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A Run for Liberty

December 18th, 2009
1,489 comments

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A r3VOLutionary in CA is planning to jog across. I especially like that he and his partner are using brew-pubs as way marks – haha

Here is a link

On January 9th, 2010 I will start my Transcontinental run from Huntington Beach, CA to the Statue of Liberty in New York. Follow me and my shooter, editor, friend and co conspirator, Chris Swenson as we travel across the country, talking about Liberty, less Government, free markets, sound money, running and of course, CRAFT BEER!

Check them out if they are on your route. I wish them a safe and successful journey

GO GRASS ROOTS!

Uncategorized

Welcome

October 28th, 2009

This site is primarily used for documenting bicycle ride outreach efforts. The last ride was “The Ride for Honesty” and you can read the whole story in the archives.  Reading from this page back will give you the story in reverse, I should figure out how to make it chronological, not enough time in the day…

So, welcome; am glad you are here. It should be noted that various efforts over the last year (including the ride) have garnered an award from “Oath Keepers” as “Citizen Activist of the Year” for 2009 at the first annual conference. If you haven’t heard of OathKeepers please visit

http://oathkeepers.org

The current primary focus is promoting liberty candidates for office and I am going to North Carolina to help some friends “Get Out The Vote”, Glen Bradley is running for State House and leading in the polls. As I am a big proponent of down ticket races, I am very excited to be helping my good friend Glen. Also in the neighborhood is BJ Lawson who is running for US Congress, and I’ll be close to support him, as well.

Finally, here is a simple video explaining the heart of liberty

Enjoy

Uncategorized

Quite the trip

August 20th, 2009

I’m still adjusting, my apologies for not posting more. I’ll find a balance and start gearing up for the next ride as soon as I can.

I was asked on the forum about the physical toll of such a trip. I think the biggest toll is mental. It was a complicated project on a relentless schedule.  Maintaining an appreciation for adversity. Keeping positive in the pouring rain while lightening strikes on all sides. Not freaking out over an early evening flat-tire; just fixing it with a shrug. What can you do? Seeing yet another mountain in the distance. Must. Keep. Pedaling. – haha

Physically? Well, it hurt. Every day. But I’m stronger. I can honestly say these trips have made me into a hard-ass ;). The aches would ebb and flow through the day. I usually felt good in the AM. Knees would be a bit stiff, but that would work out. Towards the end of the day they’d start reminding me that I ain’t twenty, though.

The Pennsylvania section beat the hell out me. Steep hills and late spring weather. Cold rains and humid sun. I broke out in a heat rash one day and made the mistake of rubbing my arms and breaking the blisters. That exposed new skin to the elements which quickly sun/wind burned into a nasty mess. The mid-west girls nursed the worst of of it, the sides of my elbows took a while to heal…

Everything took at back seat when my sciatic started acting up. Anyone who has had sciatic pain knows exactly what I am talking of. It was alright on the bike, walking wasn’t too bad, but standing was nearly impossible. Keeping “cheery” with that kind of dis-comfort was a challenge.

I have a new respect for heat, and the body’s cooling abilities/limitations. I can’t stress enough the importance of being careful, especially in high humidity. People of all ages and fitness levels die from heat stroke/exhaustion every year. Oklahoma and Nevada definitely reinforced that…

At the end of the day, the pain was short term, the gain long term, (and  a few more grey hairs from the days skirting Death Valley – haha).

Onward and forward…

Uncategorized

Journeys, and Destinations

July 29th, 2009

I have no idea where I am going to go with this post and look forward to seeing it as much as anyone…

First things first.

My thanks to Divine Providence, and for the many prayers of my family and friends. What got me safely across this country had very little to do with me, and everything to do with the above. I just kept pedaling, faithfully believing our cause as the correct moral path.

The satisfaction I feel is one I hope we all share. All of you, truly, have been with me the whole time. You shared my aches and frustrations, making them easier to bear. You made sure I was fed, sheltered, and hydrated, keeping me strong. You bought the materials I delivered, fulfilling my purpose. You all share in the experienced knowledge that daunting tasks can be accomplished, by teamwork, (coupled with dogged determination). My contribution was merely forcing the issue. I was coming, ready or not. – haha

So, what did I do? Did I pedal a bike from the Statue of Liberty to Alcatraz? Or did I water a withered tree?  I set out to do the latter.The symbolism of the ride was just a means…

Jefferson once stated that the natural fertilizer of the tree of liberty is the blood of patriots and tyrants. Working towards a peaceful r3VOLution means I must fertilize that tree with my own blood, sweat, and tears. My greatest satisfaction is in you all who chose to join in, contributing your own precious lifeblood. Our mingled drops, freely and purposely given, make a very powerful mix.

So again I say, Mahalo Nui Loa! To God, Family, Country. Thank you for a safe passage.

A vast and beautiful country. From sea to shining sea. And I don’t mean the landscape, a country is only geographical in a narrow sense. What makes a country great is the people. In America that is you, and the countless folk I encountered on the way. We, The People. Kind, generous, fun-loving is the norm, not the exception. A polite word and an easy smile work wonders. It is harder to detect and bring out in the cities, but still there. I’ve had my best luck handing out fliers in cities with variations of the cry, “Propaganda, get yer propaganda here!” – lulz… Most everyone appreciates honesty, couple it with humor and you’ll be feeding their minds out of your hand…  In the country I hardly needed to do much at all. People are naturally curious and being in a morally correct position gives us a genuineness that people crave. That is our strength

Every mind we touched has had a seed planted and at the end of the day, politics is a numbers game. What we have done on this ride is increase the odds in our favor. The numbers of people who want to be tyrants is minuscule. Most people just to be left alone.  They don’t want to have to think much about geo-political issues. They just want to raise their children in the best possible environment. Many are too trusting, but very few are stupid. Many may seem drowsy, but very few are comatose. Some may be deluded, but none are hopelessly so. Miracles do happen.

I deeply planted some seeds in the mind of a Marxist in Upper Haight (Ashbury) yesterday. I said nothing when he first proclaimed that Obama was not going far enough and we needed full blown communism. I waited. We talked, and I railed on the kleptocracy masquerading as a duapoly. I railed on the globalist bankers and the corporations that fund both sides. Positions he had to agree with. Then I hit him with history. The fact that history is full of utopias gone horribly wrong, and was he willing to take the chance…  I then talked of freedom. How it is the natural state of man, and how history shows it to be our most peaceful and prosperous state.

History vindicates our position. Simple as that.

So much of our position is simple common sense. That is why it is so important to get out and get the information to people. Help them educate themselves. As things get worse, more and more are rousting themselves and looking for answers. We need to have our answers available, everywhere. Now is the time. We have to be ready to engage the most unlikely prospects with respect and courage. We have to understand that even most of our “enemies” are ignorant of the role they are playing in their own downfall, and with the courage of conviction, stand our ground with polite respect. I took my leave from the Marxist after winning some crucial points. Know when to walk away and let the seeds sprout on their own… Have faith. It’s a numbers game…

Speaking of numbers, I’ve been seeding the bay area pretty good. Pitched a boatload of people on the ferry, literally.

Even got some spontaneous donations. That always gives me a boost, concrete evidence that I am earning my keep.

Surpisingly, according to the original google doc spreadsheet, I entered San Francisco precisely on schedule. hahahahhahhhahhhahhhahhhaha, (sorry…. chuckle…). and knew I wasn’t in Kansas anymore…

In fact, I was so on schedule that I had no time to dilly dally and pedaled off to meet my good friend Anthony Gregory,

and his sweetheart Nicole, who promptly swept me off my bike for a celebratory libation, while waiting for another old friend, Kris Shane,

to come up from the airport. We wandered around a bit before going to Scomas for linner. It was the nicest place on the wharf, right there among the fishing boats. I was still dressed in road clothes…

but the staff never blinked and it was a great meal.

Afterwards, Anthony and Nicole had to go, so Kris and I were left to our own devices. Kris actually had to get back before long, so we decided to walk to the top of Telegraph Hill and check out the Coit Tower, which is a memorial to firefighters.

The fog was rolling in so few Kodak Moments

We kept wandering. Found ourselve under a pyramid with a glowing top – haha

We parted at a BART stop, and I wandered on The Embarcadero up the Barbary Coast

and mused on what to say about a journey from

to

For certain I’ve pondered the walls of my destination and expect to convey some of my thoughts. Regardless, the greater journey remains far from over…

😉

Continuing on, I board a train on the 31st for LA, where I will meet up with Sheriff Mack at a rally on 8/2. There I intend to discuss the effort to get his book to every sheriff in the nation and where we can help. The website will be changing around and I hope to post a section here where we can track progress. (I know that Oklahoma is keen, and ripe…) At the rally I will be meeting with them ubiquitous Phoenix r3V folk, who will be giving me a lift to my new home in Santa Fe, NM, where I will be part of the KokeshForCongress team and continuing the mission.

And as far as actual riding,… the next major ride is on the boards. As always, I’ll need help. Stay tuned…

🙂

Journal, Photos, Uncategorized

The Nevada Desert Pt2

July 20th, 2009

What can I say about the heat? It was intimidating, oppressive, and perhaps un-bearable in other circumstances, but these are the circumstances I faced and in order to succeed, must be born. KInda like the rising police state which inspired this ride. In the beginning the sheriff offices were intimidating, but after a while became less so. Same as the heat. It kinda spooked me when I saw the thermometer top 130 (shade). That meant I was pedaling in about 150 degrees… O.M.G.

But what could I do? Giving up while I can still walk is not an option. Yes, it would have been easy to say to Dave, ‘This is too dangerous and just too much, lets load up the bike and drive to the next town.”  But the thought never entered my brain. It wasn’t the challenge, it wasn’t pride, I don’t think it was stupidity, it was simply what I set out to do, and shirking due to fear or discomfort is not the way to win a r3VOLution. To win we must push ourselves past where we thought our limits might be (and by doing so most find that their limits are not so easily found, and the strength of voice such activism empowers is well worth the discomfort)

150 degrees…

I won’t ever do that again, if I can help it. And if I do, I’ll be even better prepared.

More pics…

A vast emptiness…

But not completely empty.  There are ghost-towns

and burros

and very expensive places to stay

The curiousity, and thought of AC, kept tempting me to stop in, (but I pedaled past…)

There are also, other wanderers

I pedaled up on Dave and this gentleman during the hottest part of the day. This pic was after Dave gave him the hat, white shirt, sunglasses, and water. He was dressed in heavy Carhart type gear (including an insulated vest), was pedaling a bike from Twin Falls, ID. to his camp in… Death Valley. Amazing… When Dave found him he was walking his bike due to the rumblestrips and seemed on his last legs. Dave, being the kind and helpful person he is, set him up for the next 30 miles to Beatty  After we parted Dave mentioned to me his mother telling him, “be careful how you treat people, you may be entertaining an angel”  Then I pedaled on.

to be continued…

pedal pedal

🙂

Journal, Photos, Uncategorized

The Nevada Desert Pt 1

July 19th, 2009

A perilous place, especially in summer. Relentless sun and baking wind. Craggy and blackened ridges, stark, tortured. One can almost imagine Frodo and Sam, lost.  Hills, once verdant seamounts, now crumbling into featureless dunes. Sandy flats, where the heat soars and the vast emptiness stretches on. Awfully awesome, I’m very glad the worst is behind me.

Two days of skirting Death Valley, (a well named place.) I covered over 180 miles in those two days, in temperatures topping 150 degrees.

That’s kinda warm… no haha.

The first day from North Vegas to Beatty was absolutely brutal. Headwinds and narrow shoulders, with a hellish rumble strip.I rode on the road as much as I could, but that can get quite tiresome as I must always be aware of what is in front, and behind, contantly craning my neck for a quick look and snapping back to see I’ve drifted into the rumble strip. Or the traffic coming both ways would see me have to cross the divets to a narrow strip where one wheel of my cart would ride the edge of the desert and the other would chatter through them. Or the final few miles where even narrower sections saw me riding the bike itself through the nightmare. In the bright sun. Being rattled to pieces. And baked…

I can easily see how quickly madness and death could trap a person out there. I would look with longing at some shade on a distant ridge… I saw a little patch of shade from a small sign, barely enough to curl up in, and thought, maybe I should take a rest… NOT!. Get the heck off the road and out of the heat, ASAP… As careful as we were, it was still not the safest thing in the world to be doing…

Here is how I dealt with the heat. Long sleeve white shirt that a supporter from KC helped me get at a GoodWill in MO. White Hat that Dave had bought me, with a thin towel under that I would soak occasionally.

A Mister/Fan in my handlebar bag that I could lean forward and get a blast from.

And lots, and lots, of water.  It was amazing feeling the cooling effect of the longsleeve shirt, the moist towel on the head was critical, and the mister heavenly.

One thing about being out in the desert, people are curious and know that I’m serious about my mission. Had a few people stop to give me water and ask about the ride. Can’t find the pic for that at the moment, and have to get on the road. I’ll break this post up into parts so I can keep them coming. The long days make it a bit harder to get the posts out.

Here is the bike, a speck in the empty vastness

pedal pedal

Journal, Photos, Uncategorized

Going with the Flowing Layers

July 9th, 2009

A trip like this has many layers, many angles to attempt to keep in line. All projects do. Being able to roll with developing events, keeping a “show must go on attitude” is where we win.

I’ve been having trouble getting a blog up. My “routine” has been broken and I am adjusting. I live for this kind of stuff. Yep, some things are hard… good practice, that’s for sure…

I’m lucky to have witnessed the r3VOLution unfold and watched/participated in the manifold attempts of “cat-herding.”  I’ve learned to do as little as possible. I just create some possibilities, put myself out there, welcome who wants to come along, and watch as events unfold.

I learn to adjust. I know that “the best laid plans of mice and men, come to naught, time and again”. So I make a fairly detailed plan, and see where it leads. Often it leads to many WTH moments, but that is where art is born, in spontaneity, in overcoming unforeseen challenges, in leaps of faith.

I have a large imagination. I see ton’s of possibilities that this event enables. Some are being capitalized on, some are not. (This is still a practice run, mind you – haha). What is important is that some are. Active supporters are confidently connecting, the drowsy are being gently awakened, the police are being politely greeted.

All are layers…

Changing from the solitary motel gig, to the 4 guys in a small RV gig is a challenge, it threw my routine, hence the blog delay. But the point is that it must be for the best, and the challenges of adding stomachs and personalities is what is supposed to happen, and it is up to us to make the best of every opportunity that presents itself.  This is r3VOLution. This is for real. This is where the mouse and the human separate. We all know how dicey things are, how much “hangs in the balance” but think of that… the balance.

How much weight does it take to affect a balance? Hmmmm…  an infinitely miniscule amount, I’d imagine… Hmmmmmm… 😉

Anyway, I’m rambling in a RV full of laughing men, here are some pics…

Last post, Phoenix r3v was about…

Ed and I cruised…

for miles

and miles

we entered a new county

fixed more flats

pedal pedal

rest under bridges

talk to people

remember talking of cyclists splayed out on cool concrete

We stood on a corner in Winslow Arizona

Joan was our gracious host (who took a bookset for delivery – ty)

We put up with a lot of wind on a long road

Ed got dusted

we pedaled on

Got to Seligman after a long windy day

Pitched some Liberty

Ed rode my bike

Oyate made a long drive to visit

and we made a short vid

Honored with his visit, glad to have this pic

We cruised town, and Ed got a flat,


got as room with a real shower at an old roadside flophouse

Just the right amount of funk

both inside and out

We woke to grime

and smiling faces

While I had coffee

and did email stuffs

with friends

getting ready

ran into some friends

The r3VOLution continues

because we work at it

what more?

pedal pedal

much aloha

🙂

Journal, Photos, Uncategorized, Video