Season for Giving

On December 16, 2009, JB Benna, his wife Jennifer Benna, and their newly rescued dog Scooby began a 1,100 mile bike tour of California's Pacific Coast from Oregon to Mexico. Their goal, to raise money for the San Francisco SPCA as well as promote shelter pet adoption for the Holidays. I was lucky enough to play rendezvous and help them make their way down the Redwood Highway to the Oregon/California border.

JB is the man behind such films as "The Runner" and "UltraMarathon Man", the story behind Dean Karnazes 50 marathon in 50 states in 50 days. His production/distribution company, Journeyfilm, captures extreme endurance events. So covering 1,100 miles didn't seem like to much of a stretch for this active duo. When I heard why they were doing it, and on bikes none the less, I was extremely touched by their kindness that I decided to share it all with you.

Jen Benna writes, "When we lost our first dog, Mr. Big, to lymphoma in October, we felt compelled to find a way to give something back. Its kind of amazing how a dog can make you smile after a tough day or hearing your cat’s purr is all you need to fall asleep. In other words, life without our furry buddies would be pretty boring. So it seemed simple enough. Take two of our life passions and put them together and see what we get. Endurance sports + love for animals and poof, Pedal for Paws was born."



The three are days away from reaching the US/Mexico border but further from their $5,000 campaign for the ASPCA. If you're not through giving this holiday season please visit their site, www.pedal4paws.com and put a few coins in their purse. If nothing else, please track their progress and get inspired. I have enjoyed following their trek and have felt almost as good doing it as if I was out there with them.