Biking Coast to Coast

Biking Coast to Coast

It’s my goal to bike across the country staying in as many homeless shelters as I can to raise awareness about the people in the shelters. Biking is a passion of mine and it's also one of the main ways that homeless people get around. My goal in biking and staying in shelters will be to illustrate and capture the conditions that hundreds of thousands of homeless people experience every day. I want to tell their stories and show people that almost anyone could find themselves on the streets. Oftentimes the homeless people I encounter are some of the friendliest, most positive people I meet. Their ability to maintain positive attitudes despite their circumstances leaving them with little reason to be is inspiring! The idea to bike across the country was inspired by one of my college friends who rollerbladed across the country to raise money for No Kid Hungry. At the time I had no idea how he could do it, let alone think I could do it myself. One thing I did know is that I was envious of his purpose and his freedom. He found a way to help a lot of people by doing something that he loved. His trip covered 3571 total miles with 80 days of blading (129 days total). He raised $32,582 for no kid hungry. Here is an article he wrote in the Huffington Post about his experience: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/rollerblade-across-america_n_5bbf634ae4b01a01d688446f I am planning my trip for Summer 2025. My goal is to work really hard over the next year to build up the brand by telling the stories of the homeless people in my community and those nearest me. I am planning some overnight regional bike trips to other shelters in preparation for the summer long trip. My goal is to put myself in a financial position where I am able to quit my full time job so that I can focus exclusively on helping the homeless at the trip's end. A part of my goal would also be to be able to support my brother financially so that he can quit his job and film the journey. His dream was to be a filmmaker and he created some really cool projects as an international film major in college. Like so many people he had to abandon his dream in order to survive in our modern american society where art is not appreciated unless it can be monetized. My goal is also to enable my parents to travel along with us in an RV. My dad has always wanted to travel across the country in an RV (my mom not so much). They both worked very hard to provide for my brother and I growing up and thankfully they are both retired so they have the time. This trip would be the culmination of my family's dreams. My mother has talked about getting the family together for an extended trip for years. She has been battling Kidney Cancer since 2006, although you would never know it by observing her. Her energy and compassion for others has been an inspiration my whole life. Her example is something I aspire every day to live up to. This trip will not only help to tell the stories and empower so many homeless people by giving them a portion of equity in the brands we create to represent them but it will also positively impact the people I love the most. I anticipate the most difficult part of the trip being coordination of time with my kids. A trip of this scale will take time and I would want them to be as involved as possible but as a single parent changing the agreed upon parenting time could be difficult. I shall cross this bridge when I come to it but I know that the mission is worth the sacrifices I will have to inevitably make. The philosophy that inspired my transformation and enabled me to think I was capable of pulling off a trip like this is called Ikigai. Ikigai gave me a sense of clarity, of purpose and direction. Ikigai is a Japanese Philosophy that involves seeking out the intersection of what you love, what you are great at, what the world needs and what you can get paid for. I included a diagram below for the visual learners in the mix. Immediately when I learned of the concept I loved it. It aligned with my core belief that all humans are born with a gift and a light that they are destined to bring into the world. Unfortunately in modern american society most peoples gifts aren’t valued unless there is a way to make a profit from them. I reflect on raising my kids and notice how many people show up to support kids when they are pursuing their dreams. We show up to their dance performances, their concerts, their sporting events but once they become adults, largely that support stops. It’s almost as if somehow becoming an adult invalidates the pursuit of dreams. I would argue that this is by design. I would argue that the people who had the most influence in creating modern society encouraged people to stop pursuing their dreams so that they would be forced to work for them and create a profit. This is something I hope to bring awareness of as well. I hope to inspire others to pursue their dream, no matter what it is! I believe the world is a better place when more people are following their heart and pursuing their dreams! The Ikigai concept is a great way to get started and a worthy pursuit!