Blogs - Ride:Well Tour

Rely on Me.

I road my bike across the country this summer. That still sounds weird. Before I left I knew I wanted to spend the summer trusting God. This happened. I also wanted God to let me know what I was supposed to do with my life. That did not happen. Is that too much to ask for? What did happen? “Rely on Me” – God That’s all I heard. That’s all I learned. That’s all I did. That is all I have. That’s it. There were days that were hotter then I ever thought possible. Some days were never ending. Th… Continue

Added by Lisa on November 6, 2009 at 7:29pm — No Comments

Friends, I write to you today from South Africa, my new home and placement as a United Methodist Mis…

Friends, I write to you today from South Africa, my new home and placement as a United Methodist Missionary. Its been a while since I've visited here, but I wanted to share with you a story with a joyful about how I got here - which Ride:Well played an unexpected role in. I am here for 18months with two other young women from the US. We had several struggles getting our long-term visas to South Africa, as many last-minute requests were made by the Consulate before granting them. While these cha… Continue

Added by Jen Tyler on October 20, 2009 at 7:15am — No Comments

Reflections on a bike ride... Just a tad bit late.

(I wrote this in August 2008. I just now found it on my computer.) Life is always so much more than we expect it to be; of this, I am completely sure. I did not expect to be riding my bicycle three thousand, one hundred miles across the United States this summer. And when I did finally myself on the phone with my mother, over lunch with my best friend Tranica, and updating my Facebook profile with that incredible announcement, something inside of me twinged in disbelief: "Really, Jess? You actu… Continue

Added by Jessica Abt on August 22, 2009 at 3:02pm — 3 Comments

One-liners and Robert Frost

Almost two weeks after the fact I finally sat down to clunk out some reflections. I guess it's more of a sampling of things that I've learned, that have convicted me, resounded with me, etc., all in cute, compact one-liner form. Some are from sermons, others from the mouths of the Ride:Well family. Some are obvious, others profound. But simple as some may be, I think there's a little more to be taken from each one than first meets the eye. One dollar provides clean water for one African for one… Continue

Added by Deb Go on August 21, 2009 at 4:42pm — 2 Comments

Coming Home

This summer, as it turns out, flew by. I cannot begin to describe it. I have only begun to process it. There are a few things I know for sure, a lot of questions that remain heavy in the air, and even more things that I will surely continue to learn as I process over the next weeks, months, perhaps even years. This is a pattern I have been blessed with in my life. A pattern of incredible opportunities and experiences I have seized, to return from them a changed and more whole person, yet also b… Continue

Added by Jen Tyler on August 19, 2009 at 10:00am — 4 Comments

The 12 Days of Ride:Well Tour

Lyzz, Jen, and I started singing this one rainy day in VA and I thought I would share it with you all. "On the first day of Ride:Well Tour my bike gave to me: A flat tube in a tire." "On the second day of Ride:Well Tour my bike gave to me: Two "Car Backs!!!" and a flat tube in a tire." "On the third day of Ride:Well Tour my bike gave to me: Three scratched knees......" "On the 4th day of Ride:Well Tour my bike gave to me: Four Broken Spokes....." "On the 5th day of Ride:Well Tour my bike gave t… Continue

Added by Brian Elliott on August 14, 2009 at 4:51pm — 1 Comment

The Journey is More Important Than the Destination

After 2 months and 250 hours of riding my bicycle beginning in Long Beach, CA and finishing the trip with a 143 mile ride starting in Baltimore, MD, I finally arrived at the Atlantic Ocean in Cape Henlopen, DE where we took our bikes into the ocean for a fantastic celebration! I rode 3,573 miles across 10 states, by beautiful beaces in CA, through 115 degree deserts in AZ, over 8,000+ ft high mountains, around dead mountain lions, possums, squirrels, moles, and other various roadkill, across loo… Continue

Added by Brian Elliott on August 14, 2009 at 1:30pm — 1 Comment

All The Same...But Different

I arrived back in Texas yesterday and everything seemed the same as I left it...busy and chaotic. I sure do miss the simplicity of living on the road. I went on a bike ride with my dad as soon as we got to the house. I rode my mountain bike, which had a flat before I even started. We rode to a restaurant to eat sushi (which I have been craving for the last 2 months). It was chopstick Tuesday (a tradition Lyzz and I started this summer that we encourage everyone to partake in....use chopsticks fo… Continue

Added by Brian Elliott on August 12, 2009 at 11:14pm — 1 Comment

What I tried to Tweet

As you may know, Twitter experienced technical difficulties last week which prohibited status updates sent via text message from showing up online. As a result, my coverage of the final leg of the Ride:Well Tour suffered. With this post, I would like to complete my reporting by showing you what I tried to Tweet and what I would have told you if I could. Enjoy! Last night I had dinner with my cousins from Leesburg: Steve, Anne, Molly and Frank. It was so fun to see them. 1:33 PM August 6th Limp… Continue

Added by Seth D. Willard on August 12, 2009 at 12:00pm — 3 Comments

About The End.

When I look back at this trip later in my life, I think I'll say it ended at a certain point about ten miles out from Cape Henlopen. Cody and I were sweep, just like we were on the first day out of Long Beach, making sure our little peleton got in without mishap. We had left the amazing fruit stand that gave us all free, delicious fruit. I was riding along on Erik's bike (mine had developed a fatal crack earlier) when it hit me: I don't have to worry anymore. The Tour is over, and we have comple… Continue

Added by Tyler H. Sevlie on August 10, 2009 at 10:08pm — 3 Comments

Anybody interested...

http://www.amerwestproperties.com/Chuckwagon-Cafe-a67648.html I'm in on this one...anybody else?? Continue

Added by Mike Barrow on August 10, 2009 at 1:00pm — No Comments

Finished:Well

The tour is over, we biked well our last day, our longest day. It was anywhere from 140 miles to 153 miles depending on who made wrong turns. It was a long, hard day of biking and we were tired at the end but I'll tell you the truth, the last thirty miles through Delaware to the coast were the best miles of the entire tour. I'm not entirely sure how it happened but somehow thirteen of us managed to group into our own little peleton for that last thirty miles, we were only missing two riders and… Continue

Added by Erik Pelttari on August 10, 2009 at 11:06am — 6 Comments

well...we've made it...

it’s hard to fathom exactly what’s transpired over the last two months… it’s even harder to put into words… and even harder than that to put down on paper… We’ve finally made it, we crossed the whole of the U.S. on bicycles. We started riding down the Pacific Coast, hopped 4000 feet over mountains, rode miles and miles through what seemed like a never ending desert which turned into never ending Texas, climbed through the Appalachian Mountains, and coasted across Delaware to finish on the… Continue

Added by Jacob Childerson on August 10, 2009 at 11:00am — 7 Comments

this summer i met an incredible group of people.

ride:well 09; i never thought there could be another group of people as crazy as the 08ers until you all came along. lisa, lisa, lyzz, jen, drew, criselda, bethany, brady, cody, tyler, brian, deb, seth, josh, erin, erin, erik, anthony, and jacob, congratulations on accomplishing this amazing feat; riding your bicycles across america. im sure you heard you share of, "you cant do that", "youre not serious", "do you even ride bikes?", and also the occasional, "no y'all aint!", or "who does that?",… Continue

Added by Erin McDermott on August 8, 2009 at 2:30pm — 4 Comments

Atlantic Ocean!!!!

I made it. Today, Drew and I, with an awesome support team consisting of Lisa Rudzik and the all-new Saturn Aura, made it to the beach just south of Baltimore. Best part, I got to shave in the water. Thank you all so much for the support this summer. It has been such an incredible time, full of incredible people and an incredible team. I am so thankful for having accomplished this. Stay posted, more blogs to come, I'm sure. Continue

Added by Anthony on August 7, 2009 at 1:38pm — 7 Comments

I did the cycling world a favor...

A couple days ago...i don't remember the town or the date (concussion), on HWY 11, I hit a dog. Favor - this dog will "never" run out in front of a cyclist again...no need to thank me. (I don't know what happened to the dog)... I don't remember anything from seeing the dog to being in the moving ambulance with Criselda going to the emergency room...It's weird not remebering an hour of your life. I was told I kept asking what happened and if my bike was o.k. :) It was the greatest hospital i have… Continue

Added by Erin White on August 4, 2009 at 8:29pm — 7 Comments

Just the Facts, Ma'am.

I'm going to write a bit about my team. Actually, I'm going to write one fact about each member of the team, a fact I have discovered over the course of our journey together from Long Beach. Deb Go: When asked how she is doing, Deb will always respond with, "I'm ok" and a little nod of the head. Therefore, to accurately judge how she is doing, you must listen to how slowly she says it. The slower the "ok" comes out, the worse she is feeling. When I figured this out I realized that Deb Go is tou… Continue

Added by Tyler H. Sevlie on August 4, 2009 at 7:14pm — 5 Comments

Our Time, As It Turns Out, is Short.

I am now in the part of this summer that I have dreaded, longed for, and wondered about. Three days of riding left. At the end of the week, I will ride my bike into the Atlantic Ocean. And then the tour will be done. I don't know quite what I'll do at that point. I've told myself I'd cry, but that's up in the air. I've looked forward to that moment, especially on the hard nights when everyone's bike is messed up and I'm tired and there's 90 miles to ride the next morning. There are moments, esp… Continue

Added by Tyler H. Sevlie on August 4, 2009 at 6:09pm — 5 Comments

Shifting Occupations

There is only one week left on the Ride:Well Tour. Next Monday, I will be flying back to Minnesota to spend a week with family and friends. Then, 10 days after that, I will get in my car and drive back out east in time for school to start at Regent in Virginia Beach on August 24. It's hard being in the van. I mean, it's hard being on the bike too, especially when the rain is coming down so hard one can't tell whether the bike is moving or the road is slipping out from underneath. There were day… Continue

Added by Seth D. Willard on August 3, 2009 at 12:38pm — 5 Comments

Fast and Furious

This Week: Rain, Rain, and more Rain! Crashes/Hospital visits: Deb slid on rocks..road rash; Seth tried to dodge Deb and flipped over guard rail...ripped shorts and 10 stitches in quadricep; Erin White hit a giant dog and slid on her back and hit/cracked her helmet..concussion. She is excited about finally having her own hospital bracelet. I just took 10 stitches out of Cody's head after some intense 50 meter out and back time trials at night around a lighted cone on a little girl's bike. Cody w… Continue

Added by Brian Elliott on July 31, 2009 at 9:56pm — 2 Comments

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