Across the U.S. in 200 Days
Travel Blog • Michael Yessis • 07.13.05 | 9:57 AM ET
It’s taking Steve Vaught that long because he’s walking from San Diego to New York City. And because he’s carrying an 85-pound backpack. And because he weighs 400 pounds. It’s part of a plan to lose the weight he gained after a tragic accident. His story is both inspirational and heartbreaking.
“[W]hen I was 25, I killed two people in an auto accident,” Vaught tells Candice Reed as part of a New York Times Magazine “Lives” column. “They got off a bus at a bad intersection, and I didn’t see them. I was charged with vehicular manslaughter and spent 10 days in jail. I’ll never stop being sorry for what happened. I feel so bad for the families. But from that moment on, my life changed forever, too. Over the years, my depression grew, I gained this weight and I haven’t been able to shake it since.”