Record South Whidbey
SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012 | Vol. 88, No. 52 | www.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.com | 75¢
INSIDE: John Braun and Choochokam, A24
Around the world on two wheels South Whidbey siblings return from globe-trotting trip By JUSTIN BURNETT Staff reporter
Record file
As always, fireworks will culminate Celebrate America, which this year will be held Tuesday, July 3 at Freeland Park.
Fun and fireworks combine at Celebrate America in Freeland BY Record staff
Celebrate Independence Day with community, food, fun and music at Celebrate America on Tuesday, July 3 at Freeland Park. Bring lawn chairs to Freeland Park and enjoy free activities and music before the fireworks. A bouncy house for children is open from 2 to 7 p.m. Food vendors open at 4 p.m. Beginning at 4:30 p.m., the roads around Freeland Park will close and shuttle service begins from the Freeland Park and Ride and Island Transit bus stop in front of Payless. The boat ramp will also be closed all day. Baby Island will take the stage at 6 p.m. The local pop rock group was formed by Mark Buzard (guitar), Nick Dubesa (drums) and Eli Moore (bass and voice) on Whidbey Island in the fall of 2010. Moore’s wife, Ashley Eriksson, occasionally plays and sings with the band. For more information about Baby Island, visit baby island.bandcamp.com. At 7:20 p.m., enjoy a fantastic yo-yo show with John Fox of Around the World Yo-Yo Entertainment. For more information, visit yoyoempire.com/index.php.
At 8:40 p.m., The Toucans take the stage. They are a dynamic four-piece steel drum band from Seattle. The have played for Boeing, Microsoft, REI, Weyerhaeuser and all around Pike Place Market, as well as across the state. For more information, visit www.toucans.net/main_ home.html. At 10 p.m., the patriotic program begins with Kelsie Geer singing the National Anthem. Geer is an awardwinning contemporary Christian singer/songwriter who is a 2012 graduate from CAM High School in Battle Ground. The spectacular fireworks show over Holmes Harbor, set to patriotic music, concludes the evening at around 10:20 p.m. In previous years, about two-thirds of the cost was spent on the fireworks display that included 800 shells fired from a barge in Holmes Harbor. For more information or to make a donation to help with the funding of this year’s event, call 221-1656 or visit www.swag-online.org. For a private pyrotechnics performance, visit the Kiwanis of South Whidbey fireworks stand at Ken’s Korner.
Three years ago, two brothers from South Whidbey set out to cycle across the world. Thirty countries, a collective 52,000 miles and about 110 flat tires later, the two adventurers are now home. Andrew Leese, 32, and Randall Leese, 24, officially finished their remarkable journey Wednesday when they pulled into Langley and were received by waiting family and friends at the Useless Bay Coffee Company. Sitting down for an interview with the Record, the brothers recounted tales of excitement, danger and personal fulfillment in places so far off that many couldn’t point them out on a map. But even if they hadn’t said a word, their appearance and gear told a story all their own. Their bikes were particularly telling: handgrips of rubber and leather were worn smooth, clear plastic packing tape held strange wires and cables to frames and weathered blue tarp-like bags stuffed with contents unknown still clung to their racks. A water bottle, covered by countless scrapes and scuff marks, looked as if it had weathered a nuclear explosion. As for the two men — well, they looked like two guys who had pedaled around the world. Truly, these boys have been on a journey that few will ever get to know or experience. “It’s eye-opening,” Randall said. “It feels like the world is a smaller place physically but larger conceptually.” They learned a few things about people, too. “There is a cultural veneer but underneath, people are the same; human,” Andrew said. The boys lit out of Langley on their adventure of a lifetime in April 2009. The plan was to spend two years biking across the world while fundraising for the Servi Domini Orphanage, a Catholic nonprofit organization in Palayamkottai India. Dubbed Orphan Ride, the brothers set a lofty goal to raise $200,000. Though they fell short of the mark, raising $33,000, all of it went to the orphanage. They funded the entire trip from their own pockets — about
Justin Burnett / The Record
South Whidbey brothers Andrew and Randall Leese rest their bikes in front of the Useless Bay Coffee Company in Langley. That was the official finish line for an around-the-world bicycle trip they started in 2009. $16,000 each. The brothers spent about half a year volunteering at the orphanage. Out of all their experiences, that time provided some of their most cherished memories. “Doing what they do for five months was incredible,” Randall said. They had a few other unforgettable moments as well, such as the time they ran out of food near the Syrian border and had to eat crickets. With a little butter, they aren’t too bad, they recalled. “Don’t forget to take the back legs off,” Randall laughed. “They get stuck in your teeth.”
As Catholics, touring the Holy Land and seeing in person locations such as Jerusalem and Nazareth was also especially meaningful. “Seeing places where Christ spent his life and was crucified... ” said Andrew, in quiet reflection. “History there.” There were moments of terror as well. While cycling through a little town in the Republic of Kazakhstan, youths piled in a car and played a dangerous game of “chicken” with the brothers. Speeding toward them, they would turn at the last moment. See Wheels, A6