Bainbridge Island’s Steve Rhoades hopes to inspire kids to get outside. Donations gathered on his 1,200-mile bike trip will go to KiDiMu.

Bainbridge cyclist Steve Rhoades will embark on a 1,200-mile road trip at 10 a.m. June 5 from KiDiMu’s new home at the corner of State Route 305 and Winslow Way.

Rhoades hopes the ride, a benefit for KiDiMu, will also raise awareness for cycling.

“You see all the kids doing this,” he said, imitating computer game manuevers.

“I’m trying to bring the Wow! factor with the surfboard,” he said outside the Treehouse Cafe where his bike-and-board sensation sat parked on the street.

Wearing brightly colored cycling gear emblazoned with the KiDiMu logo, Rhoades will head toward the coast with surfboard in tow, winding his way south along Highway 101 to California, and then circling back on an inland route.

His rig will become home, sweet, home for the 90-day trek. A solar panel on the back will charge his camera batteries, cellphone and laptop. Camping gear tucked below the surfboard, along with a harpoon for fishing, will keep him fairly self-sufficient.

But he’s quick to credit the team that makes the ride possible.

“I couldn’t have done this without Island Fitness and Island Chiropractic and Massage,” he said.

Rhoades, who worked as a bike messenger in Seattle for six years, still struggles from injuries that have led to eight trips to Harborview Medical Center. It was Memorial Day 1996 when he was left for dead on the side of the road after being struck by a motorist. On the advice of health care providers, Rhoades has condensed his original vision of a cross-country trip, like the 3,250-mile benefit ride he did in 2000.

No matter. For Rhoades, life is about the journey.

“I’ve been given a second chance at life and I’m going with it,” he said of his almost 20-year triumph over drugs and alcohol.

Rhoades hopes his example will inspire young people to embrace life as an adventure.

“I see them on their bikes with their headphones on,” he said. “You can’t hear the hummingbirds. You can’t hear the car coming up behind you. It’s dangerous, and not only that, you’re missing the moment.”

He’s enlisted Bainbridge High School students Jesse Rosenthal and Graham Baran Mickle to help document the journey via his Web site, www.stevegoestheextramile.com, which will publish photos, video and a blog about the ride.

Island Fitness Center is selling KiDiMu jerseys, with all of the donations going directly to the museum, Rhoades said. Trip expenses have been covered by sponsors.