As the title indicates, the Indy break is over and I have to be in NYC on Nov 1 & 2, no ifs, ands or buts about it. So, the 20 mile days are here again and I plan on stringing a bunch of them in a row!

I am currently just east of Gem, Indiana about 10 miles west of Greenfield, home of poet James Whitcomb Riley. I should be in Greenfield tomorrow morning and then it is on towards Knightstown. Ohio looms just over the horizon. Today I started at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and then very shortly I was in downtown Indianapolis. I took another half lap around the Monument Circle and went a block south and hit my old friend US 40. I last walked US 40 in Colorado and parted from it when I turned north on Colorado SR 14 after walking over Rabbit Ears Pass. I remember that moment as if it were yesterday. Anyway, I picked it back up today and should be on it until I get to Cambridge, OH where I will turn north on US 22 and head toward Pittsburgh.

I can’t believe this walk is almost over. Thinking back to all the places I’ve walked through and the sights I’ve seen and the people I’ve met, it is amazing that I’ve come this far in such a short time. If you could drive in a car at sixty miles an hour non-stop from where I am to where I started, you could drive it in less than two days. And if you turned the car around and drove from here to Coney Island, NY, you’d be there in about 13 hours. That’s the part that excites me. No matter how much I enjoy doing this, I am ready to get it over with. New York is going to be exciting. I hope you can join me for that last mile.  😀

As mentioned in an earlier blog, we are still compiling the list of “thank you’s” for this past weekend. Valda had a funeral to go to today and didn’t get it done. I have people who did things for us, people who gave us donations both for Gateway and for our gas fund, and people who drove some distance to take in an event. When we feel we have a complete list, we will post it on a blog and properly thank everyone.

Tomorrow we move 20 miles closer to my Friday evening talk in Centerville. If you want to attend this free event, see the previous blog for address, time, etc. I hope you can make it and if you do make sure you come up and introduce yourself.

Miles Covered: 20
Total Miles: 2,450.25
Money Found: $0.30
Total Found: $70.41

Well, the long weekend has finally wound down and today things started to get back to normal.

Today I picked up where I left off yesterday and did another 10 miles. I needed to get back to walking. The days off were nice, but I started getting antsy and was a bit rusty yesterday. Tomorrow we will hit it for real as I snake my way through the downtown of Indianapolis.

Finally, we are compiling numbers and donation amounts from all three events in Indy. After this Friday, I will try to get all the info on the blog to let you know just how we did with each event.

Personal to David B. of Washington, IN:  Thanks for matching my ‘money found’ up to a $200.00 cap. It is much appreciated, David!

Miles Covered: 10
Total Miles: 2,430.25
Money Found: $1.36
Total Found: $70.11

Today I met with my three brothers who live here and we all went to the little town of Lizton and they walked with me (Don acted as chauffeur – he pulled rank on the other two). Ron and I walked a total of 8 miles and Scott joined us for the first time and did a brisk 3 miles. It was really neat walking with them again and if Valda doesn’t watch it, Ron is going to have walked about as much on this Walk as she has!

We also had our last fundraiser in the Indy area. There was a Xocai sponsored meeting in Carmel that featured yours truly as the main speaker. They wanted to hear about the Walk, my experiences during it, how Healthy Chocolate has impacted me health wise, and information about Gateway. About an hour after I took the podium, I believe everyone knew all about my Walk. The audience was great and even laughed at a couple of my jokes. I want to thank everyone who was there and it was very good talking to a lot of you one on one. Many thanks to those who took time to come up and say hello. I also want to thank those who worked hard to put the event on in the first place. Sherm & Ruth Smith, Ed Mason, Joyce Kleinman, and Susan Muller all helped stir the pot and many thanks go out to them. I also want to thank all the people who helped sell raffle tickets and of course all the people who bought raffle tickets. And I want to thank all those who attended, both Xocai people and guests. It was really nice seeing old friends and meeting new ones. I know I speak on behalf of Gateway For Cancer Research in thanking each and everyone of you who had anything to do with last night.

We had a surprise visit by Ellen Whitt of Gov. Mitch Daniel’s office. Ms. Whitt presented Valda & me with ‘INShape Indiana’ T-shirts and thanked me on behalf of the governor for what I am doing. It certainly is nice to know that people in high places are aware of small efforts and recognize them. Many thanks to Gov. Daniels and Ms. Whitt for taking the time to say ‘thanks’ to me. It will not soon be forgotten.

Miles Covered: 8
Total Miles: 2,420.25

I’m not too sure where to even start to describe this day. As you know we had our 10 Laps for Cancer Research on Monument Circle this morning and by all accounts of everyone I asked, it was a pretty good success. There were somewhere between 75-80 people (or maybe a few more) who showed up and took part in this first ever event. We had bottled water provided by Connie Gardner of Marsh Supermarkets of Indiana and Xocai Protein Bars provided by Ed Mason of Xocai Healthy Chocolate. Thanks to both of you and your organizations for your support and help this morning.

We stepped off at about 8:05 AM and did our ten laps in about an hour. I heard from more than one person if I walked this slow on the road and the answer is no I don’t, but I normally don’t have 75 interesting people to talk to while I’m walking. I usually am just talking to myself or some cow or horse, and though that can be interesting (especially if I get into an argument), it just isn’t the same as talking to another person.  😝 😂

Many thanks go out to all of you who showed up and walked, took pictures or kept Valda company. I know there were several people who I didn’t know, but it was nice to see old friends and relatives and meet new friends too.

I will try and cover all the ‘thank you’s’ in an upcoming blog after we get all the info together, but I know now there will be some people I missed because of no info left. To those of you who fall into this category, I thank you for what you did today. Your contribution is much appreciated!

After the walk around the Circle, we all moved to the Beech Grove area for our Bowl-o-thon.  🎳 🎳 🎳   It too was a great success. We had some of the people from the Circle there and several more that I didn’t know. Thanks to Scott Seach and Ron Hammersley of the Beech Grove Bowl for all their help in making this event a success. I also learned today that they want to do the Bowl-o-thon next year and make it an annual event. I thank them for that also. Thanks to the Pepsi Bottling Co. for donating Pepsi products. Also thanks to the Budweiser Bottling Co. for donating items for the raffle. Thanks also to the people who provided the ice cream and pizzas🍕🍕🍕 to the B.G. Bowl for the event. I also want to thank the Beech Grove Fire Dept. for having a fire engine on hand for the kids to look at. Everyone associated with this event worked hard and their effort is much appreciated. There were several items raffled off and congratulations to all the winners.

Tomorrow is another day off and hopefully I can get some rest. We do have a family get together tomorrow afternoon, but I think I might be able to steal a few minutes to put my feet up somewhere. I plan on walking a few miles on Monday and then it is on to the Xocai meeting in Carmel on Monday night. Normal walking will resume on Tuesday.

Today I had a couple of interviews with TV stations in Indianapolis. Thanks to Scott Jones of Fox 59 and Anne Marie Tiernon of WTHR TV 13.

Rick being interviewed by Anne Marie Tiernon of WTHR TV-13, Indianapolis.

I have stopped walking for the weekend. I am at mile marker 59 on US 136 in Boone Co., IN and have called it off till next Tuesday. The weekend has just about arrived and the events that I have been walking toward are just about here. Chris and Syndi are arriving tonight and tomorrow morning at 7:12 AM, I have my first live TV interview with Angela Ganote at Fox 59 in Indianapolis. Angela was there on the phone with me three hours before I started my walk, interviewing me on her live morning show. She talked to me in Fallon, NV and also in a small town in eastern Nebraska. When I knew I was going to be in Indy in early September, Angela is the one I called. I hope you all tune in and check it out.

Today was a much nicer day to walk here in Indiana. It was a bit muggy, but overcast and the temp stayed cool all day with a nice breeze. After lunch at around 2:00, it started raining and I walked the last 5 miles in that rain. With about 4 miles left to walk, I was joined by two ‘wild and crazy women’ who walked with me into Lizton. Jody D. and her friend Lisa H., both of Boone Co. came out and joined me just outside of Jamestown. Now Jody has been emailing me since I started the Walk and today I got to meet her. I want to thank her and Lisa for keeping me company and thanks to Jody for her donation to our gasoline expenses. It was a nice afternoon and the ice cream and expenses donation were both much appreciated.

Saturday is almost here and the walk around the Circle and Bowl-o-thon are quickly approaching. I hope to see all of you there for one or both events. And, if you can make it on Monday night, we are having a meeting in Carmel where I will speak about my experiences. After that, it is on to Ohio.

Miles Covered: 19
Total Miles: 2412.25
Money Found: $0.61
Total Found: $68.75

I’ve been in Indiana for two days now and it has been two of the most miserable, weather wise, days I’ve had on the whole walk. I had forgotten about how hot and humid it could get here. Right now, it is raining and it has cooled down somewhat and if the guys on TV are correct, it should be cooler tomorrow. Thing is, they said that last night about today.

We are currently in Crawfordsville, IN and heading toward Indy. We will be done walking for a few days at tomorrow’s end, and should be somewhere around Jamestown, IN.

I also want to thank my former sister-in-law, Brenda Van Note for her hospitality in letting Valda & I spend our dinner break at her house in Veedersburg. Brenda saw me walking and pulled over to say ‘hi’ and really took me by surprise. We really appreciated the driveway and couple of hours of shade.

Today we picked up where we left off and made it all the way through Crawfordsville before the rain came and ended our walk. It was a mixed blessing; the rain felt good but it stopped my 20 miles per day streak. We got in 18 tough hot miles and I’m sort of glad I didn’t have to walk the last two.

Valda watched this grain elevator fill the train cars with corn and took this picture to share with us.

Miles Covered: 18
Total Miles: 2,393.25
Money Found: $0.28
Total Found: $68.14

Yesterday, we left the Illinois state line (less a mile and three quarters) and walked to Hillsboro. We had to dump our tanks and fill our water tank in the worst way, and there was absolutely no campgrounds nearby. So on my walk, I passed an RV dealership and called Valda to check it out. Most of them have a dump station and water. This one was no exception. I want to thank Erik Freeman and his daughter Autumn of Will’s Far-Go RV Sales and Service in Veedersburg, IN for their kindness and help in getting us going. Autumn is an aspiring doctor and has some interesting theories on why cancer is so rampant. Look out for her in about twenty years. During our conversation with Erik & Autumn, he phoned his Aunt Shirley B. in Hillsboro and asked her if we could spend the night at her place. It turned out to be no problem and I actually ended my day’s walk in front of her house. So, Valda & I stayed at Aunt Shirley’s and I want to thank her and her dog Polar for their hospitality.

Miles Covered: 20.25
Total Miles: 2,375.25
Money Found: $0.30
Total Found: $67.86

I think it was Thomas Wolfe that said ‘you can’t go home again’. You are wrong Mr. Wolfe. Today I came home again – officially. I walked from Illinois into Indiana and just like that, I was home. By the way things are beginning to shape up, I’ll probably be in Indiana for a few days before I cross over into Ohio.

Today I walked through Danville, Illinois and actually did 18.25 miles in Illinois before I added almost 2 miles in Indiana to make my 20. The day went fairly well. It was a bit hot and humid and breezy. The narrow US 150 is now behind me and I am once more walking US 136. Hopefully the shoulders in Indiana will be a bit better than they were in Illinois. I will probably make it to somewhere around 30 miles from downtown Indy before I have to stop for all the events going on there this weekend. It looks like Gustav may impact Oklahoma instead of coming up and dumping rain on Indiana. Whatever happens on Saturday, we will step off at 8:00 AM sharp for our 10 laps for Cancer Research. By the way, there will be NO public restroom facilities at the Circle, so take care of that before you arrive. There will be bottled water and Xocai Protein Bars available to all participants.

I want to thank Sherman Smith, a Xocai distributor in Indy for all his tireless work on behalf of myself and Gateway. By reading his emails, Sherman has gone far beyond anywhere I would expect him or anyone else to go. Thank you Sherman, and I can’t wait to meet you. Also thanks to Susan Muller of Indy for all that she has/is doing on my behalf. It is friends like the two of you that makes doing this walk worthwhile. I also want to thank my brothers and wives for all they have done to help me out. I know we keep asking and asking and so far, you haven’t said no. It is much appreciated. I hope you know that.

I am currently 1.75 miles into Indiana. We will start Hoosier walking in earnest tomorrow. I can’t wait for the road to turn toward Indianapolis. Till tomorrow night!

Miles Covered: 20
Total Miles: 2,355
Money Found: $0.36
Total Found: $67.56