America on Two Wheels, Biking Coast to Coast in Search of Human Stories by David King ’96. Human stories are actually what David King finds as he bikes across the country from San Diego to Miami. What he seeks takes a number of forms during his introspective musings as he pedals along: adventure, achievement, God, a path to love and family, human contact, solitude, and plenty of material to write about. What he finds is the surprising generosity, kindness, and curiosity of random people of all ages, walks of life, and ethnicity. Perhaps this discovery is modest in comparison to the kind of blinding light road-to-Damascus moment he seems to have envisioned, but it is real and for me, and I think in the end for him, it is enough.
Among the fascinating characters he encounters is the awesome Kim Denmark, a Black lady clad in orange whom he sees along the road carrying a sign, WALKING ACROSS AMERICA. She has been walking for 11 years in support of homeless veterans. Or the cab driver he meets after he ships his bike back home, who has seemingly perfected the art of happiness by understanding what to value.
When I wrote this, I was in a rental property in Sarasota as my home in Cape Coral was repaired after Hurricane Ian. I loved that his interview with his 104 year old great aunt took place right there, and then he finds himself on the Cape Coral Bridge, less than a mile from my house. Wish I had known. I could have been in the book. It was a pleasure to be a vicarious companion on this wonderful trip while I endured the anxieties of insurance adjusters, electricians and drywallers. What David sought was inevitably not what he found; it was much better.
