The first time Dean Bingham rode his bicycle across the U.S. to raise money for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society was in 2001.

He rode, in cycling terms, “unsupported and solo.”

In 2017, he repeated the cross-country trek, taking a different route and raising significantly more money for the organization. After several thousand miles and 40-plus days, he reached East End Beach in Portland, where he ceremoniously dipped his wheel into the Atlantic Ocean.

I’m never going to do that again, he told his wife Kristin.

“Two were enough and the second ride was pretty hard.”

On Friday, though, Bingham, now an impressively fit 79 years old, set out once again, starting just west of Portland, Oregon, and planning to arrive home in Portland, Maine, on July 9, which also happens to be his 80th birthday.

Along the 3,696-mile way, Bingham hopes to raise $80,000 to help fund a cure for multiple sclerosis and with luck, set a Guinness World Record.

ON THE ROAD

Bingham will be staying at hotels en route, which means he needn’t carry a sleeping bag or a tent.

But everything else he’ll need for two months on the road he’ll load onto his bike, a gray, squeaky-clean carbon fiber Trek.

Each long-distance ride has taught Bingham he can live with less. Among the items he’ll carry on this trip are 3 jerseys, 3 pairs of bike shorts, a knife, a spork, a skull cap, Chamois Butt’r (“the original anti-chafe cream”), a rain shell, earplugs, floss, spare tubes, a patch kit, safety pins and duct tape.

Between Oregon and Maine, Bingham will roll fairly steadily eastward through Washington state, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, New York, Vermont and New Hampshire. He’ll cycle on local roads, on bike paths and on interstates, which is legal out West. Trucks blowing by him at 80 mph bother him less than “painful” rumble strips, he said.

Bingham is not too concerned about what he’ll eat to fuel his ride, averaging 60 miles and six hours a day. “I don’t pay that much attention to it,” he said when asked if he favors power foods like spinach and kale. What he really needs are calories: bunches of bananas to snack on, ice cream as a staple, not a treat. Though he prefers diners and family restaurants, McDonald’s will do for lunch if necessary. It’s quick, caloric and everywhere.

Long days on his bike typically end with a shower, a soak in a hot tub when possible, an early dinner and an early bedtime. Then the next morning, he sets out all over again.

RECORD BREAKER?

In the weeks before he embarked, Bingham was examined by his cardiologist and his urologist, and he visited his osteopath.

Once a week, he sees a personal trainer, who has been concentrating on balance and upper body strength; on a bike, lower body strength goes with the territory.

In March, Bingham had hand surgery for “trigger finger.” It’s a quick, outpatient procedure, but given all the time he’ll be gripping a handlebar, he opted to have it done before the trip.

He feels good. The doctors have done their tests.

His wife says he’s strong and healthy. “Nobody believes that I’m 80 anyway,” he said. It’s true: Bingham looks at least a decade younger. His biggest concern is the stiffness that comes from being in one position for many hours a day. Her biggest concern are cars and trucks. An avid cyclist herself, Kristin knows the dangers.

“I try not to think about it too much,” she said.

Off his bike, too, Bingham is no slouch. He and Kristin own Dean’s Sweets, a chocolate shop with two locations in Portland.

Before that, he had a long career in architecture.

Five to six days a week, you’ll find him making artisan chocolates like Maine Sea Salt Caramels, Cherry Bourbon Bon Bons and Bacon Buttercrunch.

He admits he’s occasionally thought about retirement.

“Yeah?” he said when asked about it, his voice going up in pitch as though asking himself the question. “Yeah,” he repeated, this time in a decidedly unenthusiastic tone.

The Guinness record Bingham is trying for would make him the oldest, unsupported solo cyclist to cross the United States. He got the idea after reading an article about someone else who tried for it. Getting the record is a complicated process, involving Guinness World Records, the World Ultra- Cycling Association and a lot of exacting rules.

“Unsupported” means that Bingham is riding unassisted, fixing his own flat tires, finding his own meals, carrying his own belongings. As for the solo part, he is, in fact, riding with a cycling buddy, Yarmouth resident Tom Roeber.

But in order to qualify, Bingham said they won’t ride together, merely in the vicinity of each other.

“I’m not sure whether it’s going to work or not,” he said about his try for a record, “but we’ll see.”

A TOP FUNDRAISER

Over 35 years, Bingham’s fundraising goals for MS have grown more ambitious.

In the early days, he’d aim for $1,000 when he rode the Great Maine Getaway each year. Longer rides, including the 3,000- mile East Coast Greenway, brought in larger amounts: $8,500, nearly $30,000, and now, he hopes, $80,000.

“I would definitely say Dean is one of a kind,” said Shannon Kiniry, assistant director of endurance events at the National MS Society. “We always have great fundraisers for all of our bike events, but Dean takes it to a whole new level.”

Bingham credits Charlie as his inspiration, his late father’s late friend and roommate at a nursing home in Deer Isle. A quadriplegic with MS who used a mouth stick to operate his wheelchair, Charlie made a big impression, enthusiastically embracing life despite its challenges and insisting that Bingham’s dad do the same.

While Bingham is away, Kristin will hold down the business front. If past experience is any guide, they’ll text every day and speak once a week. The last time he rode cross-country, he took photos of flowers and sent them to Kristin every day. She plans to join him for the last leg of the journey.

Bingham likes the pace of riding. Unlike sitting in an automobile, cycling lets him truly relate to the passing landscape.

“He’s very contemplative on his bike,” Kristin said.

“He’s just very at home. He looks around. He’s never bored. He’s super observant.

“If he gets a flat tire, he knows what to do and how to do it quickly. Whatever the technical or mechanical problem is, he’s very confident about those things,” she continued.

“And he likes peace and quiet. He doesn’t crave companionship. He is just very happy on his own.”

Tough days are inevitable, though, days when it’s pouring rain or scorching heat or he can’t find anything to eat or he’s stiff and sore. But as a rider of many years and many miles, Bingham knows how to handle difficulties. People occasionally ask him if he ever just wants to call it quits.

“The first (cross-country) ride I remember specifically driving past the end of an access road to an airport and thinking ‘Okay, I have a credit card. I can ride in there and I’ll be home in four hours,’” he said.

“And then you keep on going because that was your plan in the first place.

But it’s a pretty serious relief to know that there are outs. And as long as you know that, you can say no.”

Peggy Grodinsky — 207-791- 6453 pgrodinsky@pressherald. com