At age 73, William Vanderlinde had decided against riding in the Sea to Sea 2008 Bike Tour across North America.
After all, the man who lives in St. James City on Pine Island in southwest Florida had braved rain, wind, cold, and mountains in the 2005 Canadian tour.
But concern for hungry people pestered him. “The thought [of riding] never left me alone. I went to bed with it and woke up with it,” he said.
He relented on the last day of registration. While there will be cyclists older than him, Vanderlinde will be the oldest rider doing the entire tour.
He hopes the expected $1.5 million raised by more than 200 riders will make a difference, at least for some of the world’s hungry. “It will not help everybody, but I hope those who will be helped will see the hand of God in that.”
Vanderlinde was a member of a Christian Reformed Church in Ontario for 40 years and now attends a Baptist church.
