Ready?

It's getting closer and closer to the estimated time of departure for the 2012 ride across America. Every day I get more excited and ready to load some bikes on the Explorer for the trip to Maine then west to Washington and the Pacific! On Dashboard (for you MAC folks) I just started my Pedal America 2012 Days To Go widget and right now I have 119 days, 7 hours, 31minutes, and 32 seconds to go before Margaret and I head to the Northeast.

I am ready!

I'll have to admit I've been a little slack on my pedaling but that's not a problem. People ask me if I'm training for the next cross-country ride and I always tell them, "If someone really wants to ride across America, I believe he could take his bike to one coast or the other, unload it, and start pedaling. In a week or two, maybe three, he would be in good enough shape for the rest of the ride." It's not a matter of training, it's a matter of the mind. If training was required I would not have made it the first time! I looked in my journals and found that in the one month before the ride in 2009 I pedaled only ninety miles. If my math is correct, that's a whopping three miles a day! I don't believe that qualifies as training! But, after all, it's a ride not a race. It can be done by anyone who is willing to pedal only one mile . . . 4,295 times!

Now I've never been one for New Year's Resolutions but I do plan to get back to my somewhat regular riding schedule on Day One of 2012. That would give me about ninety-something days to ride . . . before I ride! Maybe I can do better than three miles a day!

Unless something unforeseen and unexpected happens, physically, I will be in shape to ride across America again. Going west or going east, when riding in the northern states, the second day is mountainous. Coming from the Pacific, the second day there's the climb up Washington Pass in the Cascade Mountains. Next hilly region is the Rockies.

From the Atlantic, the second day of the ride finds riders in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, then the Green Mountains of Vermont, and to top it off the Adirondack Mountains in New York. Either way, east or west, the first two weeks are like boot camp, preparing riders for the crossing of the good old U.S.A.

I'm really thinking about going back to the gym. I've not been a regular since 2005! That's embarrassing to say the least. (Maybe I should also make that one of those New Year's Resolutions I don't make!) I like the outdoor gym, called a bicycle, with the cool breeze on my face, the warm sun on my back, and the silence of wheels moving along on a smooth, hard surface. The smells on the road are, without a doubt, better than the gym. The smells on a bad day on the road are better than the smells on a good day in the gym. Refreshing . . . especially in the mornings. Another reason I should go to the gym, Margaret goes consistently. Looks bad for me to be a slacker, doesn't it? Anyway, if I go to the gym, I'll let you know.

Mentally, turn me loose! Right now I'm watching the video of the last ride. (Fourth time today.) Jonathan and I are in Minnesota, just out of Red Wing and about to cross the river into Prescott, Wisconsin. I am doing the whole trip in my mind now. I can feel it. I can see between the slides. I can hear the critters in the trees and the fields. I can feel the slight mist of the morning as we pedal out of Fountain City, Wisconsin right along the Mighty Mississippi River. It's a good feeling too.

I am ready!

Socially I'm ready! I love to meet and talk with the grassroots, hard-workin', flag-wavin', gun-tottin', church-goin', patriotic folks who are the backbone of these United States. They don't have time to occupy anything but their homes, jobs, farms, churches, and communities. On the last ride, I talked with restaurant owners, cooks, waitresses, police officers, mechanics, motel clerks, bikers on Harley Davidsons, bikers doing the same thing I was doing but in the other direction, pastors, store owners, a senator, kids, bike mechanics and shop owners, vacationers, truck drivers, cowboys, farmers, retirees, Jonathan, Margaret, myself . . . and the list could go on and on!

I am ready!

Spiritually I'm ready to launch into another revival ride through God's incredible creation! Jonathan's most-used, three-word phrase sums it up, "Oh my goodness!" I'll miss him and hearing "Oh my goodness" three or four time an hour. Oh my goodness is actually an excellent summary of the ride however. Every time I even come close to thinking about the first ride and the next, Psalm 19 comes to mind, "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" (vv. 1-4).

But how can I think of Psalm 19 without Romans 1:18-20 following on its heals, "But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who push the truth away from themselves. For the truth about God is known to them instinctively. God has put his knowledge in their hearts. From the time this world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse whatsoever for not knowing God."

I have a cowboy friend in Monticello, Utah who told me, "Most of the cowboys I know out here believe in God. You just can't ride out here in his creation for days on end without believing."

Job speaking to his buddy Zophar in Job 12:7-9 said it like this, "Ask the animals, and they will teach you. Ask the birds of the sky, and they will tell you. Speak to the earth, and it will instruct you. Let the fish of the sea speak to you. They all know that the Lord has done this."

The fish know it, the animals too. The birds know, and the sky, and the earth! Seems like we who are created in his image have the most difficulty believing in our Creator: we who have all the degrees and power and knowledge and that other stuff that sets us aside as smart!

Once again I'm reminded of yet another passage in Romans, "Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn't worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. The result was that their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they became utter fools instead" ( vv. 21-22).

In the book of Job, God gives Job the ultimate final exam of Job's life. The written exam would have probably been a lot easier but Job had a problem of putting his foot in his mouth and chewing vigorously. The exam dialogue is found in chapters 38 through 42 and it's quite an extensive question and answer session. Finally in chapter 42, verses 2-3, Job responds, "I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you. You ask, 'Who is this that questions my wisdom with such ignorance?' It is I. And I was talking about things I did not understand, things far too wonderful for me."

Way to go Job!

When I rode across America God gave me the answers to Job's exam. I cheated! I saw the answers in full color, wide screen creation, and with special effects, that were full of things far too wonderful for me. Like Job, I realized the truth of two major things for my life:

1. God is God and I am not.

2. God has all the answers and I do not.

That's it!

I'm ready! Margaret, can we leave tonight?

Some Stray Thoughts!

Some Stray Thoughts from others who also like to turn the crank as a means of transportation, recreation, and adventure:

"The world lies right beyond the handlebars of any bicycle." -Daniel Berhman, The Man Who Loved Bicycles

"I delighted in the supreme sense of freedom that comes with the first mile of a bicycle journey." -Dan Buettner, on beginning his 12,000 mile, 277-day ride across Africa.

"The best rides are the ones where you bite off much more than you can chew, and live through it." -Doug Bradbury

"Movement, on a cross-country ride, it's your lifeblood." -Frosty Woolridge

"Bicycles have no walls." -Paul Cornish

"A raggedy ride beats a dressed-up walk." -Simon Peat

"The only regret I have in my life is never learning to ride a bicycle." -Helen Hayes

"I like riding a bicycle built for two--by myself." -Harry S. Truman

"If the wind is not against you, it is not blowing." -James E. Starrs, The Noiseless Tenor

"There is nothing, absolutely nothing, quite so worthwhile as simply messing about on bicycles." -Tom Kunich

"Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride." -John F. Kennedy

"Never use your face as a brake pad." -Jake Watson

"There are three ways to pedal a bike. With your legs, with your lungs, or with your heart." -Mandible Jones, Carpet Particles

"Dad, if you get to the top of a hill and there are no numbers, stop pedaling, you're dead." -Sarah, one of my daughters, after she gave me a heart monitor.

"You think a Christian is a sissy? meek and mild? less than a man? The young men who rode from ocean to ocean on bicycles--thirty-five hundred miles in seven weeks--will prove you wrong." -Jack Houston, Wandering Wheels, (the book that started it all for me)

"If we can do it, you can do it." -Richard and Barbara Siegert, Bicycle Across America

"Two boys on a bike trip are sure to find adventure. Send them off into the wilds of the American West, and it's a safe bet adventure will find them." -Evelyn McDaniel Gibb, Two Wheels North

"No car rides, no walking hills, and no hangers-on." -Brian Newhouse, A Crossing

"There were big cities, rural towns and great stretches of open land. Heroes and villains are out there too, but mostly it's fine people living day-to-day . . . The weather wasn't left out either. From the first winter storm in the mountains of Washington through the tailwinds in Idaho to the heat and storms of the South, weather kept things from getting boring. Seeing America at ten miles an hour without the protective shell of a car allows all the senses to get to know the country. It was an interesting ride with insights into culture and sore muscles." -T. E. Trimbath, Just Keep Pedaling

"Once you've made it through Kansas you've got it licked." -Phil Shrout, america at twelve miles an hour

"You know, we have had a good time. The weather, as I said, is very hot today, but it was pleasant yesterday. We had some strong wind in our faces and that made it miserable for a while, but cloud cover helped and we really have done pretty well. As the wind turns around and gets to your back, it makes the ride very, very comfortable. So we've had a good time so far." -Mike Trout, The Heart of America

"A man can live ten minutes without air, two days without water, and forty days without food--but not a single second without hope." -Norman Cousins

Some Stray Thoughts of my own:

"There's no such thing as a free downhill."

"It's a ride not a race."

"Pedal smarter not harder!"

"Stop . . . I've gotta take a picture." -to Jonathan about every 15 miles pedaled on the 2009 cross-country ride.

"You don't stop riding because you get old, you get old because you stop riding." -Moab t-shirt

"We're going to Maine." -kind of the Battle Cry of the first ride.

"The heavens tell of the glory of God. The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship." -Psalm 19:1

I love quotes. Quotes are like proverbs and proverbs are like billboards: short and to the point. Quotes are also easy to remember. Proverbs 17:27a reminds me, "A truly wise person uses few words . . . " Seven wise words reminding me that I don't have to say a lot to say a lot. In fact, sometimes saying nothing is better than even a few words. Proverbs 17:28 tells it like it is: "Even fools are thought to be wise when they keep silent; when they keep their mouths shut, they seem intelligent."

Now that I'm older and maybe wiser I probably like quotes because something shorter is easier for me to remember. My motto for life has been for several years, "I can read but I can't remember so write it down." That's why I journal, that's why I blog and that's why I will blog for the next ride. Even good memories are worthless if they can't be remembered.

Which reminds me . . . lots of followers sent lots of quotes to 4295miles.blogspot.com. Maybe you've got a favorite quote or two about riding, or life in general, and you'd like to share words of wisdom with someone who can read but can't remember and others just like me. We'd love to hear from you. Billboards, quotes, proverbs, or bumper stickers . . . bring 'em on.

A truly wise person uses few words . . . truly wise people write them down too!

101 Reasons I'm Going Again!

101 REASONS

The real people of America. French fries with tartar sauce. Finishing at the end of each day. Smells. Hole-in-the-wall eateries. Small bike shops. Wide open spaces. Downhills. The anticipation and excitement of riding through places I've always heard about but never been. Showers. Feeling tight and healthy. Riding the back streets of cities and main streets of small towns. Going a little bit faster than the dog. Not understanding how a bike stays upright when I'm on it. My shadow moving next to me. An occasional but incredible tailwind. People saying, "Are you crazy?" I want to ride DOWN Washington Pass! Cleats and clip-in pedals. Songs in my head.

Quiet, nothing but the wind. Early morning fog. Figuring out how to carry one more license plate. The mountain climbs. Experiencing creation at much less than interstate speeds. Beef Jerky, gummy bears, and Carb Boom. Ducks in North Dakota. Riding in the rain. Seeing the brown Explorer parked up the road. Barns. Rest days. Because it was too good to do just one time. Riding Michigan's U.P. Leg warmers, wind breakers, and gloves. Centuries. The Great Lakes. "Where ya headed?" from riders pedaling the other way. Grain elevators from miles away. Wildlife. Smooth road surfaces.

Breakfast subs in Twisp, Washington. The Atlantic and the Pacific. Crossing the halfway mark. Junk stores. Noma in Tonasket. Breaking the speed limit. Bison burgers. Making new friends. Getting better routes from the locals. Stopping to catch great photo shots. Blogging the adventure. Praying with Margaret by the Explorer each morning. Route 2. Historical sites. The mysteries of abandoned farm houses. Surprises. Cold water that doesn't taste like a water bottle. Maps. Root beer. Burning up calories faster than I can put them in.

Encouraging notes on my blog. Snow in the mountains. Bald eagles, bison, moose, and antelope. Cannondale. The challenge of a good ride. The riders who will join me along the way. Riding, no matter what! Discovering more of America. The Coeur d'Alene Bike Trail across Idaho. Downtown Duluth, Minnesota. Ice cream. Ignoring detours. SRAM components. The mixed emotions of getting closer to the Pacific. Riding through an irrigation sprinkler on a hot day. The long talks even when I'm alone. The click of a cleat in a pedal. A perfectly adjusted saddle. A great opportunity to share my faith in Jesus. The unexpected.

Cool and colorful jerseys. Hearing my heartbeat. People in cars looking at me like I'm crazy, especially on rainy or snowy days. No hands! The mist from the Pacific at Neah Bay, Washington. Eugene's Pizza in Glasgow, Montana. Bumper stickers. Lonely roads and little traffic. The mountains of the Northeast. Long trains going my way. A new bike. Sounds of the road under my two tires. Freedom. The wonder of it all. Refreshment, renewal, and revival. Creation bragging about the Creator. Cattle running away from me and horses running with me. Dipping my back tire in the Atlantic Ocean. Dipping that front tire in the Pacific. Packing a treasure chest of memories.

So I can say, "Because it was too good to do just two times."