Local cyclist kicks off his Bike Around Mississippi fundraiser

Published 3:30 pm Wednesday, July 5, 2023

Local cyclist and history teacher Ed Abdella waved goodbye to a gathering of friends and well wishers Tuesday afternoon as he pedaled away from Merrehope on his Bike Around Mississippi quest telling them he would see them in four to five days.

Abdella hopes to become the first person to bike around the perimeter of the entire state of Mississippi, a journey estimated to cover 1,167 miles and require at least 100 hours of riding time. The endurance ride is his way of bringing awareness to historic preservation and raising much-needed funds for Merrehope.

Despite overnight rain and morning fog, Abdella had made it 240 miles into his journey by mid-morning Wednesday with a brief stop at the historic Verandah-Curlee House in Corinth. He was to continue west to Holly Springs and then to Southaven later in the afternoon, where he will conclude stage 1 of his ride. After a short rest, he will start out again traveling south down the west side of the state toward Vicksburg, then on to Natchez.

“We used to have a race called BAM, Bike Across Mississippi, but that’s only like 160 miles. People have done that route for decades,” he said. “I wanted to do something that nobody’s done, that would get the most attention and get us the most bang for our buck.”

Through his “Bike Around Mississippi: From Merrehope & Back” campaign, Abdella hopes to raise $25,000 in donations to help repair the roof on the historic home museum. He and his team are making stops at historic sites as they travel around the state as a way to promote historic preservation.

“When I saw the (E.F.) Young Hotel be demolished, it broke my heart. I don’t want to see Merrehope end up the same way,” Abdella said in an earlier interview. “I don’t think it will because we have so many dedicated people who will step up and try to save it first. But I want to do my part too, so that’s why this bike race is so important because it is for the preservation of Meridian and Merrehope.”

Abdella and his race team – Clint Blackwell, Kevin Brooker, Chris Perry, Nick Berrington and Kathy Parrish – departed from Merrehope around 4 p.m. Tuesday. Following a brief patriotic send-off celebration with members of the VFW, Merrehope representatives, friends and supporters, Abdella pedaled out of the driveway, followed by an entourage of cycling buddies from the Magnolia State Cycling Team.

The cycling team members broke off from the ride before Abdella headed north toward Columbus en route to Corinth. He will be riding counterclockwise around the state, expecting to return to Meridian on Sunday.

“We are going to do remote roads that are specifically bike friendly,” Abdella said. “The app that we use, komoot, will put us on roads that are not dangerous.”

The bike ride will be the longest to date for Abdella, a history teacher at West Lauderdale High School.

In 2020, he completed the Natchez Trace 444, a cycling ride that extends the length of the Natchez Trace Parkway. In March 2022, he began a 24-hour ride around West Lauderdale to benefit the school’s band program, but had to cut the trip short of the 24-hour mark due to a winter storm moving into the area earlier than predicted.

This ride around Mississippi is helping him prepare for his ultimate dream, which is to one day take part in Ride Across America, or RAAM, an ultra-distance road cycling race that starts on the west coast and finishes on the east coast.

“It is a 3,071-mile ride that crosses from Oceanside, California, to Annapolis, Maryland, and you have 12 days to do it,” Abdella said. “In order to do that, I’ve got to train a lot. Last year, I put in 13,000 miles on the bike, and that is fine.”

But, he said, he now has to see if he can put in 250 to 270 miles on multiple days in a row.

Anyone interested in following along with Abdella on his ride can keep up with his progress on the Facebook pages of Merrehope and Magnolia State Cycles LLC.

Donations to support Merrehope through the Bike Around Mississippi campaign can be made online at merrehope.com or mailed to the historic home at P.O. Box 8262, Meridian, MS 39303.