抓住每一天

约翰•斯普林菲尔德 CAS 70年代，一直对世界充满好奇. He came to 十大菠菜台子 during its early years – when Rochester was predominantly farmland and campus contained only a handful of structures. But OU offered Springfield new experiences, along with the promise of freedom and exploration.

In 1976, Springfield took his first solo cross-country bicycle tour from Washington State to Massachusetts. 这次3200英里的探险只花了31天. Forty-three years later — at the age of 70 — Springfield biked another solo cross-country tour, 给我们上了一堂“抓住每一天”的课.”

What motivated you to start bicycling these long distances?
I started when I was a teenager and bought my own 10-speed bike. The American Youth Hostels had some rides that I went on and a couple of them were in northern Michigan. And that’s when I discovered you could take these long bike trips. It was a way for me to explore the world really cheaply. 我说:“这太棒了. 我可以骑自行车去任何我想去的地方!”

What was your favorite part about that first solo trip?
我不知道我能不能撑过去, 但在那里我总是离波士顿越来越近, 我住的地方. I remember, when I made it to the Upper Peninsula and saw the Michigan sign, 我只是觉得像在家里一样. I grew up in the Detroit area, and I still had 800, 900 miles to go. But there was something about seeing the Michigan sign. 它帮助我继续前进.

It sounds like that first trip was an emotional journey for you.
I knew it was a challenge and I wanted to see if I could do it. 所以，我飞到西雅图，向东飞去. In a way, 两人有时都很情绪化, 但在大多数情况下, you’re in a groove and there’s something about the pedaling cadence. It’s not like a runner’s high, but it’s a meditative kind of space.

那么，你为什么决定再做一次呢?
当我70岁的时候，我想, “也许我可以试着做一次越野旅行, 但要用最短的方法,这意味着要走南线. 我不知道我是否能完成它. 我真的不在乎. It was just nice to get out of the cold, snowy weather.

是什么帮助你在这样的旅行中继续前进?
我只会提前一两天考虑, 因为如果你从乔治亚州开始说, “我70岁了, 你真的能去圣地亚哥吗?你会说:“不可能。.“但是如果你从格鲁吉亚开始，你说, “well, 70 miles down the road you’ll be in the panhandle of Florida.” And then there’s a little bit of Alabama you go through, 然后是密西西比州的一小部分, and so on. That’s what kept me going was those little milestones.

哪个里程碑是最困难的?
4月初，这是44天行程中的第43天. I set off from Brawley, California, heading to Jacumba Hot Spring, a total of 65 miles. 前45英里一切正常. Then, I joined Interstate 8 and I knew I had to climb 3,200 feet through the mountains. 气温已攀升到华氏80度, but I figured that it would get cooler as I inched up the mountain pass. 我以为我带了足够的水. But as the interstate highway climbed, the temperature didn’t drop. 它在90年代上升. 所以，我开始喝比计划更多的水.

When I hit the 2,000 feet elevation sign, the temperature was still rising. I was trying to figure out if I could ration my one remaining water bottle, and hopefully find an exit to stop and get water along the road. 然而，在3000英尺的高空，我知道我有麻烦了. All my water was gone, the temperature hit 100 degrees and there were no exits or rest areas. But, a "road angel" appeared – a car pulled off on the breakdown lane. He rolled down his passenger side window and shouted, ‘Hey, do you know where the next exit is? 我的车没油了，需要加油.’ I told him I hope there is an exit real soon, but wasn't sure. He said, ‘thanks,’ rolled up his window and sped off. 我无言以对. 我没有机会要水喝…… 

Then, ahead on the right, I spotted a pull-over stop and I noticed a cistern full of dirty water. 牌子上写着:“仅限散热器使用。. 不要喝这种水.“我没打算喝它, 但我脱下了自行车头盔, 把手伸进水里, 把水泼在我头上，洒在我背上. 这似乎奏效了. 我的身体冷却到可以到3了,200-foot summit and I basically coasted the final eight miles.

你去过的最有趣的城镇是哪个?
In West Texas, there's an artist colony called Marfa. 有很多破旧的建筑, but then people had moved in there and it became a place for all these artists to hang out. 然后当你出了城, in the middle of nowhere there are these big cutouts of James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson in this movie called “Giant.” Behind it, 你可以看到山脉和沙漠, and when you get close you can hear the music from the soundtrack. 我想，没有比这更空灵的了.’

你最喜欢这条路线的哪一部分?
Well, it was a love-hate thing in the West Texas desert. This was a long part of the route and there weren’t too many towns or places to stay. But, it had a wide open feel with mesas off in the distance.

为什么要一个人去?
有几个原因. 第一，我比较独来独往. Second, one of my motivations since I was 15 was to be free of a lot of constraints. And so I can make up my mind if I want to stop that day or keep going. Also, when you're on your own, you can get in conversations with people more. If you come in with a group of 10 and you invade their little cafe in the middle of Texas, it's like, ‘oh God, 不是骑自行车的人.’ But, 如果你自己进去, you can kind of blend in a little bit and maybe get into conversations with other people. 

你从这次旅行中最大的收获是什么?
When I got done with it and said, “what was it all about?” Yeah, there was the adventure, but the mere fact of doing it.I can still do day trips now, but that may have been my last long trip. 我还不知道. But I also lost a bunch of people during COVID, and so you just never know what’s going to happen. I think of people who have big dreams and they never try them — whether it’s taking a big trip or writing a book. 人生苦短. 不要一直推迟你的梦想. 抓住每一天.

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