Roy Wiegand is from California and visited Fountain Hills in late June.

Of course, the town gets all kinds of visitors from out of state, but how many of them bicycle their way here amid record heat in late June from the Los Angeles area?

One could call him partially crazy, and Roy Wiegand likely wouldn’t disagree too much.

Passionate about worthy causes and challenging physical feats, Wiegand, 57, stopped in Fountain Hills for one evening as part of a 12-day, one-man bicycle trip from Burbank, Calif., to Albuquerque, N.M., covering an estimated 1,200 miles.

He was hosted in town by Mike and Brenda Scharnow, who learned about Wiegand’s adventure through Mike’s affiliation with Thrivent.

“This is a personal challenge but also something way more impactful,” Wiegand said.

His goal was to raise at least $10,000 for DigDeep, a human rights non-profit working to ensure all Americans have clean, running water forever.

Wiegand is specifically raising money for the group’s Navajo Water Project, which is a community-managed utility alternative that brings hot and cold running water to homes without access to water or sewer lines across the Navajo Nation.

Up to 40 percent of homes on the reservation have no indoor plumbing or electricity.

Wiegand had just reached his goal of raising $10,000 by the time he rolled into Fountain Hills on Saturday afternoon, June 26, but was nearing $15,000 at the trip’s conclusion.

The $10,000 will fund clean, hot and cold running water and solar power for two Navajo homes.

He departed Fountain Hills early Sunday, June 27, to make his way up the Beeline Highway for an overnight stay in Payson. Then it was on to Holbrook, Gallup, N.M., Navajo, N.M., and ultimately ended in Albuquerque.

“He came across the Mojave Desert, survived Vegas and biked all the way to Fountain Hills via Kingman and Wickenburg,” Mike Scharnow said. “Heck, I get tired riding my motorcycle to Wickenburg. I don’t know how he does it.”

A freelance musician by trade (trumpet) and a school band instructor, about a dozen years ago Wiegand started morphing into an ultra-runner and long-distance cyclist, racking up such feats as marathons and running 100 miles or more within 24 hours.

He once ran 135 miles in 48 hours, starting in Badwater (Death Valley) and ending at Mount Whitney…in July.

“The heat on this trip has been interesting,” Wiegand said matter-of-factly. “My thermometer read 125 one day.

“For some reason, the heat doesn’t bother me that much. I discovered I’m able to go long distances in the heat. I don’t really know why.”

He stays hydrated, of course, and takes periodic breaks.

“We were more than happy to host Roy for the evening and hear stories about his world tours with well-known musicians and see how passionate he is about helping people, especially when it comes to water,” Scharnow said. “He truly is a remarkably generous guy and impressive with his feats of physicality.”

Those who want to support Wiegand’s charitable ride should go to digdeep.funraise.org/fundraiser/roy-wiegand-2021.