Why He Rides

If you see a lanky, red-bearded biker pedaling down I-10 in the next day or two, that’s A.J. Rowell, a passionate biker and fundraiser from North Carolina. So what’s he doing in Houston? Mostly just biking, in fact that’s pretty much all that A.J.’s done for the last six months on his trans-America bike tour.

A.J. pushed off from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska on June 2nd with 90 pounds of gear strapped to his road bike and a mission – to bike 10,000 miles and raise more than $25,000 for charity in the process. 7,800 miles and three flats later, having endured extreme weather conditions, 30 mph head winds, not to mention a near fatal run-in with a campfire, his next challenge will be infamous Houston traffic. If everything goes according to plan, A.J. is expected to cycle it into Houston this Friday where he will be resting and visiting family (he has a sister in town) for a few days and then it’s back on the road for another 2,000 miles before he calls it quits back in North Carolina. Basically, if he just cycled around the loop we’d be impressed, but 10,000 miles! This guy gets our utmost respect. So, if you see A.J. on the road please give him some room and some luck.

A.J.’s website www.whyiride.org is replete with gorgeous photos of the trek and information about friends and animals he’s encountered on the trip. Of course, there is also the option to donate to one of his worthy causes.