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E-mail Story'Ride of lifetime': Local pastor takes off for hunger
Man set to ride across 48 states in 8 days to raise money for poor
| Sunday, Jun 29 2008 8:59 PM
Last Updated: Monday, Jun 30 2008 3:04 PM
Today, a man of faith embarks on a journey to raise money for Bakersfield's poor that it may take a miracle to complete — a motorcycle tour of each of the 48 continental United States in just eight days.
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If you would like to sponsor Rev. Mark Merical, worship pastor of Calvary Bible Church, who plans to visit 48 states in eight days to raise money for local charity organization Flood Bakersfield Ministries, which feeds the poor and homeless:
Please send your contributions to Calvary Bible Church, 48 Manor St., Bakersfield, CA 93308, indicate your donation is for the “48-in-8” Tour. You may also donate online at www.floodbako.com.
Contributions may be designated as:
• A specific amount
• A cent/dollar amount per mile driven
• A dollar amount per state visited.
For more information, call the church at 327-5921.
Photos:
Merical gets a kiss from his wife, Dawn, as he starts his ride. At right is Makenzie, the couple's daughter.
With church members on hand to send him off, Calvary Bible Church worship pastor Mark Merical starts his 8-day, 7,600-mile motorcycle ride throughout the United States to raise awareness and funds for Flood Bakersfield Ministries.
Pastor Ted Duncan, right, prays for Mark Merical, center, before he starts his 8-day 7,600-mile journey throughout the United States to raise awareness and funds for Flood Bakersfield Ministries. The ministry serves people who are homeless, in danger of becoming homeless, those entrenched in poverty or are in recovery. Merical's 15-year-old daughter stands next to her father during prayer.
The Rev. Mark Merical, worship pastor of Calvary Bible Church, is set to start his "48-in-8" solo ride before dawn today in Needles. His epic trip will end eight days later in Pendleton, Ore.
"I have not done anything like this before. This will be basically the ride of my lifetime," said the 44-year-old, whose vehicle of choice is the 1998 Suzuki Bandit 1200 that will accompany him on his 8,000-mile trip.
Merical said he had been thinking about making such a trip for years but the desire began weighing heavily on him this spring. While the idea was "nuts," it kept haunting him, he said.
Supporters have pledged different monetary donations as one-time gifts, by the mile traveled or by the state visited, Merical said.
"I imagine if anybody can do it, Mark can do it," said John Hill, 69, a member of Calvary Bible for 15 years and the owner of an industrial supply business. "Myself, I'm not that adventurous, but if that's his calling, I put all my prayers behind him."
A group of biker friends from his church escorted Merical out of town with a hearty, noisy, two-wheel sendoff Sunday night .
"Most of our staff here ride motorcycles and those who don't, want to," said the Rev. Steve Truitt, the church's missions outreach pastor.
Truitt, 56, who helped Merical install extra lights on his motorcycle to make it more visible at night, said "I think it's a great thing that he has the heart to do this."
The charity benefiting from Merical's ride, Flood Bakersfield Ministries, is a local faith-based group that works with area churches to help underprivileged families and individuals in Bakersfield, including the homeless.
"Mark's a very godly man," Hill said, adding that through Flood Ministries, "he is helping a lot of homeless people and people who need help financially and spiritually both."
This year, Flood, whose slogan is "Flooding our city with the love of Christ," plans to serve some 12,000 meals to the hungry, provide more than 8,000 food packs to poor families and help hundreds of disadvantaged individuals, according to a media release.
HIS FAMILY, HIS FAITH
The father of married 22-year-old Brittany Kurz, and 20- and 15-year-old Kyle and Makenzie, Merical said he wouldn't be making his trip if it were not for the support of his wife, Dawn, who is a secretary at Calvary Bible.
"My wife is very nervous about it but she's very supportive. She's handling all the details of the ride," he said, including making hotel reservations and coordinating communications with local FM radio stations KAXL 88.3 and KUZZ 107.9, which will be reporting on his trip's progress.
Others from the church have helped as well. "Our congregation is real close. We're all friends, we're all buddies," Hill said.
Some have donated such items as a global positioning system, an XM radio antenna that works with the GPS unit to give weather updates, a new helmet, a hands-free communication device. Merical also received a cooling vest for his ride through the Southwestern desert, the Great Plains and the Deep South.
FAILURE 'NOT AN OPTION'
Merical has been preparing for his quest by lifting weights at a local gym and going up and down the Panorama Bluffs about five times a week. He will need all that training, he said, as he plans to average 16 hours on the road each day of his journey.
Truitt said not completing the ride "is not an option" for his friend.
He will keep a log of miles traveled and verify his itinerary using receipts from purchases made in every state he visits. When he's back in Bakersfield, Merical will submit the paperwork to the Iron Butt Association, which helps bikers plan and measure long-distance motorcycle rides, according to its Web site, ironbutt.com. Iron Butt will verify his proof and certify his complete ride, he said.
The cost of the trip, including equipment, hotel accommodations, food, gas, communications and extra money for repairs, should be around $4,500, Merical said.
He is drawing inspiration from a Bible passage for the challenge, Merical said. It is the New Testament verse in Philippians 4:13: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."