Hope you had a good weekend. This is a short one and probably should have been a bonus fact, but the feat was so absurd I went with it. This was national news in the 1950s! — Dan

January 6, 1954, started like any other day for the Shuey family, then living in Washington, DC. Their son, Warren, hopped on his bicycle that Wednesday morning, going off to school like he usually did. But he didn’t come home that day, or the next, or after that. In fact, Warren wouldn’t return home at all.

But don’t worry — he was safe. And almost certainly, very tired and sore.

The Shueys weren’t originally from DC — they had recently relocated there from Atlanta. Warren, then age 15, apparently wasn’t too fond of the decision. As the Associated Press reported, he was homesick for the South and for his grandmother’s fried chicken. So he decided to take matters into his own hands and go home.

As a 15-year-old, though, his options were limited. He couldn’t legally drive and only had $10 — about $125 in today’s money — which probably wasn’t enough to buy a plane or train ticket. But he did have his bike — and that was good enough for a kid who probably didn’t know better. Armed only with that $10, a Bible, and a few extra shirts, he embarked on the 700-mile trek back home.

Along the way, Shuey just kept pedaling, resting wherever he could — predominantly in parks or the like, but twice found lodging with a kind stranger. And seven days after he left DC, he somehow arrived safely at his grandmother's house, as seen above (eating the expected fried chicken).

And there, he stayed. Per the AP, Shuey — after apologizing to his parents for scaring the you-know-what out of them — asked his mom and dad if he could stay in Atlanta with his grandma. They agreed, which is nice, because that 700-mile trip back north would have been murder on his calves.

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Today’s Bonus fact: While shooting Star Trek, William Shatner (Captain Kirk) had a habit of stealing Leonard Nimoy’s (Spock) bicycle. The story behind it is wonderful so instead of writing it here, I’m going to let Nimoy and Shatner share it — here’s a five-plus minute video of them discussing Nimoy’s bicycle. (Here’s a transcript if you prefer that, but the video is better.)

From the Archives: The Loophole With Two Wheels: The “two wheels” is a bicycle. The rest you’ll have to read for yourself!

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And thanks! — Dan