Hepatitis awareness bike ride cycles through Crestview

Sometimes the first day of a major trip starts off a bit shaky.

For John Ellis and his pal Jamaal Warren, leg cramps put a crimp in the first day of their Pensacola to Philadelphia cycling tour.

The teens, followed by John’s grandmother and aunt in an escort van, began their trip Monday morning by following the Southern Tier cycling route along U.S. Highway 90.

They passed through Holt, Milligan, Crestview and Dorcas late that afternoon.

The popular route periodically brings cyclists and hikers through our communities.

For John and Jamaal, the journey isn’t just a great way to celebrate the end of the school year. Their goal is to raise awareness — and hopefully some donations — for the Hepatitis B Foundation.

John Ellis was diagnosed with the liver disease last year. The foundation’s home is in scenic Bucks County, Penn., just north of Philadelphia.

“At one point, perhaps due to the dizzying deliriousness brought on by the cramps or maybe the effect of the heat on one’s mind, I began to feel closer to my surroundings,” Ellis blogged after his first day and a welcome stop for the night in DeFuniak Springs.

“Riding my bike almost seemed to heighten my senses, strengthening my awareness of the world around me.

“It is this feeling that pushes the pedals on long after my legs have become sore and my butt has become numb, and it is this feeling that I would like to convey to you…

“That is the goal of this bike ride. To inform people of a single, yet hurtful, aspect of the human life. Despite all my heady ideas and dreams of the amount of money I hope to raise for the Hepatitis B Foundation and hepatitis research, … the greatest thing I could accomplish with this cycling tour … is the awareness that this ride could potentially raise.”

Ellis hopes to complete the 1,100-mile journey on June 23, his 18th birthday.

HEPATITIS B:

Hepatitis B is the most common serious liver infection in the world. It is caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV) that attacks liver cells and can lead to cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer. The virus is transmitted through infected blood. In the U.S., 1 out of 20 persons (or 12 million people) have been infected with HBV. For more information visit www.hepb.org.
(Source: Hepatitis B Foundation)

You can read John Ellis’ blog, watch trip videos, see photos and follow the cyclists’ progress at http://believeinthecurecyclingtour.blogspot.com

See a photo of the riders in an upcoming edition of the Crestview News Bulletin