Two Navy veterans recently reunited to complete a great expedition across America.
Jim Serger, 55, of Cincinnati, Ohio, and Cory Hardy, 51, of Ennis, Montana, hadnt seen each other in 30 years since serving together overseas.
On July 14, the two friends embarked on a bike ride across the country â from California to New York City â in honor of the upcoming 25th anniversary of Sept. 11.
After writing three books for the nonprofit Tunnel to Towers, Serger said he felt he needed to challenge himself “with something bigger.”
“And why not wrangle in my old Navy buddy, who I hadnt seen for 30 years, that I knew was a tremendous bicyclist,” he told Fox News Digital. “Back in January, I said, Would you like to go on this trip? And he said, Absolutely, Jimmy, count me in.”
Hardy said hes always viewed himself as “,” as hes been granted “so many opportunities” through the military to see the world and get an education.
“When Jim approached me about the idea of doing this, I was like, Wow, this is awesome. This is something that I can do,” he shared.
“It’s the 250th anniversary of our country and the 25th anniversary of 9/11, and I don’t want to forget, and I want people to keep it at the forefront of their minds.”
Serger trained for 10 months, logging 5,000 miles on an . When spring came, he hit the trails around Cincinnati.
A few months later, the duo began their journey in San Diego and headed east. They were met with 20 road closures, a fire and flooding in Colorado, two flat tires, three bike shop visits and lots of backroad maneuvering.
Serger and Hardy focused on staying hydrated, especially in the California and Arizona heat, with a collective three gallons of water each day, sometimes including electrolytes. They snacked on energy waffles, protein bars and “salt gummy bears,” and ate lots of carbs at meals.
Hardy said he took 10-minute ice baths “every single day.” Serger reported losing six pounds by the end of the mission, which he gained back by eating “” in New York.
While Hardy was already accustomed to the elevation after living in mountainous Montana, Serger said the altitude posed a physical challenge.
“It was grueling … so hard,” he told Fox News Digital. “Cory had to take the mountains in Colorado, I stayed on flat ground â that was our game plan.”
Serger and Hardy were met by some of their old along the way. One fellow veteran, an Arizona state trooper, drove from Phoenix to Flagstaff to meet them on the route. Others opened their homes for the pair to stay the night.
The friends stopped at about 25 firehouses to hand out Tunnel to Towers books and to introduce themselves.
“Sometimes we were there for an hour, sometimes we were there for four hours,” Serger said. “Talking about Tunnel to Towers, where they were on 9/11 ⦠how much they train ⦠it was just very heartwarming.”
Serger said he and Hardy both foster the “” of “what we can do for others,” as Hardy serves on the city council and Serger’s wife cooks for the fire department every month. These types of efforts were reciprocated on their journey.
“Every fire station, EMS, police station, they’re all involved in the communities. We got patches, we got hats, we got pins, we got T-shirts,” Serger said.
Hardy added that at every firehouse, everybody was there to help, “regardless of their states political affiliation.”
“They’re just another American out there willing to put their life on the line to save people,” he said. “I thought it was super awesome to get to meet firefighters from East Coast to West Coast.”
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