If you've read this blog for any length of time you'll recognize Dave Cornthwaite and his Expedition 1000 project. Dave's plan is to undertake 25 separate and unique journeys, each a thousand miles or more in length, and each completely human powered. Thus far he's managed to skateboard across Australia, stand-up paddle the Mississippi River, and sail from Mexico to Hawaii, amongst others. Now he's set off on another leg of the expedition and it looks like this one might be the toughest yet.I received an email from Dave last night and he tells me he is currently pedaling a "Bikecar" from Memphis, Tennessee to Miami, Florida. The distance? A cool 1001 miles of course! He set out on April 24th, along with Canadian Rod Wellington, and just four hours into the ride they were hit by car. Dave's been riding alone ever since and from the sound of things it has been a bit of a struggle.
So what exactly is a Bikecar? It is a homemade contraption built a man named Paul Everitt who rode the 4-wheeled bike across Canada last year. That journey covered 7000km (4350 miles) and took about 5 months to complete. Paul and Dave met in January of this year and Paul offered to let Dave take the Bikecar for a ride as part of Expedition 1000.
From the sound of things, the Bikecar is heavy and physically challenging to pedal, but never one to back down from a challenge, Dave is pressing on with the trip. He's recently restarted the journey in Vicksburg, Mississippi and still plans to reach Miami in a few weeks time.
Now, here's the good part. If there is anyone out there that wants to join Dave on this leg of the expedition he has an empty seat on the Bikecar and is keen to have other adventurers join him along the way. He says that he expect to reach the Gulf Coast this weekend and he would love to have some company on the road. If you're interested in taking his spare seat and helping pedal the Bikecar, then click here for more information.
Check out the video below of Dave on the road with the Bikecar.
