About Me

Where it all began

        At an early age I was a noticeably restless kid with some behavior problems throughout elementary school. While some said I should be medicated for this restless behavior, my parents and I believed in naturally curing this problem. The solution was quite simple. One doctor recommended running me wild, unleashing my energy in exercise to calm my restless behaviors. This is indeed what I did. I started out on a swim team in 3^rd grade and transitioned into Pop Warner football in 5^th grade. I did love to hit people in football and started to enjoy the feeling of accomplishment I would get at the end of a day’s hard practice. In the 2^nd year of Pop Warner Football my Coach David Haines died. This tragic happening took place just a few weeks before the end of the season.  Before he died he gave my entire team a plaque of Vince Lombardi’s famous speech, “What It Takes to Be Number One.” Being an 11-year-old at the time, I had some idea what this speech meant, but didn’t really become moved by the words as I am to this day. The following words have stayed with me throughout all of my struggles and efforts since the day I read them:

“I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour, the greatest fulfillment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle - victorious.”

-Vince Lombardi

          This incident changed my mentality for the rest of my life. Rather than think of football and exercise as fun and games, I turned my mentality into giving absolutely every ounce of energy and effort into my athletics. Most importantly, I started pouring every ounce of energy into feats and challenges in my life. I now transformed my mindset into the mentality of not to leave anything behind in training. To train and push my body like there is no tomorrow. While this may be some of the most painful experiences at times, the feeling of triumph and joy after pushing through these painful experiences is all the more gratifying. My biggest feats have a feeling of such high and euphoria that cannot be put into words. A feeling like I do not want to be anywhere else on the planet at the time. No drugs or alcohol needed, just the triumphant feeling of physical exhaustion for a good cause.

High School Years

        My drive for exercise started in 8^th grade as I slowly transitioned from Pop Warner football to running. Weightlifting also started in 8^th grade. I would love the feeling of exhaustion at the end of the day and began to understand the concept of the natural high feeling. I continued to want to go further and further. 1600-meter, 3200-meter, and 5K races just would not cut it in High School cross-country and track. I love the high mileage. My favorite schedule was one that I would make up which consisted of 70-100+ mile weeks over the summer. In 10^th grade I got an award called the “Golden Shoes” award that was given out to the high school runner running the most summer mileage. I ended up running 700 miles in the 10-week period. But most importantly, the golden show plaque reads a quote that I have become more and more connected to ever since I read it:  

  “If the miles behind me could be put into words before you… you would feel my efforts, my struggles, my desires, most of all you would see my joy…Watch me from afar run the trails and hills and miles upon miles and you will see…”

-a runner

          One of my biggest inspirations in high school came from a movie and then a book, which are based on a true story:  INTO THE WILD. I became moved deeply by this story and I could feel for Christopher McCandless and his desire to trek across the country by foot and eventually live off the land in the Alaskan Wilderness. Unfortunately, McCandless ended up dying in the Alaskan Wilderness. But from the book I understood his motives and the concept of man becoming at one with nature.   

  “The sea's only gifts are harsh blows and, occasionally, the chance to feel strong. Now, I don't know much about the sea, but I do know that that's the way it is here. And I also know how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong but to feel strong, to measure yourself at least once, to find yourself at least once in the most ancient of human conditions, facing blind, deaf stone alone, with nothing to help you but your own hands and your own head..."

-Christopher Johnson McCandless (Into the Wild movie)

            This discipline I had in my running and exercising drove me to working hard not just in my athletics but also in schoolwork. I maintained a 4.0+ grade point average throughout all of high school and ended up graduating magna cum laude.  

After High School

On June 8, 2009, I left on a journey which led my bicycle and me 1,259 miles up to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where I met my uncle, Danny Chew. From there we departed for  Alaska ,crossing the border 47 days and 5,115 miles later. This was the absolute best time of my life. A life in which all I have to do is ride with no one to tell me what to do except myself. My Alaska trip was a 13,769 mile journey, ending on October 31, 2009 , that my Uncle said “transformed me from a boy into a young man.” Memories of the trip will continue to build like riding up a stairway to an endless mountain of euphoria. Accomplishing the trip left me with a feeling of euphoria and confidence that cannot be put into words.

Longing for another trip ever since the trip to and from Alaska ended, I then departed on another cross-country adventure, this time to from Longwood ,Florida to California and back. This trip came to a halt on just the second day, when I got hit by an S.U.V. near Newberry ,    South Carolina. Refusing to let this stop me from my journey to California ,I reluctantly got driven up to Pittsburgh from the middle of South Carolina. Driving on the familiar and absolutely gorgeous Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina was not the same as it had been on bicycle one year before. Giving in to being transported by a vehicle was the smart decision, however, for there was a potential fracture in my knee. It was later clarified by a Pittsburgh Sports-Medicine doctor to be deemed healthy.

The trip to California started on  June 20, 2010. Unlike the trip to and from Alaska ,this trip had a deadline: to be back home in Florida before August 23, 2010. Nevertheless the 61-day, 7,737-mile trip had absolutely amazing and very memorable moments. A whole new journey in which my uncle and I met new people, saw new lands, and had fun and unforgettable moments together.

The highlight of the trip must have been the beautiful Northwestern California Coast. I loved to see that such a beautiful and undeveloped  Pacific Northwest  coast still exists. The  California trip came to an end on August 19, 2010. Just like the day I reached the Alaskan border and the last day my return from Alaska, this day was one the happiest days of my entire life. A feeling like I did not want to be anywhere else on the entire planet. I was so at one with my adventure and travel that nothing else in life mattered. Once again, the person who has led me to my dream, and who has been there for the greatest memories of my life, was my uncle. True Companions and Friends Forever.  

Ultra-Marathon Cycling

At age 19, I just recently qualified for the RaceAcross America (RAAM) by riding 462 miles in 23 hours in 56 minutes at the Sebring 24 hour race in Sebring, Florida. This was 2^nd place in the RAAM division. In this race I had to battle breathing in smoke from forest fires nearby and had to stay mentally tough due to riding the last 13 hours around a 3.7 mile non-lit track. Last year I rode 419.7 miles and was 2^nd place as well. Each year I completely shattered the course age group record. I also believe I now have the UNDER 20 YEAR OLD WORLD RECORD for a 24-hour non-drafting bicycling race. I am still trying to get my 462 mile result at the Sebring 24-hour race recognized as the under 20-year old world record. My Uncle, Danny Chew, and I have yet to find any other rider under 20-years old to have ridden that far.  

My Other Talents

        I have always been super flexible since I was a young kid. To this day, I have the ability to twist myself into a pretzel and bend into other unique positions. I have never really gotten into dancing or gymnastics but would not rule this out down the road. I would also consider becoming a contortionist and maybe putting on shows at circuses or other nightlife events. The major flexibility is not so much in the back but rather in the legs, hips, and torso. I can still pull my feet backwards to my head, although the high mileage on the bicycle bent down on the handle bars most likely strains or limits this flexibility. My flexibility came largely to my advantage as a wrestler and I was able to avoid getting pinned pretty much throughout all of high school. During the three years I wrestled in high school, I wrestled over about 80 matches and only got pinned two times. Sometimes referees had to blow the whistle and put the match to a halt because they were afraid I was bending too far. Little did they know that this was not hurting me; I was simply using it to my advantage.

          I am also good at climbing trees and used to love to climb up and dangle in trees for hours when I was younger. I loved climbing around and dangling on playgrounds and metal bars as well. I can make a complete workout without touching one weight or going into a gym, by doing push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups, bicycling, and climbing trees. I love the outdoors and warm weather.

          I tend to do a lot of high-repetition and long-endurance weight workouts, and prefer to be lean and durable over big and bulky. I would also consider figure body-building down the road one day. I have a quick recovery time so I can pound myself with medium- to high-intensity efforts and recover and continue on with many more sets. In weightlifting I tend not to “max out” in any exercises and often the lowest amount of repetitions I will do is three to five. My hard efforts and recovery time are the same for bicycling intervals. I am not the best sprinter or max power producer, but I can hold a long sprint and endurance effort.