The idea of adventure as a catalyst for bonding people in spiritual relationships came from years of engaging in and listening to the stories of people’s shared challenges. The stories grew and the relationships deepened with each re-telling until fact and fiction merged. More importantly, these challenges bonded each man to his brothers.

My earliest foray into adventure challenges came after I married Karen. We began working at a Boys Ranch near Yellowstone . Daily, we contended with the misdirected energy of 100 delinquent youth. It was a tough environment requiring extreme measures. I began centering my efforts on the behavioral and learning benefits that might develop through survival challenges. "Let's do a bike trip through Yellowstone!" was my first thought. We collected junk bikes and parts from nearby Billings. The boys helped scab together ridable bikes from these, and we started into Yellowstone on equipment resembling something you’d have seen on the Little Rascals. Amazingly, in trips of 250 miles each, climbing five passes, and riding in denim blue jeans - not a single injury. Even better, discipline problems nearly disappeared as capabilities were stretched to the max and necessary survival relationships developed. We began penetrating the strong defenses of these damaged youth, and it grew us as well.

As our own family began to grow, we moved back to Indiana in 1977. That summer, my brother, Kent, asked me to ride 100 miles to Lake Michigan. It was miserable, but the next year, surprisingly, we asked other family and friends along. The agony continued, but in the shared suffering there was a bonding. By year three, we were inviting still more people. It seemed the greater the challenge and the pain, the more people treasured the shared experience. As the miles clicked by, the conversations became as important as the miles. These talks sometimes found common ground and other times challenged people over long-held "beliefs". As riders’ physical limits were reached and those borders began to crumble, it began opening new crucial territories of mental toughness and spiritual direction.

As we added ski trips and mountain bike adventures, my brother, Rod, and I agreed to accept the ministry God was developing before us and so began 2nd Mile Adventures.

I know exactly where I was when “2nd Mile Adventures: go a new distance: physically, mentally, and spiritually” was given to me, and I never questioned it. It continues to call out the mission of the organization.

And the results of following the Lord’s adventure? We have baptized men in the waters of the mountains, married couples on remote beaches, and trekked into volcanoes. Most importantly, people have taken on the greatest challenge of all, a life fully surrendered to Jesus Christ. Every day we rise to "go a new distance" with Him.

What adventure might God have for you? Would you give it a 2nd thought? Join us!

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-Brent Wildman, 2nd Mile Adventures Founder