By: Levi Crosson (Age 11)
Levi is an amazing dude. Did we mention he was eleven years old? When Ends Cycling had to postponed our Idaho Bike Ride due to the COVID-19 pandemic and hosted our our first-ever virtual cycling tour, Levi was ALL IN!
This is Levi's Story...
Tell us about yourself…
My name is Levi Alan Crosson [age 11]. And I have a really amazing family. My parents are Matt and Jessica. And I have three siblings, Maisey, Nathan, and Norah. I live in Union City, TN. My favorite color is blue. I like to play music on the piano. I like to play with Star Wars Legos a lot. And I love to read.
Why did you want to ride your bike in the Break Every Chain Virtual Tour?
When I heard that there was a tour that I could be in (Break Every Chain) I was so excited. And when I learned that I was riding for the Philippines, I was even more excited than ever, because my parents had been to the Philippines. I thought it would be fun to ride and learn more about the Philippines. I really liked it because it was a virtual tour, because I’m not old enough to ride in regular tours. But, I was able to ride in the virtual tour because they included everyone.
How did you start training?
When I first started training I went about six miles around my neighborhood. Then I started building up my miles about two miles at a time. And then eventually I rode around our neighborhood about ten miles a day. And then finally one day I went twenty one miles with my dad to train. Then I started trying to do twenty miles by myself, but I wasn’t doing good at that. I was happy with how I was training, and by the time the tour came I was ready!
What did you see while riding?
One day while I was training I saw an Albino squirrel (but in Tennessee we call them white squirrels). When I saw the white squirrel I was really surprised because they are really rare. Also almost every day when I train I see a rabbit next to the water tower, and if I’m lucky I might see two or three rabbits! I saw a really weird thing. I saw……..get ready……...I saw the eyeballs of a squirrel! While I was riding, I saw a dead squirrel, but I just rode past it. But then we rode by again, the squirrel was gone and the eyeballs were all that was left on the ground! It was really disgusting. I also think I saw a weasel, but when it saw me and my dad move, it ran away. A gigantic coyote ran right in front of my dad on the second day. He was not hurt by the coyote. And, a snake slithered by me while I was on my bike!
Which day of riding was the hardest and why?
On the first day of the tour, it was really hard, because I went thirty-seven miles in one day. It felt like it took forever. Guess what? We went the same route as last year’s Wagon Wheel Tour to Martin, TN. We stopped at Higher Ground Coffee and I drank a lemonade and we rested before me and my dad continued riding home. And I didn’t even know we were going to go a total of thirty seven miles! I felt more surprised than ever that I went that many miles in one day!
Who did you ride with?
The first and second day of the tour, me and my dad rode together. And the last three days I rode with my sister and brother (Maisey and Nathan). Norah (my youngest sister) was always there to cheer me on.
What does Ends of the Earth Cycling mean to you? What did you learn while on tour?
It means a lot to my Dad. So I guess it’s important to me because it’s my Dad's favorite thing to do. And it also means to help global youth like me. It’s special to me because I get to ride for Ends Cycling and it’s just really fun because riding bikes is something I think was in my life since I was born. I learned about the Wipe Every Tear Organization, and that they help women out of slavery in the Philippines. I learned that the founder of Wipe Every Tear would rather choose prayer over money, which was really cool. I learned that my legs would take me farther than I ever knew and that I have a passion for riding. I was really surprised how much money we all raised for the Philippines!
How many miles did you ride during the tour?
At the end of the Break Every Chain ride I rode a total of one hundred-seven miles in the five days.
Did you enjoy the tour? Why?
I really enjoyed riding for Ends of the Earth Cycling. It was also an amazing experience. And I hope I can ride again because it was so much fun! My favorite part was watching the services online and hearing different pastors talk about Jesus. And I enjoyed seeing the founder of Wipe Every Tear and learning more about the Philippines. I liked that my family was always there for me when I came back from a ride. And they would cheer me on. That really inspired me. I can’t wait to ride again!
Comentarios