By looking at someone, it is hard if not impossible to know their story.
One time, this 40 year old man jumped on his inexpensive Huffy bicycle and decided to ride it from Rhea County, Tennessee to Sturgis Michigan. The ride took him a total of three weeks to complete. I asked, “Did you ride alone?” He looked to the right and swallowed, “I did.” I inquired more, “Was it ever lonely?” He smiled, “Not at all.”
As for food, he simply asked others for money along the way. Amazingly, he never went without, sleeping on the roadside in a tent each night and staying in a motel if and when he had the funds to do so. The trip cost him a little over $500, but keep in mind he left with nothing. Only a bike, a tent and a change of clothes.
But, why the ride?
He rode the mountain bike to Michigan to visit his daughter on her third birthday after he broke up with his daughter’s mom the year prior. The mom then moved to Sturgis with their daughter.
After he stayed in Michigan for a full week, it was time to say goodbye. He got to peddling and headed for Ohio, a state he had never seen. From there, he decided it was time for a break and took a Greyhound from Ohio to Manchester, Tennessee where he worked for a moving company for two years.
One day, he plans to hike the Appalachian Trail with his younger brother who is 35. In case you are not familiar with the trail, it is about 2,200 miles long and yes – he plans to walk all of it. Someday.
“We travel, some of us forever, to seek other places, other lives, other souls.” – Anais Nin