Chris Sacca's 'What is left?'

I'm riding my bike across America, and hope to be helpful along the way.

Starting September 13th, I am joining a small group of folks on a bicycle ride across the USA guided by Trek Travel. This has been a goal of mine since I was a kid. So, when the opportunity recently presented itself, I knew I couldn't hesitate.

The trip kicks off in Santa Barbara, CA and we arrive 40 days later in Charleston, SC. On each of the 35 days during which we will be pedaling, we aim to cover an average of 90 miles. As demanding as those sessions will be, I can't wait to have such time on the road in a country I love so much, awash in an evolving landscape that has inspired me on so many cross-country roadtrips.

Though I will be out there doing the pedaling, I thought you and I could have some fun together on this trip, and hopefully, help a bunch of people in the process. Given that there are a hell of a lot of folks who read this blog and watch this Twitter account, let alone a lot of people who will surely drive by me on the side of the road, and meet me in America's towns here is what I propose...

Let's feature your non-profit.

Do you have a charity or public service organization that is working hard to make this world a better place? Does the world need to hear about them? Well, let's get your logo on a bicycle jersey (Size: Large) and I will wear it while on my trip and feature it, and a link to your group, in a Tweet to my followers. Don't have a bike jersey with your logo on it? The amazing folks at Hincapie Sportswear can make one for you. Check out their custom category here. If you have a favorite organization that you think should be featured, let them know to be in touch!

Let's tell the world about your for-profit company.

You have a great little for-profit venture that deserves some attention? Well, I have a deal for you too. You should also send me a jersey, and make a donation of $5,000 to one of these two inspiring groups:

charity:water --  Bringing clean water to the over 1 billion people on the planet who do not have access to it. $5,000 builds a freshwater well for one entire village! (Donate here)

LIVESTRONG -- Lance Armstrong's movement waging a global war on cancer and providing support and care for fighters and families along the way. (Donate here) (By the way, click here to put a LIVESTRONG bracelet on your Twitter profile picture.)

In exchange for that donation, I will wear your jersey and feature your company in a couple of Tweets to all of my followers. Think about it, that is over 1 million viewers aggregated across my Twitter and blog following. That's a $2.50 CPM! Plus, the indescribable feeling you get from knowing you are permanently improving the lives of others. [UPDATE: charity:water says that, in exchange for the $5,000 donation, they will relay your message out to their 800,000 followers as well. Wow!]

I'd like to meet you and your friends.

Maybe you don't have a non-profit or a company. Well, do you have a bike? If so, it would be a hoot to spin the pedals with you a bit. Each day, I will Tweet about where I'll be starting my ride and it would be great to meet you. For each of you who shows up for just a couple of miles, I will donate $25 to charity:water and $25 to LIVESTRONG, with a daily max of $500. I will be riding for 35 days so that's $17,500 in donations from my own pocket that I will make in your name just for showing up and riding with me! Can't make it? Let your friends know to come hang with me!

How to be in touch and small print.

Have questions? Email me: [email protected]

Have jerseys (Size: Large) or anything else fun to send me? Shoot them to my office:

Chris Sacca, 200 Townsend St. #7, San Francisco, CA 94107

Meantime, keep following me on Twitter for the latest info about my route and how my legs and butt are holding up.

(Please note, I reserve the right to make judgment calls about which non-profits and companies I will publicize. Generally speaking, I like organizations that are positive, secular, and environmentally responsible. I care a lot about my Twitter followers and refuse to take their attention for granted. Any doubts? Just drop me a note and ask.)

All told, I can't tell you how excited I am for this adventure. I am eager to see all of your great non-profits and to share their missions with the world. I also can't wait for each of you to get a better sense of the wonder and impact of charity:water and LIVESTRONG and how much they mean to me.

In addition to all of the this, I would really like to hear your ideas on what else I could do along the way to make this trip particularly special. What would you do? Any series of pictures I should take? Data to gather? Any small rituals I should be sure to practice? I hope to hear your ideas in the comments.

For now, let me just say thank you in advance to all of you, and I wish us all good luck!

Every day, do something that won't compute.

I spent this last week at the Aspen Institute in the final session of my three year commitment as a Henry Crown Fellow. I was captivated by one of the last readings we addressed as a group, a poem by Wendell Berry that poignantly nails themes of originality, action, presence, and resilience. So, on a blog where I usually type my own thoughts, this time, I'll point to those of another:

Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front
by Wendell Berry

Love the quick profit, the annual raise,
vacation with pay. Want more
of everything ready-made. Be afraid
to know your neighbors and to die.
And you will have a window in your head.
Not even your future will be a mystery
any more. Your mind will be punched in a card
and shut away in a little drawer.
When they want you to buy something
they will call you. When they want you
to die for profit they will let you know.

So, friends, every day do something
that won't compute. Love the Lord.
Love the world. Work for nothing.
Take all that you have and be poor.
Love someone who does not deserve it.
Denounce the government and embrace
the flag. Hope to live in that free
republic for which it stands.
Give your approval to all you cannot
understand. Praise ignorance, for what man
has not encountered he has not destroyed.

Ask the questions that have no answers.
Invest in the millennium. Plant sequoias.
Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.
Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.

Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years.
Listen to carrion - put your ear
close, and hear the faint chattering
of the songs that are to come.
Expect the end of the world. Laugh.
Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful
though you have considered all the facts.
So long as women do not go cheap
for power, please women more than men.
Ask yourself: Will this satisfy
a woman satisfied to bear a child?
Will this disturb the sleep
of a woman near to giving birth?

Go with your love to the fields.
Lie down in the shade. Rest your head
in her lap. Swear allegiance
to what is nighest your thoughts.
As soon as the generals and the politicos
can predict the motions of your mind,
lose it. Leave it as a sign
to mark the false trail, the way
you didn't go. Be like the fox
who makes more tracks than necessary,
some in the wrong direction.
Practice resurrection.