I just got off the telephone with an incredible man, Lars Clausen. Lars is the holder of two Guinness World Records for distance unicycling, and wrote a book about the people he met on his 9,000 mile trip across the country on his one wheel.

This book has changed my life. You MUST go visit his website right now — http://www.onewheel.org — his story is your story and my story, and all of our stories. He tells the story of a country divided on political and racial and religious lines, and of a country united after 9-11, all in the casing of an adventure on his unicycle. He is truly an inspiration.

The quote he encloses from Mark Twain to sum up his entire book, all of our lives, and the way he sees the world is this:

“Twenty years from now you will be
more disappointed by the things
you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.
So throw off the bowlines.
Sail away from the safe harbor.
Catch the trade winds in your sails.
Explore. Dream. Discover.”

I wrote to him my life’s story after I finished the book because I felt so closely connected with him after finishing the book — and you will too.

His trip was also not only for himself, but for a very important endowment supporting Native Americans in Alaska. Please visit his site at http://www.onewheel.org

Here is an incredible portion of his book where he talks about the present political divide in this country:
“Having protested the War in Afghanistan, I appreciate Twain’s 1905 essay on war: ‘The half dozen rash spirits that ventured to disapprove of the war and cast a doubt upon its righteousness straightaway got such a a stern and angry warning that for their personal safety’s sake they quickly shrank out of sight and offended no more in that way.’ In the first months after 9-11, it felt almost traitorous to critique our government.
The hospitality we are experiencing on our unicycle journey is a complete contrast to the fear, violence and hostility that dominate public discussion. Our family is living into this hospitality state by state, person by person, and the cumulative effect is powerful. I am convinced that this hospitality can make a difference in our world. I find myself wishing our roads could be filled with cyclists, out gaining this view of life’s compassionate side.”

Clausen is a visionary come unicycling into our lives with his knee and elbow pads.