Monks, who owns and operates a title-search company in his day job, found himself on a mountain top some 225 miles north of Wantagh two days ago, with lightning striking all around.

The thunderstorm didn’t stop the wheels.

“I rode in it for a while,” he said.

At the snow pile in front of the Olympic Center, Monks was met with cheers and jubilation.

“Good job, Dad!” read his daughter Becca’s sign.

“How are you doing?” Monks asked his children.

“How does your seat feel?” asked his son Tommy, 16.

Monks’s sister Marie Wood drove the “supplies and gear” vehicle for the past day and a half, traveling ahead of her brother.

Another sister, Madeline Richez, held down the welcome party, keeping spirits high at the finish line.

The trip isn’t over yet.

Today, Monks is climbing to the 5,344-foot summit of Mount Marcy.

SILENT BATTLE

The ascent marks a journey that began in 1985 after Jimmy Monks was diagnosed with AIDS.

When Jimmy died in 1991, there were fewer treatment options, and little was known about HIV, Monks said.