Michael Kosciesza and Arthur Swidzinski. Photo: Tony Au.

Childhood buddies Michael Kosciesza and Arthur Swidzinski hatched a plan last summer. The two Columbia College Chicago film students would skateboard from Chicago’s Millennium Park to Times Square in New York City. They’d shoot a documentary of the adventure. That’s about where the planning ended.

“We walked out of Millennium Park and started skating down the lakefront,” Swidzinski, 21, says. “When the walkway ended, we stopped into a convenience store and said, ‘Hey, which way to Indiana?’”

The Niles, Illinois natives enlisted a couple of friends—James Lagen and Columbia student Tony Michal—to tail them on bikes throughout the nearly 1,000-mile trek. The bikers did some of the filming and towed the gear. On June 2, the foursome put wheels to ground; 35 days later, they arrived in Times Square. They braved packed highways and navigated mountain ranges. They fueled themselves on fast food and ramen noodles. They slept in motels and at the homes of strangers. “We went up to random people and said, “Hey can we stay in your backyard?” Swidzinski says. “As dangerous as that sounds, most Americans opened their hearts. What we’re hoping to show with this documentary is the true nature of America.”

Traversing the Allegheny Mountains proved the most physically challenging segment of the trek. But the most harrowing moment came on an Indiana highway, when a truck tire exploded, not 100 feet away. “I didn’t know how serious it was,” Swidzinski says. “Apparently a truck tire can take your head off.” His worried mom called often, but Swidzinski remains philosophical. “It’s important not to live inside of a shell. It’s important to go out there and live your life.”

— Heather Lalley