The Buddha and the Bee: Biking through America's Forgotten Roadways on a Journey of Discovery
by Cory Mortensen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE: Memoir
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
...But this is NOT a
typical blah-blah-blah memoir
Planning is for
sissies. A solo bike ride across the country will be filled with sunshine,
lollipops, rainbows, and 80 degree temps every day, right? Not so much. The
Great Plains, Rocky Mountains, an alkaline desert, and the Sierra Nevadas lay
miles and days ahead. Disappointment with unrealized potential, and the thirst
for what’s next drew farther away in the rotating wide-angle shockproof convex
rear-view mirror.
"I will ride my
bike down a never-ending ribbon of asphalt wearing a backpack."
Cory Mortensen began
his bike ride across the United States from Chaska, Minnesota, to Truckee,
California, without a route, a timeline, or proper equipment. Along the way, he
gained more than technical skills required for a ride that would test every
fiber of his physical being and mental toughness. Ride along as he meets
“unusual” characters, dangerous animals, and sweet little old ladies with a
serious vendetta for strangers in their town.
Humor ■ Insight ■
Adventure ■ Gratitude ■ Peace
From long stretches of
road ending in a vanishing point at the distant horizon, to stunning vistas,
terrifying close calls, grueling conditions, failed equipment, and joyous
milestones he stayed the course and gained an appreciation for the beauty of
the land, the genius of engineering and marvel of nature.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Excerpt:
DAY TWENTY-TWO
(Takes place September 12, 2001, the day after the terrorist
attacks against the US.)
Soon after the Continental Divide, I came across what would
become my favorite sign in the world—a yellow diamond shape with a truck going
downhill. It was time to stop, check the tyres and brakes—it was peanut butter
and jelly time!
My emotions went from dread to elation in mere moments. I
found myself overtaking my first car. Pedaling was useless, I didn’t I have
enough gear to make it worthwhile, so I rode at the speed of gravity. I smacked
my lips, eager to rejuvenate them with water. My main focus was on my speed and
keeping my pack from swinging side to side on the turns. I regulated my speed
by using my posture. Tucked down, speed increased; straightened up, my body
served as an air brake. The brake pads were useless on a downhill like this.
Coming to a slow stop in town? No problem. Trying to come to a complete stop
doing forty miles per hour plus? Forget about it.
I passed another car, my speed maxing out at forty-five
miles per hour. After fifteen minutes, I could see Steamboat Springs in the
valley. I couldn’t believe this downhill. It was a present—nay, a reward. It
was nine miles of bliss.
Steamboat Springs was more beautiful then I remembered. The
last time I had been there was in 1995, when some buddies and I decided to road
trip to Moab, Utah, to camp and mountain bike.
My choices of places to stay were abundant, but since I
spent the last few hours tackling it, I opted to stay at the Rabbit Ears Motel. I checked in, ordered some Chinese, and
turned on the TV. I was eager to finally see the events of the prior days.
The replay of the airplanes smashing into the towers wasn’t
resonating. I watched the event repeat itself for thirty minutes, in- terrupted
only by tone-deaf commercials. The reporters and news commentators talked, but
I didn’t listen to their words. I couldn’t figure out if it was real. How many
times had I seen Hollywood blow things up with breathtakingly realistic
accuracy? I was more confused than I was upset or angry.
The footage moved from the Twin Towers to a field in
Pennsylvania, the wreckage of a smoldering plane, Flight 93, which had crashed
in Stonycreek Township. Although the passengers fought with the terrorists to
regain control of the plane, in the
end, the plane crashed. They played recovered audio of passengers
praying, leaving voicemails for loved ones, and planning to fight back. Then
they played a voicemail from a man who had been on Flight 175:
“Jules,
This is Brian. Listen, I’m on an airplane that’s been
hijacked.
If things don’t go well, and it’s not looking good, I just
want you to know that I absolutely love you.
I want you to do good, go have good times—same to my parents
and everybody.
I just totally love you… and I’ll see you when you get
there.
Bye, babe. I hope I call you.”
At that moment, it all became real. I sat on the bed and
cried. I felt so removed from it all.
The crew, the passengers, the people in the buildings and on
the ground, the firefighters… they were all somebody’s dad, mom, wife, husband,
brother, sister, son, daughter, friend. But they weren’t any of those things to
me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Cory Mortensen
has ridden his collection of bicycles over a million miles of asphalt, dirt,
mud, and backroads. In addition to the cross-country journey detailed in this
book, he has traveled to over fifty-five countries, cycled from Minneapolis to
Colorado solo to raise money for children born with congenital heart defects.
He’s completed sixteen marathons on five continents, and survived three days of
running with the bulls in Spain.
Cory is a
certified Advanced PADI diver, and has enjoyed taking in life under the waves
in locations all over the world. In 2003, he took time off from roaming, and
accidentally started and built a company which he sold in 2013. That same year
he married his best friend and explored the state of Texas for two years. The
couple sold everything they owned, jumped on a plane to Ecuador and
volunteered, trekked, and explored South America for sixteen months before
returning to Phoenix, Arizona, where he works as a consultant and is soon to be
a bestselling author.
The Buddha and
the Bee is his first memoir in which he shares how a two month leave of absence
redefined his life’s trajectory of sitting behind a desk and his decision to
break society’s chains so he could live life on his terms.
Website:
www.TheBuddhaAndTheBee.com
Twitter:
www.twitter.com/BuddhaAndTheBee
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/CoryMortensenAuthor
Instagram:
www.instagram.com/CoryMortensenAuthor/
Buy the book links
Amazon Hardcover:
https://www.amazon.com/Buddha-Bee-Cory-Mortensen/dp/1735498114
Paperback:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735498122
Kindle:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08FLLBBP9
Indiebound Hardcover:
https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781735498119
Paperback:
https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781735498126
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