I wrote the "Lives" column in this weekend's New York Times magazine. This is a sad, absurd, and absolutely true story: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/29/mag...
That story was heartbreaking. We had a similar town wanderer in my small, southern hometown, but it was widely known that Crazy Todd was just a little off kilter and he'd get locked up every once in a while when the crazy got to be too much for him and he'd do something stupid.
Did you ever ask her why she cycled?