A bicycle ride across the continental United States is not an ordinary goal — it requires hours of training, both mentally and physically, and usually a team of supporters along the way.
However, after working diligently since 2020 to bike 40 miles, Cindy Norris, 66, set out a new goal: 4,280 miles.
“Ordinary people can make extraordinary goals,” Norris said. “So, I just call myself the ordinary woman with an extraordinary goal.”
Norris, of Reno, Nevada, embarked July 8 from Kiwanis Waterfront Park in Anacortes to break the Guinness World Record for the oldest woman to successfully bike across the continental U.S. Her journey will conclude 4,280 miles later at Cape Henlopen State Park in Sussex County, Delaware.
Norris’ ride will parallel the Canadian border from Anacortes until the Great Lakes. After “horseshoeing,” south around Great Lakes, the journey travels due east to the Cape Henlopen lighthouse. She would be the oldest woman to ever finish that continental route.
Along the way, she hopes to raise $100,000 for the Special Operations Warrior Foundation (SOWF), which began in 1980 to provide educational funding for the children of Special Operations soldiers who died in combat. The foundation has since expanded, helping children of all fallen Special Operations Forces regardless of how they died, as well as Medal of Honor recipients’ children.
“I just made an instant goal that I was going to do a magnificent ride for these children,” Norris said. “I was going to do whatever I could.”
The wife and mother of former members of U.S. Special Forces, Norris has seen the psychological and physical tolls that fighting in America’s engagements around the globe can take on soldiers.
“My son did three years in Iraq and Afghanistan and he saw so much tragedy,” Norris said. “He saw his fellow soldiers die on the battlefield, leaving their families behind and their children behind.”
Cindy Norris begins her coast-to-coast journey on the trail at Kiwanis Waterfront Park. (Hailey Hoffman/Cascadia Daily News)
Norris hopes that her attempt at breaking a Guinness World Record will generate enough buzz to reach her $100,000 goal.
“Those kids deserve the best opportunities in life,” Norris said. “I know the soldier pays the ultimate sacrifice, but I think the families pay a big sacrifice. I would call that the ultimate sacrifice.”
Sean Corrigan, executive Vice President of SOWF and retired U.S. Army Colonel, said that Special Operations units, like the Navy SEALS and Army Green Berets, are put in much more dangerous combat zones around the world.
These violent operating conditions have resulted in 1,567 children of fallen Special Operation soldiers since 1980, according to the SOWF website.
Corrigan said the cross-country ride is a testament to the closeness of the Special Operations community.
Cindy Norris and her husband, Rick, check her communication device before her trip. Rick will follow behind her in a car on the entire journey and help her keep track of all data as proof for Guinness World Records. (Hailey Hoffman/Cascadia Daily News)
“It’s really heartwarming that even though her husband’s already retired, she’s still giving back to the community and to those who are still serving and those who have sacrificed in the past,” Corrigan said.
There is no time element to the Guinness World Record, so Norris said she wants to take the ride slow and enjoy the country’s beauty. She also plans on interviewing members of the Special Operations community along her path, which she plans to post on her blog.
Donations can be made through Norris’ website, cycleforthekids.net, but Norris said it’s not just about the donation goal or the world record.
“Even if people can’t donate money,” Norris said, “I just want them to sit back for a moment and have those kids in their thoughts and send them all their best wishes.”
The current Guinness World Record for the oldest female to cross America by bicycle is held by Lynnea C. Salvo, who finished at the age of 67 years, 32 days. Norris will turn 67 during her trip and plans to finish beyond 67 years, 32 days of age.
From the water, Cindy Norris video calls family for a send off. (Hailey Hoffman/Cascadia Daily News)
