Gunny Ski Memorial Ride 2006
April 4 through 6, 2006
When I first planned back in 2003 to ride my bike from my house in Round Rock to the school for the annual Alumni reunion, I never imagined that I'd be starting an annual event. Thank Craig Matteson (MMA 1979) for coming up with the idea of turning a bit of middle-aged craziness into an annual scholarship fund raiser.
The idea is to ride bicycles from my house in Round Rock, Texas to the Marine Military Academy campus in Harlingen, Texas. The goal is to collect donations to endow the Gunny Ski Scholarship Fund--a permanent scholarship that will pay the tuition for one young man each year to attend the Marine Military Academy. The Fund is named in honor of Gunnery Sergeant Larry Wisnoski ("Gunny Ski"), who passed away in 2003 after a career in the Marine Corps and over 20 years molding young men at MMA.
This year's cast of crazies includes me, Craig Matteson who has joined me each year, and Frank Colunga (MMA 1975), a new victim.
Debra didn't train this year, so she's providing support along with Kuni Beasley, his wife Michelle, and daughter Rebekah.
Everybody showed up on Monday and joined us for dinner at the Olive Garden. We came back to the house, got the van all packed up and ready for the next day, then crawled in bed for a good night's sleep.
See the pages linked below for details of each day.
| Day One | Round Rock, TX to Kenedy, TX 135 miles |
| Day Two | Kenedy, TX to Kingsville, TX 105 miles |
| Day Three | Kingsville, TX to Harlingen, TX 95 miles |
Frank Colunga supplied a somewhat different take on the whole experience with his essay, What I did for my 49th birthday, or how I got lost in Texas.
Previous rides:
2nd Annual Gunny Ski Memorial Bicycle Ride, April 12-14, 2005
1st Annual Gunny Ski Memorial Bicycle Ride, March 30-April 1, 2004