Tentative Ride:Well Schedule

Many of you have asked about the schedule for the upcoming Ride:Well Tour, and I have consistently answered that I would let you know as soon as possible.

I really haven't been trying to be secretive; I just genuinely haven't known with much certainty. The truth is that, while we have a tentative plan, the route is subject to slight changes at any time. A lot of it will be dictated by receptiveness to Blood:Water Mission.

That being said, here is what we have in mind:

• June 3-5:   Team Training in San Diego
• June 6:   Tour Officially Begins
• June 6-8:   California
• June 8-16:   Arizona
• June 16-23:   New Mexico
• June 23 - July 5:   Texas
• July 5-8:   Arkansas
• July 8-16:   Tennessee
• July 16-20:   Georgia
• July 20-26:   South Carolina

[Click here for a map of the basic route we are planning to follow.]

As always, thanks so much for your interest and support! I will be updating you on the specifics as often as I can...

Acknowledging Pilgrims, Avoiding Plagiarism

As you may have noticed, I decided to change a thing or two (or three or ten) about the blog. This includes not only its appearance, but even its web address and title.

Why the changes? Mostly for the sake of consistency. The main reason I started the blog, after all, was to share my experiences with Ride:Well. So I’ve tried to make it a bit more consistent with that goal.

But this post is not simply to acknowledge the changes. It is more about giving credit where it's due for the new title, "Something About the Journey."

I am a firm believer that the journey is usually at least as rewarding as the destination, so I really wish I could take credit for the phrase. But I can't...

160 Miles (To Tupelo and Back)

About a week ago, on Saturday, May 8, I set out on my bike with the hope of completing what, by my standards, would be an epic ride. I had two main goals in mind: to push myself beyond my comfort zone and to incite some extra interest in the upcoming Ride:Well Tour.

I had actually been harboring the idea of a big mileage day in preparation for Ride:Well for months. My original plan had been to ride from Florence, AL (where I live) to Nashville, TN (where Blood:Water Mission’s central office is located). And my projected date was Saturday, May 1 -- the day that we now remember for the Great Nashville Flood. Needless to say, the weather complicated the original plan a bit. Granted, if I had gone through with the ride it would almost certainly have allowed me to achieve the goals I mentioned above; but there’s a good chance it would have cost me one of my additional, underlying goals: that of remaining alive at least until this summer.

So, as is often the case in life, the plan changed...