MILE$ FOR MONEY

How appropriate that June, men’s health month, is when this epic journey will conclude! Scott is over 9600 miles, and we are in Medora, North Dakota.  We have less than two weeks to go! Scott did a video yesterday during our hike in the Badlands at Theodore Roosevelt National Park to remind men to get their physicals, and to get their PSA checked.  Today is also cancer survivor day, a day to be grateful for the each day that Scott beats this disease.  I too want to remind women to encourage the men in their life to get their physicals (and their own preventive physicals.) I pestered Scott about getting a checkup as I said "it was the thing to do" in our early 50’s. He felt great, he was strength training, playing hockey, softball, and had absolutely no symptoms of any ill health. We had only been married a few months when he was diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer.   Scott had an elevated PSA detected from a simple blood test, and a biopsy confirmed the aggre...

We are 1500 miles in, the 8th state, and concluding a really hard week. If the ride is not challenging enough, Scott had a number of extra challenges this last week. Multiple flat tires, heat advisories, pouring rain, route challenges,  Garmin bike computer fail, a fall due to construction equipment pulling into the the road on a steep hill, poor cell and GPS coverage, etc., all added up to what felt like a walloping on top of the usual mileage. It was tough! But Scott is tough. Plus, he expected all these types of challenges, just not all in one week!  It made for some soul searching moments out on the bike.   Scott handled the heat advisories no problem. He handled the fall no problem (to quote Scott "I am a football player”.)  He changed the flat tires (until he ran out of tubes with him.)  He switched from the garmin edge to google maps bike on his phone. The rain was tougher. Pouring buckets of rain killed visibility and made the road slick. ...

I join you today from near Erie, PA! The 6th state into the ride. We are into our 4th week already. Sunday July 16th was the one year anniversary of the 988 suicide and crisis line. The idea behind this suicide and crisis line is to help prevent suicide by having a free and confidential support, a skilled listener, for people in crisis. The line has licensed professionals- ones trained to listen and deal with crisis- ready to help. Scott is riding his mileage "to honor not just the life God gave me, but Benny's life." Scott is stage 4 prostate cancer and grateful that he is alive AND that he is able to do this ride. Benny died of suicide, due to going off his schizophrenia meds because of the distasteful side effects, on January 15, 2020. Scott was half way through chemo treatments at the time that he got the call. He did not know Benny had schizophrenia, that he was on meds, and had gone off his meds. Today Scott passed mile 988 in his ride. He rode i...