I just passed Bakersfield and Kern County, known far and wide for oil and country music. I passed Merle Haggard Drive and Buck Owens’ Crystal Palace, landmarks recognizing two giants in the world of country music. I still hear “Streets of Bakersfield” in my head from time to time.

Bakersfield also is where I spent five years at California State University, Bakersfield. That time represented what ABC’s Wide World of Sports would call the “thrill of victory and agony of defeat.” My professional experiences at CSUB were remarkable — lots and lots of victories and important steps in helping the university’s deserving students succeed. I met Dolores Huerta, Stephen Neal (2-time NCAA wrestling champ and 3-time Super Bowl champ with the New England Patriots, despite never having played college football), Tyga (whom I called Mr. Tyga when I met him), Kevin McCarthy (a CSUB alum) and countless other people whom I remember fondly.

But it was not without its challenges. CSUB is where I blacked out and landed face first — literally — on the sidewalk during an early morning campus run. A friend saw me — said he had never seen anyone fall that way without even trying to brace for the fall — and helped me get back to my senses. I never have figured out what caused it, but I have certainly been reluctant to work out by myself since then.

One other memory oddly stands out to me. To help the student government during a campus event, I volunteered to sit in a dunk tank. If you ever want to know what people really think about you, I recommend getting into a dunk tank and looking at the faces of those trying to dunk you. Safe to say that the determination on the faces of some of the folks did not necessarily align with what I was expecting. They were focused!!!

Now on to Tehachapi!

By the numbers:

Miles walked: 136.3

Miles to go: 2,789.9

Average miles per day to reach Statue of Liberty by 70th birthday (unofficial goal): 6.53