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>>It's 5:30am in the Spokane
Valley, and Del Flory is ready
to roll.
I'm Del Flory from
Spokane, Washington.
I do love to
ride bikes, yes I do.
It's good exercise as
well as mental relaxation.
It's just something
I've always done and I love to
do it. It's like eating,
sleeping - it's a part
of my life.
>>For Del, cycling is a
huge part of his daily life.
Incredible, really. I mean, how
many senior citizens do you know
that ride 4000 miles a year on a
bicycle? In fact, Del just
recently passed the 99,000 mile
mark on the way to his goal of
riding 100,000 miles before his
90th birthday. Oh, did I mention
that Del is 89? Yep.
(Del Flory) People don't
believe I'm that age,
nobody believes I'm that old.
>>Del has been riding two
wheelers all his life, but since
1986, a bright red Bridgestone
bicycle has been his steel steed
of choice. And like Del, It
shows no signs of slowing down
anytime soon. (Del Flory) Still
runs good. A little beat up.
It's my buddy. >>Of the 99,000
plus miles that Del has ridden
over the past few decades, Del
says 98 percent of those
remarkable miles have been
recorded right here on Spokane's
crown jewel of trails... the
Centennial Trail. (Del Flory)
It's probably the most beautiful
trail in the United States.
There's nothing like this,
nothing.
>>Loreen McFaul leads a
non-profit organization called
the Friends of the Centennial
Trail which helps maintain and
promote Del's favorite trail
system. (Loreen McFaul) The
Centennial Trail is thirty-seven
and a half miles long from the
Washington-Idaho border up to
Nine Mile falls. What's
interesting about the trail is
its use; 2.4 million users a
year whether you're walking,
running, cycling, in-line
skating. We know that the
economic impact to our region is
just over thirty million dollars
a year, so it is our largest,
most highly used and free
recreational resource in the
region. >>Del has ridden his
bike in nearly all 50 states and
ranks this one number one. But
what makes this trail so
outstanding? (Del Flory) It's
well maintained, good surface,
width... you can ride 3 people
aside on the trail with no
problem... it's about 10 foot
wide... the scenery, the
wildlife -beautiful along the
river. >>Del not only uses the
trail, he also protects it. For
the past ten years he's served
as a bike patrol volunteer. You
might just call him Deputy Del.
(Loreen McFaul) Del comes out to
the south Mirabeau trailhead
every day and he rides his bike
all the way to the state line
and back. So, he's riding his
bike twenty miles a day through
the SCOPE volunteers, that's the
Sheriff's Community Policing
Effort, and he's basically
watching over our trail to make
sure there aren't any issues and
if there are issues he's able to
help. (Del Flory) Mostly it's
people without dogs on the
leash, that's the primary thing.
The other thing we watch for is
transients that want to camp
along the trail. (Loreen McFaul)
But Del is very unique. He's
been doing this for the last ten
years. And so we know that Del
rides his bike on our trail at
least 140 miles a week. (Del
Flory) Well, I'd be there
anyway, so I might as well help
out. (Loreen McFaul) It's just
an unbelievable example of
health and fitness.
(Del Flory) I don't think
I'm any different than
anyone else, really. I
don't deliberately eat or do
anything particularly healthy I
still like my potatoes and gravy
and I like a beer with a pizza
or barbeque that's about it. But
I burn it up.
>>In 1943, Del was
drafted by the U.S. Army and
served with an anti-aircraft
unit during the Second World
War. He fought in the Battle of
the Bulge. And through it all he
continued to ride a bicycle.
(Del Flory) We rode them all
over England, up in to Holland
when we were in Belgium - ride
all over on bicycles.
>>Del's healthy, active
lifestyle has brought him
many benefits worth boasting
about - some more than
others. (Del Flory) I feel good.
I can still wear my Army
uniform. My buddies get mad at
me because I can still wear my
uniform and they can't. I can
still wear the suit I was
married in, 1946. >>Rojean
Flory, Del's bride of almost
seventy years, rode a bike right
alongside him throughout their
marriage. But recent health
issues have put the brakes on
Rojean's trail rides with Del.
Though Rojean can't ride with me
on the trail, she's with me in
my thoughts and heart.
>>But where there's
a will, there's a way.
(Del Flory) She rides her
scooter. I take here down and
she goes on her electric
scooter. She loves that. (Loreen
McFaul) They absolutely love the
Centennial Trail, they love
Spokane. They're such a joy when
you see the two of them
together. It's just one more
example of how to live your life
well and we can all learn from
that. >>In many ways, the
Centennial Trail ranks as one of
the region's most valuable
recreational assets. And while
it's free for anyone to enjoy,
it depends on the generous
financial support of the
community to keep it healthy and
growing. (Loreen McFaul) We're
asking folks to just continually
to be proud of this trail, to
embrace it, and to support it
because we need to all come
together to support it. It's a
direct reflection of how our
community cares for it and we're
charged today with just taking
care of this great gift that we
have. I(Del Flory) t's so
wonderful to have it here, why
not keep it and make it better?
It costs such a little bit to do
it. >>For now, Del will continue
to ride with the *** of a
schoolboy to his goal of 100,000
miles. And with the help from
organizations like the Friends
of the Centennial Trail, he'll
continue rolling as a humble,
selfless cyclist, blissfully
unaware of how his life is an
incredible inspiration. (Del
Flory) I don't know why. Anybody
can do what I'm doing. A bicycle
is so easy to ride. It's nothing
to it, piece of cake.