Day 70... and beyond

So it's taken me quite some time to write this last post.  There are a lot of excuses to give (wanted to spend time in Portland instead of on a computer, busy once I got back to Chicago, etc.), but the reality is that I haven't written this last post because I'm incredibly upset by the fact that the trip is ending.  It's a feeling that everyone can understand, but only a few can really experience.  4K alums know exactly what I'm talking about... the incredibly sense of nostalgia that sets in the moment you finish that last mile and get off your bike.  On the one hand, I feel a great sense of accomplishment and I'm glad we finished.  But on the other hand, it's insane to think that I'll be going back to normal life, where I don't bike 70-80 miles a day on average, where I don't wake up surrounded by 25 teammates, where it's not socially (or legally) acceptable to pee outside whenever you need, etc.

Now that I've had a few weeks to think about it, however, I've made a conscious decision to never let 4K end.  It's a common thing to try to do of course, even more common to say to each other (4K never ends... 4K forever or if you're one of my teammates 4K 5ever... what ever that means, etc.), but I think really difficult to actually do.  The reality is that 4K is an incredibly unusual experience that is at odds with "normal life."  Like I already said, normal people don't bike 70-80 miles a day, don't eat 999999999 calories before lunch, sleep on a church floor after church floor and certainly don't pee outside multiple times a day.  Bluntly put, there are a lot of parts of 4K that you just can't do outside of 4K.  You have to pay bills, you have to make money, buy and cook food (what? you mean you don't get all of your lunch donated??), worry about cutting the grass, think about the future beyond the next 3 days (which can feel like a year on the 4K but in a good way) and so much more.

This post is kind of strange, because the rest of these posts have been a chronicling of the past 70 days... the people we've met, the crazy things we've seen and beautiful places we've been to and so forth.  But now I want to write about what will happen instead of what has happened.

I've also realized that to try to say everything I want to say about this subject / plan is going to take forever (this post is long already) so for tonight, I'll just give a preview of what I want to say, and then actually talk about Day 70 (oh yeah I said I would do that).  For me, at least in this moment, continuing the 4K forever will be broken down three parts... 1. biking forever and in a grander sense never having a dull moment, 2. my teammates, and 3. last but certainly not least remembering Jamie and what kind of impact she had on our lives in just a few weeks.  So those are the posts that will be upcoming in the next few days so... including some amazing post 4K bike rides stories (and pics!).

But for tonight, I'll focus on the last day of the trip, day 70 and the few days I had to spend in Portland finally.

Day 70... is it really?

These two pictures sum it up I suppose... is it over already?  What happened to the 70 days?

 If I recall correctly, the morning started with prank after prank.  Someone zip tied Kelsey's sleeping bag to my sleeping bag.  This was particularly unfortunate as both of us had gone to bed past 3AM working on a slide show for the team (and apparently our reward is being pranked... THANKS GUYS).  But we weren't the only victims, as it turned out that pretty much everyone on the team had some belonging ziptied... and I admit now that I participated in continuing these silly antics.

Anyway, eventually after a great breakfast at the church, we left for our destination.  I rode with Joanna (hand cycle!), Chris, Victor, and Jamie's dad, Mr. Bob Roberts.  The last day of any 4K route is supposed to be ridiculously easy, just to ensure that nothing goes wrong at all.  Of course, in the classic 4K style, it turned out to be quite a difficult day.  Turns out riding a hand cycle is REALLY REALLY hard... basically you're trying to generate the same amount of power with your arms as you would with your legs... I don't know how Joanna did it, but she managed to crank it out and finish.  We ended up having some series hills and I don't think I would have made it if it had been me.  But typical of Joanna, she never quit (even when we got lost and had to go back UP a huge hill... oops).

But despite the things that went wrong (which were in the end really minor), I was really grateful to be able to ride with Jamie's dad into Portland.  For those of us on the team, it was emotional every time that it was our turn to ride Jamie's bike.  For her dad to ride into Portland is significant beyond what I can express here.

In a way I can barely remember riding into the park... it almost feels unreal that we arrived... with parents and family and friends cheering, actual cheerleaders from Brady's school... the entire moment felt unreal and sweet and bitter and exhilarating all at the same time.

with Jamie's sister Julia, who also rode with us (along with Will Jamie's brother)... oy veyy not a great pic of me, but that's ok.  Also.. yes that does say hot dogs on my arm.

Props to V the great alum from Portland 2012... he not only met us out in Portland but even drove the water van for us and chalked the route that so that no one had to be in the van that day.

Finally, with Jamie's dad.  One of my favorite pictures from the trip.  Jamie's dad? check Yellowstone bandana? check American Flag socks? check Weird and annoying whistle (below the bandana)? Check

So that was our arrival, in at least one sense, the end of our 70 days and the end of our journey across this big country.

After the arrival, our team sort of separated, but knowing that pretty much all of us would meet back up at Brady's house in Oregon City, just outside of Portland.  In fact, Brady and several others and I biked all the way to his house (okay it was only around 20 miles from where we were).  I don't know what it feels like, but it must have been an amazing experience for Brady to bike literally to his doorstep.

Once we arrived at Brady's house, of course the festivities began.  I'll just post this one picture from the celebration, where most of us are wearing normal clothing (what???!!!).  

Creme between cookies, Jamie's favorite Oreo knockoffs, provided by Save-A-Lot Foods

I don't think I need to elaborate on how elated everyone was at the celebration.  Plenty of champagne, beer, etc. etc. etc... although I'm fairly certain some of parents had a bit more to drink than any of us did...

I won't go into too much detail about what I need for the next few days in Portland, mostly because it makes me feel too nostalgic and sad that I'm no longer with my teammates.  But here are a few pictures to compensate:

Really?  This sign actually exists in Portland?  Could you be more of a stereotype? 

Saying goodbye to Emily... we are a lot more upset by having to say bye in this photo than it might appear to you...

On the plane ride back...wow things look flat from here... But trust me THEY ARE NOT 

And back again... not a bad pic from an iPhone eh?

 I have to say, it was the strangest feeling being at the Portland Airport, ready to fly back to Chicago... a distance that took us 50+ days to complete (albeit in the most non-linear way possible it seems), but took the plane all of four hours.  I'm not sure if I can really capture what I felt then now, so I'll just post what I wrote to my teammates in our group texting app:

So after an amazing 70 days of being together with you all, here I am again, alone at the airport. Only this time it's not Baltimore but Portland instead. Only this time, instead of feeling nervous about the trip and wondering whether it's the right thing to do, I now know that no summer will ever be quite as magical as the summer of Team Portland 2014.

This time, instead of looking towards the trip, I'm looking back at it and thinking about all the times we had that were fun, hilarious, depressing, and even infuriating. I'm looking back and wondering how we managed to get through it all. This time, instead of being curious about what all of you are like, I'm heartbroken to leave all of you.

Maybe hardest of all, instead of thanking Jamie for making this trip possible for so many of us, all I can do is thank her family for sharing her with us for just the two weeks we knew her.

All I can do is remember her and honor her and do my absolute best to live like her. This time is bitter and sweet all at once.

But I'll stick to the sweet because I know that sooner or later I will see you all and it'll take no time at all to resume our crazy ways and feel way too comfortable around each other again.  Can't wait to see you guys. -Ki Young PS also higher cadence

Ok I can't get rid of the weird formatting, but hopefully that gives some insight into what I felt at that moment in the airport.

So tomorrow (or soon) about my biking adventures...