Spring Bicycle Adventure

If you took a look at this blog about a year ago, you might remember that I participated in a 400 mile bike ride. It was a remarkable experience, and I'm looking forward to doing it again this year.

Now, if you weren't reading this blog a year ago (I suppose there may be some, since one of my readers mentioned that I might have more than seven readers … maybe even as many as ten), you may remember me writing a little about that experience.

I got to spend six days riding my bike, one day putting a new roof on someone's home, and the whole time meeting and interacting with great people in every single place we found ourselves.

And, perhaps more significantly, I got to be part of the work of the Fuller Center for Housing, to give people who wouldn't have it otherwise, the opportunity to have a safe, comfortable, and affordable home to live in.

What's great about the work they do is that they do is that it's tremendously financially responsible. Every dollar that comes in to the Fuller Center goes back into supporting the mission of providing housing for people.

Some of their financing comes from the generosity of people like you (see below). But you should know, also, that the homes aren't given away. Every family that moves into a Fuller Center home is expected to work … actually work … on building their home.

Further, every family that moves into a Fuller Center home pays for the home … it's not a handout. The family takes out a zero-interest loan, sets up an affordable payment schedule, and repays the cost of the home.

There are no huge corporations or fat cats making exorbitant profits from Fuller Center homes, families are able to build their credit rating, and all of the money paid on the mortgage goes into building other homes in the future.

I did last year's ride with my dad, who's riding again this year ~ and what's pretty great is that my daughter is also coming along this year.

I feel honored to be able to participate in the Spring Bicycle Adventure, and to support the work of the Fuller Center. I want to invite you, my 7 10 readers, to also support the work they're doing.

Since we all have to raise a certain amount of money for the Fuller Center, I'll provide a link to my fundraising page.  And you may support my daughter's fundraising efforts here.

Thanks for reading, and for helping people have safe and affordable places to live.

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Day Five ~ Houston and Water Valley

We took a rest day today. Here's a rest day on the Fuller Center Bicycle Adventure.

Breakfast at 6:45 am. Load into a church bus and drive 45 minutes (Houston to Water Valley), where we met the folks we'd be spending the day with.

We split into five groups, each group heading to a different house to work on. I ended up spending a hotter-than-normal-spring-day-in-Mississippi on a roof with six other folks from the bicycle adventure, a few other local volunteers, and some guys who knew how to do the work.

Photo Credit: Nathan Slabaugh

We tore the old shingles off the roof, repaired the roofing in the places where that was necessary, and put the new shingles on. Those of us who didn't know roofing spent our time doing the hot and scratchy work of ripping the fiberglass shingles off the roof and hauling them to the dump truck.

The woman who lives in the house we were working on came out to talk with us a couple times, and was incredibly grateful for the work we were able to do.

It's tremendously gratifying to be able to directly connect with the work the Fuller Center is facilitating in communities all over this country and around the world. I know the bicycling is important, since we get to surprise people in the communities we end up in ~ and we get to share the end result of the bike trip, the end result of the fundraising we've done in anticipation of this trip. But to spend the day actually and physically connecting with the work gives me a more complete experience, which then gives me better words to talk about this work.

Of course, we had an amazing barbecue lunch in the middle of the day. And then, before we came back to the church building, we had another 'I-can't-believe-it' potluck at the local United Methodist Church.

Now, with non-cycling muscles sore from a day of work, we're getting cleaned up and ready to ride down the road tomorrow.

That's a day off on the bicycle adventure ~ let the adventure continue.

Getting Close

The date is getting closer. We leave in just a couple days ~ I'm almost ready to consider that we leave in not too many hours ~ for the FullerCenter Spring Bicycle Adventure.

Early Thursday morning, I'll be driving away from Denver, headed east to Kansas City, and the next day off to Nashville. Eighteen hours in an RV gets us to a new place and to the beginning of new relationships.

Over the course of the following week, we'll have six days of cycling and one day of building. We'll have quite a few hours of saddle time to travel the 400+ miles from Nashville to Jackson ~ plenty of hours on the bike, around dinner tables, and wherever else we find ourselves; plenty of time to build relationships with each other.

But more importantly, we're bringing with us thousands of dollars of contributions to the Fuller Center ~ money they'll use to provide safe and comfortable housing for folks who need help breaking the oppression of our capitalist system.

See, the Fuller Center doesn't give away free houses ~ the Fuller Center doesn't give away free home repair. The Fuller Center builds comfortable homes and makes repairs to provide a measure of safety, and the Fuller Center expects the folks for whom the work is done to pay for the work.

What the Fuller Center doesn't expect is for folks to be burdened by ridiculous and all-consuming debt in order to have an adequate home to live in.

There are still financial transactions ~ folks still pay for their homes and home repairs. The thing, though, is that the Fuller Center has removed from the transactions the concern over market forces and any preoccupation with profit.

In addition, the 'normal' ways our society determines worthiness to own a nice home (financial wealth, high standing in society, etc.) are discarded. Instead, the determination that someone deserves safe and comfortable home is made based on whether or not they currently have a safe and comfortable home.

So, while I'm excited about relationships, and about spending a full week traveling with people I don't know yet, I'm most excited about being a small part of the transformational work being done by the Fuller Center. And if you want, there's still time for you to make a contribution to the work they do.

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Bicycle Adventure

I'm getting excited. In just over a week, I drive away from my home, bound for Nashville. And in just about 12 days, thirty of us will climb onto bicycles and ride out of Nashville.

I'm riding in the Fuller Center for Housing Spring Bicycle Adventure fund-raiser, and (like I mentioned) I'm getting excited.

What's exciting is to have the opportunity to meet new people ~ the folks I'll be riding with, and the people we'll meet along the way. What's exciting is to raise money in support of affordable housing. And what's exciting is to see how well I'll hold up sitting on a bike for that far. 

I'm getting so excited, that I've watched a couple bicycle-related movies while I've been sitting on the trainer.  Last week, it was Quicksilver.  I remember watching that movie long ago and (like many people) being transfixed by the idea of working as a bicycle messenger.  Kevin Bacon makes it look so appealing.

Then, last night I watched The Triplets of Belleville, a beautiful and mesmerizing animated film.  I was entranced for the entire film by the artistry and the storytelling.  It's well worth the watch.  

And before I leave next week, I'll be finding time to watch The Flying Scotsman. 

I'll be blogging about the ride, so you can follow along if you're interested. And if you want, feel free to make a contribution to my fund-raising efforts.

Bicycle Adventure

As my seven readers may know (from previous posts about cycling), I like cycling. As my seven readers may also know (from previous posts about things like paying taxes and healthcare), I feel like it's the responsibility of those who have plenty to provide respectful and humane assistance to those who don't have as much.

These two sides of me are meeting one another this spring when I embark on the Fuller Center for Housing Spring Bicycle Adventure.

Here's the deal. The Fuller Center for Housing is an amazing organization who repairs existing homes and builds new houses for folks who can't afford new construction and/or repairs at the market rate. For those who are familiar with Habitat for Humanity, the Fuller Center is very similar (and was started by the founder of Habitat), Millard Fuller.

As part of their fund-raising and sharing-the-word activities for the past five years has been the summer Bicycle Adventure. Last year my dad rode the summer bicycle adventure, which went from Seattle to Washington D.C. I would have loved to be part of that adventure, but my work schedule didn't allow it. I'd also love to be part of this summer's Bicycle Adventure, but my schedule (again) doesn't allow it. And so I was almost ecstatic when I learned that there would be a Spring Break Bicycle Adventure. Only one week, only 400 miles – “I can do that” I told myself. And so I signed up.

I'm looking forward to experiencing the spring beauty of Tennessee and Alabama and Mississippi on the Natchez Trace Parkway. I'm looking forward to learning more about, and telling people about, the Fuller Center. And I'm looking forward to raising money to support the work they do. If you're interested in contributing to my fund-raising goal, you can do so by clicking here.

Now, if only the snow would clear off of Denver's streets so I could get out and train.