Local teacher and cyclist Ed Abdella, center, was recognized Tuesday by Meridian Mayor Percy Bland and the City Council for his achievement completing this year’s Race Across America. The 3,061-mile bicycle race starts in Oceanside, California, and ends in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Photo by Thomas Howard

Local teacher and cyclist Ed Abdella was recognized Tuesday by Meridian Mayor Percy Bland and the City Council after he recently completed the transcontinental Race Across America. The 3,061-mile cycling race stretches from Oceanside, California, to Atlantic City, New Jersey, with participants having a maximum of nine days to complete the distance.

 

Abdella, who is also a leader of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 12124 in Meridian, completed as part of a team of six disabled veterans called the “Rusty Dogs of War.”

 

“He completed the race in seven days, 14 hours and 13 minutes, and they were first in category and 13th overall,” Bland said. “And they won the Armed Forces Cup.”

 

With former stints teaching at Meridian High School and Lamar School and currently teaching at West Lauderdale, Abdella has been a mentor to many young Meridianites, Bland said, and his achievement in completing the Race Across America deserves recognition.

 

“He is someone who has been very engaged in our community, and I just wanted a second to honor him for his Race Across America because I think that is so awesome,” Bland said.

 

This year was Abdella’s second attempt at the Race Across America. He competed as a solo cyclist in 2024 but was forced to drop out due to a lung infection while cycling across Utah.

 

After dropping out, Abdella said he was contacted by a disabled veteran who told him about plans to put together the Rusty Dogs of War for the 2025 competition, and he gladly joined the effort. All six members trained hard throughout the year to prepare themselves for the challenge.

 

To finish this year with a team of veterans is a great achievement, he said. The team consisted of a hand cyclist, three upright cyclists, a tri-bike rider and a blind athlete who rode on a tandem bike with his pilot.

 

“It was a great race, and if you’ve never been across the country, I highly suggest you go across it. It’s beautiful,” he said. “And not just on the highways. You have to get out there and see the things that I got to see, whether that be a day or a night.”