THEY'RE AFTER ONE-WHEEL ADVENTURE
By Tim Wilkin, Albany Times Union, N.Y.
McClatchy-Tribune Regional News
12 January 2009
Times Union (MCT)

Jan. 12--ALBANY -- At first glance, the three Albany guys named Perry
Woodin, Steve Relles and Brad Statton seem like pretty normal guys (OK,
Perry's lime green, spiked hair is a little weird).

You might change your mind when you find out what the trio are going to
be doing this week. They are in Panama (along with fellow Albanian
Roland Kays and Canadian Vince Lemay) for a road race.

But this is not your average road race. They are going to ride off-road
unicycles from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific across the isthmus of
Panama, a distance of about 45 miles.

Yes, unicycles. The same sort of contraption you'd see Buttons the
Clown tooling around under the big top of your favorite circus.

"Our only goal is to have an adventure," said Statton.

"And not get eaten by any animals," said Relles.

Oh, here is the other tricky part. The path the group is taking was
once an ancient pirate and gold route and now is an obscure maze of
jungle paths.

Naturally, it would be easier to make the trip on mountain bikes or
even on foot. Riding a one-wheel cycle seems like it would be an added
burden.

"Off the wall? There is no doubt about that," Relles said. "But that's
part of the reason we are doing it. It raises eyebrows."

The group got the idea when Kris Holm, considered by those in the know
to be the Lance Armstrong of unicycling, offered up this: Propose a
doable but radical idea and the wildest one would win and get some
funding to do it.

Guess what? The Albany unicyclists won the prize.

They had to fork over a little more than $500 each to make the trip.
They left Saturday and planned to start their one-wheel journey today.

"The primary reason we wanted to do it was that it sounded like fun,"
Woodin said. "If we hit an obstacle, that is part of the fun."

The group hired someone to try to clear out some of the brush on the
trail but they expect the terrain to be tough. Getting around on a
unicycle is not the most ideal way to try to get through a jungle.

They wear helmets and wrist, knee and shin guards.

Woodin said if they were on a flat course, they could average maybe 15
miles an hour in speed but they aren't going to see any flat course.
They expect to fall, they expect to hit rocks and be chased by
alligators.

And, they expect to finish. That's all part of the fun.

The ride will be photographed by National Geographic photographer
Christian Ziegler. And the group is hoping to record their adventure
with helmet cams and a video camera. They also hope to provide updates
on their Web site: http://personalrollercoaster.wordpress.com.


--
JJuggle

Raphael Lasar - Matawan, NJ

Employee: I wont be in today, I'm in bed with general malaise.
Co-worker: And how is the General?
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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