An Excelsior Springs man is traveling 6,200 miles by bicycle in order to fulfill a dream
Excelsior Springs resident Bill Marcell could hardly wait to dip the front tire of his bike in the Atlantic Ocean. And then it would be time to pedal. And pedal and pedal and pedal.
In all, the 62-year-old retired IT man plans to pedal at least 6,200 miles – from the Fort Zachary Taylor Landing Point in Key West, Fla., to Prudeau Bay, at the northern edge of Alaska.
When he reaches his destination, the plan is to dip his front tire into the Arctic, the second ocean on his journey. The bay is 250 miles north of the Arctic Circle.
“I said, ‘What’s the furthest I could ride a bicycle and that’s why I chose this route,” he said, just two days before flying south and then beginning the journey in Key West. “I’m not really a cyclist. I ride a bike, but the big thing is that it’s an adventure. I’m just a fanatic about scenery and I just want to see what’s around the next corner.”
There’s a personal mission to the trip, as well as a social one. Marcell has tagged the journey “Helping Big Brothers and Big Sisters” and is collecting donations for the organization at his web site, www.keys2alaska.com.
He’s not promoting assistance for himself, but he said he will accept gifts to help defray his own expenses.
Aside from the nine years in which his career took him to Atlanta, Ga., Marcell has lived in Excelsior Springs. A 1971 graduate of the high school, he’s helped raise two daughters and has a pair of grandchildren.
Marcell will trace his route and add journal entries and photos on his Web site. He hired a Web master to help post things the images and words he sends by phone to his girlfriend at home.
The route will take him through the Grand Tetons, including Jackson Hole, Wyo., Yellowstone Park, Missoula, Mont., and Banff, Canada in Alberta Province.
To read more, please see the Friday, April 8 issue of The Excelsior Springs Standard.