Laughlin pilot bikes across America

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Joel Langton
  • 47th Flying Training Wing public affairs
LAUGHLIN AFB, Texas --  It's not unusual for Laughlin's student and instructor pilots to fly across the country and back before lunch. 

However, this August a similar trip took Capt. Luke Marker, 86th Flying Training Squadron instructor pilot, 20 days to complete. 

Trading in the T-1's Pratt and Whitney engines to power him across the country he used his two feet to pedal nearly 2,000-mile, from Del Rio to Lake Chalen, Wash. 

Instead of clocking 538 miles per hour in the jet getting a bird's-eye view of the country side, he hopefully wheeled along at 100 miles a day, dodging buffalo and moose and weaving his way through herds of cows. 

Instead of being command-directed and trying to teach a young pilot, Captain Marker felt like God was telling him to take this pilgrimage. 

"I'm a Christian and I felt like God put it on my heart to go," Captain Marker said. Having never been much of a bike rider, he had to go out and buy one. 

Although no Lance Armstrong, or even a dedicated cyclist for that matter, it's not like he was starting from ground zero when it came to physical conditioning. Captain Marker is quite the athlete, running track at the Air Force Academy and competing in decathlons as an amateur this past spring and summer. 

The decathlon is a two-day event and consists of the 100-meter dash, long jump, shot put, high jump, 400-meter run, 110-meter hurdles, discus, javelin and 1,500-meter run. Typically, whoever wins the decathlon in the Olympics is known as the world's greatest athlete. 

Before his trek, his longest bike ride had been 50 miles. 

His journey took him across the deserts of West Texas, through New Mexico, up several 11,000-foot peaks in the Rockies and then eventually through Yellowstone National Park. He didn't stick to a hard route, but went wherever the wind blew him.
He said so much about his journey stands out. He'll always remember things like a 30 mile per hour "God Forsaken" headwind coming out of Moab, Az. and earlier pedaling up some of the peaks in the Rockies. But what really stood out was the people he met. "So many people were so interesting," he said. 

But what really stands out to him, and he's quick to share, are the lessons he learned on his nearly 2,000-mile journey. 

"I learned to trust God more in adverse situations," he said. What the 6-foot, 3-inch and 180-pounder carried on his lean frame was minimal. It consisted of 40 ounces of water, extra tires, several shirts, underwear, toothbrush, a cellphone and a credit card. 

Not often can all of your belongings fit neatly into a sentence, but it was also essential to building his trust, he said. "When you don't know where you're going to stay that night or where you're going to eat, it builds your trust in God," he said. 

It also naturally developed his physical endurance but the monster trek also developed him mentally. "Mentally, we're our own worst enemy," he said. "I had mental thoughts that were really negative and I had to learn and persevere to overcome them and I had to have a plan to accomplish the goal. 

His fellow IP and roommate was surprised when he set off on the journey. 

"I'd lived with him for a year and didn't realize he was into biking," said Capt. Steve Warrington. "I guess that's probably because he didn't own a bike. But if there's any person who could make this happen, it's Luke." 

Capt. Marker shrugs off the credit and shakes his head. "Only God," he said. "Just following his instructions."