Surviving and thriving after a terrible bike accident
A guest post by Pearson Constantino
Growing up the bike was everything for me. It was my entertainment, it helped fuel my imagination, it took me to school, to my friends’ houses, and was my escape. As I got older and more experienced, with a 400 mile bike tour to Cape Cod under my belt, the bike became true unbridled adolescent freedom. I would ride for the sake of riding. Without destination, I rode to feel the wind in my hair.
After college, living in New York I rode everywhere, to
work, for exercise, for fun, I felt great, until one morning a stranger changed
my life. I was hit from behind by an SUV, there were no witnesses and I
was left by the side of road, my bike totally destroyed, my body badly injured. After two weeks in the hospital, I had resolved to get back on my bike
and ride it across the United States!
Two years
of rehab later that's exactly what I did. With the help of my brother
Pete we embarked on a cross-country adventure on our bikes to encourage people
to get back on their bikes, and drivers to share the road. This is my story.
by Julia Wrona:
I documented Pearson’s recovery and then followed his journey with Pete across America filming their encounters with drivers, meetings with other car-on-bike victims, and the beauty of the American landscape.
The
Long Bike Back is
now fully edited, but we need some help with the cost of the final technical
processes (color correction and sound mixing) so that we can release the film
this summer. Our crowdfunding campaign
is quickly drawing to a close: http://igg.me/at/lbb Please consider
contributing (there are perks, like a DVD, soundtrack, photo book, and more)
and sharing the link with your friends and followers.
Here’s the film’s trailer, which illustrates Pearson’s spirit, the mission, and some of the amazing miles of cycling he and Pete covered. http://youtu.be/0M4Eni8GfGk
A note from Lloyd Lemons
Please consider helping to fund this worthy project. Cyclist and motorists everywhere need these stories, to learn that we must share the road.
View the trailer here: http://youtu.be/0M4Eni8GfGk
Please make a contribution here: ttp://igg.me/at/lbb (and time is of the essence!)
Thank you!