This season we’re exploring stories of people who have done something unusual on their bikes, and look for their motivation to see how this might inspire others.

Our first story is about a man who enjoyed a simple bike ride across Michigan. Ken Martinek grew up in Plymouth, a city on the west side of Detroit. He had bikes as a child, and still has his Peugeot road bike from college days. But biking was not a huge part of his adult life until about 15 years ago, when on a challenge from his daughter he decided to begin bicycle commuting to his work as an investigative reporter at Fox 2 in Detroit. Then about 6 years ago he started riding in the  Michigander, a week-long tour across the state.

The real story, however, is this: Ken may be the first person to ride the bicycle portion of the  Iron Belle Trail across Michigan, 925 miles from Ironwood to Belle Isle in Detroit.

Governor Rick Snyder pitched this trail idea back in 2012. In 2015 the Michigan Department of Natural Resources published a brochure outlining the two halves of the Iron Belle Trail: a bike route at about 850 miles, and a hiking route at about 1200 miles. As Ken tells it: “Governor Snyder  proposed this state-long trail back in 2012. I’m a news guy, and when politicians make promises or say stuff that they’re going to do, I’ve got to check it out!”

“My original motivation” Ken continued, “was to see what we’re paying for.”

Ken’s pre-ride investigation included some study. “I looked at the interactive map and compared it with MDOT bicycle maps. Of course I googled like crazy. And then I called people like you. You were kind enough to look at my route and the six pages of instructions, and you replied ‘uh, have you ever heard of  Ride with GPS ?’ (laughing) “Oh, I’m such a newbie, such a greenhorn at this!”

Full disclosure- I do a lot of mapping and playing with routes, searching for the easiest way to deliver instructions to other riders. Ken picked up on this right away. “I got a subscription and began mapping. Then I got turn-by-turn instructions! I’d mapped out everything so carefully (on Ride with GPS) I didn’t have to do anything on the road except look for ice cream shops.”

“My first interesting encounter was with Bob Zelinski from Sylvania Outfitters in Watersmeet. I was out of food and water, so I stopped. They were nice enough to fill my water bottles, and I bought some beef jerky. Bob started telling me about Michigan history. I spent 20 minutes with him” he continued, “talking about history all the way back to the last glaciers.”

“And then 400 miles later, along the Au Sable River, I stopped for lunch. This fellow Dave and his dog walked up, he’s waiting for his wife Joann, who is out training for a hike up the Grand Canyon.” (Au Sable has an overlook with 336 steps, and she was hiking up and down with a full backpack.) Dave knows the history of the river, the canoe races, the Lumberman’s Monument…he’s delightful, a wonderful guy willing to share his knowledge of the local area.” Ken had more to say. “Being on the bike gives you the opportunity to meet people and to see things that you would never see from a car.”

I asked Ken if he remembered why he called me, what his first question was. He was very specific: “How do you get to Ironwood?” It’s not easy. By car it’s four hours from Minneapolis, six hours from Chicago, or ten hours from Detroit! The only air service is from Chicago on  Air Choice One , but then you have to ship your bike.

This left Ken with one good option:  Indian Trails Bus Line from Pontiac. He explained: “I left my house about noon and got to the bus depot about 12:30 for a 2:30 trip. The bus drove up the east side (Lake Huron) and got to St. Ignace about midnight. We changed busses. I got to Ironwood at 6:30 a.m. central time, sleeping on the bus. Sixteen hours on a bus is a long time, but it was a nice ride.” In fact, the service was great and Ken wasy complimentary to everyone at Indian Trails.

Ken traveled alone for two weeks, a solo cyclist in the Michigan wilderness. “You know, the beauty of solo travel” he told me, “is you don’t have to listen to people complain. You only hear that little voice in your head saying ‘who picked this route’ or ‘what were you thinking! I got lost a few times, planned some turns I never should have…”

Remember, folks, that’s all part of the journey.

I asked about food along the route; what was the best dining? “I had a couple of very pleasant surprises, and one near-religious experience.”

“Start with that!” I begged.

“ KoZi’s Kitchen in Otter Lake. I went there on Chinese night. I got two egg rolls, each the size of my fist, sweet and sour sauce, and General Tso’s chicken. The sauce was from scratch, all fresh ingredients. The main course, all fresh, superbly prepared and presented. A gourmet meal… That was the best meal, probably the best meal I’ve ever had in my life. And I’ve eaten at some fancy restaurants before and not enjoyed it as much, or had the quality dining experience I had there. And this is just a little hole in the wall restaurant at a place nobody knows about.”

Honorary mention goes out to the  906 Cafe in Wakefield, famous for their breakfasts, and to a place called  Nourish in Cheboygan. “it’s a little new-aged” Ken explains, “associated with a yoga studio. All healthy food, local art on display, and I ordered the kale, egg, and shitake mushroom sandwich. Derek, the nice young man behind the counter said  ‘Excellent choice, would you like to upgrade that with sausage and cheese?” Well, heck yes, I want to upgrade! Best breakfast sandwich ever.”

By this time we’d been talking for an hour and I had to get off food and back onto the interview. So I asked Ken, how would you attract other people to do this ride? How should you or I or anyone else entice non-cycling adults to get on a bike?

“These are tough questions, and there’s no easy answer” said Ken, “Encouraging people to get on a bike is tough because you have to make some connection with people first. Local bike shops are so important to getting people out on bikes, because they know their communities better.”

Back to motivation. What was your motivation, your inspiration, for 900+ miles on your bike?

“Show people it can be done. A 61-year old guy like me (laughs) can do it. It sounds like an awful lot of miles, but it wasn’t, really. I was ready for a break at the end, but I’m 61! Anybody can get on a bike, even if it’s just for 5 miles. You will feel like you’re 14 again, and if you ride for a couple of days in a row, you’ll feel healthier and you’ll be happier. It’s fun, it’s healthy, and it’s good for the environment. So many benefits- just get out there and try it!”

For a transcript of our interview,  click here.  To see some great tours,  click here.

Stay tuned for our next blogs about Why we Ride, including a chat with group organizers in Farmington Hills; learning about a guy from Kalamazoo who tours a lot; and re-visit with Tom & Toni who have now biked in 47 states!

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