Bergin said he rode back to Brainerd with Walters to show his support.

"I wanted to support Gary as much as I could because he has always supported me," said Bergin. "(When I first heard what Gary was doing) I thought, 'Gary is trying to save the world again.' But all he is trying to do is his own part."

Gary Walters addressed his friends and family at the Crow Wing County Courthouse with a short speech in front of the memorial. He said he was able to go on the bicycle adventure because of the people who died for this country.

"I thought about these people on the road," he said. "They fought for our country. They are the real heroes."

One thing Walters said he learned by going on this bike excursion is, "Anybody can do anything they want to do. I'm short and fat and I biked 1,500 miles."

Walters shared a few stories about his trip and said the best part of the trip was the people. He said southerners were friendly.

"We were invited to dinner several times," he said. "We were not even in New Orleans for an hour and we were invited to dinner."

Walters said during the trip he had five tires go flat. He said many of the roads he biked to Minnesota were dangerous and did not have shoulders. He said the highways in Missouri were the worst.

Walters said physically, the trip was not too exhausting. He said the recumbent bike he bought was a godsend. He said his brother, who is an avid biker, was sore, but he never got sore, only tired.

"The first day was really hard," he said. "The second day was not as hard and then it was fine. I think I lost weight. I could go farther if I had to."

Walters said they usually were on the road by 7 a.m. and biked until about 3 to 5 p.m. each day. He said they really never took a break. He said one day they biked 40 miles in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and that was their break.

This trip will not end Walters' biking excursions. He plans to ride his bike or walk all the Crow Wing County roads within his four-year term. So far he has ridden 60-80 miles of the 660 miles of county roads. He also plans to bike to Itasca State Park sometime this summer.

He has other adventures planned. He has about 25 goals he wants to accomplish in his life and next on the list is possibly climbing Mount Rainier.