Published Sept 18, 2026.
This is a reflection written in 2024 by now eight-time missionary Jack Mannebach in response to, “how has Biking for Babies impacted you?”
I was recently asked, “How has Biking for Babies impacted your life?” As I begin my 6th year, that is something I had thought about throughout the years but never thought I’d know the depth of this question and answer. I’ve always known that Biking for Babies has had such a profound impact on my life. As I’ve started to prepare for another year and invite my friends to join, more and more of them have acknowledged the impact it has had on my life. It still baffles me that biking over 600 miles has resulted in the 5 most memorable and impactful weeks of my life. These weeks have a unique way of building community and receiving God’s grace. Every year you get to the end, and you are so happy that you don’t have to bike anymore, but you never want to leave. The week of the National Ride has had a way of forming a special bond between myself and those I get to do it with. Many of them I am still very close, and I am so thankful for that.
So when I reflect on how Biking for Babies has impacted my life, I notice that it has expanded my capacity to love. Biking for Babies is love in action at a level that I have never fully been able to express before. As a Support Crew missionary, I got to spend every waking minute caring for the needs of others. As a Rider, I got to receive that love from my Support Crew members, while also supporting those I was on the bike with. On the Executive Team, I get to work so that others can experience that same type of love. Biking for Babies has shown me this mostly through learning about the women going through unplanned pregnancies, and the heartbreaking circumstances they find themselves in.
But, most importantly, the primary way Biking for Babies has impacted my life is that through this organization God has shown me how good He is. During the week of the National Ride, you get to experience life. You get the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. As I reflect on all of those highs and lows that I have experienced through my 5 years with Biking for Babies, I can confidently say that in every peak or valley, God has done incredible things for me. What is so beautiful about these moments is that we are called to respond to them with love.
Just as we are called to do in our everyday life. Throughout these weeks God has shown me His goodness, specifically in His will for us, His compassion, and His desire to love us and have us love each other.
“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How inscrutable are his judgments and how unsearchable his ways!”
Who would have thought that a group of young men and women biking over 600 miles would have some bumps in the road? One thing that is constantly said at Biking for Babies is that “When things don’t go as planned, just know that they are part of His plan.” Every year Biking for Babies has taught me an invaluable lesson about myself and God. This mostly has come in the struggles and pain that occur during the week of the National Rides. Every year I have been tested either physically, mentally, or spiritually. It is in the lowest moments on the ride that God’s goodness shines brightest. The passage above is a reflection that sometimes God’s ways make absolutely no sense. In the hardest moments of the National Ride God seems so distant and that is incredibly frustrating. But now looking back on these moments it is so clear that this was when God was closest. This is when the most formation happens, and these moments are essential for growing closer to Him. I want to take you all through what I mean, recapping the lowest of lows and the highest of highs that I’ve had on the National Ride. I hope that in all of these stories, you recognize that I needed those low points to experience the high points.
Year 1 (Rider)
It was 2019, my first year with Biking for Babies, we were getting ready to depart on our 600-mile trek from Green Bay to St. Louis. Someone on my team had asked who was going to manage directions. I, for whatever reason, volunteered. On day one we were 120 miles into our 145-mile day and I missed our turn to head to Madison. We didn’t realize the mistake until it was not worth us turning around. Our 145-mile day turned into a 160-mile day. I remember being frustrated with myself for ever signing up for this. That is still the most I have ever biked in a day, and I’d be fine not doing it again. The next day was supposed to be much shorter, but we didn’t start biking until about 10:00 AM (we usually leave around 5:00 AM). This much shorter day was all rolling hills and all in the heat of the day. It ended up being as grueling as the first. That night the family that hosted us had many kids, and they had also invited their very large extended family. We got off the bikes and were running around playing with the kids. To this day, this stop is my favorite stop. But that night after 2 grueling days, and looking forward to another 4 days of this, I was getting very concerned. The event did not end until 9:00 PM and after our team meeting, it was 10:00 PM. I realized that I still had not had any water or stretched at all that day.
I chugged 2 large waters and stretched for around 45 minutes then tried to go to bed. I ended up not being able to go to bed because of all the water I drank. I remember it was 2:00 AM and I was madder than I’ve ever been. 3 hours later I was back on the bike, riding 100 miles in 100+ degree weather in the middle of nowhere Illinois. That means, there was no shade, anywhere. But the real kicker was day 4. The whole day was going great until about 15 miles left. We had not stopped for lunch yet and I was getting incredibly fatigued. A rider suggested we should skip lunch and get to our host earlier. Everyone said yes, and so I said yes. It also did not help that at this time, my knees swelled up so much that every pedal felt like knives digging under my knees. At this same time, I started chaffing. Usually, the chaffing worsens over time, but not now. It was immediate and awful. That’s still the most painful 2 hours of my life.
Thankfully, I got through days 5 and 6 without any major catastrophes.
Now, I know I just described what should be one of the worst weeks of my life, but it was one of my favorites. What I left out was that I got to ride with 6 other young men who loved to goof off. 90% of the time, when I wasn’t ticked off, I was laughing. This past summer on the National Ride, my route met up with 2 other routes. My route leader from that 1st year was on one of those routes. We spent 2 hours crying-laughing about all of our memories from that year.
On that 2nd night, at 2:00 AM I didn’t mention that, in my heated frustration I realized that this was the whole point of it. It was never supposed to be easy. I was supposed to endure for the love of these women and their babies. By the grace of God, I finished day 4, and it was in finishing this day, that I showed myself that I am far more capable than I thought I was. Gaining this confidence helped me be there for other riders in future years when they were struggling.
Lastly, it was at the Celebration of Life that year that I experienced more joy than I ever had before. Experiencing this joy is what brought me back the next year, and it has inspired me to stay involved in the hopes of being this joy to the whole world.
Year 2 (Rider/Team Leader)
In my second year, I was a team leader. Thankfully, I did not have to endure the physical pain I did the year prior, but this year tested me mentally. My team was filled with incredible people, but out of all the riders I was the only one who had ever ridden on the National Ride.
They were all talented riders and so much fun to be with, but they just didn’t have any experience. I was responsible for doing everything I could to support each rider individually and the group as a whole, while also biking close to 700 miles. Thankfully, I did not experience pain like I had my first year, but the whole week was so mentally and emotionally draining. I remember there was a lake where we were staying and I would go and sit in the lake and stare at nothing for almost a half hour. This week taught me that I needed to be willing to let go of my ambitions, which were, to finish the ride, so that the team as a whole could succeed. This was also the week that I was called the most to serve others while also suffering. This week has helped me persevere there a lot of really challenging times on future National Rides, and in life, with love and courage.
Year 3 (Rider)
In my third year, I was a rider on the Ohio Route. This year I was our route’s most experienced member, and my brother was our team leader. As I look back, I laugh at the fact that the people I am most grateful to bike with are always the people that seem to bring out my brokenness the most. While there weren’t any explosions of anger, I had differing opinions on some decisions that were made. Because of my “experience,” I had a hard time accepting these decisions and figured I was better off hanging out in the back of the line the entire week. In my pride, I put a damper on the week for myself and most likely for other members on my team. As I look back to this week and think about the difference in opinions I had, it is pretty clear to me now that Pete was right in all of his decisions. Most importantly, we made it to St. Louis! This week showed me how much can be learned from failure. I have a great appreciation for this week because it showed me how debilitating pride is. It can be so destructive when we do not trust others. This week more than any other week had shown me the unifying power of trust and humility. For us to work as a team, I need to trust you and be humble enough to know that I am frequently wrong. I have found this lesson to be incredibly important in my role on the Executive Team. It is always challenging to care about something so much; to think you know the best way to achieve a goal and have others propose other solutions. I do not want the Spirituality of Biking for Babies to be my own ignorance. I trust my team members and the experiences God has given them.
Year 4 (Support Crew)
My fourth year was my first year as a Support Crew Member. It was this year that I experienced my highest of highs and my lowest of lows. In previous years I was tested, physically, mentally, OR spiritually. This year tested me physically, mentally, AND spiritually. This was a few months after the overturn of Roe v. Wade. Our Executive Team took every measure they could to keep us safe on the road that year, but I don’t think anyone ever stopped to consider the spiritual battle that would occur. On the night of Day 1, this spiritual battle hit us the hardest. This resulted in a sleepless night for most of our route, many tears shed and some of us could not eat the next day. At 6:00 AM the following morning the riders still got on their bikes and rode. Since some of them could not eat, we had to pull them off a few hours into the day, before they collapsed. The night of day 2 we spent trying to recoup and gather ourselves for the rest of the week. As we were doing this, we received an email that someone at our event the night before had just tested positive for COVID. We weren’t able to test for another 2 days, so the riders rode on days 3 and 4. After we arrived at our destination on day 4 we all took tests.
We tested positive.
We were now faced with the choice to either, (1) go home, or (2) find somewhere we could quarantine together and finish the week. 2 hours later we had our support vehicle packed and were set to drive through the night from Tennessee to Wisconsin. Day 5 was all thunder and lightning in Wisconsin, so we spent the day contacting donors and providing media content for the Biking for Babies community. On Day 6, the riders set out for a 100-mile bike ride. Thankfully we were able to celebrate together, but it was heartbreaking we could not attend the Celebration of Life in St. Louis.
This year was also the first year that I recognized the graces we receive from doing the ride, while on the ride. On Day 3 we were stopped at a gas station because of lighting, and this man came up to one of our Support Crew members. He asked what Biking for Babies is and what we were doing there. After she told him about the mission, he broke down and wept. He said that he never came to this gas station, that he would always go to the one a mile up the road, and that last week his girlfriend aborted their child. We were able to give him resources that he could go to for healing, and we prayed for him. If you asked me how I would describe this year, I would say that it was beautiful. I have never seen the mission of Biking for Babies lived out more fully than I had in those riders that week. It did not matter what unplanned events came that way; they got on their bikes and continued to ride. I consider myself blessed that I was there that week to witness the strength, courage, and love of those riders.
“Come to Me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
2023 was my first year as the Director of Spirituality with Biking for Babies, and I thought it would also be a great year to get back on the bike. We believe that you cannot complete the National Ride without the grace of God. In the fall of 2022, I was reflecting on this and began to think of all of the things I relied on to get me through the National Ride more than God, knee sleeves, Advil, padded shorts, and anti-chaffing cream. I thought about not using any of them and just giving myself up to the will of God. Knowing this would end up being the most challenging National Ride yet, I decided to do it. With this, I had also planned to train significantly harder than I had before to be better prepared. As the spring of 2023 came around, life began to knock me down. A few weeks before the National Ride I received an incredibly negative performance review at work, and my social life was, to put lightly, complicated. This all culminated in me only being able to get in about a third of the training that I had planned.
Around this time, a bump formed on the back of my head. After searching on WebMD, I determined it was either brain cancer or caused by stress and a lack of sleep. Given that I was incredibly stressed and was not sleeping much, I figured it was the latter. All this culminated in me going into the National Ride physically and emotionally exhausted. 2023 was one of the most challenging years of my life but this was the year that I experienced God’s compassion on the ride and the year that He gave me rest. Going into the week, I was already physically and emotionally exhausted. The hardships that I was experiencing grew a desire to turn to the Lord more than ever. Only by the grace of God does biking 600 miles become the most peaceful week of someone’s life. That week was the first time in so long that I was able to be present. By the end of Day 2, that bump on the back of my head was gone, and the entire week I felt physically, emotionally, and spiritually strong. Towards the end of one of our longer days, the temperature had gotten over 100 degrees, and the sun was beating down on us. I figured it was the perfect time to pray for my niece. What has always been the most grueling part of the week, when you have over 20 miles left in 100-degree weather was graced with so much peace. How awesome it is that God takes our suffering and gives us grace. He also, within our suffering, allows us to ask that He give the people we love grace too! The most peaceful moment came on the morning of day 5. By this point, I realized what the Lord was doing for me. But this morning was particularly special. We had been biking for about an hour already and were going through the never-ending cornfields of Illinois, and the sun started to rise. It was the most spectacular sunrise I have ever seen. I don’t remember seeing the most radiant colors, but it felt like God stopped the whole world just so I could see that sunrise. As it lit up the sky, I drifted to the end of the group to take it all in. All of the highs and lows from the first four years were resurfacing. I was thinking of how the lows formed me and helped me grow closer to God, and I laughed at the highs and gave thanks to God for the lows. I believe this was God telling me that everything was going to work out. In that moment I finally realized that God was using everything I had been through over the last 6 months to draw me closer to him. To clear out some of the nastiness in my own heart so that He could fill that space.
Feeding the 5,000
I’ve been reflecting a lot recently on the feeding of the 5,000 and the beauty that lies in the event. A young child brings Christ all that he had in the hopes of helping and Christ took all that the young child had and did something unfathomable. I find that this story relates to Biking for Babies. The mission at Biking for Babies is to proclaim the dignity of every human life by uniting cycling with the formation of young adults into missionary disciples of Jesus Christ. If you think about what Biking for Babies is trying to do, that is, bike 600 miles to renew the culture of life, it seems like we are not doing close to enough. As the Apostle Andrew says in John’s Gospel, “But what are they for so many?” God’s desire for us to join Him in the world’s salvation is so beautiful. When faced with seemingly impossible challenges, God just asks us to give whatever we have, and He has the power to succeed. It’s incredibly humbling to learn just how powerless we are, and how incredible the grace of God is.
I recently heard in a homily, “God does not call the equipped, He equips the called.” How true this is for me in my role, as the Director of Spirituality. Even after all of this I still tend to hurt those that I’m entrusted to love and fail to trust Him. Yet, in all of my brokenness and sin, I am blessed enough to stand here and proclaim that God is good! Throughout my time as Director of Spirituality, God has continuously blessed me in so many ways. I get to spend most of my time reflecting on how our missionaries are called to love each other when they least want to. This in turn has helped me to respond to suffering with love.
One thing that is so amazing about this passage and faith, in general, is that when we give and are fed, our friends and family will also be fed. When I was first discerning Biking for Babies, I heard someone say that their favorite thing about Biking for Babies, was that it is a mission trip you bring to your community. I had always figured that this was through inviting others to join the mission either as a donor or as a missionary. A few months ago, I was catching up with one of my best friends who has been going through a very challenging time. He turned to me, thanked me, and said, “I’ve started praying because of you.” He then began to describe the peace it was bringing him. I never would have that this mission would have that type of impact on my family and friends, and that alone makes it all worth it.
In the show, The Chosen, after Christ feeds the 5,000, He says, “I let my people go hungry, and then I feed them.” Looking back on my time with Biking for Babies I needed to suffer physically, mentally, and spiritually to learn to trust in God. I needed to go through what I went through last year to be comforted on the ride this year. Ultimately, I needed to go through all of the peaks and valleys of the last 5 years to be in awe of that sunrise. I was recently talking to a missionary and asking him about his experience on the National Ride and he shared that what amazed him the most was that the week was so hectic, and nothing should have worked out, and somehow it all did.
I am at a point in my life where I am grasping onto my desires, and nothing seems to be going as planned. As I reflect on my time with Biking for Babies and the ways God has revealed Himself to me, it gives me so much hope. God has shown me that in challenges, whether they are physical, mental, or spiritual, there is a glorious sunrise coming. It’s easy to say this, but when God has proven this to me, it brings true hope. Biking for Babies has helped me see the goodness of God. He died the way He did because now, there is no amount of suffering we can endure that He has not overcome. It does not matter what we go through; He has conquered it. Biking for Babies has taught me that when I am in pain, or afraid, to offer up that pain and suffering to Him, and He will give me peace.
This is why the mission of Biking for Babies is so much more than just a bike ride or a fundraising event. It is our chance to live out our beliefs in a profound way, to give God what we have amid all the fears, anxieties, and life. The National Ride allows you to experience love in a way you never have before. Biking for Babies has allowed me to experience hardships outside of my everyday life. In every opportunity, whether I failed or succeeded, God has always shown me how to respond with love.
Jack has now been a Biking for Babies missionary for 8 years. His service on the leadership team focused on putting to words the spiritual truths encountered on the National Ride, so applicable to everyday life. Jack’s awareness of the Lord’s movement during his time with Biking for Babies has led him to seminary, where he hopes to continue his openness to a deeper relationship with Christ and how he can serve the Church. Jack points to Biking for Babies as one of the most impactful entities in his vocational discernment.
Jack, we are so grateful for all of the work you have done with Biking for Babies over the years and are praying for you as you step into this next chapter of your life!
This mission provides young adults like Jack opportunities to open themselves up to the Holy Spirit. In a world clouded by noise and distractions, this openness and docility is what will bring God’s love to all corners of the earth, starting with today’s interactions.
