Since the ride, I have been asked a variety of questions. The following is a list of the most common:
1. What is the mission of O.M.E.H.?
The mission of Ordinary Men-Extraordinary Heroes (O.M.E.H.) is to educate Americans about the 1.2 million Ordinary Men and Women in uniform, who gallantly laid their lives upon the altar of freedom, thus becoming and forever remaining our Extraordinary Heroes.
2. Why did you want to do a coast-to-coast bike ride?
When I was in the 7th grade a man named John Waterson talked to my youth group about his experiences riding his bike across America. Ever since then, I have always been fascinated at the concept of actually pedaling a bike from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific. However, I wanted to do it for something, or someone, besides myself. It wasn’t until 20+ years after being inspired by john Waterson that I found myself speaking publicly about the sacrifices made by Ordinary Men and Women, Memorial Day, and the American Flag, that I decided to actively take a greater roll in educating Americans about our Extraordinary Heroes. The O.M.E.H. Bike Tour, a journey from coast-to-coast, just seemed to be the right thing to do.
3. What kind of bike did you ride?
I rode a 30 speed Trek Pilot 5.0 road bike; a carbon-fiber frame, equipped with Shimano 105 components and a Shimano Ultegra rear derailleur.
4. What type of equipment/gear did you carry?
Other than my bike, trailer, and personal gear, I carried (either on the trailer, on my handle bars, or on my person): pepper spray, iPod, cycling computer, survival knife, BB gun, small tool kit, one set of non-cycling clothes, one set of church clothes, 3 sets of cycling clothes, cold weather gear, 4 water bottles, digital camera, video camera, extra video tapes, road atlas, extra maps, 12 spare tire tubes, tire pump, 2 bike locks, laptop computer, cell phone, first-aid kit, hygiene kit, 5 ft. copper pipe, 3x5 American flag, and a wooden flag pole.
5. How many states did you ride through?
12 total. New Jersey – Pennsylvania – Ohio – Indiana – Illinois – Missouri – Kansas – Oklahoma – Texas – New Mexico – Arizona – California
6. How long did the ride take?
It took 7 weeks, or 48 days from start to finish (42 riding days and 6 rest days). Total mileage was 3,147 miles.
7. How many miles did you ride in a day?
The trip average was approximately 75 miles per day.
8. How many hours were you riding each day?
Each day was different, as each day’s mileage was different. Under ideal circumstances I would try to average 10 miles per hour (including rest stops, breaks, and lunches). So a 100-mile day could take 10-12 hours.
9. Were you alone the whole time?
I rode solo, with no support vehicle, from Day 1 to Day 27 (Dodge City, Kansas). In an effort to prevent my knee from exploding, or my Achilles tendon from separating, I had a support vehicle from Day 29 to Day 44 (Wickenburg, Arizona). Day 45 was solo, Days 46 and 47 were supported, and Day 48 (the final day) was solo again.
10. Why did you carry the American flag with you?
As a Marine Corps veteran, I have always been proud to be an American. Shortly after 9/11 I purchased a beautiful 3x5 nylon American flag with the intention of carrying it to the top of Half Dome at Yosemite National Park. Shortly after, I carried that same flag in the San Diego Marathon; and then to the top of Mount Whitney – the highest peak in the continental United States. During those expeditions, I witnessed many people rally behind the red, white, and blue. It soon became my goal to allow that same flag to symbolize the mission of O.M.E.H. and carry it with me from coast-to-coast.
11. How did you train for this type of an endeavor?
I purchased my bike less than one month before my departure date. After which I rode to and from work 5 - 6 times (15 miles each way). I also went on 2 - 3 long rides (40 – 60 miles). The first time I had ever (in my life) ridden 100 miles was on Day 18. I think this was a test of heart more than anything else.
12. How did you navigate from city to city?
Crossroads Cycling specializes in coast-to-coast cycling trips. However, I contacted them months in advance to see if I could purchase their maps. I was told “no how, no way!” But, I was at least able to utilize their itinerary (with the exception of New Jersey and Pennsylvania). Each night I would use MapQuest and print out turn-by-turn directions to the next day’s destination. For the most part this worked well (with the exception of having to navigate across Fort Riley, Kansas or taking an alternate route to an interstate). However, no amount of chaos could ever compare to the headache of navigating one's self across New Jersey and Pennsylvania on a bicycle, using side streets only.
13. Where did you sleep?
I was fortunate enough to sleep in the extreme comfort of a hotel every night with the exception of Day 1: I stayed at the home of Kris and Jeanette Nielsen in Succasunna, New Jersey; Days 13 and 14: I stayed at the home of Steve and Tonya Denkers in Fishers, Indiana; and Day 45: I stayed at the home of John and Angie Hermanson in Blythe, California.
14. What did you eat?
In the beginning I tried to watch what I ate, looking for foods/snacks that were high in protein/carbs. But, after a few long days of burning who knows how many calories, I soon began eating anything I could get my hands on. Breakfast: a couple of eggs, toast or a bagel, and apple juice. Light lunch: maybe a piece pizza, cottage cheese if I could find it, and on rare occasions KFC or a Fillet-o-Fish sandwich. Dinner: whatever I could find. If they delivered – great, if not I’d try to find an all-you-can-eat buffet or pizza/pasta. One night I couldn’t decide between a large Dominoes pepperoni and pineapple pizza, or a 12” hot Italian sub sandwich. So I ordered both.
15. What was your favorite snack/drink?
I went through lots of “Red-Hots” and hard candy. I really loved fruit punch and lemon-lime Gatorade. But my favorite snack was definitely a 3-pack of vanilla Zingers and an ice cold Mountain Dew.
16. Did you suffer any injuries?
Due to pulling an excessive amount of weight on my trailer and handlebars (approximately 150 lbs) over the Allegheny mountain range in Pennsylvania, I suffered extreme pain in my right knee and Achilles tendon from Indiana to Kansas. Additionally, I cut my right middle finger in the spokes of my front wheel, and chipped my tooth when drinking out of a Gatorade bottle.
17. How many flat tires did you get?
8 total. The first one was on Day 1 in New Jersey. After that, I rode all the way to Day 34 without another flat tire. But, while riding from New Mexico to California I had 7 more flats.
18. What does Total Ascension mean?
My GPS computer tracked my speed, elevation, heart rate, daily distance, total mileage, and total ascension (or total elevation gained). If I climbed a 500 ft. hill in the morning, and then rode downhill 3,000 ft. all day long with another 500 ft. hill climb in the evening, my daily ascension would be 1,000 ft. Therefore, I climbed a total of 93,705 ft.
19. Did you experience any bad weather?
Yes. Lots of rain, particularly in Pennsylvania; sand storms and unimaginable winds in Kansas; other than that I had a few cold mornings and several hot, humid afternoons.
20. Where did you wash your laundry?
I liked staying at Holiday Inn Express because they usually had laundry rooms. But, most of the time I washed my laundry with shampoo in the bathtub.
21. Did you have a favorite place to eat?
On Day 5, in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, I had the best Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo in the world. I had it delivered from “The Original Italian Pizza”, which came highly recommended. It came with a huge, fresh loaf of warm bread; a salad with black and green olives, mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, banana peppers, and creamy Italian dressing that was to die for! And of course, I washed it down with the largest Mountain Dew known to man.
22. What was your most/least favorite hotel?
The Hotel Albuquerque at Old Town was definitely the nicest. But, any Holiday Inn Express was my favorite, particularly the one on my last night in Corona, California. The Red Roof Inn in Ebensburg, Pennsylvania was probably the worst. My room was in the daylight basement, so there were 2 doors (one to the basement hallway and one to an abandoned back parking lot). All the lights were unplugged, the carpet was gross, and the bathtub was dirty. It just felt creepy.
23. How many of your days were century rides?
Of the 42 days of riding, 4 of them were century rides (12 were 90+ miles).
24. Why did you dip the wheels of your bicycle in the ocean?
It is customary, on a coast-to-coast bike ride, to dip your back wheel in the ocean you are departing from; and to dip your front wheel in the ocean you are arriving at, thus culminating an official coast-to-coast bike ride.
25. What was your longest/shortest ride?
My longest day (mileage) was Day 45: Wickenburg, Arizona to Blythe, California – 117 miles. But perhaps my longest day (physically) was either Day 1: completely lost, riding in the dark, through less than desirable parts of East Brunswick, New Jersey, or Day 27: when a dust storm literally blew me off of my bike (3 times) and I had to hitch a ride into Dodge City, Kansas. Shortest day was Day 30: Liberal, Kansas to Guymon, Oklahoma – 42.2 miles.
26. Did you have a favorite state/city/day?
I can’t begin to explain the emotion of standing in front of the “Welcome to Huntington Beach” sign; a moment of my life that I hope to never forget. Favorite State: Missouri was probably the prettiest state of the 12 - lush, green, rolling hills in all directions. It was something like I’ve never seen before - just beautiful! Favorite City: There is certainly no other city that looks like Sedona, Arizona - red rock mountains, surrounding a quaint, high-class, southwestern down town – amazing! Favorite day: Without a doubt, Day 48. This was the final day of the 7-week journey. This was the day that I accomplished my goal. This was the day that I was reunited with my wife and children. This was one of the greatest days of my life!
27. Would you ever do it again?
Coast-to-coast? No. The experiences I had on the ride and the amazing people I met will always be one of a kind. However, there are places along the route, or parts of the ride that I would like to see again. Someday, I would love to organize a 4-day group ride from Flagstaff, Arizona to Bltyhe, California. I would also like to take my wife and children (in our van) and drive from Sandy Hook, New Jersey to Huntington Beach, California - retracing my bike route turn-for-turn. I would really like them to experience and comprehend the magnitude of New York to Los Angeles.
28. What was your biggest challenge?
There were several challenges along my coast-to-coast journey, i.e., physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, technical, etc. The pain I experienced in my right knee (from Pennsylvania to Kansas) was by far my biggest challenge. Luckily I was able to apply ice (sometimes 3x’s a day). Eventually, I developed tendinitis in my right Achilles tendon. This too was a major problem, until a support vehicle arrived to carry my heavy load. Other challenges included constantly being chased by dogs, getting lost, missing my family, and having my bike break down.
29. Did you reach tour fundraising goal?
During the early planning stages of the O.M.E.H. Bike Tour, I attempted to put a dollar amount on my fundraising goal. After careful consideration, I realized that this only played into the media’s obsession with numbers and statistics, and furthermore distracted the focus from my root mission, “To educate Americans…” So in short, yes, I managed to raise enough money to support the expenses for the coast-to-coast bike ride. Additionally, 100% of the proceeds are being donated to the Freedom Alliance Scholarship Fund.
30. What is next on the agenda for O.M.E.H.?
Short term: I am currently in the planning stages for the next community Memorial Day program. After which, I would like to coordinate something specific for Veteran’s Day. Long term: In the next couple of years I would like to coordinate and lead a children’s recognition program that awards stand-out public school students (and their parent/guardian) an all expense paid trip to Washington D.C. Additionally, I would like to write a book about my experiences during the O.M.E.H. Bike Tour.
