From Flowers to Welding & Andrew Heckman Speaks!

Just in, here is Jim Muellner's Day 2 from Chicago to Des Moines. He has been joined on this relay
leg by the Reser brothers, Jeff and Jason who we will soon be hearing from. On the road since May 2
from Washington DC., 67 year old Jim, last year's Indy to Chicago relay rider
<http://www.bikeroute.com/SCNBGFest/ChicRecep.html>, is the inventor of the Smart Carte shopping
cart system that passengers rent to shuttle their baggage around at airports. He is riding the
trike, made by his company, Just Two Bikes <http://justtwobikes.com>, that folds to fit in a
suitcase. Please contact him with your words of encouragement. He is uplifted to know there are
people who care about what he is doing as he camps in the occasional graveyard and fights off rain,
tornado watches and oftentimes incessant vehicular traffic. Heck we might even be able to get him to
do the whole ride!! You can reach him on his Pocket Mailer at <[email protected]>. Jim also
heard from Andrew Heckman, the same man who almost died on this stretch. I have Andrew's permission
to post his words. See the end!
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Hi Wonderful People:

We survived the storm but boy was it cool this morning. Goose bumps everywhere to be sure, but with
Jeffrey's guidance we were clipping along at 18 to 23 mph. My speed has increased considerably since
my 4 mph Ohio hill days, but I am still not as fast as Jeffery and Jason. And yet we did get warm.

The ride along the trail was truly beautiful, what with the flowers that waved at us. There was
such a variety it is hard to list them all. Tiny little white flowers with yellow center buttons,
Wild roses with 4 or 5 petals, little delicate flowers that looked like Chinese lanterns, some were
even doubles. Some looked like trumpets, some so delicate that they would be destroyed by the
slightest breeze.

As I was looking for more flowers I started noticing the variety of leaf shapes, some round, some
long, oval, ruffled edges, some pointy and others smooth. They reminded me of little tongues that
were reaching out to taste us as we passed. The larger ones, like the wild rhubarb might have wiped
away my whiskers if I would have let them.

Even the grasses where competing for my attention. Some were long and slender, others whisper thin.
Some had little heads that looked like Russian turrets. When I picked one, inside I found miniature
little turrets that spilled out when I removed the thin covering.

Here along the trail is one most fascinating world. I recall a scientist holding a shovel full of
dirt once and he was saying that the amount of life in that one shovel full of dirt is amazing. The
amount of life we saw today was also amazing. I stopped counting great herons after I got to 20.
There were just too many other things to concentrate on them.

Once I saw bright blue birds and scarlet cardinals. If there were only a white bird it would really
be a patriotic ride. Just than a wood pecker with a white ring around its neck flew by, perfect.
Mother nature is such an artist.

Today as we rode we found the name for our ride painted on the side of a bridge ---"The J". It was
printed inside of a big round yellow dot. Perfect name for Jeffery, Jason and Jim's ride to Des
Moines. Jeffery even took some pictures of it and us.

Broke a weld on my seat so got separated from the brothers Reser. As I biked along the trail I
spotted some storefronts that looked welding related. I pulled in one and asked the guy if he could
weld aluminum. He hesitated, so I asked him if he had a welder. Well yes came the reply. Dave
Fessler, owner of Tree D & K, of Seneco, Illinois saves the day for Jim. He let me weld the part and
in a short time I was back on the trail. Unfortunately I never caught up with Jeffery and Jason. So
we are on our own tonight. They had plans on camping at some point about 10 miles further on, but it
was dark, so I crashed in a small motel in Ottawa.

Also enjoyed a nice meal at Woolys steak house.

Time for nighty night, Jim

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http://www.pocketmail.com

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Jim,

I've been meaning to send you a message, and now that you're in my old neck of the woods, I couldn't
wait any longer! I've really enjoyed reading your posts. Sounds like you're enjoying Illinois.
It's a beautiful time of the year to be there, if you can avoid the thunderstorms. The day of my
fateful ride, I waited out a doozy in a barn in Flag Center outside Rochelle. As you no doubt know,
you don't want to mess with those good ol' Midwestern thunderstorms, just pull over and enjoy the
light show! It's hard to believe that June 2 will be a year since my fateful ride. It seems like
another era and another planet.

I also wanted to offer my personal thanks for doing this ride. I sure wish I could be there with
you. I'm even envious of all the riding in the rain you've had to do! I doubt if you're going
through Dixon, but if you are, let me know, I'm sure my Mom and Dad will be willing to put you up
(and put up with you!) Pretty soon you'll be at the Mississippi, and you can look at a map of the
United States and easily see just how far you've come. That must be one heck of a sense of
accomplishment!

Anyway, keep up the good work and keep fighting the good fight. Lisa and I will be sending good
thoughts your way. And watch out for those Illinois drivers!

Regards from your friend, Andrew Heckman,
<mailto:[email protected]>[email protected]
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If you want to start from the beginning and/or follow Jim, Jeff, Jason and our other NBG relay
riders as they move forward in the National Mayors' Ride at
<http://www.bikeroute.com/NationalMayorsRide>, point to their blog at
<http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/Events/Mayors_Ride/reports.php>. All of this excitement will
al be consummated at the second annual Santa Cruz NBG Bike Fest
<http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/Events/Festival>:

btw: If you want to become a rider, we N E E D you!! Go to
<http://NationalBicycleGreenway.com/Events/Mayors_Ride/getstarted.php>, to find out how!! btw2: We
have pictures from the various ride legs on line at
http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/gallery/2003Mayors btw3: If you want to see who these
cyclists are, go to <http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/Events/Mayors_Ride/bios>.

MARTIN KRIEG: "Awake Again" Author c/o BikeRoute.com 79 & 86 TransAms, nonprofit Nat. Bicycle
Greenway CEO Ever wanted anything so bad U were willing to die for it? Really die? By moving thru
clinical death and reversing paralysis, *I saw God* when I answered that question.