Day 76: The one where they crossed the bridge and became cross country cyclists

Today the team rode 16 miles from San Rafael to San Francisco!! We really did it, we biked all the way to the Golden Gate Bridge. Saying it even now feels surreal, we really made it from NYC to San Fran all via bike. Overall hills, through sweltering heat, freezing cold rain, over mountains, battling forest fires, injuries, lightning, bike breakdowns… the list goes on. This was not the easiest journey, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. It was a battle some days and a breeze others. I know that I learned a lot about myself and even surprised myself at times. I think we can all say the same. There is a new found confidence and strength that comes after completing such a journey. All of us will forever be connected through this grand adventure and I couldn’t be more thankful for the laughter and good times we had together as a team. Seeing that bridge today ( well not really seeing it, due to the fog) made me feel so proud of the team. All of us got here one way or another and that is an accomplishment that very few people can claim. We even were joined by our pal Justin, who drove the van. It was the perfect closing to have him back as he was so loved by the team. It was special that even though he had to leave the journey early he could share that moment with us! After several photos were taken at the lookout point, it was finally time to cross. The last three miles of our cross county ride! It was cold, a little rainy and foggy, but I wasn’t phased by any of it. This was the greatest moment! All of us had been envisioning the moment where we crossed the bridge for almost a year. The addreanal and emotions were in full effect. Once we crossed the bridge we were greeted by our families. “We really did it”, is all that kept running through my head.

This morning we went around in our circle and said nice things about our teammates to our left. We also shared our proudest moments. Because of this I would like to thank everyone on the team for all that they contributed to make this summer great! Even if many of you don’t ever read this, I want to say how much fun I have had with you all and how proud I am of everyone on the team! I4K forever :)

Today’s ride was dedicated to Elias’s grandmother who was a two time cancer survivor.

Thank you to all of you who have kept up with this blog. I’ve work hard this year to capture each day so that each of you can have a small piece of the experience.

We also raised approx. 110,000 dollars for cancer research. With this contribution we are now one step closer to ending this awful disease. Thank you again to all who donated.

~ Rolling out~ ( what we say when we leave each place everyday)

Mandy

Flat count: 0
Song of the day: Time of my life
Memorable moment: might be obvious…Crossing the bridge :)

Day 76

Hello world!

Day 76/76… the 2018 Illini 4000 Bike America Team successfully crossed the Golden Gate Bridge today. Many many tears were shed. Tears of sadness, tears of joy, tears of laughter. All were represented this mornin.

This trip has been an experience of a lifetime. We fought through all the hardships and came out on top each time. I am so incredibly proud of every person on this team. We’ve all come a long way and have grown as individuals because of this ride.

I would do it all over again in a heartbeat and if you ever get a chance to do something like this, take it!!!

Here are some of the things I have come to realize this summer:

– I have a new found love for kombucha

– Tubeless tires are the way to go so don’t let anyone tell you different

– States I’d consider living in:
Oregon
Colorado
Northern Idaho

– I can eat PB&J for 75 days straight and not get sick of it

– I snore really badly

– Standing up no hands is easier than ya think

Going into a 76 day long bike trip not knowing anyone was one of the best decisions I ever made. I was terrified getting on that bus/train, but within a few days, I knew I was in the right place and was going to have a lot of fun this summer. And best of all, it was for a great cause. I’ve met some crazy cool cats this summer which I hope will stay lifelong friends.

All thanks to my family and friends for getting me here. I wouldn’t have made it through without my amazing support system.

Another thank you to everyone who read my blog! I went in thinking I was going to taper out by day 10 ish but here we are hahaha

It’s been real y’all. Until next time.

Marge

Day 75: The last big ride

Today the team had our last “real” ride which consisted of 57 miles from Healdsburg to San Rafael. The day started out strong with a team circle where everyone awkwardly held hands as we heard some of Justin’s inspiring words for the mosher. We then took off, knowing San Fran was only a day and 80 miles away. It’s really crazy to think that we are finally reaching the destination that we have all been riding almost 80 days toward. It is in grasp and in sight. Tomorrow we will zip up our jersey, lace up our shoes and clip in for the last time on the ride. The routine that we have grown so accustomed to will be over in a matter of hours. All the days sleeping on floors, eating off parking lots and living the nomad lifestyle.. will become a memory after tomorrow. There are few things I have learned on this ride that I would like to share with all of you. First, people will surprise you! We have met some of the most amazing people on this journey, many of which had their share of hardships. They still continue to give and to support us in any way they can. I want to take this time to thank everyone who has opened their doors to let us stay, or provided a meal, or even to the people we met at gas stations who give us a thumbs up. It is easy to get caught up but if you slow down and have a conversation with someone you will realize how much good this world has. Secondly, you don’t need much to be happy. On this ride we have been dirty, sore, and tired. We have not had beds or any possessions besides our black bags. However, you realize what little things you need in order to still be happy. When you remove some of the privileges life can seem more simple and authentic. Third, your limits are created by you! I think most of us can agree that signing up for this ride was scary. We were giving up our summer with a bunch of strangers and biking everyday. There were days we all struggled and times when you didn’t think we could make it through the day. Times when we felt that this venture could be too much but we pushed through. Congrats to everyone for pushing their limits, none of us would be here if we didn’t push through our hardest days. Lastly, that cancer affects us all. There are people that we touch by doing this ride each and every year. With our fundraising efforts and rides each summer we do make a difference. It has been a pleasure writing the blog this summer and getting to document the journey for the team. I hope you all felt you could be apart of this experience with us. I thank all of you for reading and I hope that I kept you well informed. I will still be writing on last time tomorrow!

A special thank you to Sofies family who put together a very special evening for us, complete with hotels and a lovely dinner. We appreciate all the work and support! The ride dedication today was for Lauren’s grandfather who passed away from Leukemia.

Lastly today we had our superlatives ( The phillies) each of us were voted on superlatives and presented them tonight!

~ San Fran here we come!~

Mandy

Flat count: 5
Song of the day: Closing time
Memorable moment: Lighting sparklers in the hotel parking lot to celebrate!

Day 75

Hello world!

Day 75 has come to a close.

We had an “easy” 57 miles for the day and time was strangely moving fast but slow at the same time. I think it was the eagerness of having a bed to look forward to/staying in a boujee (meaning really nice in kid lingo) hotel, along with an amazing homemade meal from Sophie’s family in San Rafael!

It was funny to see kids from an organization biking across the country emerse themselves into normal society (the hotel) for more than 20 minutes like we’re used to (at gas stations, Walmart, etc). If I were people watching at the hotel and I saw our team walk through, I would’ve thought they’d come back from the dead because that’s kinda what we looked like… zombies !

Once everyone was back biking, Ryan’s parents came over to see us and treat us to ice cream!! Extremely nice of them and it was quite the treat.

We headed to the feast put on at Sophie’s house and we chatted, ate a lot… I mean A LOT and just relaxed. Twas enjoyable.

We ended the night with the long awaited “Phillies” which were individual awards given to each biker based on what we’ve all done this summer. My award was “Best Bike Twerker Award”, so I’m aightttt with it. Basically I just like to dance a lot on the bike, it helps pass the time and distract me during the tough days :)

I can’t believe we’ve made it to the last night before we cross the bridge. It seems like SO long ago that we were in New York awaiting for the summer of biking to start… 5/19/21. Wowza. It also seems like just yesterday that we were jammin out in Colorado while we were at Red Rocks.

This has been a heck of a ride. Come back for the season finale tomorrow.

See y’all at that damn bridge.

Marge

Day 74

Hello world!

Sorry for dropping the ball last night. Yesterday was a long, hot day on the bike. The California sun and heat finalllllly found the I4K riders. I thought that we brought the cloudy, gloomy weather because that’s how it’s been the first few days. But as of yesterday, I can see why it’s called the sunshine state.

After a tough ride, we were pleasantly surprised with a… POOL PARTAAAAAY! Round 2 whoop whoop! Church member Deb was so generous and open her house up to the team until the church let us in. She had this adorable backyard with a cute patio canopy thing and a lovely pool :) I’d love to live Deb’s life. Her house is adorable! She also fed us dinner and it was amazing.

SUPER excited for tonight because we’re going to live like royalty. Sophie’s grandma was kind enough to put us up in a HOTEL for the night. How crazy is that???

Many updates to come. I’ll keep y’all posted.

We’re down to the nitty gritty folks.

As Caroline’s wake up song for the day would put it: “It’s the final countdown, do do do doooooo, do do do do do”

Marge

Day 74: A little swim in Healdsburg

Today the team rode our last big ride of the summer, 90 miles from Laytonville to Healdsburg, California. Today we got hit with the real California heat, getting up to 99 today was a drastic change to the cooler weather of the Redwoods. Today had a lot of rolling hills with gradual climbing but the dry desert areas made the ride more difficult. We made one of our pit stops today at an In-N-Out burger. When in California, us college kids gotta sample the fast food of the golden state. Let me tell you it was a mixed review from the team but overall we agreed that it was fairly average. Today we even got lucky enough to ride through the wine country of Sonoma. It was really beautiful to see the vineyards that span for miles. A bitter sweet ride as many of us are excited to have another long day done but knowing it brings us closer to the end of this crazy adventure.

A huge thank you to our host Deb, from Good Shepherd Church for being so kind to us and letting us swim at her home. She also prepared a delicious lasagna dinner that was the home cooked meal that gave us a taste of home that is quickly approaching. Today’s ride was dedicated to Liz’s aunt who had breast cancer.

~Tailwinds~
Mandy

Flat count: 5
Song of the day: Last time for everything -Brad Paisley
Memorable moment: Completing our last 90 mile and seeing the sign that said we are less than 100 miles from San Fran.. we’ve come a long way

Day 73: Laytonville is not Lit

Today the team rode 75 miles from The Redwoods to Laytonville, California. Today was 6,000 feet of climbing, however it did not feel as difficult as it might sound. The climbing was pretty gradual and had beautiful views of the hills filled with pine trees. Some of us even rode through on of the great big Redwood trees!!

Thank you to our hosts at Community Christian Church. Also thank you to the Curtis family for donating dinner tonight, the tacos were delicious! Today’s ride dedication was mine and it was for Marty who battled prostate cancer.

~Tailwinds~
Mandy

Flat count: 2
Song of the day: Human -The Killers
Memorable moment: Team Hose shower.. we’ve gone many days without one and it is an experience let me tell ya

Day 73

Hello world!

Day 73, that’s a wrap. Today was kinda a hot mess express on the bike :( we did a girl power group and by the end, we only had 3/5 still standing. We powered through though and we’re able to finish the day on a positive note. We giggled our way through the day and laughed at our bad luck.

Side note: when we were waiting for the van at one point today, we picked wild blackberries and ate them. I felt like I was truly living off the land haha and I’m still alive so that means it wasn’t poisonous! Call that a W.

This stayover is a little funky but I kind of like it. We are staying at a church, but they decided to cancel on us today, so we are legitimately in the back property of the church sleeping outside. When life gives ya lemons, you make lemonade and that’s exactly what we’re doing. I was jumping for joy when I heard we were camping again because I low key like it a lot. Not everyone feels da same though. Tough stuff for them.

Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Curtis, we had some awesome tacos for dinner!! It especially helped as we wouldn’t couldn’t have a fire to roast our dogs! The tacos were a biiig hit by evveryone.

Tomorrow we’ve got our last big day…90 miles. W I L D ! It’s so funny to pass the signs that say San Francisco, x miles away and watch that number slowly drop from sign to sign as we get closer.

Peace out Girl Scout.

Day 72

Hello world!

Today was a good day.

We had a short day and we’re headed to Humboldt Redwoods State Park, so we had a very chill day on the bike. We stopped a lot and took some awesome pics with the Redwoods. It blows my mind how big they are and I’m never gunna get used to it… they belong in another world!

I got to chat/FaceTime with my mother and bfffffff Bu Jackson as they helped me pack over the phone for my family vacay post ride! Oh how I miss those goons!!

After dinner, a few of us went on an adventure down a path I spotted earlier in the day. The path ended up taking us down to a river where we hung out and skipped rocks for a while. It was refreshing :)

BTW Hitarth and Aaron take the cake for best rock skipping of the night. Hitarth had the winner though when he was able to skip it across the river multiple times… this judge was v impressed.

Later, I thought it’d be fun to bike through the same paths for night trailbiking. Most thought we were nuts, but Aaron was totally down for it. And boy oh boy did the team miss out!! It was crazy fun biking through all the trees and going through the actual forest, not just on a boring car road but on the path truly next to all the trees.

It was a time and a half!!! And folks, it’s the little things that I’m gunna miss from the trip. The river walk, night riding, exploring bowling alleys, taking polaroids of graffiti, climbing trees larger than life, etc etc… this is what I’m going to look back on and remember and I am extremely grateful to have such vivid memories as these.

Sorry to get all sappy but you know… life realizations and all.

Tomorrow’s supposed to be a rough day with 75 miles and 6000 feet of climbing. We’ll see if the extra biking tonight was a good idea after all.

Gnarly bro.

Marge

Day 72: Into the Redwoods!

Today the team rode 47 miles from Eureka to Humboldt Redwoods state park located in California. We have ridden through several Redwood state parks while in California and I believe this is our third. Each one is unique and absolutely beautiful to ride through. The air is so crisp and fresh with the trees creating the perfect shade canopy to ride through. It has been a real treat and a great change of scenery! The day started out very cool and eventually warmed up as we moved further from the coast. The difference in climate in one days time has surprised the team, California is a much more diverse state then others we have seen. We continued to ride on highway 101 for a little while and we have been pleasantly surprised at the drivers not being as aggressive. Also, today in the forest my group stopped at a fruit stand where a very kind women gave us free blackberry popsicles, they were delicious and refreshing. Several other groups also stopped at a few gift shops along the way. We really enjoyed the short distance and wonderful scenery that accompanied this route!

Today the ride was dedicated to Lauren’s uncle, Gary who was diagnosed with multiple myeloma 2 years ago.

~Tailwinds~
Mandy

Flat count: 0
Song of the day: Budapest
Memorable moment: roasting s’mores by the campfire and witnessing Eric try his first s’more.

Rider Spotlight: Ryan Watkins

What’s been the best part of I4k so far?
The best part has been seeing the mountains in Colorado. Biking the mountains was also very cool.

What do you think of when you pull through headwinds at 18 mph?
I like to think of a song, generally the last one I heard. When I have a beat I can crack out any speed I need to.

Where do you get your sense of humor from?
I would say it’s mostly self generated. I listen to a lot of stand up comedy.

Favorite rest stop snack?:
Berry protein bars

What is your go to pick up line seeing as though you are the ladies man?
I don’t have any but I really like the Tennessee one. The one about the 10 I see

What’s your dream place to live?
Somewhere that is medium density population and it’s got a nice wholesome atmosphere and I’m friends with all my neighbors. Washington or Oregon could be good

What place are you most looking forward to on the ride or liked the most?
I liked Utah the most, in particular the day going into Provo.

What has been your favorite day on I4K so far?
Day 15: Going into Richmond on the first century day. It was a good group and we got through the day fast. It melted away like butter.

Team Knife or spoon?
Team knife for peanut butter and spoon for jelly

If you could have any superpower what would it be?
Regeneration or healing. I like Wolverine and he’s got that so it’s pretty cool. Healing seems pretty usefully. I also just like claws…

What’s been the most challenging part of the ride?
The most challenging part of the ride was riding Berthoud pass while also having a sprained back.

New edition to a crayon box what would you be?
Strong and Shallow purple: I don’t think that this shade of purple has gotten enough attention. In the rainbow the v in Roygbv doesn’t get enough love. Let’s put the v back in Roygbv

What will you miss most about I4K?
I will miss most being able to wake up each morning knowing I’m doing something with a purpose. I think it will be tough to find that when I go home.

Rider Spotlight: Lauren Sargent

What’s been the best part of I4k so far?
Going to the Waffle House two days in a row

Why do you prefer headwinds over climbing?
I don’t think it’s fun to climb, I would much rather have headwinds.

You’ve already been a world traveler, how does this trip compare?
I’ve been to many places we have bikes through but we are going slower and taking our time to see some small places

What’s one thing that’s happened on the ride that you think has changed you?
I enjoyed the portrait on day 5, we met a man in the park that was so full of life and optimism. It was a good reminder of why we ride.

Favorite rest stop snack?:
Welch’s fruit snacks

What do you do when you are struggling on the bike?
I don’t think about anything

What’s your dream place to live?
I want to live on a farm that isn’t in the middle of nowhere that is also in close access to an international airport

What place are you most looking forward to on the ride or liked the most?
I liked Steamboat Springs the most. I’ve been there on family vacations and I watched ski jumping for four hours

What has been your favorite day on I4K so far?
I liked day 9 because we slowed down and didn’t care about getting anywhere. We got lost but we ended up getting apple cider slushies. We ended up getting cheeseburgers and root beer floats.

Team Knife or spoon?
Team knife for peanut butter and spoon for jelly

If you could have any superpower what would it be?
Teleportation or time travel

What’s been the most challenging part of the ride?
The most challenging part of the ride is riding every single day

When you think of the Waffle House what is one word that comes to mind?
Waffles

New edition to a crayon box what would you be?
Powerful black: because Lauren is not creative and powerful is the adjective for Lauren on the team.

What will you miss most about I4K?
Having the freedom because we can be anywhere and do anything

Day 71

Hello world!

Not much happened today. I was like a bear in hybernation and slept until 11 AM… crazy talk.

Some of us had a day at the movies seeing the Purge and Mamma Mia 2. I was team Mamma Mia 2. Not sure if other people liked it as much as I did, but I loved ittttt. It made me laugh, made me wanna get up and dance, and made me even choke up (I’m a softy what can I say).

I’m a sucker for ABBA songs because it’s some of the music I grew up on. It kept reminding me of singing and dancing in the kitchen with my mom while we cleaned the house hahaha good times :)

The rest of the day was dedicated to rest, chit chattin, and catching up on journaling.

Tomorrow we head into Humboldt Redwood Forest so it should be v pretty again!! Also only 47 miles so hopefully it goes quickly!

Right on.

Marge

Day 71: Eureka is an interesting place!

Today was a rest day in Eureka. It was our last day off before we arrive in San Francisco! Some of us started the day going to the laundromat and then to a bagel shop. We then went to the movies where some of us saw Mama Mia and others of us saw The Purge. Clearly we are very divided on movie tastes on this team. We then came back and just relaxed for a few hours before dinner time. For dinner we had pizza from our hosts, thank you to First United Methodist.

~Tailwinds~
Mandy

Flat count: N/A
Song of the day: Young, Wild and Free
Memorable moment: Getting a note on the van from the sandwich place from yesterday that forgot two sandwiches in our order. The note said for us to redeem our two sandwiches haha

Day 70

Hello world!

Day 70 definitely had its peaks and it’s valleys.

We had an 85 mile day with what looked like not too much climbing on the elevation map, but that thing was WRONG.

There was steep hill after steep hill, and I was physically exhausted by mile 20 :( It’s like I got bit by the tsetse fly or somethin. We were able to push through though and finish out the day.

Thank god I did because I would’ve missed out on a lot!! The downhills were a lot of fun and in some parts, we were keeping up with the flow of traffic! We also got to bike right along the coastline which was incredible. We biked through the Redwoods again today and man, that will never get old. Right as we left the forest, there was an open field to our right and in it we saw 2 elk!! I had never seen elk before so that was really neat. Their antlers are massive!

At lunch we met this odd duck of a guy named Mark who was soooo into what we were doing that when we left to finish the last 25 miles, he took out his drone and got footage of us biking for a little bit hahaha so be on the lookout for that… who knows if we’ll ever see the video

Instead of getting back onto the 101 for the last 25, my group opted in taking the scenic route with terrible roads but better views. We stopped a lot to take it all in because why not!? At one of our stops we even got to see a… WHALE (spotted first by Kathy). I thought it was funny because I told my group that today I was on the hunt to see dolphin or whale… my wish was granted!

When we got closer to Eureka, we passed bison too! Today was jam packed full of seeing wild creatures. A very nice change of pace from your typical day of only seeing cow after cow (still saw those too though).

Thanks to King Phil’s awesome parents, we had hot sandwiches for dinner!! They were tasty and it was nice to have a good meal after a long day on the bike.

The night ended pretty early as there’s not much to do here in Eureka, CA. If you haven’t heard, the city doesn’t have the best rep, so we’re being a liiiittle cautious around here.

I still wanna go to the beach though and check out the scene!

Surfs up.

Marge

Day 70: Brown Bear Brown Bear what do you see?

Today the team rode 84 miles from Crescent City to Eureka, California. Today was one of the most beautiful rides we have had thus far. We went on and off highway 101 where we got beautiful views of the ocean. Highway 101 also isn’t nearly as scary as I thought it would be! We also got to ride through more Redwood forests. This morning started out extremely eerie and spooky. The fog was so thick that we could not see anything within a ½ mile ahead of us as we rode through the forest. It is an unexplainable feeling to be flying downhill and feel like you are going through nothingness! Some groups even stopped at the mystery trees and looked in the Paul Bunyan gift shop where they got a greeting from Paul and his oxe. Overall it was an amazing day and although the hills in Cali are killer, knowing that we only have a few days left makes us push to the finish line! Also a group got within a car distance to a mama bear and her cubs, how scary cool is that?!

I would like to thank Eureka First United Methodist for hosting us tonight. The ride dedication was for Matt’s grandma who had breast cancer.

~Tailwinds~
Mandy

Flat count: 1
Song of the day: California girls
Memorable moment: Riding along the coast for the first time

Day 69: Golden state of mind

Today the team rode 85 miles from Grants Pass, Oregon to Crescent City, California! We made it to California… it still feels surreal to say it. We got from New York to California via bike, how crazy! Crossing into the state line was the highlight of the day for me, riding up to see the state sign was one of the most exciting sights I have seen along ride. It all seems like a pipe dream until it comes true, we are officially cross country cyclists. Although, it was an exciting day the victory needed to be earned with 4,000 feet of climbing and some very scary California roads and drivers.

I would like to thank United Methodist Church for hosting us and providing us dinner. The ride dedication was from Lauren’s family friend Lisa who just finished her chemo treatment for breast cancer.

~Tailwinds~
Mandy

Flat count: 2
Song of the day: Californiacation
Memorable moment of the day: Seeing the beach for the first time and knowing that had made it from coast to coast.

Day 69

Hello world!

Today was something special.

Crossing into California. Enough said.

Biking through Redwoods. Enough said.

Biking on the 101. Enough said.

SEEING THE OCEAN. Enough said.

Running into the ocean. Enough said.

Painfully biking to the stayover barefoot and soaking wet after running into the ocean. Enough said.

We faced some tough hills and tight, winding roads with heavy traffic, but we were cautious and took care of business. It went swimmingly.

Seeing the ocean finally put into perspective what we’ve accomplished. We have officially biked from coast to coast.

Holy. Cow.

Nothing but smiles around here.

Today we’ll bike into our rest day in Eureka, CA. Hopefully we can have a party by the beach. That’s what this girl wants to do.

As 2Pac would say… “Caaalifornia Love”

Marge

Day 68 – update

Hello world!

Today was a fantaaaastic day! We went into the day knowing that almost the whole day was downhill. There was one baby climb in the beginning and after that, it was full speed ahead.

The downhill out of our camping site in Crater Lake was awesome. I was with a core group of peeps that all had the same mentality… to fly. It was a super long downhill and was SO pretty. Words don’t do it justice.

We averaged 19 mph the whole day and about 27 mph on the downhills. With that, we finished 90 miles in 5 hours (not including rest stops)… pretty crazy if ya ask me!

My favorite part of the day was coming back from the showers and seeing my family in the church parking lot!!!! Y’all heard it right, cousins Katha, Gabs, and Grace and the cute kiddos, Leo and Oliver were there to see me!

Katha was so so so sweet and treated us to an awesome dinner. If you’re ever in the Medford area and are craving a good burger, go to Common Block Brewery. It won’t disappoint!

We headed back to the crib which was so fun to see! I even got to sleep in a bed and that almost bright a tear to my eye. I slept like a baby… silky sheets go a long way folks.

When the babies headed to bed, Gabbi took Grace and I to her neck of the woods in Ashland, OR, about 15-20 min from Medford. The town is super cute and I can see why Gabs loves living there. It totally fits her vibe and she is straight up thriving out there.

Grace, Katha, Oscar and I all stayed up late chattin about the trip, our fam, and everything under the sun. It was much needed fam time. The perfect refreshment to keep me goin for the last 7 days.

Speaking of family, I decided to dedicate the ride to my cousin Karen Conway who overcame Ovarian Cancer. Her positive outlook on life got her through the tough stuff and she is such an inspiring woman. Power to ya Karen. You are one amazing person and I hope to be as strong as you one day!

Stay tuned for day 70. Sorry I’m still playing catch up.

Marge

Day 67 – update

Hello world!

The no service days are so bittersweet! You love to be disconnected from the world and just enjoy everything around you at all times, but at the same time you wanna let everyone know you’re stil alive hahah

Day 67 was a day that nearly everyone on our team had looked forward to all trip… The great and mighty Crater Lake! Getting there was a little hairy on the bike with the climbing, heavy traffic, and wildfires.

Holy smokes Batman… literally. Smoke was everywhereeee! It was especially bad biking miles 20-40 as we made it to the entrance of the park. Thankfully it cleared up though as we had the second big climb of the day ahead of us. It was nice to know what breathing fresh air felt like again :)

In my opinion, the climb up to the top of the lake was the hardest climb for me the entire trip. My muscles sadly were still fatigued from the hike and the climb was just difficult in general. No lie, no lie, no lie, I cried when I got to the top. It felt so good to be done and see such a rewarding view at the top… and knowing that the rest of the day was all downhill from there!

Speaking of the downhill… it was one of my favorites all trip. It was a fairly long downhill with many sharp turns and a couple steep parts too. I felt like a pro cyclist whipping around bend after bend and hugging the white line on the road. It was rad and we were keeping up with the speed of traffic so that was sick.

When we got to the camp site, we roasted dogs for din, and hung out around the camp fire. A few of us brave souls stayed up to see the stars come out and play, but it ended up being too cloudy :( I think we’ll have better luck when we camp in Redwoods so I look forward to that.

Day 68 update comin at ya in just a few!

Marge

Day 66/67: Darth Vader took over Crater Lake

The blogs have been suffering recently due to all the camping we have been doing with no service. Because of this I am doing a combined blog for yesterday and today. Yesterday the team rode 65 miles from Gilchrist to Crater lake,Oregon. Due to forest fires in the area we rode through some pretty smoky areas until we reached the entrance of the park. We then climbed several miles through the beautiful pines that surround Crater Lake. There was smoke all around which created a eerie feeling (hence the blog title). Once we reached the top we saw the beautiful lake and all its glory. It was so much larger than I ever would have pictured it and even though it was not in its clearest state it was still a sight to be seen. After several stops at gift shops later we arrived at the campsite and hung out for the remainder of the evening.

Now on to today, we rode 90 miles from Crater Lake to Grants Pass, Oregon. The first 30 miles were a breeze of straight downhill. The rest of the day was some up and down hill that were pretty easy however, the day seemed long and we ran into smoke again which leaves you winded even when it is not a difficult ride. We all made it and got to St. Paul’s Lutheran Church where our friendly hosts greeted us and provided us with showers and food. It was above and beyond what we could have hoped for. We really appreciate all that they did to help prepare such a nice stay for us!

The ride was dedicated to Maggie’s cousin who survived stage 4 breast cancer.

~Tailwinds~
Mandy

Flat count: 0
Song of the day: Smoke on the water
Memorable moment: Today we celebrated an old I4K tradition, Christmas in July. This is when every rider gets a secret Santa and they gift them with a $ 5.00 gift and a gag gift found on the side of the road. We exchanged them today and it was great to see all the gifts people received!

Day 66

Hello world!

Day 66… today was nottttt an ideal day to be on a bike. Regardless, we still had fun with it.

First off, it was hard to say goodbye to Bend. I don’t think many of us wanted to leave because the city was such good vibes.

I still stand by my decision of going on that hike up Mt. Bachelor yesterday, but holy cow it made today very difficult! We biked about 7 miles on a full on gravel road, but I was all about it. We were skidding and drifting through the gravel on downhills (all in safe ways don’t worry) and it made for a good time. Our hardest climb for the day was on the gravel road so it made those with road tires struggle hardcore.

Perks of having a cylcocross bike with fatttttt tires!!! I may have to put in more work for most rides, but I don’t have to change flat tires and I have an advantage on the gravely roads… hehehe

We are staying at an abandoned strip mall tonight. This place is soooo rad! After a long nap, we went exploring and had a photoshoot. There is a cool bar called the “Pine Room” that reminds me of a speakeasy back in the day with nifty Oregon pint glasses. There is also a 2 lane bowling alley so it was fun to mess around there too! Shoutout to Eric for finding the switch to the black lights!! Made for some fun cosmic bowling.

A few of us ventured out to another building and tried to get in but it was no luck Chuck. Hitarth blazed the trail though and we were able to get onto the roof overhang thing of the building which was neat. The adventurous bunch we are!

Exploring is fun :)

Tomorrow we are headed to Crater Lake!! Hollaaaaa, I can’t wait! One of the places I was most excited about going into the trip, so I hope it lives up to expectation.

Word on the street is that the climb into the park is a challenge, so we’re gunna take it slow and steady Freddy.

Night kids.

Marge