I’m riding across the United States because movement has shaped who I am—and continues to shape who I’m becoming.
As we age, we’re often told to slow down, play it safe, and accept decline as inevitable. I’ve learned the opposite is true. Much of what we call “normal aging” is really the result of deconditioning—what happens when we stop challenging ourselves, stop exploring, and stop trusting our capacity to adapt. This ride is my refusal to accept that story.
Riding across the country with Warrior Expeditions is not about chasing a finish line or proving toughness. It’s about presence. About staying with the effort day after day. About allowing long hours on the bike to create space for reflection, gratitude, and clarity. When your world is reduced to forward motion, food, rest, and recovery, you learn what truly matters.
I’m also riding in solidarity with veterans who are reclaiming their strength, confidence, and sense of direction through these expeditions. Their willingness to take on discomfort in service of healing is deeply meaningful to me. It reinforces a belief I carry into every ride, walk, and workout: discomfort, when chosen, is a powerful teacher.
This journey is part of a larger commitment I live by—Age Loudly. Adventure Boldly. To treat my body as a borrowed gift. To return it stronger, more capable, and more curious than I found it. And to show, by example, that the path forward at any age is built through movement, intention, and the courage to begin.
I Ride to Remain Capable, Curious, and Engaged With Life
I ride to remain capable—to keep my body strong, resilient, and trustworthy. Capability means being able to carry my own weight in the world, to move without hesitation, and to meet physical demands with confidence rather than caution. Riding is how I maintain endurance, cardiovascular health, and the strength that allows me to live independently and fully.
I ride to stay curious—about places, people, and what I’m still capable of becoming. The bike keeps me learning. It puts me in unfamiliar environments, introduces uncertainty, and invites adaptation. Curiosity is not passive; it’s a physical act. Riding keeps me open, receptive, and willing to explore rather than retreat.
I ride to stay engaged with life—not watching from the sidelines, but participating fully. Engagement means showing up with energy, attention, and presence. Long days in the saddle sharpen awareness, quiet distraction, and reconnect me to the simple rhythms of effort and recovery. Riding keeps me involved, invested, and awake to the world around me.
I don’t ride to escape aging.
I ride to meet it actively—capable in my body, curious in my mind, and fully engaged in the life I’m still building.
Riding Across America With Warrior Expeditions
Warrior Expeditions is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping combat veterans heal through long-distance outdoor expeditions. These journeys—by bicycle, on foot, or by kayak—are intentionally demanding. They are designed not as races, but as immersive experiences where time, effort, and movement create space for reflection, resilience, and renewal.
Each expedition is fully self-supported and spans thousands of miles across the United States. Participants carry what they need, navigate changing terrain and weather, and move forward one day at a time. The challenge is real—physically, mentally, and emotionally—but so is the reward. Through sustained effort and shared experience, veterans rediscover confidence, purpose, and a renewed sense of possibility.
The cross-country bicycle expedition is one of Warrior Expeditions’ most ambitious undertakings. Riding coast to coast demands endurance, patience, adaptability, and presence. It strips life down to essentials: wake, ride, eat, recover, repeat. In that simplicity, something powerful happens. Strength is rebuilt. Perspective shifts. Momentum returns.
This ride across the United States is not about speed or proving anything to others. It is about showing up each day, staying with the effort, and allowing movement to do what it has always done best—restore clarity, capability, and belief in what’s still possible.
