Category Archives: 2017 San Francisco to Savannah

The blog for the 2017 Cross-Country Ride.

ICU nurse seeks cycling partner for life

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Written by: Mike Powers

On Thursday, I had the pleasure of cycling in a group with an injured Macy. It was her unfortunate ankle accident that brought us all together at the same pedal speed for one day. Otherwise, she is much too fast for our cycling abilities. Her misfortune was our gain, and we took advantage of our time together.

Let’s cut to the chase–my blog today is fully dedicated to telling you about the overall awesomeness of Macy, and to find out if our readers have any potential suitors in their lives that may match up well with Macy’s overall awesomeness. (By the way, this blog has not been approved by Macy; her initial reaction should be priceless.)

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Coast to coast simple living

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Written by: Lou Cooper

I started the 2017 FCBA cross-country ride with the goal of biking coast to coast and to raise money for the Fuller Center organization.

So far the ride has added up to be so much more than these two expectations. Participating in an environment with those hosting our ride, the riders, and the support crew sharing, receiving, and giving of themselves daily is inspiring. One sees how the goodness that surrounds us percolates beyond even our little 2017 FCBA family through our interactions with the people we meet during our travels.

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A day of rest stops

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Written by: Phil Gash

Like the other riders, I woke up this morning with my back on the floor. It was not supposed to have occurred as I had an air mattress. What happened during the night was the air had escaped—for the second time. Well, that means another trip to Walmart.

So we, Becky and I, took a side trip to Walmart to find a leak-proof mattress and upon returning stopped at a local donut shop for coffee and substance. Then we were on the way to Grace’s first rest stop after religiously following the route sheet. I missed a turn and had to make a California U-turn (i.e. middle of the street) to get to Grace’s rest stop.

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Summer time living

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Written by: Judy Nast

We just came into Louisiana, the heart of the Creole country. It brings to mind the song “summer time and the living is easy.” Everyone refers to you as the “all.”

Today we took a guided tour following the Cane River and stopped at the Oakland Plantation. This plantation was a smaller, working plantation with enslaved people. When the French first came over the crops were indigo and tobacco. Now the main crops are corn, beans, and a little bit of cotton. There are very few working plantations, mostly smaller farmers. I grew up on a farm, so I’m always curious as to what crops are being grown. Back in the early 1900s, how were the enslaved people able to grow enough to sustain their family?

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Renee’

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Written by: Rebecca Mitchell

When I first envisioned this evening, I thought the high of it all would be getting pie with my parents. Boy, was I wrong. The evening turned into something far more beautiful, and it still included pie.

All of us on the cross-country ride headed to the local Fuller Center surplus store for dinner, where Lee had cooked red beans and rice for everyone. As dinner was wrapping up, Henry had people share about their build day experiences. Michael, the construction manager, received praise after praise for leading the group on the build site. But the care of every Fuller Center member we met was amazing, especially Renee.

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Do you believe in magic?

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Written by: Kian Ellis

I believe in magic. Real magic. No, I don’t carry a wand or an amulet or a bag of pixie dust. I live in the real world. Magic, in its infinite complexity and mystery, could never be reduced to the blunt and simple blasts of heat and light that movies love to associate with it. Fire is weak, measurable, limited. Magic has no limitations. This means that magic can only exist in one place: our own minds.

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It’s an Adventure. Just keep Pedaling. You’re a Rockstar.

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Written by: Meredith Fitzpatrick 

My legs feel like lead, my chamois is irritating me like crazy, it’s too hot, I’m hungry, I need my own space, I’m tired, did I mention my legs hurt… but I just keep pedaling.

It’s truly incredible how far we’ve pushed ourselves at this point. We’re now well over the halfway point on this incredible cross-country bike adventure and currently making a lot of progress into the South with only three weeks left of the journey. To get here we’ve ascended and descended several mountain passes, went through the desert and salt flats, have endured rain, wind, snow, crazy heat and now my favorite—humidity! We’ve also gotten up to beat said heat at 4:30 in the morning several times and at this point it all feels really normal. We’re in a rhythm and somehow it works. We’re a funny little family of people that would have never come together under any other circumstances and I’m having the best time with all of them.

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Oklahomeland

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Written by: Macy Holsinger

There is just something special about being ‘home.’ Whether it’s your favorite comfy chair or your mom’s homemade cinnamon rolls, there is something familiar and comfortable about being home. Riding through Oklahoma is like that for me—familiar, comfortable, and homey.

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Receiving bountifully

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Written by: Rebecca Mitchell

“We’re so glad you’re here!” “Thank you for coming!” These are things we hear often from our hosts along the way. I am always amazed at the hosts because they are opening their doors to us, and maybe feeding us, helping coordinate showers or simply hanging out with us—and yet they thank us for coming.

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