please follow the main blog temporarily.

So. Mobile updating is not working.  I do NOT have a lap top.  So I have to borrow.  What a hassell. so please just follow the main blog. thanks.  :)  

.  :)

So I still need some donations as well.  Thank you to all of those who have donated.  

I will try to update again soon.  Sorry for the short blog.  But it is time to turn the computer back over to its owner.  Thanks and have a great day

Where we will begun....6 days from now....

On Friday between 1200 hrs and 1400 hrs I will be meeting the riders that I will be biking to Florida with. We will be hosted by the First Church of God in St. Joseph, Michigan. We will be staying there till Sunday when we will begin the adventure and ride to South Bend, IN for day 1. Are you joining us? you should. The ride will be 35 miles.

I cant believe its less than a week away.

Sense I live in Michigan and near the metro area. I offered people transportation to St. Joseph. Its about 2.5 hrs from my residence in Milan. But I figured Detriot was a much more reasonable city to fly, or take the train too.

On Thursday night I will be picking Ester up in Lansing. On Either Thursday or Friday I will be picking Nick up somewhere in the D. Then Friday morning at 550 hrs we will be picking Lisa up from the train station in Toledo.

Then... its off to St. Jospeh, Michigan for the adventure of my lifetime. :)

Thank you First Church of God in St. Joseph, Michigan for hosting us for 2 nights, 3 days. :)

performance bike lost my order.

I think that title says it all. Performance Bike lost my $300.00 order. Credit card charged, email saying they received it and would start processing it 0600 hrs the next morning.

Then 2 days later I checked the status of my order.

Order number not found.

Order history empty.

I go to my bank account online. $300.00 that was pending prior has now gone through.

I dial up the customer service at performance bike. They tell me to wait patiently my order may arrive in the next couple days. Even though, they could not find my order by credit card number or by name and addy. They re assured me they could 2 day my order on Tuesday for a extra charge of course, and re charge my card so my lost order that is apparently going to appear can be returned. She told me someone got there "lost" order 2 months later in the mail. Now. Do you think i have 2 months or the extra $300.000 NO. I politely told the lady id call back on Monday and give it the two days.

However. I dialed performance bike again. and got a much better customer service lady. She credited my account because she could not find the order. and within 15 minutes the money was back in my bank account. Now of course, she wanted me to place another order with them. But she could not honor the coupon I had that I used the prior day, as it was expired now, and she could not upgrade me to 2 days shipping. That's fine. They just wont get my business again. At least I got my money back. :)

So after work on Friday I took the 40 min drive to Deaborn to go to a place called bike sport that everyone rants and raves about. Now. I was dearly disappointed in the rave of this building. But its economical. They had 1 of every product. Whether it be top dollar or bottom dollar. Maybe they were out of the product, but they will order it for you no problem. the website is much more impressive than the store. Not to mention the store does not have a sign on the address that the street is on. so it was extremely difficult to find. Now, they did not have a pair of shorts in my size, but they did have some VERY nice shorts. They did not have a pair of bibs in my size. They did not have the handlebar tape brand and color I wanted, they did not have the Aero water bottle I had wanted. But they did have the seat bracket double water bottle holder. At least I'll be hydrated on my ride. my bum may be sore. but ill be hydrated.

So I guess ill have to go shopping all over again. hopefully not as many places as I did for shoes, but were one store into the search again.

its time to start packing.

Suggested Gear List

Each rider can bring 1 bag of about 4,000 cubic inches but no more than 4,500 cubic inches. Not sure the size of your bag? Measure the length, width, and height in inches, and then do the math:

Length x width x height = bag volume in cubic inches. Thanks!

Ordinary Clothing: (this color means still need to get around)

· 3 pairs underwear

· 2 T-shirts (what ones am i going to bring?)

· Women: 3 sports bras, 1 non-sport (i could use to get one more good sports bra)

· 3 pairs socks (I don't really like cycling socks, i Like Adidas dry vent aloe ones. bought some new ones last week)

· 2 pairs shorts (how about a pair of capris, a pair of shorts ::)

· 1 pair of pants (I need to decided what ones to get. I think I want to get Mountain Hardware capri style outdoorsy kind of pants)

· 1 pair closed-toed shoes (required for worksites)

· Sandals / flip-flops (use for shower shoes)* (hmm. I want croc prepairs)

· Sweater/Sweatshirt (bright yellow painted Michigan to FL by Bike for Housing )

· Pajamas+ (I think I can just wear my shorts or capri and maybe bring a tank top)

· Hat or cap+ (possibly. but def. bringing a bandanna)

· Bathing suit

· Pillow+ ( I bought a inflatable neck pillow for a $1)

Cycling Clothing:

· 3 pairs cycling shorts* (I have a good pair, a shitty pair, a decent pair and just ordered another pair from performance bike, but apparently they cant find my order. err). I should prolly get one more pair.

· Cycling clip-in shoes*

· Fuller Center jersey#

· Cycling gloves⁺

· Leg warmers or cycling tights (Tall socks work well w/my capris. may save a few dollars)

· Arm warmers (bright yellow ones. they dont match at all. lol)

· 3 pairs cycling socks (I dont like cycling socks)

· Rain jacket* (iffy subject. I have my jacket I used last year)

Personal Items:

· Toiletries (shampoo, conditioner, tooth brush, toothpaste, shower wipes, baby wipes, what else?)

· Sunscreen (and after sun aloe gel)

· Quick-dry towel (the most amazing thing EVER)

· Camera (need to remember the charger)

· MP3 player / iPod (not for use while biking)^{+ (does anyone have a wall charger i can borrow?)}

· Book or journal (hmm. what book should i bring)

· Alarm clock+

· Saddle cream / Gold Bond powder

· Cell phone*

· Personal Laptop^{+ (anyone want to rent me theres)}

Personal Equipment:

· Sleeping bag ( I must find this)

· Thermarest air mattress#

· Sunglasses

· Flashlight or headlamp (light on my bike)

· Shower bag (like a personal camping shower bag?)

Cycling Equipment

· Road Bicycle*

· Helmet (100% required)

· Air pump for bike* (are we really all suppossed to bring one)

· Water bottles#

· Cages for bottles*

· Patch kit*

· Bike lock* (I cant find mine.. err)

· Spare inner tubes* (so far i have 3. need to get another tube)

· Chain lube*

· Spare tires (some available for standard road bikes)# ( I have 4 spare tires, i think that is good )

· Hydration pack (i.e. Camelbak)* (Negative. I have 6 water bottle cages though :)

· Clipless pedals*

· Cycling computer*

· Seat bag*

· Ergonomic saddle*

· Rearview mirror* (really)

· Multi-use bike tool*

· 3 tire levers* how about the one that works :)

* Very strongly recommended for those joining us for long distances

# Provided

+ An optional extra

The riding schedule

I don't know how to put a calendar in here yet. but I will soon. I have one one on my Google site that you can see where we will be biking to and from each day. For now, here is this till I get a calendar. :) click on the title of the post to get to my Google site page which has a calendar. :)

I think a few of the towns and etc has changed. Ill update it when I find out for sure. :)

7/10 Friday Meet & Greet Benton Harbor, MI -
7/11 Saturday Orientation Day Benton Harbor, MI Benton Harbor, MI -
7/12 Sunday 1* Benton Harbor, MI South Bend, IN 34
7/13 Monday BUILD 1 South Bend, IN South Bend, IN -
7/14 Tuesday 2 South Bend, IN Rochester, IN 48
7/15 Wednesday 3 Rochester, IN Kokomo, IN 43
7/16 Thursday 4 Kokomo, IN Indianapolis, IN 51
7/17 Friday 5 Indianapolis, IN Seymour, IN 66
7/18 Saturday 6* Seymour, IN Louisville, KY 54
7/19 Sunday DAY OFF Louisville, KY Louisville, KY -
7/20 Monday BUILD 2 Louisville, KY Louisville, KY -
7/21 Tuesday 7 Louisville, KY Springfield, KY 56
7/22 Wednesday BUILD 3 Springfield, KY Springfield, KY -
7/23 Thursday 8 Springfield, KY Winchester, KY 77
7/24 Friday BUILD 4 Winchester, KY Winchester, KY -
7/25 Saturday 9 Winchester, KY Berea, KY 35
7/26 Sunday 10 Berea, KY Corbin, KY 59
7/27 Monday 11 Corbin, KY La Follette, TN 56
7/28 Tuesday 12 La Follette, TN Knoxville, TN 44
7/29 Wednesday 13 Knoxville, TN Etowah, TN 60
7/30 Thursday 14 Etowah, TN Chattanooga, TN 56
7/31 Friday 15 Chattanooga, TN Calhoun, GA 53
8/1 Saturday 16 Calhoun, GA Marietta, GA 53
8/2 Sunday 17* Marietta, GA Union City, GA 36
8/3 Monday BUILD 5 Union City, GA Union City, GA -
8/4 Tuesday 18 Union City, GA LaGrange, GA 55
8/5 Wednesday 19 LaGrange, GA Lanett, AL 18
8/6 Thursday BUILD 6 Lanett, AL Lanett, AL -
8/7 Friday 20* Lanett, AL Auburn, AL 30
8/8 Saturday 21* Auburn, AL Americus, GA 100
8/9 Sunday DAY OFF Americus, GA Americus, GA -
8/10 Monday BUILD 7 Americus, GA Americus, GA -
8/11 Tuesday 22 Americus, GA Lake Blackshear 22
8/12 Wednesday 23 Lake Blackshear Moultrie, GA 71
8/13 Thursday 24 Moultrie, GA Tallahassee, FL 61
8/14 Friday BUILD 8 Tallahassee, FL Tallahassee, FL -
8/15 Saturday 25* Tallahassee, FL Panacea Park 30
8/16 Sunday Go Home! Panacea Park -

Total miles = 1268
* Indicates a special local ride in coordination with ours

a neat video from the 2008 bike trip.

2008 FCBA video.

13 days. Cant wait.

Milan News article

Biking for a cause


Silent auctions and raffle fundraising appear to be a thing of the past this month, with the most common form of fundraising coming instead from physical activity sponsorship.

Bikers from Milan and Saline will be putting their skills and athleticism to good use in July, raising money for charities. Various cyclists across the state are choosing a foundation, collecting donations and sponsors, and making treks anywhere from across the state to across the country.

Megan East and Theresa Brosius are two of those participants, raising money for their respective charities. East will be making a cross-country trip for the Fuller Center for Housing. Brosius will bike across the state of Michigan for the Make A Wish Foundation.

East, a 23-year-old college graduate who lives in Milan and works at the Saline Recreation Center, joined the Christian faith-based nonprofit bicycling event to help others find affordable housing. She and 11 others will travel 1,300 miles from Michigan to Florida, stopping along the way to help build houses.

East's trip begins July 10 in Benton Harbor and finishes Aug. 16 at Panacea Park in Florida. East and her teammates estimate doing 50 to 55 miles each day that they bike.

East's event also encourages participants to join on for part-time biking distances. Others interested in helping the cause can bike for shorter legs of the trip and raise money that way, such as the opening 35-mile stretch from Benton Harbor to South Bend, Ind.

"I just decided I wanted to volunteer this summer doing something special, and decided since these are such tough economic times for everyone, that raising money for people's housing is great," East said.

This is the second inaugural year of the trip for the Fuller Center. The trip snakes through seven different states.

East found herself in a position to donate her time after being laid off recently from a police department in Maryland. She returned home to Southeastern Michigan shortly after and returned to her Saline Recreation Center job, which she held for years prior to her time in Maryland.

East lives in Milan, as does her father, and has also coached volleyball in the Milan area. She graduated from Eastern Michigan University.

The Fuller Center is hoping to raise $200,000 for the whole trip, which will be used to improve and build houses for those in need of affordable housing. So far, the group has raised $29,142. East hopes to raise at least $4,500 on her own.

Those interested in helping and donating to the fundraising effort can visit www.fullercenterbiketrip.com.

While Brosius and her biking excursion may be shorter in distance than East's, it's no less important in its goals. The Make A Wish bike tour will be held July 23 through 26. It's a three-day event aiming to raise money to complete special wishes for children with life-threatening illnesses.

The bike tour covers 300 miles from Traverse City to Chelsea. The money raised goes directly to purchase wishes, which, on average, cost $8,000 per wish. Often times those wishes include trips and airfare, such as trips for the family to see Disneyland.

Brosius hopes to raise $750 on her own, and recently hit the $300 mark. For her, participating was the easiest choice in the world. She has been a pediatric nurse at C.S. Mott Children's Hospital for the past 19 years.

But she's also in great shape now that her three daughters -- Laura, Michelle and Emily -- are out of the nest and graduated. She has spent much of her time improving her level of physical fitness at the local gym.

"I have a real interest in doing things that are good for sick children, and I really decided to do it because I'm in the best I've ever been in," Brosius said. "I just ran the Dexter-Ann Arbor marathon and ran the best race of my life. So why don't I try to do something to benefit others? What's the point of being in shape if you can't do something good with it?"

Ever since the end of October, Brosius has been doing strength training three times a week and cardiovascular exercise every day. She also bikes to and from work every day, a roundtrip that adds up to 24 miles long.

"I really love to ride, and I've always wanted to bike ride across the country. I think this is a good chance to see what it's like," she said.

Leaving from Traverse City July 23, Brosius and 900 other participants will bike 100 miles for three days until they reach Chelsea. The 900 participants have already raised a cumulative sum of $680,000 to spend on wishes.

To further her own fundraising efforts, Brosius plans to hold a bake sale at her work, and will be holding a raffle at the Snap fitness center where she trains. She will be offering up a free massage from In Touch Therapeutic Massage, as well as other items. The raffle is July 15.

SAG Wagon driver needed.

With the bike trip being 18 days away. Were still in desperate need of a SAG wagon driver and a SAG wagon sponsor. Come on, volunteer for 5 weeks, drive to Florida with us as we bike. I'll get sweaty for you. Or donate $950 so we can get a sweet trailer design, and don't worry we can advertise your company on there for you.

I keep getting asked. What is a Sag Wagon. A Sag wagon is a support vehicle for cyclist on a tour. If you are a cyclist on a race, you generally call the support vehicle a broom wagon.

So what exactly does SAG stand for? Its kind of up in the question. Some people thing its a acronym for support and gear and some things its for support aid group. Basically its both. :)

A support vehicle is essentially the back bone of the bike trip. Generally you are very close to the SAG wagon and its driver. Its a sense of comfort, a sense of home on a long trip, and it can carry your gear (making our bikes lighter...always a plus). The SAG wagon's duty can be different for different trips. For our trip, it will carry equipment, water, food, our one bag of luggage, tires, tubes, spare parts, guitar, cd player and a place to kinda call home for 5 weeks. :) Oh yeah, if your bike breaks its kinda nice knowing you may not have to walk the whole 100 miles ahead of you for the day. :)

So now that you know how lovely a SAG wagon is. Please consider donating your time with us riders and the Fuller Center for Housing.

Less than 20 days. scary. exciting.

I did some upgrades this week. I decided to get new pedals. I have both road and mtb. I decided to get new mtb ones. I figured the weight is not that much more, they are more comfy for me, and make time off the saddle in them more enjoyable. we will see if that is a good more bad decision in the weeks ahead.

I also decided to get new mtb shoes. My curret ones bug the hell out of my right foot. After searching a good 21 plus stores. I found a pair at the place where I bought my bike a good 3 years ago, and where I received bad bike work 3 weeks ago. However, I was assisted by the person who sold me my bike, a female named Jessica. I really did not have many shoe options. My right foot arc seems to be pretty high, while my left foot arch seems to be falling slightly. So. I needed wide shoes with a very high arch. Shoes after shoes, brand after brand I was having no luck. I either was falling out of the mens heel cup, not fitting into a female heel cup, not able to ratchet any shoe shut except the 400 dollar models that have more advance adjustments. i narrowed it down to two different shoes, at two different bike shops, 46 miles away from each other. Female shoes (basicaly so they looked cool), ratchet, and not black were the qualities I wanted to find in a shoe. Belive it or not, im okay with the ones I got. They are black, mens and have no ratchet.

I orginally set out for road pedals, road shoes, and a giro atmos helmet. came home with not road shoes, and not road pedals. So of course I did not come home with a atomos helmet either. I had saved soo much money already on the pedals and shoes that fit. That I came across the specialized S works helmet that is lighter than the atomos and at 70% off. Now. Helmets were all 30% off in the store and Specialized were on a one day sale of 40%, so combined it was 70% off! Now, that's what im talking about. Granted, when i used to pedal a bike 10 hrs at work, I hated the S-works I was handed and chose to wear my bell slant. reasoning. it had a better pony tail whole. I guess i can make a sacrifice for 70% off. I also had to get a ugly color. So my helmet is not the color I wanted, nor the shoes, nor the pedals. but life goes on. :)
I saved alot of Cash by making comprises.

20 days. dont forget to donate now :)

www.fullercenterbiketrip.com rider Megan East

29 days

less than one month till I meet all the riders and we head on a adventure of 1,300 miles of pedaling, spreading endless love and promoting the Fuller Center for housing.

Im honored to be doing one of the fastest growing Charity bike rides. I initially just knew I wanted to do one. I compared Bike and Bulid and Fuller Center for housing. One of main factors I chose Fuller Center Bike Trip was 100% of the money we raise goes directly into low income housing. `100%. That is amazing to me.

So many people ask what we are doing about sleeping, eating and showering. Most of the time we will stay at churches and they will cook us dinner. We will share our information with them as they eagerly invite us in.

However, as excited as I may be. How thankful and enlightening it is to have every ones support. Im also nervous. I still have a big chunk of money to raise, and this is where I need your help. Thank you to those who have been so generous and donated. To those have not, I understand the difficult economic times. Im facing them as well. and so is Everyone in America. But can you give up one Starbucks coffee, a night out at the bar, and our a extra pair of shoes and donate to this wonderful organization.

I aslo need help spreading the word. so please feel free to invite your friends. send a email to them. tell them about it.

:)

Less than 30 days. and I can NOT wait. :)

People keep asking for TFC principles. you asked. you shall receive
We at the Fuller Center for Housing believe that:

* We are part of a God movement, and movements don’t just stop
* We have been called to this housing ministry; we didn’t just stumble into it
* We are unashamedly Christian, and enthusiastically ecumenical
* We aren’t a church but we are a servant of the Church
* We are faith driven, knowing that after we’ve done all we can do the Lord will help finish the job—something that requires us to stretch beyond our rational reach
* We are a grassroots ministry, recognizing that the real work happens on the ground in communities around the world through our covenant partners, so a large, overseeing bureaucracy isn’t needed
* We try to follow the teachings of the Bible and believe that it says that we shouldn’t charge interest of the poor, so we don’t
* Government has a role in our work in helping set the stage, but that we shouldn’t look to it as a means to fund the building of home


One lasting thought..

the demand for safe, affordable housing is enormous. The United Nations estimates that over one billion people around the world live in substandard housing. In the United States alone, almost two million people live with a hole in their roof, 3.7 million live with broken windows and 2.5 million live in a house where the foundation is crumbling beneath them. Just over one million people live without complete plumbing facilities. (Source: American Housing Survey, U.S. Census Bureau, 2005)

Oh yeah and
The team is also interested in speaking to anyone who might like to come along as a volunteer support person and full-time SAG wagon driver. Those interested can email: bike@fullercenter.org.

& Ryan just posted on facebook that.

We have an opportunity to make our trailer for our bike ride look really awesome if we can find a sponsor for it. Cost is $950. We'll add a company's logo and give them some good publicity. Anyone know someone who might be interested?

A article about rider Erika Amburgey McLemore

A article about Erika McLemore. Erika will be taking leave from the Navy to join us for the whole trip, her husband will biking most of the trip. BIKING, BUILDING IS NEXT HURDLE

Sunday, May 24, 2009

BY CATHY DYSON When Erika McLemore makes up her mind to do something, watch out. "She'll find a way to do it, whether it's running a marathon, learning how to make a quilt or biking across the country and building houses," said Katie Lee, her friend since middle school. "She always goes after things 100 percent." McLemore, whose maiden name is Amburgey, grew up in King George County, the daughter of the late Guy and Betty Amburgey, both of whom retired from the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Dahlgren. McLemore served in the Navy Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps at King George High School, then graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 2006. The 24-year-old tends to accomplish whatever she sets her mind to, her friend said, even if she knows absolutely nothing about it. Take the marathon and making a quilt. McLemore thought it would be cool to run 26 miles, and planned to train, but when the day of the Country Music Marathon in Nashville dawned, she'd barely done any extra running. (She's no couch potato; she regularly runs about 25 miles a week.) She and her husband, Tim, finished the marathon, but didn't set any records. McLemore took the same approach when she decided to make a quilt for Lee's birthday. McLemore knew nothing about sewing, but bought a machine and figured out how to arrange images of the Care Bears that Lee loves so much. "That's just who she is," Lee said. McLemore's next feat will be to bike 1,268 miles, from Michigan to Florida, during the heat of summer. As part of the Fuller Center for Housing's Bicycle Adventure 2009, she'll stop eight times along the way to help build houses. So what if she just started biking last month and knows little about construction? McLemore heard about the group, which focuses on affordable housing and offering riders a spiritual journey, and thought it sounded cool. "I thought it combined the best of both worlds: vacationing and doing something to help other people," she said. Her JROTC teacher at King George High isn't surprised. When McLemore led the program before she graduated in 2002, she "brought everybody along," said Cmdr. Fred Duckworth. "Where a lot of teenagers were more self-centered, she was always more focused on other people." She ran on the track team in high school and says running gives her a lot of endurance--and the appearance of being in shape. "I fake it well," she laughed." Amburgey and her husband met at the Naval Academy and married a year after graduation. During their honeymoon in Jamaica, they took a bicycle tour of the island and loved it. They'll ride through the middle of America together, starting July 10. She's a surface warfare officer who worked on Tomahawk missiles last year and now monitors radar systems on the USS Leyte Gulf, a guided-missile cruiser. She just completed a deployment to West Africa, doing counter-piracy and drug operations. He deals with computers and communication. The two have to raise $4,000 each to meet the team's goal of raising $200,000 to build homes. But because Erika Amburgey is not the kind of person to accept the average, the couple have set their goal at $50,000. "This is enough to build AN ENTIRE HOME in the United States," she wrote in an e-mail. She knows the goal may be lofty, given the economic times and the reluctance of corporate sponsors. But she'll still aim for it. "It's completely consuming me right now," she said. "It's all I want to do. I can't wait."

Article from the Mennonite Mission Network

Ryan is the director of the bike trip. The Mennonite Mission Network talks good about him and the trip.

AMERICUS, Ga. (Mennonite Mission Network) – This summer, using bicycles, water bottles and helmets as their tools, 18 riders will travel from Michigan to Florida to help raise houses. From July 10 to August 16, these bikers, led by former Mennonite Voluntary Service participant Ryan Iafigliola, will travel from city to city, spreading the word about the Fuller Center for Housing and raising money to supplement building projects. The bike ride will also honor Millard Fuller, the founder of both Habitat for Humanity and the Fuller Center for Housing who died unexpectedly after a brief illness in February 2009.

Begun in 2005, the Fuller Center for Housing continues Fuller’s legacy of making decent housing available to all people. The Fuller Center focuses its efforts on helping to provide upkeep and renovations to existing homes. Instead of simply building new homes, they can fit homes with handicap accessible features like ramps and handrails, put on new roofs, and help with a variety of other repairs. “Millard began to notice that there was a target audience that Habitat couldn’t serve. For example, elderly people who are living in a home but they don’t have the resources for upkeep. Now people can be blessed by receiving repairs and then help send back a gift that can bless someone else,” said Iafigliola. Iafigliola first got involved with Habitat and Fuller during his time as a student at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. He knew he was interested in working alongside Fuller after college, and MVS provided a program that allowed him to serve with the Fuller Center for a year as a volunteer. Mennonite Voluntary Service, one of Mission Network’s Christian Service programs, invites adults of all ages and backgrounds to spend a one- or two-year term living in community and serving in a variety of locations across the United States. During his volunteer year, Iafigliola was encouraged to develop his own gifts as a leader and came up with the idea of a bike ride to raise awareness and funds for the Fuller Center. He modeled his idea on walks across the country that Fuller hosted during the 1980s and 1990s. Last summer, eight riders joined Iafigliola in a coast-to-coast bike ride from San Diego, Calif., to Savannah, Ga., and raised $135,000 for the Fuller Center. This year the goal is to raise $200,000, and Iafigliola is still looking for more riders, for a day or for the entire trip, to help meet this goal. Last year, one biker, Katherine Stump, found the ride on Facebook, an online social networking site. She was so inspired by the mission of the Fuller Center, that when the bikers rode through Americus, Ga., where the Fuller Center is located, she submitted an application and interviewed for a job. She now serves as the assistant director of communications for the Fuller Center. “The bike ride changed my whole perspective. I had never considered working for a nonprofit before, but for the first time in my life I felt God calling me to do something. It renewed my faith to see people putting their faith into action,” said Stump. During the 2009 bike ride, bikers will stay at churches and connect with Fuller Center partners in different cities. On July 12 in South Bend, Ind., Fuller Center board chair and longtime supporter, Leroy Troyer, is organizing a building event where riders will help to renovate a house alongside people from the community. Bikers will also stay at Kern Road Mennonite Church in South Bend and have a chance to share with church members about their ride. Members of the congregation will also join the bikers for the first day’s journey. “In our county, we’re working on a program to eliminate substandard housing. The Bible says that with God all things are possible and we’re claiming that. It’s exciting to see young people like Ryan getting involved,” said Troyer. After completing his year with MVS, Iafigliola continues to work at the Fuller Center as a staff member because of his belief in the program. “God gives us life so that we can give to others,” said Iafigliola. “This program has a tremendous ability to break down barriers and to build relationships.” Individuals are invited to join the Fuller Center bikers for any length of time during the ride. For more information about the Fuller Center bike adventure, visit www.fullercenterbiketrip.com. For more information on Mennonite Voluntary Service and other Christian service programs, visit service.mennonitemission.net by Hannah Heinzekehr

my biking history. or lack there of.

So. Where to start. My name is Megan. I grew up in a small town in Northern Michigan called Bear Lake. I graduated with a tiny class and loved every moment of it. I played several sports, but I never biked further than maybe 10 miles. Lynn's house, Kampvilla RV Park (Have you seen the Big Yellow Dinosaur?) and or maybe the softball fields.

I went to Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan where I earned a Bachelors degree in Criminal Justice. During this time I worked at Mickey’s Day Care on Packard st. in Ann Arbor, bd's Mongolian Grill in Downtown Ann Arbor and The Saline Rec Center.

While swimming at the pool one day, I decided I was going to do a Triathlon. I lifeguard everyday for a group of Triatheletes, Ironmanist, and the long distance swimmers. Randomly unplanned I went to the bike store. I never thought I would come home with a bicycle. I was just looking. Well, I came home with a bicycle that cost more than my car was worth. I of course hid the price of the bicycle to my father for months. I mean, It cost more than my car. He would kill me. But one day he went to the bicycle store, and guess what; they don’t sell road bikes under $900.00 and even at $900.00 don’t expect it to come with road clip pedals, road clip shoes, a air pump, helmet, bike shorts, bike jersey, carbon water bottle cage and aero bars. I was caught.

Phew, one parent down. Grandparents and mother still to go. Okay, so I just told my grandfather. He was okay with it, I mean he has $1,000 saddle bags on his "bike" (granted its powered by gasoline). Grandmother was not impressed. Not impressed at all, I could bike way faster than her now. She thought id never ride with her again. My mother was just upset that I didn’t buy a new car instead. Typical parent. Geesh.

I’m not going to lie, I bought the bike and maybe rode 600 miles the WHOLE summer before snowfall. So, it definitely cost more than a dollar a mile that summer.

The next summer I started riding more. By riding more I mean maybe 1000 miles the whole summer. Phew, at least the bike was no more than $1.00 a hour at this point. But still, I thought id use it more.

I took the bike ALL the way to Ocean City, MD (,Worcester County, 21842 LOL.) and rode it occasionally. Did my first metric century near the end of the summer, and re fell in love. When I did this bike ride I didn’t really instead to ride for 64 miles and left my cell phone on coffee table. When I returned 4 hours later my roommates were seriously worried for my own good. They thought how I could still be riding my bike for 4 hours. But it was amazing. To bad summer was almost over. I Moved to Ocean Pines for a month, continued to do 40 - 60 miles on my off days until I moved back to Michigan and was welcomed with snow.

In May of 2008 is when I really started enjoying my bicycle more. I moved back to East Coast and lived in Roxana, DE for 6 months. DE had bike paths on some roads, can you believe it. In the Early summer, everyday after work (where I rode a mountain pedal bike for 10 hours) I would come home and do either a 18, 24, 29, and or 33 mile loop. Then one early July day, my car had its last mile. For the next 4.5 months I rode my bike EVERYWHERE. This is when I became a bicycling addict. The first couple days were rough, how am I going to get all my gear to and from work everyday, ugh I thought this is going to suck getting to work sweaty to just get sweaty again biking, and I don’t wan to get up early. But these thoughts were gone after a week. I loved it. Bicycle commuting was peaceful, self rewarding and energizing. It was a 14 mile flat pedal to work and then again back from work. By August, I was biking everyday after work again. Either a 18, 24, or 29 mile loops. I did a lot of metric centuries on my days off and a couple centuries. I rode to explore, to go to the beach, to go grocery shopping, to go to court (now this was a little more difficult, but hey it made me pedal faster so my suit didn’t creases), to get ice cream, to do EVERYTHING. It was amazing.

I moved back to Michigan in October and started working the very next day. Now 8 hrs in the state is no time to find a car. I also had no time to figure out how long my pedal was going to be. I think I arrived in Milan at 8pm on a Tuesday and I worked at 530 am on Wed. Not knowing how long it was going to take me, or how long it was to get to the pool, I left 2 hrs early. I was so early. It was 14 miles the route I went to the pool, but hilly, crappy gravel roads, and dark. I did that for a couple days. Then I started working at my other bd's Mongolian grill in Ann Arbor too. It was 28 miles from my Milan house on biking roads and 11 from the Saline Rec Center. I did this for weeks. It started getting chilly, darker, and not as fun. It was not as easy to commute by bicycle because the temp was not right, I didn’t have a rewarding job, and the roads are in horrible condition. I wanted to still love and have a passion for my bicycle. So....I broke down and got a car.

As spring 2009 came. I began to love the idea of biking again. I didn’t have much time to get on the saddle. But I put in a few miles. Then one day I decided to Google cross country bicycle fundraising. I came across Bike and Build. Full for the summer. MS bike US. FULL. Fuller Center for Housing bike trip. Almost didn’t click it. Figured it would be junk, I certainly never heard of whatever it was. But I did. From the first page, I fell in love. Did some research and knew it was meant for me. I didn’t think I would register for a bike trip that week; I was just looking into it. But my heart fell for this trip. And I can’t wait for it to begin.

Now…. It is Time for…. fundraising and pedaling.