The Big Ride stops here: New Ulm becomes a hospitable wayside rest for a group of cyclists fund raising from coast to coast

By JEN SEAVEY

Journal Sports Editor

NEW ULM -- Ice cream and birthday cake greeted 29 cyclists in New Ulm after their 89 mile trip from Tyler, Minn. Friday -- just one leg of a 2,548 mile trip coast-to-coast to raise money and awareness for the American Lung Association in the Big Ride Across America.

The birthday cake was in celebration of Danny Kenny, a University of Southern California junior who will turn 21 on the group's one-day layover in New Ulm. Just in time for Heritagefest.

"This is one of the highlights of the trip," ride director Jeff Schlieper said. "We make sure we time it for Heritagefest."

Schlieper said that when they were setting the dates for the ride, they had to make sure they worked around Heritagefest. Schlieper found the dates for Heritagefest on the New Ulm website and then worked backward to plan the rest of the trip.

"Riders have really fond memories of this," he said. "We have eight days off on the ride, and there was no doubt we'd have a day off here."

Aside from Heritagefest and the friendliness of New Ulm, Schlieper also said that the greenery of the area is a welcome sight after biking across Montana, Wyoming and South Dakota.

"After all that exposed area, this is the first town that feels really green and lush, especially after being out on the harsh prairie for three weeks," he said.

The last time Danny Kenny rode in the Big Ride Across America in 2000, he turned 18 in Wisconsin the summer before his senior year of high school. He had been looking for a challenge to do for the summer and found information on the Big Ride on the internet; he decided after attending a meeting in Washington state that he liked the idea of meshing conquering a challenge with a good cause.

The riders, who come from 14 states and dedicate 28 days to the herculean journey, raise at least $5,000 each for the trip. This year, the smallest of the seven Big Ride(s) Across America and the only cross-country fund raising bicycle ride in the country will have raised over $100,000 for education and programs associated with the Lung Association.

Danny Kenny also said that raising money as a 17-year-old was both difficult and easy at times.

"Imagine me, 17 years old and asking you for $100 [saying] I'm going to ride bike across the country -- it was interesting to see the response," Danny Kenny said. The first year, he raised $11,000 because of the novelty of the idea. The second year, it was a little more difficult because he and his father wanted to "touch a different crowd."

This year, his father Dennis Kenny was able to get away from his publishing company to ride with his son, something he was unable to do in 2000. He simply likes the idea of the Big Ride.

"A lot of people do a race or something for the weekend, and that's one thing, but taking seven weeks to ride across the continent -- that's a pretty big statement for clean air and lung health," Dennis Kenny said.

Many of the riders have more personal connections -- reasons for advocating healthy lungs.

Robert Morgan Jr., from San Jose, Calif., had been a long-time cyclist until he suffered a stroke two years ago. His father had emphysema, and when Robert Morgan Jr. started training again in January, he decided to support the American Lung Association while he was doing it.

"His health was bad, and I had hoped he'd make it to watch me do this ride," he said. His father passed away in March.

Another rider, Joan Machlis from Olympia, Wash., has asthma and trained intensely and worked closely with doctors on medication to be able to be active and go on the Big Ride.

"She probably trained more than anyone here," Schlieper said. "She started slowly and worked up to it and worked with doctors; ever since [she changed medication], she has been riding like a champion."

The riders, who started out from Seattle, Wash. Sunday, June 23, will break their camp behind Jefferson Elementary early Sunday morning after over a day of rest in New Ulm and roll down U.s. highway. 14 at 6 a.m. toward their next stop, Owatonna. They will arrive in Washington D.C. Saturday, August 9.

To follow the riders' progress across the country or for more information on participating or donating, please visit the Big Ride Across America website at http://www.bigride.org.