William Duke

The Road. The Ride. The Dream.

A man, his bike, and a dream. In August 2026, I’ll be Running Down a Dream and setting out on the ride and challenge of a lifetime – chasing the road for 3800 miles and 155,000 feet of elevation gain across this beautiful country of ours from Portland, OR to Portland, ME. They don’t call it the Cross-Country Challenge for nothing. It’s a grueling 47-day ride across 15 states averaging 90 miles a day with 15 days of 100+ mile rides with 6 of those being back-to-back.

This ride is a lifetime bucket list item for me and all I ask for are your prayers for my strength and safety. This is not a sponsored fundraising ride for any specific organization, but since you’re here and reading this, I would greatly appreciate your consideration of a generous donation to 2 specific local non-profits that I support – Teach My People and the Coastal Carolina YMCA – read on for more information on that. I’ll be posting daily updates on my Blog. This site is where the road comes alive, one mile at a time. May God bless this journey!

A Little About Me

I’ve always enjoyed staying active and finding new physical challenges. It’s kind of hard to spend 4 years at West Point (CNQ ’86) and 5 years as an Army Infantry Officer without gaining a deep appreciation for the benefits of staying fit. So, for me, much of my personal inspiration has been about doing things that are unique and physically challenging – like swimming Alcatraz (3x) or the Golden Gate Bridge (2x), or just getting through Ranger School as a junior Army officer.

Join the Journey

About the Ride

If you’ve found this site, you’re probably a friend, family member, former colleague or just someone that wants to find out what this ride is all about. Whatever the case may be, I am glad that you are here and that you’ll stay in touch and perhaps consider making a donation to Teach My People and the YMCA. Even a penny a mile can make a big difference in someone’s life. In memory of my parents, Jan and Bill Duke, and in honor of Val’s parents Erble and Bill Creasman, Val and I have made a meaningful donation to both of these organizations to kick this ride off. I hope that you will join us.