Why Not?

When I was a kid, my parents taught me that winners are not those who always ask “Why?” Rather, they are the ones who ask, “Why not?”

Last January 15, at exactly 4:15 p.m., Stuart Darnley along with his team called “Why Not,” proved it to be true after finishing the 3,825 kilometers (2377 miles) Mercy Corp Rickshaw Run from Southern India to Kathmandu, an article at rickshawrun2008.com said.

Along with 63 teams, Damley’s “Why Not” team finished their mission of crossing the Indian Borders via a motorized rickshaw which the team compared to a golf cart. According to mercycorprickshaw.blogspot.com, the annual Rickshaw Run was for the benefit of Mercy Corp, an organization founded in 1979 that provides assistance to about 100 nations particularly those stricken by poverty and disasters.

Describing their adventure at rickshawrun2008.com, the “Why Not” team said, that in total, they finished the race at an average speed of 35 kilometers per hour or 25 miles per hour with three flat tires. For seven times, they ran out of fuel and discovered that their funnel and petrol caps were lost.

“Many many close shaves with cows, dogs, puppies, goats, people, buses, tractors, trucks, bikes and potholes that could swallow our rickshaw whole," as they recalled their life-changing run. Whew! It must be the same horrified feeling when a ten-wheeler truck almost touches your Acura car’s Acura MDX fender. But I believe Damley and comrades Jeff Johnson and Scott Sveiven believe it’s worth the experience. By asking “Why not?” they have gone beyond themselves for a worthy cause. Isn’t it a wonderful quest completed?

Through 2008 Rickshaw Run, about $4700 was earned to support Mercy Corp India - a proof that the organization’s dictum BE THE CHANGE is possible. For sure it ain’t easy, but why not?