A group of 11 Gamma Sigma Phi fraternity brothers biked 1,405 miles from Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas to Pepperdine. The brothers left March 7 and arrived in Malibu the afternoon of March 12, where they were welcomed by over 400 Pepperdine students.
The fraternity’s alumni completed the journey once over 20 years ago, Abilene senior Jackson Kulp said. This year, a new group set out to face the daunting journey, encountering their fair share of hurdles in the form of flat tires and bad weather conditions. However, in the midst of difficulties, they leaned on their bond as they rode through desolate locations on the way to Malibu, Abilene senior Tanner Hill said.
“We really wanted to create a memory and a story for ourselves that was worth talking about for the rest of our lives,” Kulp said.
Catching up with the Gamma Sigma Phi Brothers at Mile 1,000
At mile 1,000, the Gamma Sigma Phi brothers were somewhere in between Palm Springs and Blythe, Abilene senior Ben Lancaster said.
The group of 11 brothers making the trek was filled with leaders. However, there is one whom the group have nicknamed “the ring leader,” and that is Abilene senior Samuel O’Quinn, Kulp said. O’Quinn organized the 1,405 mile ride from Abilene to Pepperdine.
“He’s a leader in everything he does,” Kulp said.
The brothers said they’ve never faced a journey like this before and consider themselves pretty novice riders. Some of the brothers began training in December, others not as often as them, Kulp said, not missing an opportunity to poke a little fun.
The brothers put Kulp in charge of training because he is a Kinesiology major, he said. The group began biking 10 miles a week around Christmas and increased their mileage with each passing week until they hit 50-60 miles a week.
“We all just kind of had a quota to hit each week where we would gun and go at our own pace,” Kulp said.
The fraternity is known for doing philanthropy events that are oftentimes extensive and long, Kulp said.
Groups of Gamma Sigma Phi brothers have played volleyball for 68 hours straight and even ran to Arkansas. Then, in 2003, a group of brothers decided to ride their bicycles from Abilene Christian University to Pepperdine.
“So they did it that year [2003] and raised $5,000 for charity,” Kulp said.
That is when O’Quinn began the conversation to bring the ride back with the current group of brothers, Kulp said.
“We think we have the, you know, the cards to pull this off,” Kulp said. “Let’s restart this conversation. Let’s talk to the guys who did it 20 years ago, and let’s make it happen again.”
The group contacted Abilene alum Chris Brewer, who was in charge of the trip’s logistics in 2003, Kulp said. Brewer gave them the ride template they created years earlier and some pointers on how to make their ride a little smoother based off of what the previous group had done.
Preparation included a big group call with Brewer and other alumni who explained how to use a two-van system for the journey, how to switch off riders and how to avoid the wind by staying close to the van, Lancaster said.
The brothers even had Abilene alumni join them along their route to take part. Abilene alum Andrew Kolp joined in Arizona and talked the brothers through the elevation part of the trek, Lancaster said.
“He came with us and biked for about 10 miles,” Lancaster said.
The 1,405 mile journey was not made without its trials, Abilene senior Aidan Boisvert said.
“I’ve been personally cursed with being the guy who’s had the most difficult time on the bikes with popping the tires,” Boisvert said.
While biking on the highway and drafting behind the van to avoid the wind, Boisvert said he encountered a 2 to 3 inch bump in the road that sent him to the ground.
“I’m OK,” Boisvert said. “Helmets are good — wear them.”
The group also experienced routing issues, Lancaster said. After spending some time on the highway biking alongside semi-trucks going 80 miles per hour, they decided to reroute taking neighborhood roads and dirt paths instead. At this point in the ride, over halfway to Malibu, the team said they had it down to a science.
“We’ve been kind of veering off using Google and Apple Maps satellite view, especially to see if, like, the roads are cement or paved or unpaved,” Lancaster said.
One of the biggest motivators for Kulp was the idea that “‘You’re only gonna be in college once,'” he said. “This is the time where you need to do these things that you won’t have the opportunity to do.”
The Brothers Show and Raise Support
The group of brothers raised money for the Greater Than Three Outreach and the Pepperdine Strong Fund.
Greater Than Three Outreach is an organization that works with people who have a spinal cord injury or other disabilities and works to improve their quality of life emotionally, socially and physically, according to their website.
Kulp met and began working with the founder, Heidi Wachtel, as a sophomore in college. When he heard Wachtel’s story of working through her disability using physical therapy after doctors told her she would never move again, Kulp said he was inspired.
“As someone who’s going to go into that career, I really latch on to that right, because that inspires me to be good at what I do,” Kulp said.
The fraternity is also supporting the Pepperdine Strong Fund, which Pepperdine established to provide financial assistance to members of the Pepperdine community who were directly impacted by the Franklin and Palisades fires.
“Once we found out about the fires that broke out, I think our first instinct was saying, ‘We have to help in some way,’” Hill said. “The Pepperdine Strong Fund, like, was really just a decision we made out of our desire for this whole event to be something that serves the greater good.”
Rain or Shine, Pepp Meets Abilene at the Finish Line
The Student Government Association (SGA) planned a welcome party for the 11 Abilene bikers March 12 in the Chapel Lot. SGA President Myers Mentzer was in charge of planning the event in the midst of a rain storm Malibu was experiencing.
Mentzer said she began talking with Tyler Gaylor, Abilene’s SGA president of finance, in January about the ride. Mentzer said it was important to her to welcome the group and show them around Pepperdine.
“We want to make this like their grand finish line,” Mentzer said about planning the welcome party.
Bode Gwin and Ashton Perez were two of the Gamma Sigma Phi bikers welcomed at the finish line by the Pepperdine community. Biking the last leg of the journey, Perez and Gwin said they both encountered wind, rain and steep hills.
“We had to back it up for a sec,” Perez said. “The rain was too much. It was too dangerous to ride.”
Perez said he started off his portion of the ride listening to the Joe Rogan podcast before opting for the sounds of the ride itself.
“But after that, I was like, ‘No, I’m just gonna enjoy the ride,’” Perez said. “Enjoy listening to the wind, it’s actually really peaceful.”
For the remainder of the ride, Perez said he relied heavily on his faith for motivation.
“I was just praying with the Lord and just spending time with the Holy Spirit, just praying for the people around me, praying for the guys in the van,” Perez said.
Together, the Gamma Sigma Phi brothers raised $30,000 for the Greater Than Three Foundation and the Pepperdine Strong Fund.
From Bikers to Pickleball Players
The Gamma Sigma Phi brothers competed March 15 in a pickleball tournament organized by Michael Sugimoto, SGA’s executive vice president.
SGA created the event to show support for the Pepperdine community following the L.A. County wildfires while simultaneously raising money for the Pepperdine Strong Fund, Sugimoto said.
The date of the pickleball tournament was pushed back once SGA found out about the bikers coming from Abilene Christian University, so they could participate, Sugimoto said.
“We reached out and told them about the tournament, and they were super excited and wanted to contribute,” Sugimoto said.
SGA encouraged anyone interested to play in the tournament and support the Pepperdine Strong Fund. Lancaster said all the brothers were excited to participate in the tournament and were confident they had some good players on their team.
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Contact Rachel Flynn via email: rachel.flynn@pepperdine.edu
