My name is Kenny Livingston and I am going to pedal across America this summer on a beach cruiser. While a bike ride like this may seem like a lofty ambition, there is great purpose in this ride for me, and hopefully for many of you. The actual “venture” element of this “adventure” is my mission: To inspire my fellow Americans, through example, in making a commitment to change the way we approach our personal health and lifestyle choices. A change that will help all of us, especially our children, get on the road to a healthier, happier life through the often over looked benefits of living right (see also: conscious living, preventive medicine, eating right, exercise).

America, we have been pressing the snooze button on our wake up call for far too long. We are currently losing many battles concerning our health, a number of which are highly preventable. We have become an increasingly overweight nation that is far too comfortable with placing healthy lifestyle choices low on our priority ladder. We are carelessly passing this torch on to our children. The repercussions of this way of living are all too apparent, from alarming rates of cancer, diabetes, and childhood obesity to birth defects, debilitating disorders and many others. The cause and effect cycle has proven itself and can no longer be ignored. There are few things more distressing than seeing a child saddled with an overwhelming set of circumstances like these. It is time to get off this slippery slope and start taking charge of our personal health. It is time to stop looking outward for help and start looking inward. It is time to make a personal commitment to change and start building a better America by building better Americans.

After years of watching this decline I have literally chosen to jump in feet first to do my part to inspire and encourage others to place focus on the preventive side of a personal health plan. I am determined to prove that one doesn’t need anything more than a strong will to make this type of transformation possible. The vision here is not simply to achieve my goal in front of you but rather to achieve it with you. My route is an open course for anyone to ride along side of me (regardless of how long or far) and start their own journey of change.

For this ride, I have chosen to raise money and awareness for better school lunches and cancer research. I am proud to be working in conjunction with one of my favorite causes, the “Living The Dream Foundation” by Hurley International. For those of you who haven’t yet discovered this great foundation, you should take the time to check it out.

http://www.livingthedreamfoundation.org/

I am fortunate to have history with the founder. A personal friend of exceptional courage and strength who has tenaciously outlived the sentence of Cystic Fibrosis well beyond all medical explanation. Through his patently positive spirit, founder Scottie Somers, has seen many of his own dreams realized through sheer determination and a brand of guts that few of us will ever truly know. Scottie has brought the benefits of his Living The Dream Foundation to ailing children everywhere. He is now seeing his vision grow daily through an allegiance with Hurley International. The smiles that LTD puts on their kid’s faces are beyond words.

Where do your donations go?
Your donations to Kenny Do It will be used to raise awareness and support for better school lunches across our nation and for cancer research. I have chosen these two causes for very specific reasons. While my goal is to get all of America focused and incorporating a healthier lifestyle, there is a large group of people that need our help more than most. Our nations children. Educating our children on healthy food choices and being able to provide them these foods is essential. Our nations school lunches, are, in desparate need of revamping.

What is preventive health care?
In short, Preventive Health Care is anything an individual can do to avoid getting sick. You can think in the short term or in the long term. For example, if someone is around you has a cold we know that you should increase your intake of vitamin C to help ward it off. This is a short term preventive measure. If you want to avoid a heart attack you should lower your cholesterol intake and maintain that for a lifetime. This is a long term preventive measure. My focus is the LONG TERM. Why do this on a beach cruiser?
I wanted to make it possible for the average American to come out and join me for a ride that is realistic. Quite simply because this is not a race. As I mentioned earlier, this trip is about making a personal investment to make change. Change takes time. I want as many people to join me on this ride as possible. Remember, this ride isn’t about me, it is about you. Your personal investment, whether it is joining me on a portion of this ride, donating to the Kenny Do It cause or both is something for you to consider.

How can I ride with you?
I am planning on biking 50-60 miles a day. I am currently putting together the routing for this endeavor. As soon as I have confirmed routing it will be posted on this website. Again, I encourage everyone to come out and ride with me for however long they would like.

What inspired me to do this?
So many things. I lost my father in 2007 to cancer. In the last three years I have lost many good friends my age (43) to cancer as well. All, including my father, were too young to go from such causes. Cancer is on the rise and there are surely many factors related to this shift. I have seen the attempted cure side of cancer up close. As many of you know, it is hard to watch and leaves you with a feeling that more could have been done. While I was thankful for all the great medicine and great care I witnessed it occurred to me that the preventative side of this disease, or any disease for that matter, is an area that should receive far more attention.

Who is Kenny Livingston?
A family man (loving husband and proud father of two young boys) and a drummer by trade. I have been fortunate to make a living playing the drums. That is to say, I worked really hard at it and, like my father used to say, hard work always breeds a little bit of luck. Having sold over a million records playing in my bands Good Man Down, Sugarcult and Lefty, I have toured the globe many times over. In short, I was born a dreamer and I am confident, at this point in my life, I will die a dreamer. This ride is my next dream. My sights are firmly set on getting America in better shape.

In the coming months there will be many additions to this web site. The routing of the trip. How you can be a part of KennyDoIt. Where you can go to learn about becoming healthier. How you can prepare for a long distance ride etc.