Peddling for a Better Life
Posted: 2/24/2006 6:17:43 PM
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If you've ever felt tired or fed up with something in life, we invite you to meet Jimmy Richardson.
Simply put, he is a man with a bike and a strong will to get him where he needs to go.
On a cold winter morning, Jimmy Richardson is getting ready for a long bike ride.
“I’m going to Dickson County,” he said. “I’ve been making this trip for four weeks now and this is my fifth week,” he said.
So he's leaving before the sun comes up, hoping it will only take him 6 hours this time.
He's not trying to break a record or get in shape. Well, not in the literal sense anyhow. You see, Richardson is trying to better himself. He's tired of spinning his wheels and getting nowhere.
“I’ve faced a lot bigger problems than just riding a bicycle 37 miles, you know,” he said.
At 27-years-old Richardson has already hit a few bumps in the road. He lost his driver's license because of a DUI.
And if he doesn't make this journey it could cost him even more.
“I'd lose everything I’ve worked so hard to keep,” he said.
Richardson's already made progress.
“I’ve quit drinking in January,” he said.
He's also halfway to his destination.
“Kinda like the engine that could. I think I can. I think I can.”
He's had a lot of support, but his friends like to poke fun at his bike rides.
“They crack jokes every now and then saying I’m going to be the next Lance Armstrong. I’m going to enter you in the Tour de France. I’m like no, I’m not quite there yet.
Still, he's determined to get there.
With just 10 miles to go, a friend sees Richardson and offers him a ride.
“I think its wild that he rides all the way there and all the way back and we've had two major snows and he's rode through both of those,” said friend Craig Tortorich.
But soon that ride ends, and he picks up with the other.
After a long ride, Richardson finishes his trip and arrives at the Dickson County jail.
Richardson violated a court order and he has come here every weekend for the past month to serve a 10-day jail sentence.
But make no mistake this is not the end of Richardson's ride. It's only the beginning.
Richardson moved to Nashville from Dickson three months ago.
That is why he is serving time in the Dickson County jail. By the way he has put 333 miles on his bike so far.
After he's released on Sunday and heads back to Nashville, he'll be able to say he's peddled 370 miles.
