I’m not a fan of bureaucracy. During my teaching career I consistently chafed against rules designed (I thought) mostly to sustain the organization. It all begins with good intentions and before you know what happened you’ve got committees, meetings, org charts, and lists of rules. And when you ask “Why?” they say something about consistency, […]
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Putting Perfection In Context
A few folks from our team sported the new jerseys at last weekend’s ELEPHANT ROCK CYCLING FESTIVAL. So begins FREEDOM TOUR 2018. For the next few weeks our house becomes a staging area for jerseys, food, coolers, bikes, flyers, posters, trailers, and all sorts of miscellaneous stuff. We’ll scramble to get everything ready, and I’m […]
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Thoughts About Digging Up Seeds
I tend to decide whether something’s worthwhile based on short-term results. No matter how much I resist, my inner critic looks at how many dollars, how many riders, how fast, how far – and makes snap judgments about success or failure. Everyone’s smiling? All good. Someone’s unhappy? We failed. Jesus didn’t tell many manufacturing/building stories […]
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Great Guidance
“If you just do a bike ride, you’ll finish feeling unsatisfied.” Dick Foth offered maybe the best guidance I ever received. I was preparing in 2011 for my 1500-mile handcycle ride along the Mississippi River when Dick advised me to share the story of following this crazy God-sized dream. Honestly, I thought telling my story […]
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Saw a wonderful movie last week. Godspeed:The Race Across America follows Jerry Schemmel and Brad Cooper on a remarkable 7-day, 3000-mile cycling journey. In a Q&A afterward, Schemmel reflected on Now, what? What do you do once you’ve completed such an epic adventure? “I want to use this project to give God the glory.” Nothing about Look at […]
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Following A Trusted Guide
We’ve had our share of route misadventures. If you’ve been here a while you know about our trek through an open field, the encounter with a fence, and a portage around a flood. When you follow a God-sized dream, stuff happens that makes for great memories and around-the-campfire stories. Since Phil joined our circle, we […]
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What A Mess!
Every dream starts as a fairy tale. That’s how you imagine it, beautiful blue skies and smiles, nobody sweats, pictures turn out perfect. Then the people show up. Aunt Clara still hasn’t forgiven Uncle Charlie for that thing (whatever it was) way back when. One little boy gets muddy, another has his finger stuck up […]
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About (More Than) Numbers
“More people equals more success…right?” Andy said that, tongue firmly planted in cheek, in the quiet beauty that is Breckenridge, Colorado. As we waited for folks to arrive at Breckenridge Christian Ministries, he described BCM’s unique structure. Andy’s sort-of a leader. I say that because BCM operates with no paid staff. No pastor, no youth […]
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Fear And Distractions
Five years ago Becky and I toured the perimeter of Florida. When I tell the story, someone always asks, “Weren’t you scared?” Intense traffic. Rude, inconsiderate drivers. Few (and narrow) bike lanes. Lots of old people. It’s true, Florida’s generally not all that bike-friendly. But scared? Seriously? Cycling. Coast of Florida. February. I was having […]
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Not Doing Whatever It Takes
A while back a friend told me he’ll do “whatever it takes” to promote and attract people to his event. He believes in the cause it supports, so good results apparently justify “whatever it takes” to achieve them. I get it…when you’re passionate about feeding hungry children, rescuing orphans, or some other desperate cause, the overwhelming […]
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How To Avoid Alligators
Five years ago I cycled Tamiami Trail through the Everglades across southern Florida. Incredible experience riding through a unique, primeval environment. Even got attacked by a mythical skunk-ape (“mythical” story here). Tamiami Trail is a great place to Keep It Between The Ditches. The road’s bordered by deep canals. Several times I saw a single […]
Continue readingMore TagKeep It Between The Ditches!
“Stay out of the ditches” – generally good advice for driving or riding a bike. All sorts of bad stuff happens when a cyclist veers off the road, but simply avoiding the ditch isn’t much of a goal. I can stay on the pavement and still be a terrible rider. In fact, just sitting still, […]
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