Day 30 Omaha to Lincoln, NE

After an amazing breakfast of Eggs Benedict at Rita and Len Higgins' house (thank you again), we gathered again as a team to finally get back on our bikes.  I was expecting to be a lot more sore, our pace in the morning was quite leisurely and I really enjoyed the bike trail that we took out of Omaha for the first 10-15 miles or so.

I know there were several others, but Liz from the host church actually rode out with us for the first leg of the day.  Impressive considering that it was only her third time taking out her new bike!  We really appreciate having locals ride out with us (especially since they actually know where they are going... compared to us, call us team get lost).

Ok so while some alumni warned us that Iowa would be hilly, I'm pretty certain that they told us that Nebraska would be flat... but guess, what, hills, hills, hills.  I guess it's preparation for the Rockies which are not all that far away...

Thanks to the University Lutheran Center for hosting us tonight.  A lot of people hit up sticker stores and local businesses, because we know that until we get to Denver probably, Lincoln will be the biggest city we will be in... kind of worried that bike shops will be scarce until then...

Day 29 to Omaha and Nebraska

We shuttled all of our stuff / bikes via U-Haul.  Although I really want to get back on the bike, considering that we just went on a 17 hour bus ride and slept for 3-4 hours, it's probably wise to shuttle for now.  Dan and I drove a van to Omaha, and I have to say that whoever said Iowa is flat is a big troll because it's hills, hills, and hills.  And wind... a lot of wind.  Even driving the vans, I could feel the wind.

Before we got to the hosts, we stopped at an Olive Garden for lunch, which they were kind enough to donate.  In addition to giving us as much food as we could possibly eat (and then some more), they made us a welcome 4K riders poster and told us to get in touch with them if we wanted to go to other Olive Gardens on our route!  I know I keep saying I'm amazed by how kind strangers are to us, but I have to say it again.   Couldn't do this trip without them.

Tonight we have homestays at the St. Margaret Mary Church.  Dan, Taylor and I are staying with Rita and Len Higgins in their lovely home.  They were kind enough to take us to the Iowa / Nebraska border (a pedestrian) bridge, since unfortunately we didn't get to take pictures at the Nebraska state sign (we were on a busy interstate).  Dinner was at the Surf Side, a great restaurant right on the Missouri River.  A bunch of us ate fried catfish, and I don't want to gloat too much, but let's just say I had to show my teammates how to actually eat a whole fried fish, small bones and all (yes I eat the smaller bones and they are tasty and crunch... mmm... calcium).

Discussing all of these amazing places we're seeing reminds me that I should really post pictures... which I will do at some point... some day...

Day 28 Back West

Although we were initially scheduled to leave Maryland today at 7AM, we ended up having a 4K parent breakfast at Brian's house.  So we hit the road around 9, knowing that we would have a long journey ahead of us.  We switched out drivers in Ohio somewhere and arrived back in Marengo, IA very late, around 3AM.  I think the entire team is anxious to get back on the bikes and continue the journey.

I want to say thank you to our hosts at the First Nazarene Church in Marengo.  Not only did they get to the church so early to feed us a great breakfast, they were gracious enough to house our bikes in their basement for several days, with little previous notice.  We couldn't have made the trip back to the East and Jamie's Service without them, and for that we can't thank them enough.

Day 27 Maryland for Jamie's Celebration of Life Service

Today was a day that could have been only sad and upsetting, but I'm glad to say that our team didn't let it be that way.  We spend the first half of the day relaxing at Brian Satola's house, having fun, petting his dog, etc.  After nearly non-stop biking for 25+ days, it was good to have some rest time to recover and let the leg soreness subside.  In the late afternoon we went to Robert's Family's Celebration of Life for Jamie.  I won't go into every single detail, but I'm really thankful to the Roberts family for inviting us.  Of course in a sense it was difficult, to be reminded of the grief and loss, but it was also great to see the Jamie that we didn't really get to know... Jamie the daughter, the sister, the teammate, the co-worker, the student, etc.

A silly highlight of the post-ceremony reception.  We had not really eaten much immediately prior to th6-e service, meaning the entire team was very hungry... and I mean 4K cyclist hungry (ignoring the fact that we hadn't ridden in 2 days anyway).  So let's just say that there may or may not have been teams of 4K riders actually darting through the crowd, looking for foods (some of Jamie's favorites, pigs in blankets, fried mac and cheese, chicken skewers, etc.) as they were being served off of platters.  At some point we figured out where the kitchen was and just stood at there, swarming the servers as they came out.  Finally I think the servers gave up and realized what would happen anyway, and just constantly came over to where we were.  A bit silly, but we were filled and I'm sure Jamie would have been proud of us for so shamelessly stuffing our faces.

Of course when we returned to Brian's house, we were greeted by even more food, because pizza had been ordered for us.  And of course, despite having just stuffed our faces, we did it again.  When you bike that much, you find that your metabolism is sky high and you get hungry very easily, even after large meals... or at least that is what we keep telling ourselves.  Anyway, thanks again to Brian Satola for hosting us.  We'll certainly miss the lovely (and comfortable) house as we get back on the charter bus tomorrow for a 16-18 hour day ride...

Day 12-26 Some Difficult Times

So I actually haven't blogged in quite awhile.  As most will have heard by now, we lost a rider, Jamie Roberts, due to an accident on day 13 near Lexington, KY.  There's a lot which needs to be said, even if it will be difficult.  I know that in tragedies like this it's common to go on and on about how amazing the person was, but in this case it really was true.  It was only a few days prior to the accident that I joked to a teammate that Jamie "won 4K" (whatever that could possibly mean) because she embodied the spirit of what 4K was supposed to be so well.  She was a strong rider, but never impatient with slower riders.  She might be hungry herself, but she spent time cutting up fruit for the team.  She might be tired, but she stayed up folding the team's laundry without anyone even asking her.

The truth of the matter is that I only knew Jamie for barely two weeks.  But as each member of 4K Portland 2014 will tell you, I feel like I've known her for far longer and I'm incredibly grateful to have been able to spend the last two weeks with her

It's going to take far too long to write about what happened each and every day, so I'd like to just thank all of the hosts that we have had during days 12 - 26.  The American Cancer Society Hope Lodges of both Cincinnati (day 12) and Lexington, KY (day 13 and 14) were very kind to us.  We actually ended up not sleeping in the Hope Lodge in Lexington, but instead stored our bikes there.  We're sorry that we ended up not staying there, but it was immensely helpful to have a place to store our bikes.  Day 15 we were hosted by Chris Ewing near Louisville, KY, the dad of a Team Seattle 2014 member.  Aside the wonderful food and home, we had the delight of having a mail drop.  It was really nice to receive packages and letters from family and friends back home.  Day 16 we stayed in the Sherwood Oaks Christian Church in Bloomington, IN.  I've actually been to Bloomington several times before, so it was really nice to see a (at least somewhat) familiar place.  Day 17 we were hosted by the First Baptist Church in Vincennes, IN.  The church was incredibly kind to us.  Aside from providing great food, several members, one of whom owns a bike shop, donated a lot of their time and labor to give us some tune ups on our bikes, make sure everything was working properly, etc.  Day 18 we were hosted in the Effingham Rec Center in Effingham, IL (finally back in Illinois!)  Day 19 we were hosted in the University of Illinois Champaign Urbana Campus through the McKinley Presbyterian Church (in Champaign, IL).  Despite having lived in Chicago for the last five years or so, I've never had a chance to visit Champaign and it was great to see the college town that I've heard so much about.   Day 20 we were hosted by the Adventure Christian Church in Bradley, IL.  Special thanks to the Bradley YMCA for staying open a little bit past their closing time so that the entire team could shower (crucial).  Day 21 and 22 we were hosted by the University of Illinois Chicago - it was amazing to be back in Chicago, even if for a day and a half or so.  Day 23 we were hosted by the local fire department in Mendota, IL.  Thanks to the firemen who paid for our dinner at the local Mexican Restaurant.  Day 24 we were hosted by the YMCA Camp Abe Lincoln in Blue Grass, IA (near Davenport, IA).  Thanks to the camp for not only keeping their kitchen open late so we could have dinner (we arrived very late that day), but also singing a very welcoming happy birthday to one of our team members Helen, who had her birthday.  Day 25 we were hosted by the Church of the Nazarene in Marengo, IA, who were so kind to wait outside and greet us as we came into the town.  Special thanks to the church member (I'm afraid I didn't catch his name!) who met us at 3:30AM because had to leave so, so early...  Day 26 we are actually being hosted by the Ulman Cancer Fund COO Brian Satola at his house.  We are back in Clarkesville, MD to attend a Celebration of Life Service for Jamie.

I know it isn't ideal to thank all of the hosts in this way and I wish I could thank each host in a more personal manner, but I ask for understanding due to the recent events.  There is no way this trip would be possible without all of your support.

Day 11: 79.5 miles, Columbus, OH to Dayton, OH

One of our longest rides so far, but throughly a great day.  There was some intermittent rain, but that didn't stop us from having a good time.  Our riding group was myself, Jamie, Patricia, and Emily Lake.  I hope she doesn't mind me writing about her on the blog, but Emily is one of the quieter people on the Portland Team.  All of us are really interested in getting to know her better, and I'm no exception.  So it was a great chance for Jamie, Patricia, and myself to ask Emily about pretty much everything we could come up with... and the questions basically went on the entire day with only a few pauses here and there, from around 7:30AM to 5:30PM or so.  At some point we were so into the conversation that we accidentally missed a chalk mark (i.e. directions) and went five miles past where we were suppose to turn and had to reroute... oops.  Thanks you to Emily for being so patient with us and answering all of our questions... even if some of them were probably a bit personal...

We also had a guest rider for the day, Ryan Pierce.  He's the son of the Pierce Family that helped 4K Portland tremendously a few days ago by taking in our riders when they were shivering from the freezing rain.  Although we've only spent a short amount of time with him, he's fitting in already and we're really glad to have him.

Thanks to our hosts tonight at the Oakwood High School.  As all the alumni will attest to, a shower after a long day of riding is one of the best gifts you can get.  And thanks to the Oakwood Rotary Club, who gave us the connection to the high school.  They also hosted us for an amazing dinner at one of their member's house (I believe his name was Max).  I always start eating at these dinners thinking that I'll just eat a normal amount, but the food is so good that I end up eating a ton.

Day 10: 0 miles, rest day in Columbus, OH

We had our first service project today at the Ronald McDonald House here in Columbus.  I've never been to a Ronald McDonald House before, so I honestly had no idea what to expect, or frankly what such houses do at all.

Day 9: Mansfield, OH to Columbus 68 miles - meeting a new biker on the road

Today our team made a new friend on the road.  We had stopped to take pictures awkward family pictures of our team (I will post pictures soon... I promise.. kind of), and a cyclist stopped and asked us where we were going, who we were, etc.  Turned out our new friend, Siobhan, was herself on a three hour training ride herself.  She kindly showed us to some bike paths that allowed us to get off the busy streets and ride under the shades of the trees.  As someone accustomed to riding on the Chicago Lakefront Trail (i.e. no cars), it was really amazing to not have to worry about yelling "car back" time after time.  Thanks to Siobhan for showing us the way (especially as it got confusing the closer we got towards Columbus).  And I just noticed that Siobhan also donated to my fundraising efforts, so even more thanks!  It was really nice to make a new friend on the road.

And thanks to our hosts for the next two days, the Capital City Church, for providing shelter and showers for the next two days (day 10 is a rest day).  I'm learning how to play cornhole, a game that people can't believe I've never played before, seeing as I lived in the South for quite a long time.

It's crazy to think that we're in Columbus already... it really feels like we're in the Midwest!

Day 8 North Canton, OH to Mansfield, OH

Today was quite the hectic and emotional day.  I actually didn't ride my bike today and instead drove the lunch van.  For those of you who don't know how it works, there are two support vans that are attached to each 4K team.  The water van is responsible for marking the routes for the bikers as well as providing regular water and snack stops.  The lunch van, which is the one I drove, sets up lunch for the bikers (donated from local businesses as well as hosts), and carries all of the luggage to the next host.  Brady (http://4kforcancer.org/profiles/brady-stroh/) and I started the morning as expected, going from local business to local business, asking for donations.  But things got a like crazier when the weather turned for the worst and the ride was called off for the day due to thunder / lightening, as well as the extreme cold that set on from the rain.  Brady and I drove all the way to our hosts for the night and dropped off everyone's luggage as humanly fast as possible, to make room for the riders and their bikes.  We picked up about five riders and their bikes at a local gas station / Domino's Pizza combo (who would have thought? But thanks to Domino's for donating pizza to our riders who were waiting).  Brady and I were relieved they were okay, albeit quite cold from being wet.  We cranked up the heat in the van (an odd thing to have to do in mid June) and they warmed up quite nicely.

The first of the two most memorable moments of the day came soon after, however.  Brady and I kept on hearing about how the rest of the riders were holing up in a "garage on Arnold Street".  We really had no clue what that meant, and frankly I was kind of afraid that the riders were in some sketchy abandoned warehouse or something, shivering and starving.  But when we arrived at the address we were given, we found instead that the kind Pierce Family had taken in all of our riders, offered them warm clothing, buckets of warm water to heat them, and just shown more kindness than could ever be expected.  The only thing our riders had asked was to wait out the storm under the porch, but instead the Pierce Family took in a bunch of wet, cold and probably smelly (sorry guys... but you know it's true) strangers into their home.  I'm not certain on all of the details of what happened, but what's important is that the Pierce Family really saved the day and we can't thank them enough for it.  The kindness of strangers towards other strangers continues to amaze us all...

The second memorable moment came at our hosts, the Berean Baptist Family Church in Mansfield, OH.  After amazing meal (featuring equally delicious grilled chicken and veggie burgers... not sure where the chicken went but kind of craving some right now it was oh so good), Pastor David and his wife Sharon told us the story of their youngest son Jonathan and his fight against cancer.  Having had a son who was always fit and lively and loved the outdoors, Davie and Sharon were shocked when Jonathan came home from college for Christmas, looking gaunt and emaciated.  After several doctor's visits, it was determined that Jonathan had stage 4 cancer of unknown primary origin.  Although the first stage of chemotherapy was successful and the cancer went into remission, it eventually returned.  Jonathan fought cancer for about 15 months before he passed away in 2011 at the age of 23.  Through it all Jonathan didn't want to let cancer take over his life, wanting to enjoy as much time with his friends as he could, living life to the fullest int he time he had left.  To say the least it is an amazing story that touched us all.  I want to thank Pastor David and his wife Sharon for sharing it with us, as well as the entire Berean Church for being amazing hosts.

Day 7 North Canton, OH

A shorter ride today, which gave time to slow down and reflect on everything that has happened so far on this amazing trip.

I think the highlight of the day was a very friendly and excited dog that followed us to our first water stop of the day.  We named him Portland appropriately enough.  Unlike most of the dogs we have biked past on this trip (who usually bark loudly at us), Portland couldn't be happier to see all of us and was loving the attention.  Incredibly enough, he followed us for a couple of miles, and I have to say it was very sad to have to speed up to leave him behind (we didn't want him getting hurt).  Seeing him try to keep up with us but inevitably fall behind was almost heartbreaking.

Many thanks to our hosts tonight, Grace United Methodist Church.  I know I keep repeating myself when I write this, but I'm still amazed by the fact that so many people are willing to open up their communities to a bunch of smelly kids who are biking across the country.  We couldn't do it without you all.

Day 6: OH-io

Today we said goodbye to Pennsylvania and hello to Ohio. It's hard to believe that we've crossed an entire state already. Of course we took pictures at the state line, and I was reminded of when we took pictures at the Maryland-Pennsylvania state line on day one. It's only been six days or so since, but so much has already changed. On day one, we were led by the alumni, not really knowing what to do ourselves at all and depending on them for everything. On day one, I couldn't imagine how we would be able to pull off 4K by ourselves without alumni. Now on day six, that seems like a lifetime ago and the days are flying by incredibly fast.

And finally, thank you to Westminster Presbyterian Church, our hosts for the night.  They provided an amazing meal that had so many choices it was difficult to choose.  And so many of the church members were there to talk to us and encourage us during dinner, which I really appreciated.  Something interesting I noticed at this host, who have been hosting 4K riders since at least 2007.  I noticed that they left the our breakfast marked as "for Hopkins Riders", a throwback to times prior to 4K being associated with the Ulman Cancer Fund.

Day 5: Resting in the Steel City

Finally, our first rest day. It was good to have a day off from biking, but I'm scared that my muscles will have stiffened up a lot from just one day of resting. But can't think too much about that right now. We spent the day exploring Pittsburgh, which was much more lovely than I anticipated. For some reason, I just had the image of Pittsburgh being a dusty post-steel industry city.  But walking around, that was definitely not the case. We went to Primanti Brothers, which is known for putting french fries on their sandwiches. Time for a confession. Everyone I ate the sandwiches with LOVED them, while I thought they were good, but not all that great. Hope I'm not insulting too many people from Pittsburgh... We went to a park called The Point, which made me a bit nostalgic, because where I used to live in Chicago, my friends and I would go out to place out by Lake Michigan also called the Point.  Pittsburgh's Point isn't quite as personally meaningful to me as Chicago's Point, but it was beautiful in its own way for sure.

Day 4: Ligonier, PA to Springdale, PA (near Pittsburgh)

Today was a shorter day (less than 50 miles), which was great after the rough few days before.  My legs are feeling sore (no chaffing yet though thankfully), so it will be good to get a day of rest tomorrow.  Thanks to our host for the next two days, Springdale United Presbyterian Church, for a great place to stay, complete with a piano! Pretty tired, so that's it for now...

Day 3: Bedford, PA to Ligonier, PA

Hills, hills, and mountains

I think today's climbing was the hardest so far.  We had two mountains to climb over, and my legs are starting to feel it.  It's somewhat unfortunate that I was only able to train in the flatland that was Chicago...

Having said that, it was a good day and now that I'm finally realizing how to climb hills and mountains, I'm *starting* to enjoy it.  It's still very tough and I'm usually drenched in sweat and out of breath by the time I get to the top.  But the descent is usually amazing and makes it worth the climb.  After the second mountain there was a descent of about four miles... bombing down that hill at 40+ mph was quite the experience.  I can't wait until we get to some of the even bigger descents in the Rocky Mountains.  It will be somewhat difficult going back to biking on flat surfaces after...

So today was not as long of a day as yesterday, but we found out that about six years ago, there was a bike race between Bedford and Ligonier (our route today), plus some few miles, that was completed by the winning team in less than two and a half hours... trying to visualize how massive your quads must be in order to climb up the mountains that fast...

Thanks to our hosts tonight, the YMCA in Ligonier.  As always, having a place to stay and shower and dinner provided is incredible, especially after a long day of biking.  It doesn't hurt that we continue to get tons of snacks either (which we devour during the water breaks of course...)!

I protest the fact that apparently Laurel Hill isn't even called a mountain... because it most definitely felt like one

Today was our second day without alumni, and despite our fears that everything would fall apart without them, that hasn't been the case.  They obviously did a great job preparing us for the roads ahead :)

Group ice cream time in Ligonier, PA after a really hard day 

Pre trip, Day 1 and Day 2

Pre Trip

Hello everyone!

This is where I will be posting my updates throughout this trip across America!  I will do my best to update the blog as often as possible, although how often that will actually be remains to be seen.

At the moment I'm finishing last minute preparations to fly out to Baltimore tonight.  Tomorrow is training and safety day, and on Sunday we take off around 7AM!

Hey everyone!

So I realized quickly that I won't have wifi every night.  But I want to try to provide updates of my ride that are as daily as possible, so here is what I am doing.  Each night I have wifi I'll post an entry, but on nights that I don't have wifi, I'll write an entry in my diary.  Then when I do have internet access, I'll post entries from previous days... make sense?  Enjoy it because this will be the one and only time in my life when I make my diary entries public...

Day 1 June 1:

I'm pretty tired and it's late (almost everyone has gone to sleep already), so I'll keep it brief.  Today was our first day of riding.  Thankfully it wasn't too bad, except for a few big hills, which previewed what the next couple of days will be like.  I'm not really so sore, but who knows how long that will last.  I did have my first (kind of) fall of the trip, although it was very minor.  My bike was fine and the only part of me that was bruised was perhaps my ego.

The thing that stuck out the most about today was the difference it made to have the 4K alumni ride with us to our first host.  In addition to driving our two vans (which provide lunch, water, snacks, etc.), some of them rode with us.  Today I rode with Porter and Gavin, who made everything so much easier for us by riding in the front, figuring out directions, giving tips, etc.  I was really grateful to have them there and I know it will be interesting when we don't have them any more!

Our very first water stop as a team...

Our first host on the trip was the Otterbein Church in Waynesboro, PA.  They were truly gracious and provided hot showers, a delicious dinner, and tons of snacks and drinks for tomorrow's ride.  We were all extremely hungry by the time we got into Waynesboro, so let's just say there was a lot of fried chicken and mac n cheese eaten, and whatever was leftover will be consumed very quickly tomorrow.  Thanks so much to our kind hosts... we could never do this trip without you!

That's it for day 1!

First lunch... yes that is a mac and cheese sandwich WITH mayo and turkey

Top of mountain... you have no idea how out of breath I am in this picture

Our first state sign

Day 2:

The riding has definitely intensified.  The more difficult parts of day 1 became the medium difficult parts of day 2.  A lot of hills - which are often deceptive because they look gentle, but can go on for a very long time.  We rode over the biggest mountain so far.  Thankfully we were able to take a quick break at the half way point, because I honestly don't think I would have made it otherwise.  As someone who trained in the flat world of Chicago, this notion of gravity being against me when I'm biking is a bit of a harsh reality.  Thankfully I'm gradually learning how to ride on hills / mountains... to pace yourself, keep breathing... and just kind of accept that no matter what tricks or tips you might have, it will be painful.

In an effort to avoid even more mountain climbing, we rode through two ABANDONED, yes abandoned, tunnels.  When we started riding through them, my group's lights all of a sudden didn't work and we found ourselves riding in near complete darkness for about a minute.  Thankfully we managed to get some light and made it through safely... grateful that we could go through the mountains rather than over them directly.

Comforting words for cyclists

Entrance to the lovely dark, cold, debris filled tunnel

Ok so maybe this picture isn't all that exciting to you, but for us it was amazing to finally see the light at the end of the tunnel (about 1.5 miles long I believe)

Today was a harder day than yesterday for sure... in addition to spooky tunnels and high mountains / hills, we also ended up having to ride on some gravel instead of paved roads... definitely not ideal with our bikes but we made it safely!

Lovely, lovely gravel... wet gravel

I'll end there for tonight, but I want to also say thank you to our hosts for tonight, the Bedford Presbyterian Church (which should also tell you that we are in Bedford, PA).  They were so kind and patient with us, especially as our ride took much longer and we arrived later than ancipated.  They provided an amazing hot dinner.. which is better than just about anything, after a hard day.  They even shuttled us over to the nearby middle school to shower in the locker rooms.. a huge help getting all the gunk and grime off of us.  So thank you to Bedford Presbyterian Church for all your kindness!

That's it for day 2...

Day 2 riding group + some other friends...