Why Am I Taking This Ride — Really?
Why would you get on a bike—ignoring a perfectly good car, van, or airplane—to travel across a whole continent? Yeah, people forget sometimes. America is not just a country. It’s a continent, too. So why would you do it?
The video above is the first time I had ever heard of the Great American Rail Trail (GART). I’m not even sure how it came up on my YouTube feed, but there it was. I watched it out of curiosity more than anything else, and my immediate reaction was: That is so cool.
The idea that you could get on a bike and ride across the whole country is mind-blowing to me. Little did I know not only that you could do it, but that people have been doing it for years. As crazy as it sounded to my friends when I first mentioned it to them and attempted my first ride in 2022, the truth is there is a whole subculture of people who travel by bike across America, Canada, South America, and beyond.
I made it as far as Indiana on my first trip. Obligations at home and a miscalculation of funds forced me to cut it short. But the lingering call of adventure continued to whisper in my ear. I’ve always known I would try again—and I can think of no better time than this year, when America turns 250 years old.
Cycling long distance is a gateway into a trance state. I know that may sound crazy to anyone who thinks making it to the gym is a milestone for the month. But once you get into a rhythm and just ride—with no worries and beautiful nature around you—you go zen. Afterward, your muscles are sore, but you feel great because you did something great.
The first time I rode 60+ miles, my legs cramped up like a vice. But once I got fluids back into my body and finally relaxed, I felt amazing.
There are days in the office when I long for that feeling. Making money is great—necessary, actually—but let’s be honest. Sometimes customers and suppliers are annoying. You’d much rather be at the beach, in a park, or in my case, on my bike like I was a kid again exploring parts of town I didn’t know existed.
Traveling across 3,700 miles gives me more places to explore than I could possibly imagine.
Why Now
Not to put too fine a point on it, but if you were designing my headstone, the best symbol of a major aspect of my personality would be one shaped like Captain America’s shield.
I love America. Always have.
I’m not sure whether the ’70s cartoons got to me, or whether it was having the flag from my father’s casket nailed to the wall of my bedroom. But I’ve always been gung-ho about this country. I celebrate it every day. And to be able to showcase that love in some way during our 250th anniversary feels right. I could have taken this ride last year or next year—but now is the perfect time.
Too often in the news and across social media, we see people who seem embarrassed by their country, who don’t want to show their love for it, or worse, who filter that love strictly through a political narrative. We saw this at the 2026 Australian Open, when American players were repeatedly asked whether it was difficult to represent America given current events. We’ve seen it at the Winter Olympics—an event created expressly for athletes to proudly represent their nations—when some American athletes in the early days seemed hesitant to do so.
Luckily, those games ended on a patriotic note, with the men’s and women’s hockey teams taking gold and proudly placing the flag over their hearts.
I won’t go too deep here—I’ll address it in another post—but love of country is not about who sits in the White House. Presidents come and go. Political parties rise and fall. America is larger than any one person.
I celebrate America no matter who occupies the Oval Office. Pride in your country shouldn’t depend on who is president any more than loving your favorite sports team depends on who the coach or quarterback happens to be.
Multiple Routes
As I mentioned, there are multiple routes across the country. Three were established by the Adventure Cycling Association (ACA): the Northern Tier, which follows the top of the continental United States and moves into Canada; the Southern Tier, which crosses the southern states and into parts of Mexico; and the TransAmerica Trail, which traverses the middle of the country.
These routes exist because thousands of riders have used them to cross the country—for challenge, for adventure, or simply for a different kind of vacation, one that requires effort instead of lounging on a beach.
More recently, Bikepacking.com introduced a new cross-country option: the Great American Wheel Route.
The key difference between the ACA routes and the GART is that the GART is designed to connect rail trails whenever possible, allowing riders to avoid highways and busy city streets—a much safer option. Unfortunately, the system is not yet fully complete. Currently, about 52% of the trail is connected. The remainder requires riding on roads and highways.
This gap is especially significant between Nebraska and Wyoming, where roughly 800 miles remain unconnected.
In the future, I may attempt one of the other routes purely as a challenge. But for now, my plan is to ride the GART, with strategic detours to avoid major highways in the West—or possibly a temporary pause in riding to bypass the 800-mile gap. Safety matters. And realistically, that adjustment would also reduce the number of days I’m away
What Do I Hope to Accomplish?
In one sense, this is a personal challenge—to prove not just that I can do it (which I honestly don’t doubt), but that I can do it the way I envision.
I want to showcase the country and the places I ride through. That means not just logging miles, but experiencing them—and sharing those experiences with everyone who follows this project. It means more than trail footage, lunch photos, or snapshots of campsites. It means conversations. Stories. Human connection.
On my first attempt, I often shied away from people because I didn’t want to bother them. I hesitated to ask about their camping setups or where they were from. Yes, I made riding friends—but I didn’t go as far as I could have.
This time, moving past that mental barrier is part of the mission.
I hope to show you wonders you may not have seen—and inspire you to ride yourself. Maybe not across the country. But perhaps on your local trail. Or on your next vacation.
At the end of the day, this ride isn’t just about miles, maps, or proving something to myself.
It’s about movement—in every sense of the word.
Moving across a continent.
Moving past comfort.
Moving toward conversations, stories, and places that remind us what this country really looks like beyond headlines and hashtags.
If I can capture even a fraction of that—if I can show the beauty, the grit, the small-town pride, and the everyday Americans who make this place what it is—then the journey will be worth every mile.
And maybe, just maybe, it will move you to begin your own.
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