‘America on Two Wheels’

This September, David King will bike 150 miles from Cleveland to Pittsburgh. As his goal is “to listen, empathize, and gather stories of beauty and kindness,” he is timing his ride between the International Day of Listening and World Gratitude Day.

For King, though, that’s just a quick trip. Back in 2016, King biked from San Diego to Miami-more than 3,000 miles-across mountains, deserts, bayous, and plains. He wound this route through towns he wanted to see, staying about a week each in Austin and New Orleans. During the trip, he attended Seders at Hillels in Texas.

The odyssey took King-a New York-born Chicagoan-four months. Writing the book about it, America on Two Wheels, recently released, took several years.

Aside from backroad terrain and harsh weather, King met with mental and emotional challenges on his trek. But his trail also led to “free water, a free smoothie, free tires, free rides to bike shops,” and dozens of other acts of kindness from those he encountered.

“My goal in this journey was to seek beauty and kindness, to try to find God in interactions with everyday people,” he wrote.

His favorite part was the Southwest, with the highways so empty that he could bike on the shoulder-and “the skies so big and open, and a wind so strong it pushed me uphill.” His least favorite? “The last leg, biking in Florida in July.”

While his first “long” ride was only from Chicago to the northern suburbs, that exhilaration left him wanting more. King began doing intercity rides across the U.S. and Europe.

At the time, he was in his mid-30s, a script writer for training videos. “It was a time when I felt like I was not moving forward in life and in need of inspiration,” he recalled, when the cross-country trip occurred to him. “I thought it would be a terrific way to get perspective.”

King considers his journey to be a spiritual one: “I wanted to seek out God in the beauty and kindness of people-to develop gratitude.”

For more about the King and his trip, or to find the book, go to www.americaontwowheels.bike.