Written by: Lesly Jones, Blue Ride
Each year I like to choose an organization to volunteer my time, and often my money. This year, I chose the Fuller Center for Housing, by registering for the Fuller Center Bicycle Adventure. The plan is to ride my bike 3,500 miles across the country starting in Seattle, WA and finishing on the East Coast in Washington, DC, my current home!
What an amazing trip so far. We have been on the road for 15 days….12 ride days, 2 build days and 1 rest day. Tomorrow is rest day 2 and I am so excited. I was looking forward to visiting Yellowstone National Park, but after the wind today, I just want to rest.
This trip is so outside my box but I’m learning new things about myself everyday. No fancy hotels, none of my favorite steakhouses for dinner, heck, I haven’t even had any bacon since I left home but I’m surviving. I’m also pretty sure that this trip will be the catalyst to ensure that I spend the rest of my life as a minimalist. I really do have to much junk in my life, but this trip is allowing me to shed a little bit everyday.
When I started this adventure, I felt it might be a little crazy to think I could ride my bike across the USA. I now know that it wasn’t crazy I had to worry about …… this is no doubt, the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. It is also a humbling experience. Very often I am dead last, but each day we have sweep riders and they always take care of me. We are becoming a cycling family, one day at a time.
If you haven’t already, you should consider joining a Fuller Center Bicycle Adventure. Not only do you gain a lot of perspective about yourself, you will gain immense satisfaction from helping others. We have participated in 2 build projects, and both days I had the opportunity to speak with our host. They expressed a genuine appreciation for our help, and clearly let us know that the Fuller Housing commitment to offer a “Hand Up, Not a Hand Out” was exactly what they needed.
Here’s a little of America’s beauty, that many natives will never see! (somewhere in Montana)
