Ronald, Homer, & Dr. Brown
This morning at 6:45, Channel 23′s Aaron Wilson broadcast live from the McDonald’s at Harrison and Alpine in celebration of their “Grand Re-opening”! Appearing at the grand opening was Ronald McDonald seen pictured here with special guests, Alan Brown, Director of Burpee and Homer, the little Triceratops from Montana. Homer and Director Brown appeared live with Aaron and the 23 news gang including Andy Gannon, promoting the bicycle journey from Montana to bring the last of Homer’s bones to their new home at Burpee Museum, here in Rockford. You can be a part of this event, by pledging to Channel 23 and helping them meet their goal of $23,000, or you can go to the Burpee website, www.burpee.org, and pledge directly to the museum.
This Friday nignt Cliffbeakers is hosting a going away party for Homer and me. It is free food, a band and no cover with cash bar. It is also a media event for TV and newspapers to interview all kinds of fans and supporters of Burpee and Homer. It goes from 7 to 9 pm(or until Homer falls asleep) in the new TIKI bar along the river. Everyone is invited and we will have a great time celebrating the launch of the Bring Homer Home bike ride.
Let's Party for Homer
Homer has had quite a history with Burpee. He was discovered six years ago about five miles from where Jane was found. The journey to his new home in Rockford will be compeleted this summer when the last of his bones will travel by bicycle across the badlands of South Dakota, into Minnesota’s rolling farm lands, down into the corn fields of Iowa and then across the Mississippi at Dubuque and into Illinois. The trip will take 27 days averaging about 55 miles per day, a gallon of gatorade, two cases of Power Bars and lots of flat tires. Now if my body holds up, I’ll see you at Burpee on the 27th for a party hosted by Cliffbreakers free to all who pledge or sponsor the ride. Go to burpee.org to down load the forms, its just 10 cents a mile or $10.00. See you on the 27th. Note the before and after pictures of me when I arrive.
I rode 25 miles last night with a great group of friends that belong to the Blackhawk Bicycle Club. Even though it was almost 95 degrees and very humid, it actually was a lot of fun when you have a group to ride with. There was a breeze of sorts and having conversations along the way on all kinds of topics helps the miles go faster. There are all levels of bikers in the club, and all are more than willing to give great advice on anything from equipment, keeping healthy, rules of the road and tips for going faster. No one is left behind and the company is great. We had a potluck in the shelter at Baumann Park in Cherry Valley and the food was great, even the bag of chips I brought. If you are a biker and don’t want to ride alone and want to get better, check out the Club on their website. I did and it has really paid off in my performance and I have lost 19 pounds since i joined, only $15.00, cheap.
Having his new bike inspected, a clean bill of health
As we prepare for our ride, Dr. Bown is putting in lots of miles on his new Trek bike. In order to be safe for all rides, either long or short, it is important to remember a few simple safety rule. The most obvious but most ignored is:WHERE A HELMET!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Helmets can be expensive but some are reasonalby priced and the benefits of not getting a head injury from a crash far exceed the cost of the helmet.
Secondly, obey traffic laws at all times. Drivers can”t always see you and they sometimes travel too fast to stop for you. Ride with traffic, have reflectors and lights, especially at night, obey stop signs and signals and use your hands to signal left and right turns.
Finally, learn how to care for your bike. Make sure your tires are properly inflated, your chain is not too loose and well oiled. The handle bars are straight and tight as well as your seat. Speaking of your seat, it should be at the proper height so your leg extension is at the proper length. You can Google bike safety and fit and it will provide you with the info you need to set your seat in the right position for you.
Following these simple rules and you can have safe and fun rides where ever you go.
Homer tries on his new bike helmet
Hi! This is my first of many blogs of my coming adventure to move to my new home at Burpee Museum. As you can see from my picture, I have a new helmet. My friend Alan Brown, the Director of Burpee is doing most of the work to get us to Rockford. We are making lists of whaat we need to take on the trip in order to get here safely. So far, we have a new first aid kit, in case I fall off my bike, sun screen to prevent sun burn and chap stick for my lips. We are also taking along a lot of water in order to keep from getting dehydrated.
Alan has tried to lose a lot of weight and so far about 50 pounds. This will make it easier for him to go up the hills and he will be in better shape for the ride. This is very important so we can finish all 1100 miles and get to Rockford in good health. We announced the ride today at a press conference and it will be on TV tonight, channels 13 and 17. There will also be an article in the Rockford Register Star tomorrow giving more details of my ride. If you miss the news, you can go to their web sites and do a search for the Homer Ride.
If you would like to help us come to Rockford you can pledge by downloading the pledge sheet at burpee.org. It can be as little as a penny per mile, $10.00 or as much as you can afford. If you pledge you can come to our arrival party here at Burpee at noon on Saturday, August 27th free to everyone.
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