Pedal for Peace 2008

“If you are not livin’ on the edge - you’re simply takin’ up too much space!!”

A. Samper.

Somebody once told me that in order to achieve your goals and dreams you gotta write them down. I also heard that one should look at what one desires for life within the next 5 years - then write a 5-year plan featuring all that one desires to accomplish within that time frame. As a result, I must report to you that “riding my bike across the vast USA” has patiently been waiting for its turn to be accomplished. Learning how to surf, bungee jumping in New Zealand, snowboarding in Colorado, snorkeling in Caribbean waters, salmon fishing in Alaska, chillin’ with my brother in Ireland, attending a Rams home game in St. Louis, and a number of other “5-year goals” have all been checked off the list. So now it is time! It is time for my desire for this ride to be fulfilled. I don’t have the typing skills, time, or English words to explain to you all of my reasons for this desire’s birth. I will say that the goal and challenge of achieving this goal is one that I have been embracing to tackle in a passionate manner since I found out when I was a child that riding coast to coast was possible.

I chose San Diego as my starting point for two reasons. The first, being that I have a number of great friends that reside there, so the logistics of starting in the “Dago” would be on the simpler end, and hanging out with my crew prior to the departure will be awesome. The other is that San Diego is the farthest city from Boston (our Atlantic arrival location where many other great friends reside) within the connected 48. Did I mention that I embrace challenge?

So here Patchy and I are with 4,600 miles to go and a whole lot of love, respect, determination, positive attitude, support from my closest people, and a ton of calories as my fuel (not fossil fuel!) that will get me across!

Many people are asking, “Pete, are you riding for a cause?” My answer to this is, “Absolutely!” Then they ask where they can send the money. This is where Patch and I differ on our goals for our causes. My desire for this trip is simply to inspire others to achieve their dreams.

I am dedicating this ride to my amazing 178 kindergarten - 4^th grade students at the Hartland Elementary School where I teach Physical Education in Vermont.

The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) reports that, “the percentage of young people who are overweight has tripled since 1980 and of children ages 5-10 who are overweight, 61% have one or more cardiovascular disease factors and 27% have two or more.” I just learned from a speaker at a P.E. conference that as result of this inactivity combined with poor nutrition, this is the first time in our country’s history that the children of today have a shorter life expectancy than that of their parents. YIKES. For this reason, I try and model my personal love for physical activity and the enjoyment it brings to my life. I want my students to witness the achievement of my life goals in a healthy way that promotes fitness, burns calories instead of fossil fuels, and exposes me to lifestyles of others within our global community. These fabulous children inspire me to love my life and appreciate the small wonders it offers (such as lost teeth, crayon drawings, and the removal of training wheels) everyday I teach. For this reason I want to teach inspiration. I try and teach my students that their job in my class is to, “find which movement activities are their favorites and do those for the rest of their lives.” I live by the adage that “If the student hasn’t learned, then the teacher hasn’t taught!” As a result of these students witnessing my accomplishing this massive bike ride, they will see that I truly practice what I preach. I can proudly say… “I TEACH!!!!”

If as a result of this ride one other person makes a positive life change toward achieving any of their goals no matter what the size - my mission for this trip will be carried out!

I want to thank all of the people that have supported me as I prepare for this endeavor. More importantly - I want to thank the people that told me I couldn’t do it!

Peter Matthew Driscoll - 2008

Thanks to Jennifer for the styling job!