Wandering Wheels

A bicycle is probably the most important item necessary if a person is to ride one across America. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to determine that, does it?

After riding across America in 2009, I knew I had to do it again. I told Margaret, "That's too good to only do one time." She whole-heartedly agreed. With her on board I added, "If I'm going to do a new ride it only seems logical that I should do it on a new bike. Right?" (C'mon, agree with me.) As you can see, she did give in!

Sometime later my son-in-law, Barry, said to me, "Wouldn't it be fun to buy a frame on eBay and build your own bike?" I thought it was a good idea and started looking. When I spotted a yellow 56 cm Cannondale R2000 frame I knew it should be the next machine to take me on another adventure. The price was right, $350, and it was a Buy It Now so I clicked on the magic button on my Mac keyboard and that yellow frame was mine!

Soon the much-awaited package was on the back porch and the search for parts was on! I found Mavic Cosmic Elite Wheels on Craig's List; Ritchey Logic WCS alloy handlebars, Ritchey carbon seatpost, Selle Italia saddle, and Mavic skewers on eBay; Cateye Strada computer, water bottle cages, SRAM Force groupo (shifters, crank, cables, brakes, and rear cassette), Ritchey carbon fork, a pair of Serfas tires, tubes, some bar tape, a Ritchey headset, all from Jimmy Marbut, owner of Sunshine Cycles in Athens and Watkinsville; and a pair of SPD pedals Barry found at a bike shop in Atlanta. With my Cannondale R2000 frame and all the necessary components to build a really nice bike sitting in my study I suddenly developed a terminal case of let's-build-a-bicycle-itis!

I had already asked Jimmy at Sunshine Cycles to take all the parts and make a bicycle. He agreed to do so. Sunshine Cycles opens at 10:00 AM every day except Sunday but Barry (son-in-law) and I were at the Watkinsville shop at 8:00 AM on a Monday morning to get this project rolling. Jimmy soon had an operating Cannondale on one of his bike racks and it was mine! And . . . I was cranked and ready to ride it.

I've put some good miles on that yellow Cannondale already. It's a good ride, a little different than my red Cannondale that carried me across The United States of America in 2009, and I believe it's ready for the new challenge. Barry said he thinks the new bike is faster too. Sure I like the part about being faster but I'm really a Point A to Point B kind of rider, plus I stop to take lots of pictures, talk to people, venture into junk stores and bike shops, and eat in the fine dining eateries on the backroads of this country. I do think it's an easier ride than my other bike but I'll confirm that somewhere in Michigan or Minnesota early next year. For right now, I am simply thankful that the yellow frame, wheels, and box of miscellaneous parts that was in my study is now a light (18.12 pounds), comfortable, classy-looking machine that is still in my study. You don't think I park it in the garage do you? It might get dusty!

All of that miscellaneous parts becoming a bicycle makes me think about the church and the human body. In the Bible, 1 Corinthians 12:12, the Apostle Paul wrote, "The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up only one body. So it is with the body of Christ." He added in verses 14, 18, 22, and 27 respectively, "Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part. . . . But God made our bodies with many parts, and he has put each part just where he wants it. . . . In fact, some of the parts that seem weakest and least important are really the most necessary. . . . Now all of you together are Christ's church, and each one of you is a separate and necessary part of it."

There you have it, Parts is Parts until someone like Jimmy gets hold of them! Then parts become a 56 cm yellow Cannondale R2000 bicycle capable of carrying someone across the roadways of America from the Atlantic to the Pacific. And each part is a separate and necessary part of the whole machine.

So it is with the church. Parts is Parts until God gets hold of them! Then parts become a living Family of the Father. He puts each part, separate and necessary, just where he wants it and together we are Christ's church and capable of carrying the love of God not only from coast to coast but around the world!

The new bike works because all the parts are separate and necessary and just where they should be. Same thing for the church.

Let's find our places!

You Must Be Crazy!

On May 3rd of 2009 I dipped the rear tire of my Cannondale R600 in the Pacific Ocean at Anacortes, Washington to begin the ride of my life. For years I had a desire in my heart to cross America on my bike. No, not the Harley kind of bike, the pedal kind of bike. As Jonathan Wentworth and I pedaled east to the Atlantic Ocean we were asked almost every day, "Where are you guys going?" When we answered that question, especially in the west, the response we heard most often was, "You must be crazy!"

Maybe we were crazy but it sure was the best crazy I've ever experienced.

We arrived back home on July 4th, greeted by family and friends, the journey of a lifetime completed. We had ridden 51 days, pedaled 4,295 miles, rested a few days, crossed fourteen states, met incredible people, ate way too much great food at hole-in-the-wall eateries in each state, and experienced America as few people do. We pedaled through the Cascade Mountains, the Rockies, the Adirondack Mountains, the Green Mountains, and the White Mountains.

We pedaled over 100 miles on Interstate 90 in Idaho and Montana (It's legal there.) We crossed the high plains where the wind blows all directions, all day, every day. The Mississippi River wasn't so "Mighty" where we crossed but it was our halfway mark so size was not important to us. The only big cities we rode through were Fargo and Cleveland and I'm not sure about Fargo. Maybe our back road route made Fargo seem smaller than it actually is.

We, like the Post Office, rode through sub-freezing temperatures, wind, rain, sleet, snow, and fog. Bugs and dogs were not a real issue. We had a total of five dogs chase us but most were on Montana ranches. By the time they got to the ends of their long, long driveways they were too tired to go any farther.

Our best friends on the roads were truck drivers. Almost all eighteen wheelers gave us plenty of room by moving to the left lanes when possible. They were kind, courteous, safe, and and always friendly.

I could go on and on about the trip. In fact, I will . . . next year, Lord willing. Yes, I must be crazy! But . . . I'm married to a crazy woman who also wants to cross America again. On July 5th, 2009, our first time back at church since April 19th, someone asked Margaret, "Would you do it again?"

Her response, "Oh yes, I would leave tonight if I could!"

OUR PLANS

We are already looking at maps and routes and have decided that we'll ride from Maine to Washington. The only major change in our route is in Ohio. There we will head north through Michigan to the Upper Peninsula where we'll get on Route 2 and head west to somewhere near Spokane. We'll get off of Route 2 onto Route 20 to go over the Cascades through Tonasket, Okanogan, Twisp, Marblemount, Concrete, Anacortes, and to the Pacific coast at Cape Flattery/Neah Bay. All across America we want to look up folks we met in 2009 and make more friends along the way.

Since I don't have a riding buddy this trip I have people who are going to meet Margaret and me and ride portions of the ride: Sarah, our daughter, and her husband Barry want to ride with us either from the Atlantic into New York or across Ohio. My brother-in-law, Johnny, wants to ride across Ohio with me. Phil Jones, a good friend living in Texas, plans to ride for two weeks in the midwest (He wants to ride where it's flat! C'mon Phil!). Patti and Gary Warren are planning to meet us in Spokane and go to the coast with us and, when we finish the ride, hang out in Seattle for a week. What a team!

I have a new bike and I'll tell you about that at another time. I have a list of things I want to do differently. I'll tell you about all those things too . . . later!

So, you ask, when will all this happen? The plan is to leave Statham, Georgia on April 9th, 2012 (The day after our 45th Anniversary) and drive to Maine. Along the way we'll make some visits with family and friends and should arrive in Maine sometime on or around April 12th. The rear tire of the new Cannondale R2000 will meet the waters of the Atlantic on April 15th and the Adventure begins . . . again. As Casey Stengle once said, "It's deja vu all over again!"

I've never been homesick but there is a kind of homesick feeling in my heart that's calling me to get back out there. I am ready and . . . yes, I am crazy.

One of my everyday companions on the 2009 ride was this passage of Scripture:

The heavens tell of the glory of God.

The skies display his marvelous

craftsmanship.

Day after day they continue to speak;

night after night they make him

known.

They speak without a sound or a word;

their voice is silent in the skies;

yet their message has gone out to all

the earth,

and their words to all the world.

-Psalm 19:1-4

I plan to write every Friday before we head north in April of next year. I'll let you know how things are going and what we're up to. Once we head north I'll keep you posted each day. Hope some of you will keep in touch, ride with us, and pray for us.

Enjoy the trip with us.