I really have no idea how to start this. So much has happened and I have so many thoughts to share! It seems ages since my last blog and training ride before finals and graduation. And I thought that was difficult...Well, today we completed our thirteenth day. It was actually one of our most relaxed and uneventful days. We had beautiful weather and the last group was to the church by 3:30. No showers tonight, but wifi and free time so that I can finally post. It's easy to put things off while on this ride since we are often tired and have other chores to do or people to talk to. I had been putting off cleaning my bike for about four days before I finally cleaned it last night (you'd be impressed with the amount of caked on dirt and grease).I won't be able to recall and describe everything so far, but hopefully I can provide a brief summary:- We have several rules, here are a couple: there's always one last uphill to the stayover, sunscreen and water, flats come in pairs (usually), never assume there are no more hills- Pennsylvania challenged me mentally and physically, helped me to further realize the importance of team support, brought on my first tears of the trip, has more hills than I care to think about, has wonderful people and food, and made me remember I am much more capable of conquering mountains (in whatever form they come) than I think I am- I have gained so much appreciation for good food, showers, and beds- Sometimes we just want to get there. We want to power through the miles and lay flat on the floor, so I have to remind myself many times of the people we dedicate each day to and of the portraits we have and will get...it's about so much more than getting from point A to point B- So far we have four portraits. I sat in on one and learned so much in those 20 or so minutes. People's willingness to share is amazing and I am so thankful to learn from them and to be able to spread their stories- There may be a layer of dirt and grease on my legs and arms forevermore...and distinct tan lines- If I were less tired I would continue this list...As of right now my odometer reads 907 miles. Almost every day has been 70 or 80 mile rides, and these first days have been through several cities, over several mountains, and over tons of hills. It has been a daily routine of waking up at 5:45 in the morning and just plain biking. I have been told we have been through the hardest part.It has certainly been insane, and it's been even more wonderful. As we ride we hear stories, get random donations, and receive many honks and waves along the way. I am so proud of our entire team and the things we have accomplished together. I hope that we continue to gather more stories and touch lives everywhere we go. Although it may seem crazy that we get up every day to keep biking more and more miles, it truly never gets old.(My butt definitely protests at times though.)
Day 12
Today's century ride was dedicated to Blake's uncle who is a survivor of leukemia. Today was our first time riding over 100 miles as a team. We ride for those we love, from Columbus, Ohio to Richmond, Indiana, forging our way into state #6! How exciting to be at home in a land of flat corn fields and country roads! We actually rode on the same exact road the entire 103.6 miles: 40-West. Conditions were ideal: a slight tailwind and sunny skies. With pit stops every 20 miles and the support of each other, we made it to First English Lutheran Church. What's amazing is that we only slept for two nights in Ohio, barely crossing the border today, for a total of 3 stayovers in Indiana.Around mile 87, we took a rest stop in Lewisburg, Ohio at Wholesome Country Goods, a bulk Amish-made foods store, where we had some great conversations and also bought and were given some delicious treats to end the ride well. Thank you to tonight's stayover for a great dinner, offering breakfast in the morning, and showers. We are all becoming painfully aware that the huge quantity of showers currently available is not going to be the same out west after Chicago! Some say we will have had more showers now than the rest of the ride! We'll see about that...
Day 11
Here we are on day 11 of the ride, Ohio being the current state. Thank you Chef Bill from Westwood Baptist Church in Zainsville, OH for making us delicious omelets this morning! Westwood Baptist Church was unanimously one of our favorite stayovers so far and we are unbelievably grateful for the generous provisions! Full of all sorts of yummy food, we moved onto an easier day of 56 miles. Nobody even needed lunch after we filled up on cookies and other goodies during the ride. As we officially left the foothills of Appalachia, it started to feel more like home. Farther west in Ohio, the terrain flattens out and we found ourselves on straight, flat country roads among rows of crops. What glorious bliss to enjoy a smooth ride, side-by-side!The ride was dedicated to Connor's mother's friend, Jill. We showed up in Columbus early thanks to a slight tailwind and the short ride. Today was easy to prepare us for tomorrow's lengthy ride of 103 miles. We enjoyed Columbus thanks to the provided space and showers of Broad Street United Methodist Church. Following our somewhat rainy adventures in the city, we returned to rest up for our first century as a team together!
Day 10
St. John's EP Church of Wheeling, West Virginia provided a delicious breakfast for us. This morning, we dedicated the ride to Kathryn, a woman we met at yesterday's rest stop. Her portrait about how she survived cancer while in the midst of adopting several children was inspirational to us today. Today was rough, a combination of our first significant headwind of the ride and 4,000 feet of climbing bluffs and hills (Walder claims they are not to be called mountains). We rode 80 miles, except for the people who ended up slightly lost and adding a small detour.Several donations were collected along the way to Zanesville, Ohio. We are now in state #5! All our tired bodies appreciated the wonderful provisions of Westwood Baptist Church, including showers at a nearby gym, cots from the red cross, Chipotle for dinner, and Wi-fi. We have nothing but thanks for all the people who have assisted us along this first part of our journey! Even when the ride seems rough, we have a friendly place to arrive at the end of each day. Tomorrow's ride should be shorter and will begin with another church-provided breakfast. Thank you for keeping our team in your thoughts and prayers!
Day 9
State #4... West Virginia! We dedicated today's ride to Mr. Jim, Blake's friend as well as the father of his best friend, who is facing terminal brain cancer. We need that perspective and focused purpose as we begin each day. Today we rode out of the extraordinarily hilly and steep city of Pittsburgh, via some roads and some bike paths. Sycamore Street was a particular vicious climb that none of us really liked. But Jonny Cagwin (see blog post Day 7), who rode with us for the first 8 miles, took it like a champ. Then, we moved onto a gravel bike path about which we had highly differing opinions: scenic, boring, fun, difficult, annoying... It was certainly a relief to eat PB&J at the end of that path. Lunch was followed by a steep bluff and then a paved bike path to Wheeling, West Virginia.Before we arrived at the stayover, several ride groups collected portraits. One man told us his story of how both his parents died from cancer. Another woman, Joyce, lost her sister at age 10 and later her mother from cancer, which caused her family to break apart from grief. The third story, Kathryn, mother of 7, was diagnosed with cancer and focused on her family to get her through the disease to a current state of remission. Through these stories, we connect with people and often find a continuing strand of hope and healing. We also received generous donations at our rest stops today, including McDonald's.We are extraordinarily grateful to St. John's EP Church for providing a cozy place to stay, a delicious dinner, and breakfast in the morning. Reverend Ed Thurmond, the pastor of the church, coordinated to give us free showers at Centre Town Fitness a block away, complete with fluffy towels. He also kindly shared with us his story about how he lost his wife to cancer. Today being the first day of portraits, we all have a lot to process. We're excited to meet more people the rest of the summer!
Day 8
Today we all got some much needed rest by sleeping in. We all went our own various ways in the morning, including brunch and downtown adventures. From the Andy Warhol Museum to a state park tour, I4K was all over Pittsburgh today. We did communal laundry - an occasional necessity - then a bunch of us headed over to Costco for I4K groceries and pizza. Today was also a day for many of us to re-connect with the outside world, the family and friends we ride for. Now we're all together and ready to conquer more hills tomorrow. A special thank you goes out to Eastminster Presbyterian for allowing us to use the gym space for 2 nights, and sleep in, even on a Sunday!Sadly, Massey is leaving us tonight. He has been so kind to drive the van for us this past week, but now he has to return to the real world for a summer job. We have all been trying to convince him to stay with us for 8 more weeks, but to no avail. So, thank you Alex Massey... We'll all miss your fun humor and the way your brighten everyone's day! Now, we will all take turns driving the van and doing a horrible job of it. We'll never be able to live up to the van-driving skills of the legendary Massey. He also is a professional Costco motorized cart driver, as shown below.
Day 7
We have arrived in Pittsburgh, the destination we've all been waiting for! Today's ride was easier than any of the past few. After all we've been through already as a team, it was great to know there is a rest day ahead. Following a breakfast of bagels, cereal, and watermelon, we rolled out of Mount Pleasant for a 50-mile ride dedicated to David Walder's mom.The ride was relaxing for a change: after 10 miles of rolling hills, we found ourselves on a bike path along the Youghiogheny, then Monongahela Rivers. Flat paths were a relief from the difficult climbing days of the past week. We arrived to the Pittsburgh stayover early in the day. Eastminster Presbyterian Church is hosting us tonight and tomorrow. This church was coordinated by Johnny Cagwin, a pastor at the church which has hosted us in the past. He helped us out by asking Eastminster to provide that space this year. The Cagwin family then invited us over to their house for pizza, a party which involved children, team soccer games, and volleyball. It was so much fun to connect with the families and friends at the home.We concluded the night with X-men, blanket forts, and hair dying. We're enjoying Pittsburgh tonight and looking forward to our bodies recuperating somewhat by Monday morning! Good night; I4K out!!!
Day 6
Today took much more stamina and mental fortitude than any of us could have imagined. We dedicated the ride to Marissa's friend. The hearty pancake breakfast provided by Everett Church of Brethren started off the day with one of the best things that has happened to us so far. Then the rolling hills began... Followed by a very steep climb up a big mountain, which happened to be shaped like an exponential function... of 1,500 feet and as we later found out was 14% grade. Oh and by the way there was no net elevation gain! See the altitude chart below! We had several awesome descents today, of 2 then 4 miles each. Today we climbed 6,000 ft over 78 miles, and when we finally reached the stayover in Mount Pleasant, we were quite exhausted.
Ravenously we enjoyed a meal of rotisserie chicken and baked potatoes from the United Methodist Church. They kindly drove us to showers at the YMCA. Thank you so much to tonight's church for providing dinner and breakfast! We are all excited to arrive in Pittsburgh tomorrow and have a rest day!
Day 5
We started the day with a delicious fruity breakfast from Zion Reform Church. Today was our first truly rainy day - we rode through clouds and mist. But even rain and cold cannot stop us from climbing the mountains! Today's ride dedication was for Grace's best friend's dad, who is currently battling pancreatic cancer. Ride dedications are a great way to start the day by remembering why we ride.We climbed many mountainous hills today... Officially in the Appalachian Mountains. It was a hard day, but we rode in smaller groups (3-4 riders) to better stay together on the rolling hills. Along the way, we've received generous donations in unexpected places. People we meet are so kind and helpful!We arrived earlier than normal in the stayover, Everett Church of Brethren, because our ride was only 60 miles. Kindly, they made us a fantastic dinner and even finished it off with ice cream! We appreciate the provisions given by this wonderful church, including showers and a great breakfast we're looking forward to in the morning. We'll need it; tomorrow's ride is supposed to be the hardest until Colorado.
Day 4
Pennsylvania brought to our team the first mountain of the trip! Cycling for Kevin's uncle who is currently battling cancer, we rode from Lancaster to Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. We rode across bridges on Lincoln highway, the first cross-country road in the history of the US - fun fact from Anne. In 79 miles, we climbed 3,000 feet, a number which has continually increased since the first day. Climbing hills and mountains is hard, but it reminds us of the people we ride for: those who cannot.For lunch we stopped at the Wild Hog BBQ in East Berlin, which we've all decided is the best BBQ in the state of Pennsylvania! A special thanks to them for kindly providing a box of granola bars. Some other places we enjoyed today were Maple Donuts and a winery at the top of the mountain (where pretty much everyone collapsed and took a long break). Reid's Orchard and Winery gave us a box of cold Pink Lady apples and water! Thanks so much to everyone who helps us along the way.Today's ride went really smoothly and according to plan, without getting lost, which was great! We arrived at Zion Reform Church sore and ready to conquer more mountains tomorrow!
The Ride So Far
Insert multi-word blog post name here. Haha just kidding I noticed all the others have one-word titles so far... ;) Well, I've made it through 3 days of riding, which has been awesome! This will be a brief post; it's late and here I am at a laundromat making clothes for the team clean! Like literally, all of my clothes are in the wash right now. The past couple of days have been hectic and have somehow blurred into a feeling of one long day and simultaneously a whole lot of days. My favorite day was today, which had rolling hills. I came to the realization that hills are pretty great: you go up AND down! Maybe I will change my mind later... But for now I'm going by the saying "what goes up must come down." However, in Pennsylvania, what goes down also must go back up. Fun stuff!I got up to 42.6 mph yesterday in a 9% downhill grade. Some of you may ask if I was scared, but wonderfully there were no people on the road AND it was beautifully wide and smooth. Speed... It's thrilling. It also varies a lot! Today my rolling speed range was 6-35 mph. Every single gear on my bike was used often today on the rolling hills of Pennsylvania. One fun thing was getting electrocuted by an electric fence when I tried to pet a horse... Some people have to learn the hard way!We have also had some wonderful conversations with people about the Illini 4000. Everywhere we go, people want to know, who we are... We are I4K! I hand out business cards and orange info cards to those who are interested.One woman also shared her entire life story with me... Her mother had passed away after a 10-year fight with multiple myeloma. Some of my favorite quotes was "cancer is a coward." An unseen enemy, it hides in the shadow and cannot be seen like an enemy in war. Also, she claimed the key to survival is love and a strong heart. Unfortunately we could not take a portrait of her, but I wrote down some meaningful comments from the conversation.That's all for now! See you soon! Keep reading my daily team blog posts on the frontpage.
Day 3
Today's ride was a bit longer than the past two: we rode 81 miles from Philadelphia to Lancaster, PA. The ride was dedicated to Ed Phell's family members lost to cancer. He is from the church in Philadelphia. John from the 2013 ride joined our team for the first part of the ride, which was relatively flat. Then we entered hilly Amish country, which held many treasures including roadside fruit/baked goods stands, horse buggies, and more. The rolling hills were rough for everyone, but peacefully traffic-free. Our team has come to learn in the past few days that bikes always have issues, and we have to work together to resolve them. Safety is always our number one priority, and we have team meetings to discuss how we can improve our riding together.Towards the end of today's ride, a storm came in. The ride groups, being somewhat spread out, got varying amounts of rain and wind, but some of us took shelter in a barn. We eventually made it to First United Methodist Church, where showers and a dinner of spaghetti made the night. Thank you to the church for providing their space!
Day 2
Every day is different in Illini 4000. Today’s ride from North Brunswick, NJ to Philadelphia, PA was similar in distance, but far less urban. We appreciated some roads free of stoplights, and few cars – today is Memorial Day! As we took a moment to remember all those who have fought for our country and gave their lives for our freedom, some of us had personal connections. Beyond that, we are entirely grateful for the opportunity to live in a free country where we can take amazing trips such as this. We are a rather patriotic bunch and this has already been and will be an awesome chance to get to know and love the United States and its people better.As a team, we dedicate each day’s ride to a specific individual affected by cancer, and it motivates us. Today was dedicated to Christy’s best friends’ mother. For many, it was the first time ever riding two long days in a row. Despite the warmer weather, we pressed onward. Our route brought us through New Jersey into Pennsylvania – state #3! In Philadelphia, we were warmly greeted at the Calvary United Methodist Church with a great warm dinner and a tour of the church. In the evening, many went in search of Philly Cheese Steaks and this strange, wonderful frozen treat called “water ice.” Thank you John, 2013 rider, for the water ice! 
Day 1
Well this is it! Today was the first day of riding for the Illini 4000 Trek Bike America 2014 Team! (That's technically our full name.) We left the beautiful St. Paul and St. Andrew United Methodist Church at around 7:00 am and rode to Central Park. There we were greeted by a small, wonderful party of supporters. We took group photos and dedicated the ride to Kathleen's grandfather who was diagnosed with cancer yesterday. We continue to realize how personally we are all affected by the disease in many ways.Today's ride was supposed to be 68 miles, but a variety of wrong turns and several confusing cues made the ride a bit longer for most of us. From double flat tires and hills the likes of which we have never seen in Illinois, it was a fun introduction to riding with the team in totally uncharted territory. We biked on all sorts of urban roads, wide and small, rough and smooth. We gathered for lunch - always two PB&Js per person, then headed off to the Atlantic Ocean! Our team together did the ritual rear-wheel dipping into the water, and we will put our front wheels into the Pacific Ocean when we reach the Golden Gate Bridge.When we reached the stayover, everyone was ready for the wonderful comforts of the Sangankar home. Anish Thakkar, one of the two founders of Illini 4000, lived in New Jersey until his family moved. For the past three years, his neighbors, Bipin and Jyoti Sangankar have hosted the Illini 4000 team in New Jersey. They invited Harsh and Rita Thakkar (Anish's parents) and a lot of friends including relatives and people who have connections and would love to tell others about I4K. It was great fun talking to some kids who have already found an obsession with bikes... future U of I students?! We appreciate the generosity of all those who attended the dinner and dessert tonight. To those who supported us through kind donations tonight, we express our deepest gratitude for their commitment of time and money to our cause!We have thoroughly enjoyed our time here in New Jersey, and we look forward to state #3 tomorrow: Pennslyvania!
The Big Apple
Today we awoke to our first morning in a real stayover together, at 6am. We split up and explored the city, from Times Square to Ground Zero and more. Meeting up again, we went to eat a complimentary breakfast and hear from the Damon Runyon Foundation about how they choose scientists to research with their grants. It was really cool to hear how our organization has donated $150,000 to them so far, and this has helped to fund some of the more than 100 scientists working under the sponsorship of the program.Among those scientists was a woman at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. She told us her own story of how her metabolism-related research had been making advances in cancer therapies since undergrad and had recently been diagnosed with thyroid cancer herself. Of all cancers, little is known about it because it has such a high survival rate. The researcher then showed us around her lab. The team would like to thank the Damon Runyon Foundation for their kindness to us today. We encourage you to learn more about them on their website, http://www.damonrunyon.org.Afterwards, we spent the rest of the day in the city, enjoying the time. We set sail in the morning!
Day of Travel
We have arrived. At the start of it all is New York City, the Big Apple, the East Coast. It took 23 hours on a train (or less hours in a van for 3 of our members), but we have made it to our first ever stayover, St. Paul and St. Andrew United Methodist Church. Thanks to their kindness, we are cozy in couches and carpeted floors, and had the chance to shower.Really today was just a day of cabin fever for most. We're all excited and ready to do what we came to do: ride bicycles. And so after a long train ride including games, sleeping, snacks, and more sleeping, we were in the station, unpacking those wonderful bikes. We are a late dinner - New York pizza for some!Throughout today, many of us had the chance to tell people met about Illini 4000, including train conductors/engineers, fellow train passengers, and random New York residents in pizzerias. We are all beginning to see what it's like to tell others about I4K outside of the bubble of Champaign and the suburbs - it's really quite exciting! That's all for now; good night! Oh and I forgot to mention, it's day -1!
Only the Beginning of the Adventure
As you read this post, do yourself a favor and listen to this wonderful Narnia soundtrack, called "Only the Beginning of the Adventure": http://youtu.be/lLXguWl6Jc0And it is indeed an adventure upon which we embark. Here we are at day -2, soon to begin a marvelous journey which will bring us from ocean to ocean. Today as we arrived at Union Station in Chicago, we filled the Great Hall with a nervous, excited energy, 20 bicycles, riders, board members, alumni, and families. There is so much to be thankful for that we have even made it to this point together, and much more gratitude than simple words on a page can express.As we all gathered together, there was all sorts if fun, from comparing who had stuffed their Australian rucksack fullest, to trading of goody-bag snacks, a kind gift from the directors and alumni to riders. We all received 2 team shirts, too. Blake sold awesome I4K pins (he has over 200 of them!) to us for a suggested donation of $5 each. Shameless plug that you should buy one!Then, we all headed downstairs to a garage-like area to put our bikes into boxes. We removed pedals, twisted handlebars, and anxiously watched on as our precious stress were loaded as cargo into cardboard boxes. Eventually we were cut loose to run around Chicago in search of dinner, then more waiting... And now we're on the train! Lots of sleeping people! Walder, Blake, and Isalia are driving the van to the city while the rest of us lounge on this wonderful train. Good night everyone, see you next time... In New York City!
What People Do: a documentary
The full length video documentary of What People Do: a documentary (following the summer 2007 Illini 4000 ride) has just been made freely available for streaming and can be seen at the following website:http://filmsthatmove.com/movie/index.htmlSpecial thanks to Films That Move, Zachary Herrmann, and Jeffery Ginger for helping to share the amazing, inspiring, heartfelt story of the Illini 4000 journey with the world; words cannot truly express my gratitude.
Persevere
Outdoor training is in full-swing. So is outdoor raining. I wish that were as funny as it sounds, but honestly the rain has resulted in some miserable, very difficult situations. Yet we persevere. Lately, the definition of “Monday” has been: cold and rainy. Fortunately, I have survived. And from finishing difficult rides, I feel greater confidence in our team’s ability to complete the great journey ahead of us this summer. Allow me to elaborate. By cold and rainy, I mean 40-degree droplets of water pelting Phoenix and I for longer than 2 hours. (For those of you who forgot, Phoenix is my lovely bicycle.)I have a condition called Reynaud’s Condition, which means whenever I am stressed or cold, my blood vessels decide to constrict and stop allowing blood to flow to my extremities (fingers and toes). During the ride several weeks ago, I lost circulation in 9 of 10 toes, and failed to have any sensation below mid-calf. Towards the end of the ride, it was taking a very long time for me to clip in because of this. Yet I know these experiences were not the most difficult things I will have to accomplish on a bike. There will be difficult days. And such days magnify the important things.What is 20 miles in the rain? What is a mountain range or a relentless wind? How can I possibly compare an hour of my so-called “agony” to the suffering which cancer brings? Struggling through the harder moments of training, I must broaden my vision and open my eyes to the pain. I must recall my purpose here as a rider on the Illini 4000 team. As the bigger picture comes back into focus, I miraculously find strength to carry on the next few miles. We will persevere as a team.Alright, that’s enough fluffy stuff. There is so much that I want to talk about in this blog post, yet I don’t totally want to bore you. Beside rain and some chilly days, we’ve also had some extraordinarily beautiful days, which we’ve put to use to ride farther than ever before. Last Friday, I rode 60 miles to Allerton Park and back with Walder, and it was great to get out for such a long distance ride. Now do that 70 days in a row and you have the I4K trip. It’s becoming more real. Next time I blog, I’ll hopefully talk about non-bikey things. Have a great week!!
Final Days & First Rides
26 Days until Graduation.32 Days until I hop on a train to New York City.I've had this discussion with a bunch of people on the team, and basically because of I4k, it doesn't quite feel like I'm graduating.What makes our final days on campus so strange is that we pass through a series of "Lasts."It's easy to pinpoint some of these moments."This is the last class I'll ever attend.""This is the last presentation I'll ever give for class.""This is my last Thursday night on campus."But other "Lasts" are harder to recognize."Was that the last time I'll see that professor?""Is this the last time me and my friends will all be in one place?""Is this my last time grabbing food at Torticas?!"Whether I'm talking with my roommates or just lying on my bed listening to my "Graduation" playlist on Spotify, it's interesting to think about how the lives we've known for the past four years are going to be radically different after graduation.But like I said, I4k has been pretty successful in taking my mind off of all this graduation nonsense. What's exciting is that I4k is a challenge and with that challenge comes a series of "Firsts."Here's a quick dozen of them:- My first bike ride.- My first time clipping in.- My first fall because I forgot to unclip.- My first crash with teenage hooligans.- My first training ride.- My first time using callouts.- My first time riding in the rain.- My first time trying to figure out what callout to use for a dead deer on the side of the road.- My first time cramping up and literally sitting on the side of the road.- My first time riding with no hands.- My first 60 mile ride.- My first I4tanlines.And honestly, each of these "Firsts" gets more exciting than the last.So yeah. Maybe I am graduating in 26 days. But in 32 days I'm starting a completely new adventure. And sure, maybe it's my last month to live it up on these old stomping grounds, but isn't it about time to leave my mark somewhere else?I'm ready. #LeggoAs a bonus, here's a snippet from our training ride on Saturday:Kathleen: Remember when we said the craziest thing we would ever do is "skydive?"Kevin: Yeah.Kathleen: Remember when we're biking across the country this summer?Kevin: LOL