Heavy thunderstorms this week didn’t deter Leo Dever and his Shih Tzu-terrier mix, Sassy Max, from continuing their cross-country bike ride. Leo, 60, left his Ozarks home 10 years ago and has been traveling the country by bike ever since.
Wednesday evening, having departed Fort Scott earlier that day, Leo and Max paused on the shoulder of the highway just north of
LaHarpe. Max, who balances on the back of the bike during their travels, curled up to nap.
“I always wanted to see if I could make it doing this,”Leo said, squeezing the rainwater from one of his Willie Nelson braids. “I didn’t want to just start something — you know, go a place or two and quit. So, when I was 50, I got myself a cheap bicycle, and that’s what I’ve been doing.” The pair have pedaled across Arizona, California, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, and have no plans to quit. Part of Leo’s goal is to bring attention to homeless animals. “Also, everything Sassy Max and I have ever done is on our website” — search “Leo and Max Across America” — which Leo maintains on a smartphone he carries in a satchel lashed to his handlebars.
Ozarks man pedals through Allen County
