University graduate Karl Enchelmayer is hitting the road.

He began a 5,000-mile bike ride earlier this month that will take him through redwood forests and across national deserts in hopes of helping people living with HIV/AIDS.

The cross-country trip — a nonprofit campaign in partnership with AIDS Athens that will take Enchelmayer from Seattle, Wash., to Miami, Fla., over the span of six months — was created in hopes of spreading awareness about HIV/AIDS. Enchelmayer plans to raise $10,000 for AIDS Athens by blogging and updating Facebook daily.

Alumnus Karl Enchelmayer is working to raise $10,000 for AIDS Athens by taking a 5,000-mile cross-country tour. PHOTO BY KARL ENCHELMAYER

“I’m planning on — once I leave Seattle — blogging how many miles I ride, and I’ll try to update people on how much money I’ve raised so far,” he said. “The nice thing is, through the blog, people can ‘like’ [the ride] on Facebook, so people can get an update on my blog, when I post them. They can also find links on where to donate.”

Enchelmayer said he began the trip because he wanted to gain experience before joining the Peace Corps.

“I’m in the nomination stage of going to the Peace Corps and I’ll probably be going into health extension,” he said. “[Health extension] is more about education. You go to a Third World country and educate the people there and try to support their community. I’m trying to gain experience for that.”

He said he was further encouraged to start the bike ride by the support he had received from friends and family.

“I’ve been very impressed so far with my friends, family and neighbors,” he said. “I think I’ve raised 10 percent before the trip has even started.”

The bike ride — though in partnership with AIDS Athens — will be funded entirely by Enchelmayer. He said he financed the bike ride so donors could more fully support AIDS Athens.

“I’ve been pretty lucky, ever since I graduated in 2007,” he said. “I’ve had a job since then, and have been able to save. The combination of selling my vehicle and saving has helped me finance the trip and get ready for it.”

Enchelmayer said he is not an experienced biker, but has planned measures to make sure the ride goes as smoothly as possible.

“I’m only planning on averaging about 30 miles a day,” he said. “And I’m carrying extra tire tubes, and once I camp for the night, I’ll patch any holes in old bike tires and it’ll become the new spare tire. I also want to take it to a professional bike shop once a month.”

He said he only plans to ride for three to five hours so that he can see national parks, visit local attractions and engage people he meets in conversation about AIDS.

“I’m not the kind of person who can come up and just talk about HIV/AIDS,” he said. “So I’m hoping that anyone I have a lengthy conversation with, I can bring it up. I also want to get T-shirts, maybe something bright green that says ‘Ask me why I’m riding.’”

And he’s excited for the journey.

“I love the idea of traveling the country,” he said. “I’m excited to meet new people and see new things.”

Read Enchelmayer’s blog and follow his progress at: www.sea2mia.com.