JayBo Walkin

Battle Plan and Time Table

Aquire job. Write JayBoWalkin the Book: First Steps. Purchase all gear needed for Spring (Brother and I). Continue physical training and diet. Prepare self with survival training and education

Hot Springs, AR to Dallas, TX

Brother bikes and pulls everything via stroller, backpack and saddle bags. He will not walk… he does not need the physical part of this journey, only mental and spiritual. He can provide great support if needed with a bike. Allows more versitility with me. I run/walk depending on condition of knees. With ideal conditions I would like to start running to reach my fitness goals

Dallas, TX to San Diego, CA

To be decided at later time

Time Table (Est. at this time)

Aquire job - ASAP. Family Visits - 12/22/07 (approx) to 12/27/07 (approx). Brother joins me to prepare - 2/22/08. Official Date back on road - 3/2/08

I had a job lined up but so far they haven’t gotten back to me. I am trying a few other places simply because I can not wait.

So far I am slowly training up to a harder routine. I am running/jogging (have to for the test but with my knee I may substitute here after the test), pushups, situps, moutain climbers twice a day. Weight lifting as soon as I can get to a bench lol. I am going to get more time to update the site so I will post a nightly recap on thoughts and my workout accomplishments.

 Also sorry for any spelling mistakes, I don’t have an editor at the moment lol. I have a workout journal and like I said, will post what I did that day (sets, reps) and what not. As for diet I will try… I eat a lot of small stuff all day and forget to log it. Basically its non processed natural foods all day a little here a little there. As I work out there is a huge increase to appetite.

One more thing on the Police Officer oppertunity, I want to be accepted and work out a deal to be accepted to a later class or something. Right now I have the in so I am going to take it to the end while in the area. If it comes right down to I am fully accepted and they say you will lose this oppertunity if I leave… If they won’t negotiate a time frame with me to finish that is reasonable (Spring”ish”)… even just enough time to maybe compromise and bike the rest with my bro… well then screw that. I don’t think it will be that way however, I am sure there is flexability.

 NewYearsBaby is absolutly correct, it is my desire to help, serve, protect, etc that motivates me to FD or PD. To be completely honest I still want to be a FF/Parametic but am open to PD as well. I may get in and its not for me. I have had first hand experience observing the FD but not the PD. I assume its the same personal satisfaction doing everything “possible” in a situation to help another.

We will see what happens. My priorities are like this people… like them or not: God’s plan, help my brother/family, help realize my dream in Jaybowalkin.com, career. Sorry if I wasn’t CLEAR on those but that’s how it is.

You need to pay attention to my entries… “I am hoping I can make these both work and not have to drop this career chance to finish what I started.” When did I say I would stop?

As for the test that I am taking, the written won’t be a problem but the physical is an obstacle course that must be completed in a certain time frame. Speed is not my thing… I don’t know how I will do. I am sprinting and doing leg work to try my best for the test. My knee is a problem but I want this oppertunity to test so I am doing my best.

 As for your comments (Harriet I am talking to you), telling me to grow up and how you are wasting time on my site… don’t visit. Won’t hurt me any. I have been nice (get out your notebook and pay attention) and not negative about your comments but my patience has worn out. You are a very negative person… its not what you are saying its how you are saying it. I try to avoid these kind of characteristics when looking for people to befriend. Sorry to put this up like this but somewhere on this journey I did grow up, by realizing I don’t have to listen to people like you.

 I will do what is good for me and that is finishing this. One way or another I will see the Pacific whether I walk, run, crawl, uni-cycle, whatever. Your doubts and negative comments only reflect how you have no faith in a person because of your limitations and lack of faith in yourself. Whatever it is in your life that you hate… fix it and be postive.

 Two types of people in this world: Those that put people down to make themselves look better (overlooking thier own flaws) and those that encourage and lift others up reinforcing thier own qualities. I don’t get anything by you coming to my site (TJB might I don’t know) so why is it you think I owe you anything. Sounds to me you need to walk your own walk, you are welcome to join me in the Spring. 

Here is a little update. I am still waiting on a few job opportunities to come through for me. As you may know a dream of mine that developed as I walked was to be a Firefighter and while in Nashville I was thinking of pursuing a career as a Police Officer. Well I posted an application because they were looking for Police Officers while at George’s and I thought it would take a long while to go through. Well, I received an email from Nashville Metro about my application for Police Officer Trainee and they want me to do a written and agility test on the 15^th of December. I am going to travel to Nashville to take this test and see where this goes; I don’t want to pass up the opportunity for being accepted to the academy. We will see where this goes and if I am able to pursue a new career in this new life I am developing. However, my coast to coast quest is still a huge priority if not THE priority. I am hoping I can make these both work and not have to drop this career chance to finish what I started.

I was able to pick up some reading material that will help me prepare for the rest of my journey with my brother in the Spring and some for entertainment. Thought I would list them for you.

The Walk West, Into the Wild, Living the Martial Way, Emergency Response (USDOT Textbook), Ditch Medicine Advanced Field Procedures for Emergencies, Wilderness Search and Rescue, Wilderness Survival Manual and Coursework, and Mountaineers Outdoor Expert Expedition Planning.

I will have more posted tomorrow if I can about my time frame and planning.

 If anyone has any good books to recommend on desert hiking and gear please let me know. I am looking for something specific on that environment as I will most likely be hitting the desert in the heat.

OK so here is what is going to happen. Because of the threat with the cold, my knee and no money for the gear (including my brother’s) I have decided to set up base camp and work the winter months (Dec, Jan and Feb). I have officially stopped in Hot Springs, AK and now have a safe dry shelter (second floor of barn where my tent is setup), access to water, food (grocer) and heat (ceramic heater… yea no fire but this will do). I have a temp job already set up at a factory and will try to save up all the money I can to buy everything I need for me to resume in the spring with my brother… he finishes his schooling just before Xmas.

I wanted to simulate stopping in a cave/shelter, fire and food as much as possible for a non survivalist like me. I have opportunities to work back home or in Boston with Chris and Bryan but I don’t want to get too “comfortable” and want to remain focused that I am still doing this. I could easily just stay in a room and work but I want to keep it “ruffish”. I have access to a computer about once a day where I can maintain the website and type up anything that needs to be addressed. But when it comes to my life I have made the decision to forgo TV, a bed etc etc as this is not a break from Jaybowalkin but from the cold and danger.

I have plenty of writing supplies and will be able to do some major writing when not working or training (physical and survival). I will get into what I am going to do for these few months in much more detail soon. I will most likely not have a phone as I can’t afford it and will “suspend” it if I can. These months I am on my own, no money from TJB as I am working. They will be on vacation for all Dec as they are going to India for their own adventure so I will have to learn to administer the site myself from now on while not walking.

I will be writing up documents for TJB that will be posted on the site as well such as time table, winter month goals, etc etc. These will be available to all via the site. I will try to maintain the site best I can and respond to comments if I find it worthy. The official date I have set is March 2nd to return to the walk with my brother… A Baptist Church will actual be looking forward to that date as that’s where I pick back up the walk and they want to see me off.

Be on the look out for those documents and pictures if I can get them of my accommodations and stuff.

Without invading my brother’s privacy I will touch upon what happened and how it has affected my life and future walking plans. My brother has gotten into some trouble and is rapidly falling into a hole that he needs to climb out of. He is 16 and about to finish his schooling, he has some problems with where he is and needs (NEEDS) to join me ASAP. I have been where he is heading and I don’t want him there, I have turned around my life and he needs to do the same. I do not joke AT ALL when I say Chris and Bryan, by talking me into this, have saved my life. I had very dark thoughts once upon a time…. they feel like a century ago given how I have changed. I don’t want my brother there and will do everything for him as I had the opportunity. So from now on, whatever I do he is now apart of this adventure. This is no longer about me but about us. My brother Emelio and I are JayBoWalkin now.

We can help each other out, he needs the lesson only the cruel mother nature can teach. He needs to be hurt, tired, longing for home, longing for any comfort where there is none… then he needs to pray. He needs to build faith in him and God and realize what is of true importance in this world and never again lose site of it. He needs this and I need him. The long months of isolation have been an awakening but now I need to learn to motivate, lead and inspire another. I need to learn valuable skills through sharing on how to be there for someone and not just myself. More to come.

OK, need to write lots here. The cold kills, plain and simple. I had a few very bad and potentially deadly experiences with this already. Let me be clear on my gear (remember I am not a hiker/survivalist with no experience or knowledge), one long sleeve shirt with parka, one pair cotton sweatpants and sneakers. Yea, I know… as I was walking and watching the hunters all in their super winter clothing I was aware I was not doing something right. Not to mention, even with the sleeping bag I couldn’t ever get my temperature up to “thaw” me out properly at least once a day or even once a few days. Its one thing to walk outside cold then after a few hours walk into a warm place and get your temp up. If anyone is interested go walk outside and stay out there a few nights below freezing without going in somewhere a few hours to warm to the bone. Its a different deal all together!

Once I was just too cold for too long and started shaking uncontrollably (not shivering… shaking to the point I couldn’t speak clearly)… made worse by my numbing and losing focus with my thoughts. I had to get my stove out and just down hot foods and water and run in place to stop and get things working right again. Then there was the time I got wet!!!!! Wet and 20 degrees is death, plain and simple. I dealt with it as best I could with no training on what to really do. I started to think of the huge added risk there is with cold weather. As I walked in the summer heat there was risk but not like this! If say something stupid happened… accidentally shot by hunter, hit and run, branch falls and ripes tent in rain storm, anything at all… if its warm out I call 911 and crawl through the water losing blood to the road and try to get rescued. In the winter… I die. “Yea 911, I am somewhere on route X in county so and so in the woods tenting… I will try to get to the road… I am wet and bleeding and becoming numb… 20 minutes!!???!?? oh crap!

So, being the non survivalist that I am, I tried to think of what to do. I figured out how to survive the summer heat so let me figure out how to survive the extreme cold. Heat was easy, minimize direct sun, walk in small spurts and if in trouble… just stop. Not the same with this so what would I do? Well if I was truly in the wild trying to survive… find a place to set up home base and build a permanent shelter that will always stay dry. Build a fire place in the shelter and be able to get water food and wood easily and wait till the season was over. Basically, wait till it got warm. That didn’t help me walk so any alternatives? Gear… yea, umm, the winter gear I would like starts to quickly go cha ching. I don’t have the money for it and I mean we are talking one grand plus in winter survival gear. Just ask any winter hunter… I did.

To break it down this is what I was faced with…. as the temperature drops my risk goes up and up. My fitness walk turned survival mission becomes much more dangerous, so I needed to formulate a plan of attack… quitting is not an option. More to come on what I am going to do about this and a unpleasant surprise from my brother.

I just wanted to update my knee issue…. I am trying to keep these coming in chronological order here. The constant slope of the uneven road is just tearing up my knees…. and I mean BAD! I am going to contact a runner friend (Andrea from Saucony) about ways I can decrease this damage. My right knee especially… the small tendon or ligament or whatever is in sharp biting pain even at night while trying to sleep. When I can I am going to have to have my knee just looked at. 500 (me and pack) pounds for so long on an uneven paved surface may have just screwed it up too bad. I will find a way to get to California even if it means a wheel chair but I have to address this properly, I have actually “buckled” while walking from the pain… I will provide info on this as I get it.

I got to read some of the comments but not all regarding what is going one between some of you “fans” out there. I must say I appreciate your support and interest in my journey. However, after what I have been through it is obvious by some of the comments some people haven’t the slightest clue what they are talking about. June 18th I went out for a fitness walk to cross the US. I have never been a Boy Scout and my idea of camping was a cabin with AC, shower and laundry. I did NO research or preparation at all. In fact, I didn’t read any material on hiking till after on the road for several hundred miles. I had money, hotels, the works and they slowly went away. My “fitness walk” turned into a survival expedition, something I wasn’t even planning on doing. Looking back I am glad it did… anyone can walk 10 miles a day on a track and go home… I am truly finding myself by doing this.

My job is not to just walk… its to survive. I am not a trained soldier or hiker… I am an ex-computer dork video gamer that decided to go outside for a walk one day. I have to walk/hike, camp, find food, water, judge safety, route, first aid, crap in the wood (he he) and try to survive 24 hrs / 7 days a week while growing physically, mentally and spiritually. For anyone that makes a comment that fails to recognize the hardships about this, I know you have never attempting anything like this. It is obvious who has an idea what this is like and who doesn’t. But that’s OK, the site is about education and entertainment.

Harriet once made a comment about “growing up”… almost there. Building self confidence?… oh yea! For starters, I am confident in all my decisions based on what is needed to be done. Everything on this site is for you amusement and it turns out the most amusing is the funny comments. In the future of this… at anytime you don’t like what is going on you can stop reading my site but that would be such a waste. Keep the support and uneducated silly comments coming.

OK I just wanted to say one thing on what walking without a phone and communication is like. It sticks! The solitary lifestyle gets you big time after awhile. I had to adapt some of my strategy with camping to make sure I was not “out of sight” of the road if something happened. Like for instance… hunting season and I hear shots everywhere… no trekking back in the woods to find camp thank you very much. It really did make things very hard and I was looking forward to get my phone back after it was repaired. It was going to be sent to Hot Springs but again more on that in a few.

I have access to email at the moment so I will provide lots of updates at what is going on. First is after I got all the gear I thought I needed to hit the road I set back off. Thanks to Dave for the better sleeping bag by the way. So back on the road I had supplies to assist with stroller breakdown and what not. I made my way to Conway to pick up gear that was sent to me. I found out the gear was not there at the post office because that post office didn’t exist anymore. We found the gear held in Little Rock and sent forth to Hot Springs KOA. The gear I would later find out was better then what I had but was not going to cut it for winter and the cold. But more on that in a few.

Jaybo has contacted us from Hot Springs and he has decided to wait out the winter months working a job, most likely in Tennessee, and beginning again in the spring. He felt it was simply too cold to safely continue.

He now will have full computer access and will take over the postings on the site, and will keep you all updated.

We all wish him luck for the winter and look forward to the renewal of his journey in the Spring.

This is Team Jaybo signing off.

Tough mornings and lessons learned:

Yes, new gear is needed to ensure safety and to provide comfort, but I am glad I had it really rough a few mornings. It made me realize what a pansy I had been in my life. I use to wake up and not want to go to work cause I was tired, or it was a little cold, or whatever. Looking back I can see how easy life really was given what I have gone through already… and it’s going to get tougher! I feel like after this, I can tackle absolutely anything at all.

After much anticipation about his progress and safety, we have finally heard from from Jaybo this morning.

He called from a pay phone, just outside of Conway, Arkansas. He is doing okay, but has been walking with a cold that he picked up while staying at George’s. He said that being sick and stuffed up has forced him to reduce his walking speed to about one mile an hour, so this leg of the trip is taking longer than anticipated. But he is pushing steadily forward.

Luckily there has been a warm front in Arkansas this past week, and he said the temperatures have been in the 50s at night. A cold front is on its way soon however, and most likely by Thursday it will drop back down into the 30s at night.

He still only has cotton sweat pants and is hoping to pick up some new cloths in Conway, though a donated parka, gloves and a hat have gone a long way on the chilly plains of Arkansas. He is heading into Conway to check for general delivery packages waiting for him.

He is hoping to arrive in Hot Springs by the end of the week where he phone should be awaiting him, but due to his illness, slower pace and the cold it is more likely he will arrive over the weekend. Below is the route he will be following.

Gear breakdown and lessons learned:

The stroller is great, I have lots of gear because I can hold extra gear, which is great… but at a cost. The more complex the system the more possibilities for failure. I have become too dependent on my “stuff”. Lessons learned: reducing massive amounts of gear is still a necessity. I will continue to use the stroller because of the joint issues but I still need to reduce weight so I am not “bound” to it. In case of emergency I should be able to take everything off the stroller, put it in my bag and walk.

As for the phone… an emergency contact device would be nice. I may have my old cell phone shipped to me, which I believe is still able to call 911. With that option the risk of not having a phone becomes much more reasonable.

If the address we posted in Conway did not give you enough time to send a care package to Jaybo, his next major stop will be in Hot Springs, where he will be staying at the KOA. He should arrive in Hot Springs 10-12 days from now.

Hot Springs National Park KOA
Hold for Jason Bliss
838 McClendon Road
Hot Springs, AR 71901

Since we have not heard from Jaybo since he mailed his phone out Tuesday morning, and as his fans I’m sure are eager for an update, here are some of his thoughts that he sent from George’s computer. We will give you a few of these reflections every couple of days until we hear from Jason, hopefully soon! We all hope he is heading safely towards Conway.

Bad planning and lessons learned:

The two weeks off was a great idea to heal up physically, but it has dissolved my time cushion. I had underestimated possible problematic events (ie gear breakdown) that slow or stop me. Because of these unseen problems, will I be able to make my Dallas goal? Lesson learned: take more time at the end rather then the beginning, and be prepared for the unexpected.

JayBo is experiencing technical difficulties…

We know that you have all been eager to hear about how and where Jaybo has been this weekend, and what is happening with his gear and his phone.

Last Friday Jaybo’s phone went kaput. The display stopped functioning, so he could no longer text or blog. He knew that his phone needed to be fixed, and that meant sending it back to Helio for a repair. With that said, Jaybo felt he was in personal danger walking without a phone, as well having a sleeping bag that wasn’t warm enough and a broken tire on his stroller. In an emergency trip, George, from Tennessee, drove out and got Jaybo and brought him back to his farm for the weekend. So have no fear Jaybo faithful, he is safe and warm.

During the weekend, Jaybo fell into doubt about whether or not he could keep going. His fears about the phone, the weather, and his stroller added up, and he needed ample encouragement to get back on the road and continuing his journey. He is determined however, and has stuck with his goal, and intends to see it through! George has taken him to repair his stroller tire, and then he will be returning to outside of McCrory, AR tomorrow morning and continuing his trek.

His phone however is not fixed yet, but Jaybo has decided to continue on without it. Due to this fact, he cannot blog about this leg of his journey. He does however have a phone card and will call in updates to Team Jaybo, so we will vicariously keep you all updated.

His next stop (and where he hopes to receive the fixed phone) will be in Conway, AR. For those who want to send him things you can send it to Conway General Delivery:

Jason Bliss
c/o General Delivery
Conway, AR 72032

Remember to put your return address on any packages in case they can’t hold them, or there is some other issue. He should be in Conway in about a week, so any packages should be sent out soon.

Also here is a route map for the roads he should be traveling. As far as we know he will be on route 64 until Bald Knob, where he will switch to route 367, to skirt the bigger, heavier trafficked highway, and then back onto route 64 in Beebe.

This way if anyone is in the area and would like to stop by and see Jaybo and drop off anything to him directly, this is where he will be. You should assume about 10-12 miles a day.

Whenever he calls us to up date us we will make sure to pass the information along to all the Jaybo Junkies out there. Have no fear, after a moment of doubt our adventurer is back on the road again!

This entry is being written on behalf of Jaybo, since the display on his phone seems to be busted.

He awoke this morning, in freezing temperatures to find his phone display not functioning, his stove not working, and the tube on his stroller still not retaining air, and he has to repump it every 10 minutes or so. On top of all of this he feels totally out geared for the weather. Due to all these factors, it is really slow going.

Currently he is a near a rest area, about 2 miles outside of McCrory, attempting to figure out what to do about his phone. He doesn’t feel safe traveling without a phone, but he is also not near anywhere he can stay put for a few days to have the it mailed out and back to him. There are no campsites until Hot Springs.

We will keep you updated on further developments, and on how long Jaybo will be out of commission waiting for a new phone.

I stopped by a lake to admire the view, when a man named John approached me. It would seem the rest stop I was gunning for was closed down. “And a closed truck stop is someplace you don’t want to be at night”. I asked about possible camping and he informed me this lake was my best bet given the all the farm land coming up. So I took it and had a nice dinner and read a lot.

The temperature has dropped, so I’m getting ready for bed. I am about 26 miles from Bald Knob. I might stop there to do laundry, I am getting pretty ripe.