“You’re doing what?”, “why would you do that?’, “are you sure you want to do that?” Those are the usual responses that I get when I mention to others that I will be traveling across the country on a bike. They ask, “a pedal bike?” I answer “yes, a pedal bike.” This, in turn, is followed by a “you are crazy!” or that old encompassing, “why?”
My answer is simple. WHY NOT! I consider myself a mini- adrenaline junkie. I have been skydiving, whitewater rafting, and ziplining. The basic, but amazing adventures I think that everyone needs to have at least once. So, when the idea of biking across the country came into play, I thought it was a joke. There is no way that it will happen, I said to myself.
I could have never been so wrong. It started as a fun idea, then Joanna and Jiwan took off with it, and everything literally fell into place, almost as if it were supposed to happen. Kind of creepy, but very cool. Now it’s a definite that I will be biking across the country, it is amazing how God can work these things out when there is a purpose behind it.
While Jiwan and Joanna were feverishly planning, I was feverishly trying to get back into shape. The past 2 years of going to tech school, and too much fast food, and literally no exercise allowed me to acquire some extra pounds. So, in the dead of summer with temperatures around 90 degrees consistently, I decided to start running. It was hot. I started running only a mile or a mile and a half for a while, but I was eventually able to run 2 miles around the block and then three. Eventually I could consistently run 6 every day. Looking back I’m surprised at how far I have come. Consistency is key, for anything really, but I especially learned this through running.
Mountain run. The mountain run was horrific; it was snowy and muddy and straight up a mountain on an old fourwheeler trail. Joanna and I ran 6 miles, while on a church retreat this January, most of it vertically. It was icy, snowy, and muddy, at about 20 degrees, and my asthma flared up. But we finally reached the top, and I learned that in training and this specific run, the hill is always worth the view.
Through all of this I’ve stuck to running, and am currently training for a half marathon and it also helps for the bike trip. Over 40 lbs. later, training has paid off. I have been biking 50+ miles to volunteer at Bike and Sol, the same shop Joanna volunteered at all summer. That’s a whole other story as to how I got roped into that scene, and I’ll save it for later.
I am very excited to have the opportunity and means to bike across the country this coming summer. I cannot have asked for a better group of people either. I look forward to the many adventures we will have as a group and look forward to all the fellowship between us and strangers. My hope is that we can grow closer together and to God while witnessing to others. 
Comments
Post a Comment