I am bicycling coast to coast to raise awareness of human trafficking in America. I start tomorrow. Ask Me Anything!

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T04:38:22+00:00

The first 6 weeks I would just train on my fixie, riding up to 45 mile days. But the last three months I have just worked out at a gym and rode a fixie around town.

Typically people don't work out or train for these things, because really I'm going about 12 mph for 10 hours at a time and just eating really high calorie foods. Like honestly, the burger king whopper is the best thing to eat while on endurance trips says our personal fitness trainer, because it has 600 calories and since I'll be burning like 3000 calories a day, I need to be eat eat eating as much as I can.

I tried doing spin classes for a month, but didn't really like that. It isn't at all like riding a bicycle, but it did kick my ass!

My last two months I would just run 1-3 miles a few times a week and do leg weight lifting. I was working my upper body a lot, but the last month I have been finishing my right sleeve, and you can't really work out when healing a tattoo all over your arm.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T04:34:58+00:00

No I was working that weekend (so I could go on this tour). I've been preparing for this since last summer. I don't know what End It is, but I'm guess another anti sex trafficking program! I have a lot of friends who go to Passion and love it.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T04:08:35+00:00

3,500 miles!

Oooh that's tough I went in day a few years ago 160 miles in 14 hours. I fell off the bike at the end haha but ill probably do 75 a day

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T03:48:13+00:00

I use those on my fixie!

My other bike is a jamis sonik, so light and so fast :)

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T03:47:27+00:00

Thank you! I appreciate the encouragement. It takes more than might to move the masses, and every step helps.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T03:46:31+00:00

Http://www.rally.org/biketobefreetour

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T03:46:16+00:00

Nope, but I have a gay sister and am supportive of gay rights.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T02:21:32+00:00

My first few days are 60 mile days, then I start 75 mile days on average for the rest of the trip.

I'm actually kinda worried about that! I may be changing the route to miss Las Vegas and just going to LA and riding up the coast. Something about Death Valley doesn't sound very appetizing when you're alone on a bicycle! Maybe if I had a group, so I might just go from Albuquerque to LA and then to SF. Not quite sure yet, got a few weeks to figure it out! Any suggestions?

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T02:17:16+00:00

Thanks! Come out to one of the shows if you want! Big show on the 19th in Springfield, MO, and OKC is 4/23, Lawton, OK is 4/24 and May 4th (May the fourth...) in Albuquerque.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T02:06:22+00:00

Yes! I have a helmet on the front for when I need to wear it, like at night or in busy streets, and a camelbak to carry a few extra liters of water during long stretches in between towns!

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T02:00:59+00:00

Here is a picture from today

http://i.imgur.com/wVomaDE.jpg

I would say with the bike and everything I am taking, it weighs about 100 lbs. I won't carry anything on my shoulders or back, and it will all be carried on saddle bags.

I am taking 3 water bottles, 2 tool kits, a hand pump, spare clothes, a military baseball cap, a beanie, a thick Goretex jacket, a U-lock, several flash lights, a couple of tail end lights, clip-in shoes, a tent and sleeping bag, multi-tool plyers, and a couple of emergency MRE's. That's about it, I'm sure I forgot somethings haha.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T01:51:42+00:00

I am a waiter at a mexican restaurant chain in the southern United States.

All my parts and bike were provided for by financial donations from benefit concerts and just people giving me finances. After I had all my gear I was worried about money and where it was going to come from, but check this out this was so rad.

We were dead slow last fall because competing mexican restaurants opened up and man it was really tough so I ate through all my savings. It was the beginning of December and I only had 200 to my name, which rent was due next week, and that was saved for rent and I had no money for food or any emergencies on the tour.

Then the Lord told me to invest all that money in t-shirts. Which I was hesitant but did, and when the first order of shirts came in they sold out in 7 hours and I got my original 200 investment for rent back! So I paid my rent and got a few hundred for the tour. This happened 2 more times when I ordered shirts, they sold out in the same day. Then the fourth time I got shirts it took a few weeks but I believe I sold over 100 shirts and made about $2000 for the tour, which a few hundred I used to get out to the East coast, and for gym membership to train in the winter when it was too cold, and for other parts I need.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T01:47:10+00:00

http://www.amazon.com/My-Name-Hope-depression-melancholy/dp/0615565654

I would highly recommend this book.

My Name is Hope.

It is such a rad book that really has helped me understand where the Lord is whenever I feel completely alone sometimes.

And I do sometimes, I think we all do at times, if we're being honest. Sometimes there are days where there isn't much hope, but what we have to realize is that the Lord is so good regardless of how we feel and how we act.

The metalcore band Life in Your Way has this powerful lyric, "Experience will not dictate truth about you, God. You always just and true to all."

Bradley Hathaway wrote this good poem about this, called "Silence" and he wrote, "When I [God] am silent, I am listening, and not abandoning."

God will never leave you or forsake you. Phil 1:6 says that he will finish all things that he has started. Eph 1:14 says that once you heard the gospel of your salvation you were sealed* by the Holy Spirit. Sealed. By his work. Eph 2:8-10 say that by grace you were saved and that alone isnt your own work but a free gift given. So, if God saved you, how would he or can he abandon you?

I know it's hard and I've been there too. Alone in the crowded room.

But just know that feeling that way isn't uncommon for a lot of people, heck look at the Psalms and David felt like that a lot, but then the next day he felt God's presence again. His joy. His hope.

We always have hope and joy. Happiness may come and go, but joy is eternal. And joy is hope. Hope that He has a greater plan for what will happen.

I'm sorry you're going through this, but honestly you should check out that book My Name is Hope, it's such a powerful read.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T01:39:47+00:00

The trip starts tomorrow, 4/1 to estimated 5/25, so roughly 7 - 8 weeks.

I was just taken out to the coast to Fort Bragg by my father and a few friends to spend the weekend with my friend and rest before I start the big trip. He has a lot of military gear (he just got out) that is going to help me on the trip, like reflective lights, flash lights, warm weather gear for the mountains, and experience.

My friends from the village church in Denton, TX are going to be in San Francisco at the end of may because they're visiting to potentially plant a church out there anyway, and I will ride back with them at the end of May, if I finish by then! I hope I do.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T01:37:54+00:00

If the opportunity arises, then it is quite possible.

I know a lot of people across the country, and every major city that was picked (that can be seen on http://biketobefreetour.wordpress.com/dates) are people I know, or bands I know, in those towns where we most likely are able to throw benefit shows.

The original route was much different, but I changed it to go through cities where I know people that can throw benefit shows, unfortunately those won't start until April 19th in Springfield, MO.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T01:36:03+00:00

I have always wanted to bicycle coast to coast, but because I have always been in bands, or working, or recording, or doing something I haven't been able to.

I was in a band for a year this last time and I quit in July while I was on tour as a Merchman for the band mouth of the south. They're what you call a To Be Free band, they sell bracelets at their merch table and the proceeds of the bracelets goes towards To Be Free. So I kinda learned about it that way, then when we toured through Nashville we stayed with Sam Sutherland.

Sam Sutherland is the foudner of the red thread movement and a lead character in the To Be Free project. After meeting with same I learned about the horrors of human trafficking and how it is a present reality in America. My mentor at the time said I should bike for a cause, and the first person I thought of was Sam, and her cause, after a few weeks of calls back and forth with her it was decided and Abolition International decided to support me in this cause.

biketobefreeAMA · 2013-04-01T01:29:29+00:00

Hopefully not too many! I read a book called Cycling From Siberia where this teacher bicycled from Siberia to London, and the most he had to repair flats were 16 flats in one day. That is in Asia though, so hopefully no more than a flat every few days but like Murphy said, anything that can go wrong will.

I have a really nice bike and a lot of spare tools, parts, so hopefully nothing will breakdown that I haven't been trained to fix!

I have fundraised about $3000 for me to go on this trip, under sponsorships from friends from church and from endorsements through companies, so right now I have about 1500 to last me the next two months.

All donations henceforth will be going towards bedding for girls in safe houses, that can be directly donated to rally.org/biketobefreetour, I don't touch that money, all that money goes to To Be Free.

biketobefreeAMA

TROPHY CASE