This is a really odd article, even odder (more odd?) than most of my stuff. It’s an entry into a contest—sort of. I’ll explain that part later.

I’m a big fan of Donald Miller. I read his blog regularly, and I just completed his latest book A Million Miles In A Thousand Years. Don’s the writer I want to be when I grow up. He writes beautifully and with conviction about what he knows, and transparently about his failures, insecurities, and weaknesses. Don also has a chocolate lab named Lucy who writes some of his blog posts for him. I’ve been trying to get Monte to do something similar, but he just looks at me, shakes his goofy-looking ears, and brings a tennis ball for me to throw.

Anyway, Don’s hosting a conference based on Million Miles and he’s offering a free trip to the conference as a prize. And please don’t think I’m gushing over his work just to win, because I’m only “sort of entering” anyway.

Story

Million Miles is about looking at your life as a story. The content is about the components of an interesting story and how Don learned to edit his life. The challenge is to write a better story with your own life. And the contest I’m “sort of entering” involves explaining a specific story I want to live.

Don says a story is about a character who wants something and overcomes conflict to get it. That notion resonates with me—I’ve been through that cycle a few times.

• I wanted to get my life back after a spinal cord injury caused permanent paralysis. I mostly had to overcome my own resistance and depression to find the path God had in mind, and it only took ten years!
• I wanted to exercise. I discovered hand cycling and cranked a thousand miles in one summer.
• I wanted to re-connect with a lady I hadn’t seen or talked to in over twenty years. Fear, anxiety, and distance gave way and made room for a wonderful eight-year (and counting) marriage.
• I wanted to tell my story, so I published Relentless Grace. I was a math teacher with no writing experience—amazing what happens when you get your self-imposed limitations out of the way and let God work.

One thing about interesting stories, though, is that even a string of good ones doesn’t guarantee continued interest. Even the best character has to keep seeking and confronting challenges. So this is about a new chapter, the next obstacle.

What’s Next?

I write a lot about my hand cycle. Despite physical limitations that constrain speed and distance, I love the freedom and sense of accomplishment of cycling. I’ve set and reached goals that seemed impossible, but one crazy notion has rattled around unresolved for several years.

Ever since the first summer when I cranked a thousand miles on the Fort Collins bike trails, I’ve dreamed of doing some kind of long distance ride. I wrote a post about it (The Crazy Quest) more than a year ago, and I’ve actually been kind of puzzled about what’s keeping me from acting. But now I think I get it.

I’ve been focusing on the wrong story and the wrong conflict.

I thought the story was the bike ride and the conflict was the physical challenge of completing it. But I’m actually pretty sure I can do the ride. Not that it’ll be easy, but with the right support I believe I can do it.

And there’s the REAL conflict—getting the support. I don’t know how to get the help required.

See, I don’t just want to do the ride. I want to speak to people along the way at schools and churches and service organizations. I want to get people to support the ride with pledges that’ll go to a couple of worthy causes. I’ve even got a name in mind: GIVE ‘EM HOPE: A 9 mph journey toward hope and possibility.

But thinking about the logistical issues makes my brain fog over.

• Time. I can only ride forty to fifty miles on good days, and they’re not all good days.
• Organization. For a quadriplegic, extended travel presents logistical challenges involving specialized equipment, accessible facilities, medical care, and transportation. A military regiment moves with fewer organizational headaches.
• Sponsors. I can’t afford to fund several weeks’ lodging, food, transportation, and equipment. Most cost-saving alternatives such as camping or staying with friends are impossible due to accessibility issues. I need help contacting and securing sponsors.
• Entourage. I can’t make such a trip alone. I need someone to ride with me, since I can’t do even the simplest repairs, and someone would have to drive a support vehicle.
• Speaking arrangements. I’m good at doing these sorts of events, but I’m terrible at setting them up. I have no clue how to contact people in distant towns and convince them that inviting me to speak is a good idea. Scheduling alone seems like an impossible obstacle.
• Fund raising. Soliciting and managing donations feels like a full-time task, and I’m going to be riding a bike.

It’s just nuts to imagine that an old, bald guy who’s paralyzed below his chest can cycle from, say, Duluth to Houston, raising money and speaking to church, school, and civic groups in small and large towns along the way. Right?

So I’m the character and this crazy trip is what I want. The obstacle—I need to find some folks who buy in to the vision of this insane project, and who happen to know how to help with the logistical challenges. That’s the story I want to live.

The Contest

So what’s this about “sort of entering” the contest?

Well, I can’t attend the conference because I’m leading a men’s retreat that weekend in the Colorado mountains. So I probably can’t win.

So why enter? In writing lingo it’s what’s called an inciting incident, an event in the story that forces the character to change or move. I’m hoping that putting this out there will push me into confronting my fear of asking for help.

And who knows what might happen? I might find someone who knows something about this kind of undertaking, or someone who knows someone who’d like to help.

And maybe I might win anyway. If that happened, I’d send my wife. She’s working on re-writing her life story also, and I know she would get a lot of insight from Don’s conference. And she deserves it—she puts up with me and my crazy dreams.

And I’m hoping that this will be an inciting incident for you. What’s the story you want to live?

If you’re curious about Don’s conference, here’s a video with some information:

Living a Better Story Seminar from All Things Converge Podcast on Vimeo.

Happy Saturday! If you’re new to THE CRAZY QUEST, you may wish to read about it here. Basically, I’m tracing my journey as I attempt to answer the question:

What would you do if you didn’t know you couldn’t do it?

SEMI-NAKED ROAD RASH

Once in a while you just have to laugh at the absurd situations life presents to you.

I often feel that my life is a string of embarrassing circumstances punctuated by moments of extreme humiliation, and this story is an example.

Enjoy, and pass it along to someone who needs  a chuckle. (You can click either the link below or the photo to read the story)

SEMI-NAKED ROAD RASH

Did you enjoy this article? Please leave a comment, visit my website, and/or send me an email at rich@richdixon.net.

Receive free updates via email:

Subscribe in a reader

Happy Saturday! If you’re new to THE CRAZY QUEST, you may wish to read about it here. Basically, I’m tracing my journey as I attempt to answer the question:

What would you do if you didn’t know you couldn’t do it?

ACCOMPLISHING THE IMPOSSIBLE

Impossible is an attitude.

The Crazy Quest has moved into winter mode. The handcycle’s on the indoor trainer, and beautiful Colorado scenery is traded for movies and the garage wall. Miles become minutes. Training for a dream isn’t always fun.

Can you prepare for a long ride by cranking in one place? Sounds impossible, so today I’m releasing a brand new free e-book titled

A brief guide to ACCOMPLISHING THE IMPOSSIBLE

I hope you’ll download it, learn something, and pass it along to someone who’s struggling to see the limitless possibilities that await each of us.

Let me know what you think.

If you haven’t already checked out the resources page, you might visit and check out the other free materials.

Did you enjoy this article? Please leave a comment, visit my website, and/or send me an email at rich@richdixon.net.

Receive free updates via email:

Subscribe in a reader

Happy Saturday! If you’re new to THE CRAZY QUEST, you may wish to read about it here. Basically, I’m tracing my journey as I attempt to answer the question:

What would you do if you didn’t know you couldn’t do it?

This week of training: 18 miles

STUFF HAPPENS

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

Sometimes stuff happens. This was one of those times in the journey toward The Crazy Quest, and the picture says it all.

Last weekend I was cranking along on crisp Fall days. They said some snow was coming, but this was a lot more than “some.” No time to have my buddy get the bike on the indoor trainer, so — let it snow!

It’s a long journey, and this is a small bump in the road. We’ll get the indoor setup going and shift into winter mode. Meantime, we’ll enjoy watching Monte climb snowdrifts.

Don’t let the little stuff get you off track. It’s all part of the bigger picture — stuff happens.

Did you enjoy this article? Please leave a comment, visit my website, and/or send me an email at rich@richdixon.net.

Receive free updates via email:

Subscribe in a reader

Related articles:

Thorns

Milestones

Coasting

Happy Saturday! If you’re new to THE CRAZY QUEST, you may wish to read about it here. Basically, I’m tracing my journey as I attempt to answer the question:

What would you do if you didn’t know you couldn’t do it?

This week of training: 31 miles

HOW TO CHASE A DREAM

When your heart is in your dream, no request is too extreme. Jiminy Cricket

Do you agree? At the risk of seeking wisdom from a bug, is there such a thing as an inappropriate dream?”

The Crazy Quest traces the development and pursuit of a challenging—some might say “insane”—dream. Current events induce me to wonder whether others ought to judge whether a dream is appropriate.

My hometown of Fort Collins holds the dubious distinction of hosting the craziness that’s become known as the “balloon boy” incident. As media frenzy fades and facts emerge, it’s apparent that Richard Heene has been pursuing a dream.

Mr. Heene dreams of developing a career in show business, and he’s concocted some rather extraordinary schemes for attracting attention that he believes will further his dream. There’s nothing all that unusual about that—lots of folks in our media-driven culture do outrageous things in a single-minded search for any kind of attention.

This quest for attention follows the belief that there’s no such thing as bad publicity. An adage advises, “I don’t care what you say about me, just make sure you spell my name right.”

Heene’s dream wouldn’t motivate me, but that’s probably a characteristic of most worthwhile dreams. You have to own it to generate the sort of passion required to make it happen. Most dreams are personal, and we’d be better off if we stopped trying to decide whether someone else’s dream is worthwhile.

If Richard Heene wants to devote his resources and energy to a passionate pursuit of his goal, I say good for him. But I do have a problem with his methods. I’d claim that there are no wrong dreams, but there are clearly some wrong ways of going after those dreams..

Here are a few thoughts prompted by this incident. I’d like to know what you’d add.

Recruiting is fine; conscription isn’t. Few dreams are accomplished individually. You usually need support, help, and feedback. Great things happen in teams.

It’s great when you find someone who shares your vision and wants to help to transform it into reality. I’m engaged right now in seeking some folks to support The Crazy Quest. I hope you’ll be one of them.

It’s not okay to force or trick others into participating. Hoaxes, guilt trips, and other forms of coercion pollute the dream.

Risky dreams are common; risks must be voluntary. Many dreamers risk physical danger, public scorn, and financial ruin in pursuit of their goal. That’s their choice. Few great results are achieved without sacrifice.

It’s not okay to place others in danger or to force them to pay for your dream.

It’s essential to “count the cost” before you begin. This biblical principle [Luke 14] contains great wisdom for dreamers. Beginning a project is easy. The hard part is following through to completion. Jesus advises us to avoid signing up unless we intend to show up regardless of the sacrifice involved. (Sign Up Or Show Up)

There are no guarantees. But don’t begin until you understand the costs and are certain you’re willing to pay the price for success.

Those are some of my ideas. What would you add?

You are never given a dream without also being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however. Richard Bach

Did you enjoy this article? Please leave a comment, visit my website, and/or send me an email at rich@richdixon.net.

Subscribe to receive updates by Email

Related articles:

Sign Up Or Show Up

The Crazy Quest

Flat Tires Happen

Happy Saturday! If you’re new to THE CRAZY QUEST, you may wish to read about it here. Basically, I’m tracing my journey as I attempt to answer the question:

What would you do if you didn’t know you couldn’t do it?

This week of training: 32 miles

SECOND PLACE

Adversity introduces a man to himself.

Second place is the first loser.

Which of these quotes encourages you to dream?

This week’s look at The Crazy Quest involves two young men who pursue their dreams with passion while keeping their priorities in line.

Sam Bradford and Colt McCoy are senior quarterbacks at Oklahoma and Texas. They’re gifted, motivated, and intensely competitive. And despite their roles as leaders and centers of media attention, they understand that it’s not about them. Take a couple of minutes to hear their take on winning.

 If you can’t view the video, watch it here.

It’s pretty easy to be cynical about the over-emphasis of about big-time sports in our culture. Most folks would agree that enormous amounts of money have created too much exposure and placed athletes in an undue position of prominence.

These guys get it. In a world that thinks they have it all, they understand that they’re not number one.

The Crazy Quest is about chasing a dream. It’s about setting a goal that seems impossible, dismissing the naysayers, and going after the dream with passion and conviction. It’s about inspiring the folks in this circle to dream big dreams and do whatever’s necessary to make them happen. And it’s hopefully about encouraging each other through the rough spots when the dream seems impossibly distant.

But my dreams and yours aren’t about us. If they’re worth the effort and sacrifice, dreams must be about something more than winning or success or achievement. They have to be about relationships, about helping others, about building something beyond our own lives. They have to be about Jesus.

I agree with these two inspiring young men. I’m second.

What’s your take?

Did you enjoy this article? Please leave a comment, visit my website, and/or send me an email at rich@richdixon.net.

Subscribe to receive updates by Email

Related articles:

We All Ride The Same Road

Milestones

Where Aren’t You Trying To Go?

Happy Saturday! If you’re new to THE CRAZY QUEST, you may wish to read about it here. Basically, I’m tracing my journey as I attempt to answer the question:

What would you do if you didn’t know you couldn’t do it?

This week of training: 45 miles

THORNS

Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal. Henry Ford

Do you ever feel like you’re swimming against the tide? Ever fell like everyone else is going the other way and maybe you’re just going in the wrong direction?

This has been a tough stretch for The Crazy Quest.

First, I had to cancel my fifty- ride in Yakima. Then I had a week of backsliding when I just lost my inner motivation. Oh well—that sort of stuff happens on a long journey.

Last week I got all fired up again thanks to Chris Waddell’s amazing story. I figured if he can climb Mount Kilimanjaro on a hand cycle, I needed to quit sulking and get back to work. I began the week with a fresh sense of purpose.

Then I got four flat tires in four days. I’ve said previously that flat tires happen. It’s part of cycling, and you just deal with it. But four flats in four days?

A flat tire for me is more than a simple inconvenience. I can’t just climb off the bike and fix it or walk home. Usually a friend rescues me, but the first failure occurred nearly ten miles from home and everyone I called was busy. I had to crank home on the rim, destroying the tire and tube. Fortunately, no significant wheel damage, so I had it repaired prepared to move forward.

And then three more flats in the next three rides—all closer to home, but at some point you begin to wonder if the universe is sending you a message. Maybe I’m supposed to stay home and eat ice cream.

Of course, I know better. It’s “thorn season” around here, and every cyclist deals with it. I’ve simply managed to find a bunch of them. But it’s a good reminder to keep my eyes on the bigger picture. My crazy quest is more important than the inconvenience of a few setbacks.

So I’ll get back out there, even though those nasty thorns still conspire to puncture my dream. I hope you’ll do the same.

What’s your big goal? What pesky thorns threaten to stop you?

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. [Hebrews 12:1-3]

Did you enjoy this article? Please leave a comment, visit my website, and/or send me an email at rich@richdixon.net.

Subscribe to receive updates by Email

Related articles:

Don’t Stop

You Have To Climb The Hills

Flat Tires Happen 

Happy Saturday! If you’re new to THE CRAZY QUEST, you may wish to read about it here. Basically, I’m tracing my journey as I attempt to answer the question:

What would you do if you didn’t know you couldn’t do it?

This week of training: 68 miles

INSPIRATIONAL OR CRAZY: A THIN LINE

One revolution means so many things to me. One revolution of the handcycle, one revolution of the earth, one lifetime, one moment, one chance to make a difference. Chris Waddell

Occasionally I encounter someone who simply inspires a sense of awe. Chris Waddell is such a person. Chris also exemplifies my belief that a thin line separates “inspirational” and “crazy.”

Chris Waddell just completed a summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. At 19,340 feet, Mount Kilimanjaro is the tallest mountain in Africa and the tallest freestanding mountain in the world. What’s so remarkable about that?

Chris is a paraplegic. He completed the climb on a handcycle.

Let that fact sink in for a moment. A guy who can’t walk climbed a 19,000 foot mountain on a handcycle.

I can’t add anything to that. I encourage you to visit Chris’ website and let his story inspire you to ask yourself the question: What would I do if I didn’t know I couldn’t do it?

One Revolution
One Handcycle Revolution
One Earth’s Turn
One Lifetime
One Opportunity
One Moment
One Chance
One Change  

Chris Waddell

Did you enjoy this article? Please leave a comment, visit my website, and/or send me an email at rich@richdixon.net.

Subscribe to receive updates by Email

Related articles:

We All Ride The Same Road

Don’t Stop

You Have To Climb The Hills

Happy Saturday! If you’re new to THE CRAZY QUEST, you may wish to read about it here. Basically, I’m tracing my journey as I attempt to answer the question:

What would you do if you didn’t know you couldn’t do it?

This week of training: 13 miles

BACKSLIDING

Stumbling isn’t falling.

This wasn’t a good week for The Crazy Quest.

I only rode one day, a grand total of thirteen miles. If you’ve been following this adventure, you’ll know that a real slide from a normal 5-6 days and more than 100 miles.

I could offer many excuses. Bad weather, didn’t feel really good, writing deadlines—but they’re just excuses. Fact is, it was a week of backsliding.

Backsliding happens. Whatever your particular quest, it’s a fact of life. Maybe it’s a diet or a workout program or a struggle to kick an addiction. Maybe it’s daily prayer and quiet time with God, or reading the Bible. Doesn’t matter—for most of us, backsliding is a reality at some point in the journey.

The real problem isn’t the momentary slip. On a long journey, times of struggle are inevitable. The real issue is what happens in my thinking. I let it slide one day, then get frustrated with my lack of discipline. Frustration allows me to slide a bit more, and suddenly the voices tell me I’ve failed.

I start to pout, tell myself it’s no use. This week’s a loser, and now the whole thing’s screwed up. I’ll never make it. I don’t have the discipline. I’m a failure.

Might as well quit.

Falling off the wagon temporarily is just that—it’s temporary. It’s a momentary setback on a long, difficult road. Falling isn’t failing unless I refuse to get up.

I messed up a week, lost some fitness, maybe missed some in-progress goals. That’s not good, but the bigger picture’s still out there. The Crazy Quest is much larger than a single week.

So this morning I get back on the bike. I’ll grumble at myself, probably ride slower and struggle more. But I can’t go back and recover that lost week. I can only go forward, and that’s what my commitment to living on-purpose requires.

If you’ve stumbled, keep going. If you’ve fallen, get up. Don’t allow that momentary setback to become a permanent obstacle.

Are you backsliding in some aspect right now? What can you do to begin moving forward again?

Did you enjoy this article? Please leave a comment, visit my website, and/or send me an email at rich@richdixon.net.

Subscribe to receive updates by Email

Related articles:

What’s Next?

Don’t Stop

There’s Only One Way–Just Do It

Happy Saturday! If you’re new to THE CRAZY QUEST, you may wish to read about it here. Basically, I’m tracing my journey as I attempt to answer the question:

What would you do if you didn’t know you couldn’t do it?

This week of training: 99 miles

WE ALL RIDE THE SAME ROAD

There are unexpected depths in human beings, and abilities beyond the world’s imagining. We all ride the same road, and if we ride it together, we can get where we want to go. Charles Kuralt

Riding a bike trail is an interesting lesson in diversity.

I’ve observed some principles that might apply to other aspects of life.

• Most of the time the other folks on the trail don’t impact your ride. If you take care of yourself, things go pretty well.
• If everyone insists on always getting their own way, problems arise. Sharing the trail means occasionally yielding or slowing down to avoid a crash.
• Sometimes you encounter a problem. When that happens, it’s nice to have other folks stop and help. Remember that when you see someone else struggling.
• Diversity is part of the attraction of the trail. If everyone rode the same bike or walked the same speed it wouldn’t be as interesting.
• Just because someone else travels differently doesn’t make them, or you, wrong. There are lots of ways to move along the trail.
• There’s no such thing as “best” or even “normal” because everyone’s got their own reason for being there. Some are working out, some are socializing, and some are just enjoying the scenery. It doesn’t make much sense to compare.
• Kids seem to have the most fun. There must be something to learn from that.
• Old or young, fast or slow, bike, rollerblade, walk, or wheelchair, we all travel the same road.

When Jesus Christ asked little children to come to him, he didn’t say only rich children, or White children, or children with two-parent families, or children who didn’t have a mental or physical handicap. He said, “Let all children come unto me. Marian Wright Edelman

What’s your observation about the diversity you encounter on the trail?

Did you enjoy this article? Please leave a comment, visit my website, and/or send me an email at rich@richdixon.net.

Subscribe to receive updates by Email

Related articles:

Why Not Celebrate?

Don’t Stop

Coasting