
“I have to take a break. This is not a race,” Moreno said. As possibly the only person to attempt this stunt, “This is my time.”
The documentary crew said they expect to complete the film within a few weeks and will screen it at Bronx venues to spread Moreno’s positive message.
The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available to text, call or chat 24/7 at 988.
Reach Emily Swanson at eswanson@schnepsmedia.com or (646) 717-0015. For more coverage, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @bronxtimes
