Unicyclers Arrive in Marquette After 100 Mile Trek from Houghton
On Wednesay three Yoopers set off from Houghton to Marquette unicycling to raise money for two U.P. kids. They arrived in Marquette this afternoon with a warm welcome.
Jason Cattelino (16), Bob Evans (26), and Ben Bachran (18) raised over $12,000 for David Gockenbach, 10, of Houghton, and Dustin Burkman, 9, of Marquette. The money will help offset the expensive for the boys in the battles with leukemia.
It’s not too late to help their cause. You can visit www.100milesfor2bigsmiles.com for more information, stories, and to make your donation.
Not are they the only people I know to unicycle 100 miles, they are also the only people I knew who have sang the entire song of “99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall.” With a distance of 30 miles/day and a pace of 5 mph they had to find something to occupy their time.
When not singing the most notorious repetitive song of all time they were busy looking out for log trucks passing by at 70mph kicking up dust as they slowly made their way on the side of the road.
They also had to deal with some road construction…
Some other challenges on the way were the big hills on either side of L’Anse. The winding road and hill at the base of the Baraga Bishop Shrine isn’t only steep, but it slants as well, with only the slimmest of shoulders.
According to all three of them, Jason, the youngest, was the only one not to fall down at any point. There was a sandy spot where the terrain was “unrideable” which they didn’t count as falling down despite the domino effect that occurred.
Jason and Ben haven’t even been unicycling for a year and they’ve already got one big journey under their belt. The three will be splitting up as Ben heads to Oregon for college and Bob heads to Arizona to teach, and Jason will be back in Houghton High School.
From my own experience I can definitely relate to these guys. They took an awesome idea and ran (cycled) with it. I’ve always been a fan of dreaming big, doing the unexpected, and working on a project that’s a bit unique and exciting. I have no doubt that if these guys want to that they’ll be unicycling across the country one day. I’m pumped to see some young kids in the Upper Peninsula getting out there and achieving an idea they had. It leaves me inspired, especially after meeting them. Time to get my act together and find a cause, work on another big idea, and to get it done! Well done.
Check out their site…. www.100milesfor2bigsmiles.com and find a few spare dollars to pitch in. The money goes straight towards helping the costs of leukemia treatments for David and Dustin.
They juggle too…
