Jenna, Kidneeds and Steve

Hi, this is Jenna! I want to introduce you to my friend Steve McGuire who is doing an awesome fundraiser to help find a cure for a disease I have called Dense Deposit Disease. Steve will be beginning his 2711 mile ride June 13th and before that happens, we want to include you in the preparations. When he begins, we want people all over the world to be cheering him on and tracking him to see when he rides their sponsored mile. All the money goes to Kidneeds. 100% of Kidneeds' money goes to research DDD.

Kidneeds-www.medicine.uiowa.edu/kidneeds
My parents started Kidneeds in 1997 because a doctor told them that nothing had happened on this disease in 40 years and nothing was going to happen for another 40 years barring something unforeseen. They decided to be that unforeseen factor. But that was the beginning of the story. The big part of the story has been the thousands and thousands of people who have made something that was considered almost impossible to do...possible. We are getting close to finding a treatment.

Steve calls this adventure "Completing Stories" He wants to complete the ride and will be telling the stories of the trip around the country. Even more, he wants to help me complete the Kidneeds story by raising the money for research. I mean, how lucky am I to have a friend like Steve!?!
THE MEAN PACKING JOB

Here are some pictures of his fully packed bike and I wish my mom wasn't here taking pictures of how little his packs are for a 27 day journey (since I pack way more for a week trip without bringing food!)

In this little front pack, Steve is carrying all his food supplies,

water chlorination pills, bear spray, flashlight, maps. He will be carrying a camel pack for water.

He cannot get outside support for the ride, so needs to be ready for snow, desert heat, heavy rain, bears, mountain lions and being by himself for a long time.

The bag in the back of his bike contains his tent, sleeping bag, blankets, emergency gear, bear spray, camera, podcast system, clothes, shoes.






Check out the thin leather seat. It is a Boyd and has metal rivets in it. Steve says that it breathes and is extremely comfortable. I'll have to take his word for it, because I don't see much padding there.




Steve created this Logo for the fundraiser. We hope you will donate and sponsor Steve's miles. We will give you a copy of the Logo with the words
Going the Extra Mile
Off Trail Support Team
under it. We would love to have signs in windows all over the town to identify everyone who is cheering him on. Guess I'll close. Please keep visiting the blog for more pictures and information.