The Beginning of "To the End"

It's finally about that time to head south! Although we're super excited to get pedaling, before we go the three of us want to hold one last event in the place that brought us together. On Sunday, September 6th there will be a leisurely ride (all are welcome to join!) on Trout Run Trail at 11 am, a free-will donation for a Phelps Park cook-out beginning at 1 pm, and heading to the new Pulpit Rock Brewery that evening.

We would love to see each and every last one of you. This event will be a day to thank those who have already been so supportive, show off our gear, and give all of you one last chance to tell us what you honestly think about our trip :). It will be a day we remember for the coming months, and a memory of all those who believe in us. So please, come to Decorah, eat our food, wish us as much luck as you can find, and share one last beer before we embark on the adventure of a lifetime! Hope to see you there! Updates and additional details can be found on our Facebook page.

Why Bike?

Initial Reactions

Whenever you tell someone you're planning a bike trip for 6 months, the initial response is usually pretty entertaining. Sometimes you see eyes light up by inspired people who think it's "so cool" that we're taking steps toward an adventure. Others seem to laugh and say "good luck" or "sure you are." A few simply look like they must have misheard the words coming out of your mouth because the last phrase was one of the least relatable statements imaginable.

Feature Video

Special thanks to Bailey Mulholland for putting this awesome feature video together!!! Keep up to date with our trip by liking our Facebook page!

Spring Semester Fundraising

What a semester it has been! Last fall, this bike trip felt like an exciting idea but it’s turned into one of the largest realities I’ve ever faced. Without the constant, nagging distraction of school in the front of our minds this summer, we might actually make some serious fundraising progress. It’s crazy to think that at the end of this summer, we’ll be packing up all of our gear to brave the trails in Central and South America.

New Job

In the words of a famous scholar, "I made it up the mountain, and its all down hill from here." I am happy to announce I officially graduated from Luther College! This most recent J-term I finalized my senior paper, handed it in and received my completion sticker! All in exchange for my diploma, which was sent a few weeks later. To answer the immortal question facing grads everywhere, especially English/History grads: "What are you going to do next?" I finally have something to respond with. Working at Decorah Bicycles! The situation could not have worked out better. I have a great job which is incredibly pertinent to the trip, and still close to Ben, Jon, Habitat for Humanity and the rest of my buddies at Luther College.

Habitat Board Meeting

A lot of things go through your head when your alarm clock goes off at 6:30 in the morning. Most of them are along the lines of "it's too early" or "where's the snooze button," but this morning was different. Kai and I had a mission to meet with the Winneshiek Habitat for Humanity chapter in town and answer any questions they might have, since 60% of our donations will go directly to their cause.

Promo Video!

As it turns out, the three of us are all a bit camera-shy. These last few weeks we have been working on a video which would summarize and introduce the trip. Since none of us are incredibly tech savvy, we reached out to our mutual friend and video guru Bailey Muholland. Bailey is a fellow senior at Luther College and works in the video bureau there.

Career Fair

It has been fun and exciting figuring out how to best structure our trip, To the End of the Earth. We do a lot of brainstorming, a.k.a. think-tank sessions, a.k.a. war council meetings, to determine our next course of action. We do our best thinking on the lawn adjacent to Baker Village (Upperclassmen housing at Luther College), with a beer in hand, possibly a guitar, and a notepad. It has been amazing to see the progress we have made, both exciting and daunting, and to see how much we have left to do. Making the blog, video, and facebook page are all an attempt for us to connect with people interested in what we are doing and share our trip.

Ward and Jacky

Getting Started

After we had all committed to the idea of a bike adventure, the three of us didn’t really know how to take a first step in planning. Luckily, our Decorah community came through for us and provided all we needed to get started. We received contact information for Ward and Jacky Budweg, previous owners of the Decorah Bike Shop, who just so happen to have biked from Ushuaia to Bogota and frequently bike around the world.