many months and modifications later...

to break the long silence, it's time to announce the latest news about the journey.

long-time friend and fellow unicyclist matt burney will be joining me on the expedition this summer. he brings extensive long-distance adventuring experience to the team, and will be a solid asset. additionally, he will be focusing on documentation of the journey, so stay posted for some awesome photos and videos in the coming months.

we will be riding to raise money and awareness for the leukemia & lymphoma society, a cause for which i rode back in 2006, in honor of my uncle richard and family friend jeff gale who are battling multiple myeloma. we hope that the documentation of the journey will aid our efforts to solicit donations; many generous donors contributed to nearly $12,000 for the LLS in 2006, and my sights are set even higher this time around. if you would like to donate, click here - every cent counts!

in other news, on april 30, matt and i won the 'evolution of balance award' given out by kris holm unicycles and other sponsors. applying for the award involved proposing an off-road unicycle adventure. winning the award involved proposing the most difficult, remote, and creative adventure, as well as demonstrating a reasonable level of credibility, organization, and capability. we are very excited about this opportunity and are looking forward to working with kris holm and the award sponsors.

meanwhile, matt and i are honing logistics, gathering gear, engaging in team pep talks, and will start training soon. tomorrow, i will meet with jack katz, founder of panama jack (my financial sponsor for the journey), to brainstorm fundraising ideas using our combined human and institutional resources. if anyone has ideas for highly effective fundraising techniques, please don't hesitate to shoot me an email!

until next time, rock n roll!