Day two of Jeannette Krupp’s 450-mile “Break the Addiction” bicycle trip from Cincinnati, Ohio, to Union, Mo., was in progress Tuesday with an 85-mile ride expected to conclude for the night in Terra Haute, Ind.

Krupp, founder of the non-profit “Stay Strong Krupp,” is crossing the midwest to raise awareness about substance use disorder and its connection to trauma, share messages of hope and resilience, and discuss solutions. This is the third annual #Bike450. 

Her schedule the remainder of the week includes averaging about 75 miles per day. She stopped Monday night in Indianapolis, Ind.

Today (Wednesday) she is scheduled to ride out of Terre Haute and finish this evening’s portion of the trip in Effingham, Ill. On Thursday her schedule takes her to Greenville, Ill., and from there on Friday into St. Louis. 

On Saturday she is expected to travel from Chesterfield, Mo., to a scheduled finish-line celebration at the Union City Lake Fairgrounds, 530 Clark Avenue. The event  which is co-hosted by Twist of Hope is from 1 to 6 p.m.

She’s making this third journey in honor of two family members who died from drug overdoses, a cousin at age 18, and her brother at 38. Her Facebook post Tuesday noted she was in pain from the first day’s ride but she was using her brother Karl’s memory as her motivation. 

According to a release about the ride, Krupp has developed a passion for bringing awareness of addiction on individual users, families, and children. Through her organization Stay Strong, LLC., Krupp’s goal is to use her talents in fitness, dance and acrobats to bring her “raw truth” message about addiction to students in schools across the local area and across America. She is currently a strength coach at a high school in Denton, Texas, and a former high school volleyball coach at Bourbon, Washington’s St. Francis Borgia, Washington, and East Central College.

Krupp noted that every six minutes someone in the United States dies from a drug-related overdose. Despite continued lawsuits against and settlements with drug companies, overdose deaths are still on the rise, increasing 77 percent between 2015 and 2020. Solving this issue is possible. Some cities are equipping public spaces and even restaurants with Narcan, an antidote to overdose, and teaching civilians how to use it to save lives. 

These efforts, she noted, show promise and could be expanded to other spaces like public transit.   The event Saturday is open to the public.