Out Of The Wild: An Alaskan's Adventure To Find America

My name is John. I was born and raised in Alaska. I have been hearing how the American Dream is no longer possible for my generation; how the pursuit of a college education will leave my peers and me in crippling debt; and America is no longer the beacon of hope it once was. Too many of my generation believe what they are hearing. I am not going to surrender to such news.

I believe what made America great in the past can make it great again. I know many small business owners that are living their American Dream right now. I have heard these people talk about their dreams. They work harder than anyone I know every minute of every day. These are dreamers that act on their dreams. I want to chase my dream in the same way. My personal motto is, “Risk much, forgive much, and gain much”. I want to pursue a career in film. I want to chase my dream too.

I need to see more of this country to better understand my homeland. I want to meet the people who make this country work. Upon graduation from high school I am riding my bicycle 6,000 miles from Kodiak, Alaska to Key West, Florida to find my America. I am not going on this tour just to ride my bike. My plan is to document the people I meet that have put their dreams to work. I will interview them in their environment and interview the people they serve.

Using my bicycle, a tent, and a camera I will tell this story in a documentary I call “Finding My America”. I will begin in my hometown of Kodiak, Alaska on May 22, 2012. I am partnering with small businesses that will sponsor this trip. I am working with many Subway restaurant owners who are sponsoring me in exchange for a commercial I will make and post on the Internet.

When my trip is complete, I want to share what I learn with everyone. Look for the finished documentary in the late fall of 2012. The blog will serve as a behind the scenes update to chronicle my grand adventure. I am accepting financial support from anyone interested in inspiring my generation to embrace the hard work of bringing America back to a new era of greatness. I hope to tell the stories of the real American dream. I hope to raise enough money to pay for college without student loans. Help me tell this American story. Together we can be the difference.

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Key West

This is it.  I am here, Key West, Florida.  I am ready to be done and sleep in a bed I can call my own for a while.  I will take my bike to a shop and catch a ride to Winter Park, Florida where I will be living for the next two years.  I have a Subway Commercial to finish for the wonderful people of Statesboro, GA.  Then I need to start working on editing the amazing film I shot for my documentary.   This is going to be a fun story to tell.




Posted by at 7:30 PM

10 comments:

Bartokhound said...

Woo-hoo, Praise the Lord, and WAY TO GO, John!!! Jason and I are SO happy for you, proud of you, and thankful to God that He faithfully guided you on this brave and exciting journey of yours, providing you comfort, friendship, provisions, courage and constancy when things got tough, and a wonderful glimpse - an expanded understanding that most may never know - of what makes America unique and such a treasure. We're so happy!!!

Lots of love and continued prayers,

Kayla and Jason Paulk
Prayers all the way from New Mexico!

September 6, 2012 at 8:01 PM
Unknown said...

Dude, you made it! Congratulations man! God Bless! I'm so happy for you dude. To bad I could get a confetti cannon for ya man! I was hoping fr it!

September 7, 2012 at 4:18 PM
Free Spirit Wear said...

Way to go, John, from the crew at Free Spirit Bike Jerseys in Homer, AK.

We're so proud of you!!!

We can't wait to see your final film documentary of 'Finding your America' but do get rested up, take your time, and release a blockbuster!

Pat

September 7, 2012 at 5:24 PM
Greg said...

52 siorLioExcellent! Well done. Congratulations! Sorry you did not have cannons...BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Thank you for letting us tag along. So how many miles? How many subway sandwiches were eaten? How many stores visited? Please one more post to let us know the film is finished and where to see it.

September 7, 2012 at 7:58 PM
Greg said...

Sorry your robot checker got some of the words into my post oh well (52siorLio)

September 7, 2012 at 8:01 PM
Karla said...

Congratulations!!! I hope you had a great and relaxing time in Key West!!

I just graduated from Full Sail Online (Bachelor of Science in Computer Animation - Valedictorian)and I've checked your blog regularly to see how your huge trip was going. I'm sure you'll do wonderfully at Full Sail and I'm glad you got so much amaing footage from your trip. Take care!

September 23, 2012 at 7:56 PM
George.Makrinos said...

Dear John,

Congratulations on your journey. Well done with the documentation. I hope to get the opportunity to speak some time about our experiences.

George Makrinos, gmakrino@gmail.com

PS. I noticed a reference to my blog www.bicycle-across-america.blogspot.com and I was glad to know that I might have been helpful in your planning.

December 8, 2012 at 12:41 AM
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October 28, 2013 at 2:51 AM
LifeCycles said...

Hi John, Don't know if you will see this, but I was just going through photos on my mac and came across a picture of you so thought I would check out your blog. I met you in the lobby where we checked into our cabin at the Tetons. Glad to see you made it to Key West. Congratulations. We finished Sept 5. I also see that we missed you at the church in Sebree. Gosh what great people they were...surprised you didn't talk about them a little more...They were absolutely fantastic hosts.

Where in the world are you now and what are you doing?

October 12, 2021 at 11:00 AM
Unknown said...

Hi John,

I'm pausing from my busy retired day to reflect on your adventure across country from Kodiak to Key West by bike. Its been 10 years and I've been wondering how you've been doing. It would be great to hear your adventures if you care to share.

Chuck Fulton
Camden Cycling Club
Formerly from St. Marys, Georgia
Newly arrived in Cochran, Ga.

February 6, 2023 at 7:54 AM

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