Saturday, April.30th

I have biked 283 miles on the Natchez Trace and am currently in Kosciusko, MS. Have been sick for the last 3 days and have lost a lot of steam. Even small hills take extreme effort. When I awoke this AM my throat was closed and I could not speak. I biked almost 22 miles today even with my body screaming to stop, so I did, my average is still a little over 40 mpd. Longest day was 64 miles, the first day of this chest, throat problem. Been downhill since, not downhill on the road, however. I have 160 miles to go to get to Natchez, hopefully the weather and my health will allow me to continue tomorrow. I have only been able to bike 6 1/2 days out of the 11 since leaving home. Not a very good record. Had a tornado hit within 5 blocks of where I was staying Belmont, MS. Did not even hear it tear down 3 buildings and uproot numerous trees. I hope to be able to post a lot more with pictures soon.

Wednesday, April 20th

Getting ready to drive to the beginning of my ride. Will spend the night in Fly, TN and then start riding the Natchez Trace. I am excited about it. Hope the storms move on out. Rain predicted for 8 of the next 10 days. Hope they are wrong. I loaded my bags and unloaded them 10 times and still have 70 lbs to load on the bike. I will probably find out I don't need some of the stuff, but right now it seems I really do. Hope to keep the blog up often.

February 17th, 2011

My new bike is about ready. Had to make some revisions to the original product to suit my biking style. Am looking forward to my spring ride. The Natchez Trace and part of the Mississippi River Trail. Planning around 1150 miles in all. Looking for some hardy soul to join me. I rode 28 miles Monday, not a very long ride, but an arduous one: up Madera Canyon road with an elevation gain of 2600 ft in 13 miles, 1000 of which occurred in the last 2 miles. Shoulder and elbow are about back to normal, still have some residual pain but no lack of mobility. Don't forget to exercise today. Your heart will love you for it!

January 25, 2011

Back in the saddle again. Rode 12 miles on the 23rd. Looking for a new bike. One that is lighter and geared a little better. Arm and shoulder coming along, still some pain. Have some breathing issues due to the lay off and the elevation here, which is around 2900 ft. above sea level. Will get there, eventually. Still planning my ride in spring. Looks like it will be about 1150 miles. Looking for a partner for that ride.

January 3, 2011

Currently in Tucson where I am spending the winter. I will be undergoing physical therapy on my shoulder and arm post surgery. I plan to work on my biking and running in order to build up my stamina in preparation for the upcoming season. I have some trips planned for the spring and summer. Additionally, I hope to run in several competitive races.

Sunday, October 17th

All the stuff I carried with me 77 lbs at the start. The postal boxes contain all the stuff I mailed home along the way. A box here a box there. Down to around 38 lbs at the end of the trip.
Goodbye to the Katy trail. Clinton MO the western terminus.
As you can all tell, I have deviated from my original plan to walk across America. I have moved to biking and will more than likely not complete a cross country trek. However, I will be still active in the push for for people to get out and walk, or exercise in some fashion or another. I plan to ride some of the lesser traveled roads in America, hopefully in the spring, I will be riding the Natchez Trace from Nashville, TN to Natchez, Ms then maybe up the Mississippi to Memphis, TN, around 6 or 7 hundred miles. In the meantime you will find me in AZ (after Jan 1) riding and hiking in the mountains and foothills around Tucson, AZ. I also plan to run in about 10 competitive races while in AZ. REMEMBER TO TAKE YOUR HEART FOR A WALK!!!

Saturday, October 16th

The end of the trail and the end of an awesome, never to be equaled (by me) ride, where the experiences were rich and the physical demands were great.
Add another 1 1/2 miles to this that took me to the motel where I awaited my extraction team.

Trail rules.
The Calhoun, Mo Grain elevator.
An Amish family on their way to the Friday auction in Windsor. Quite a few of these passed by the B & B.
Note that this cafe has rooms and meals. Not too many offer that combination.
Haven't seen one of these Western Auto signs in ages. I think something else is actually in the building.
Caboose No. 76 in Windsor, MO

The pink room in Fern's B and B. Complete with full bath and whirlpool tub.