Day 78: Petaluma, CA to San Francisco, CA

Our last ride of the summer was dedicated to Zane’s dad, Scott. Scott passed away after a battle with cancer a few years ago. Zane wanted to dedicate the last day to his dad so that he could do his very best and get as many miles as possible in, just like his dad always did for him. I know that Scott would be so proud of Zane and all that he has accomplished throughout this ride.

Today’s ride was 40-ish miles into San Francisco. We got to all hang out, take pictures, and take in our accomplishment together on the north side of the bridge before biking across and meeting our family on the south side. It was an unforgettable feeling as the summer culminated into one moment where all 17 of us could be together one last time.

I have really enjoyed writing about this summer and sharing our adventures! I must admit, there were days that were much less fun than I tried to make them out to be. There were days when we were all so tired and sweaty and homesick and hungry that waking up tomorrow and doing it all again felt impossible. However, what we did this summer was not impossible. It wasn’t even hard. In fact, it was easy. Each morning we dedicated our ride to someone who was doing or had done something hard. Battling cancer is hard. Losing a loved one is hard. Supporting a friend or family through a diagnosis is hard. What we did was easy, and we were honored to do it for those who are out there fighting a hard fight each and every day. I’m thankful for the stories I heard and the impact they have had on my life. This has been a humbling summer and I will cherish these memories forever.

Thanks to those who followed along with us every day – especially parents, grandparents, friends, family members, and those we had the honor of meeting throughout this summer. If you have an I4Ker coming back home to you in a couple of days, I encourage you to hug them extra tight if you are into that sort of thing. This is a special group of people who are going to change this world! I also encourage you to not prepare them any oatmeal, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, or spaghetti for their meals (we are a little bit tired of these particular menu items).

Oh yeah and tell anyone and everyone to apply for the 2020 team :) anyone can, no matter how old you are or where you live or if you like creamy peanut butter more than crunchy peanut butter (even though your opinion on that matter is wrong). The link is on our homepage!

peace & blessings
-Kaitlin

P.S. my very kind team wanted to give me a shout-out, so here are their words! :)

Marie:
Kaitlin is by far the most positive person on the team. Even with 20 mph headwinds and 6000 feet of climbing she still keeps us in good spirits. She’s always there for us when we need a boost and there’s no way we could have made it across the country without her :)

Sisi:
Kaitlin is always super positive and supportive. We’re always excited to see her at the rest stops, and she helps us through the hard days. Coach K is awesome!

Brad:
Coach K is the best! She is one of the most positive, supportive, and genuine people I’ve ever had the pleasure to know. She does so much for the team and we wouldn’t be where we are without her! I’m definitely gonna miss her a lot when the ride is over!

Marc:
BIG shoutout to Kaitlin Block, our amazing teammate. She is always eager to help wherever she can, and she holds herself and her teammates to a high standard, going the extra mile to make sure each day goes as smoothly as possible. She is a huge asset to the asset to the team and this ride would have been much more difficult without her.

Mike:
Big shoutout to Kaitlin! She’s an incredibly kindhearted person that I look forward to seeing everyday at rest stops and either sharing my joy with her when I’m having a good day or letting her share some of her joy with me when I’m having a rough day. She is the friend that everybody needs and the glue that holds this team together. I don’t know where this team would be without her. Easily one of the greatest i4kers this organization has ever seen. Thank you for everything Kaitlin.

Zane:
Coach K! Coach Kaitlin! Coach Greatlin!
There’s no one on this team I’d rather be holed up with in the van for more than a month. I could only hope that Kaitlin would say the same for me. In all seriousness, getting to know Kaitlin one on one for so long has bettered me in more ways than just her friendship. It’s been a tough journey for me in some parts of this trip, and without having Kaitlin there I’m not quite sure what I would have done; I think everyone here could have said the same at one point in time. I don’t think we would have made it here without her. Also, the washer fluid is low.

Nathan:
Kaitlin has easily put in more miles on the road than any other member of the team. Driving everyday across the country is no easy task (especially the roads we go on). Additionally, she selflessly works to ensure that everyone is well nourished and in a good mood at rest stops. During hard days, she keeps everyone on task and her positivity helps keep morale high. When the riding gets tough, seeing her and the van is like finding an oasis in a desert. Kaitlin has a unique ability to make a normally bleak situation seem like a lively party. Kaitlin skillfully writes the rider blog behind the scenes, helping keep our friends and family in touch. The amount of work Kaitlin puts into the team is much greater than she gets back. She does SO MUCH for the team. Everything from shopping, sending postcards, driving us everywhere, writing the blog, and the exhausting task of keeping our spirits up. She even wrote everyone positive personal notes with candy for when we needed a boost. Kaitlin is a superhero to me. I’m glad to be on her team, and am so lucky to call her Coach K.

Howe:
Coach K is our best rider. She is always so positive. Every rest stop she prepares everything for us as well as a warm hug. Through the summer we get the best support from her no matter when we are biking or resting. She is the true MVP.

Ernie:
Kaitlin’s love for the state of Ohio, though misguided, demonstrates just how positive and compassionate she is no matter the circumstances. Her wisdom and levelheadedness made every curveball the ride threw our way much easier to overcome. We were incredibly lucky to have coach K rooting us on every mile of the way!!

Jon:
Words cannot begin to properly describe a person as wonderful as Kaitlin.
Her personality reminds me of the sun. Coach K, is simultaneously warm and comforting yet powerful enough to burn the atmosphere. Coach K tends to smile from her eyes and when you make eye contact with her it’s like staring into the grand prismatic. You can’t help but smile back. This ride has been amazing. We saw the giants of the redwoods, geysers of Yellowstone, endless starry nights and lakes hidden within mountains. Yet none of it is as amazing as Kaitlin!

Anisha:
Kaitlin, or Coach K as we love to call her, is truly the most genuine and warmhearted soul that I know. She boosts the team spirits up immensely every day and every single rest stop. I can not even put into words how much more difficult this journey would have been without her tremendous support along the way.

Cari:
A big shoutout to one Kaitlin Block, the heart and soul of our team! Kaitlin is a constant source of support and encouragement, making long days feel shorter and difficult roads feel achievable! Her encouragement, levelheadedness and tenacity help keep this team together, and I honestly don’t know if we’d have made it this far without her. Kaitlin always makes me feel better about myself and what we can all achieve, and I’m lucky to know her :)

Kirby:
Kaitlin Block is such a quality human that I’ve been to blessed to call one of my best friends in my time at Illinois. She’s the most positive, uplifting, and thoughtful person whose impact to the team is well beyond measure. Her support for each and every one of us has not wavered in the past 78 days. Truly the best.

Maria:
I want to give the biggest shoutout in the whole wide world to Kaitlin. For the past 4 years, Kaitlin has been the truest, kindest friend, supporter, and roommate I could have ever asked for. She is the most resilient person I know and she can make any situation fun and exciting! I admire Kaitlin so much and I cannot imagine my college experience or I4k without her. She makes every moment an adventure and makes every day brighter. The world needs more people like Kblock and I’m truly grateful to call her my friend and my teammate.

Day 76: Willits, CA to Healdsburg, CA

Today’s ride was dedicated to Ilse, Cari’s godmother from Germany. Ilse passed away from an undiagnosed cancer several years ago.We were honored to get to dedicate our ride today in remembrance of her.

Today’s ride was 67 miles (thanks to Nathan who shortened the route yet again!) in some pretty brutal heat down California Highway 101. We had several more flat tires, drank a ton of ice water, and showed down on a bunch of snacks. Because we only have a couple of days left, we are trying to clear out our food inventory (and apparently also our tire tube inventory).

Tonight we are staying at the Healdsburg Community Church, where we have showers and an awesome kitchen to cook s’mores in tonight :) dinner was provided to us by Marc’s parents – so HUGE thank you to them! We all went out to a Mexican restaurant and ate chips and salsa to our heart’s content. I’m thankful for this time with my team during these last couple of days.

I was thankful to get to hang out with Brad extra today as well! Brad is such an awesome person that I’m glad I have gotten to know throughout the summer. He is a graduated senior just like I am and is about to move to Indianapolis to start working at Rolls-Royce as an aerospace engineer (I know he has a fancy title but I don’t know enough about engineering to pass it along here). He is also extremely humble and I think downplays how awesome it is to have such an awesome job lined up right out of college. Throughout college he was a Resident Advisor and, while I did not live in his resident hall, I know he was a fantastic one. Brad is an excellent listener and has the best conversations due to his curiosity and the questions he asks simply in the spirit of wanting to learn and know more. I’m going to miss his fist bumps that he gives for support every day, and his positive outlook on life.

Day 75: Redwoods National Park, CA to Willits, CA

Today’s ride was dedicated to Brad’s grandmother, Alice. Alice passed away from ovarian cancer when Brad was very young, and he did not really have a chance to meet her. We proudly biked for Alice and for Brad, who is celebrating his birthday today.

Today was the last remaining long ride of the whole trip, clocking in at 91 miles. And it was a LONG day, we got into our stayover at Willits High School at 8pm. Thankfully, Steven’s parents offered to get the team dinner and we all got to eat Chinese food together at a team! We were so thankful especially after such a long day. The team had over 10 flats and ride in some pretty intense heat, and we did it with our morale still high :)

Nathan is such a one-of-a-kind person that we are BEYOND lucky to have on this ride. He does so much for the team that he should not and does not have to do, but he gladly does it to ensure that we all can have a safe and enjoyable ride each and every day. What he does is look at our route, go through literally every mile on Google Street view to check for gravel, construction, etc., and then will change our route to avoid such hazards. Sometimes, he cuts our routes down by MILES and/or cuts our climbing down by a significant amount. It is a huge deal and we all appreciate it beyond words. Nathan is also a huge adventurer and will always find something to climb, some road to bike down, or a sunrise to photograph. I’m especially thankful for the day we spend surfing in the Pacific Ocean! I think that will be one of the things I remember most about this whole entire trip.

Day 71, 72 & 73: Crescent City, CA to Eureka, CA

On Saturday, we shuttled straight to Crescent City, CA from Grants Pass, OR due to smoke coming from wildfires. We made it to our stayover in the early afternoon and had the evening to explore the town’s farmer’s market, cheese factory, thrift shops, and the beach! We finally reached the pacific ocean and got to see the sunset over it, which was absolutely unreal.

The next day was our scheduled Crescent City rest day where we went to breakfast, the beach, coffee shops, or just stayed inside and slept. I had a great time trying out surfing/boogie boarding with Nathan! I also got to try some freshly caught seafood. Being on the coast is still unreal and so beautiful! Huge thanks to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church for letting us stay for two nights and for providing us with warm showers.

It seems like we are (hopefully) in the clear from forest fires for the rest of the ride. We have been very cautious and are monitoring the air quality throughout the day. Biking is important, but our long-term health and returning safely to our friends and family is even more important.

This morning we dedicated our ride to Diane Godek. Diane is Nathan’s neighbor and is like a second mother to him. She is currently battling stage 3 cancer and is experiencing some complications. He has always been thankful for her kindness and positivity throughout her life, and still is thankful for it today. We were thinking about her and Nathan as we biked today. We were thinking of Nathan extra today as his grandfather passed away over the weekend. It is hard to be away from home during a time like this and we are thankful to have Nathan around for this last leg of the ride.

We were excited to get back on the bikes today after a few days off! It was no easy day, 85 miles and quite a bit of climbing. However, the ride along the coast and through the Redwoods made the time pass so quickly. We are in Eureka tonight where we are staying at the First United Methodist Church. We also got to shower at Planet Fitness (which has REALLY nice showers that we are SO thankful for)!

I once again have two amazing riders to shout-out in this post! I want to tell you all about two of my very good friends, Kirby and Anisha.

Kirby has been my friend for several years now and we both encouraged each other to apply for this experience. He has some biking experience under his belt and truly enjoys being on the bike each day! He is very speedy and efficient and could probably ride for 100+ miles every day. Kirby does a wonderful job with all of the social media accounts that hopefully you all have seen :) he gives the best ever hugs and is always there to listen to you on the good and bad days. I’m thankful to have done this trip with such a wonderful friend!

I did not know Anisha until we began training together this past spring, but I feel like she is a friend I have had for a long time. My favorite training memory (one of my top memories from this whole experience really) was with Anisha as we learned how to climb the huge hills of Illinois. I still laugh about that day and will always remember it. I remember talking about how each day is not a race, and how we wanted to take in every moment we could on the trip without rushing. I still enjoy that attitude about her so much. We all have hard days, and she does too, but she still talks about them with a smile on her face and a positive attitude. I know that if I needed anything at all. Anisha would help me out in a second no matter what. She will be applying to medical school soon and will make an excellent doctor one day, that is for sure.

Day 74: Eureka, CA to Redwoods National Park, CA

Today’s ride was dedicated to Thomas Henebery. During the ride into crater lake, a group of us ran into a super nice couple who had stopped to cheer us on and ask about our mission. Thomas was the father of one of the individuals, and had passed away from a brain tumor quite some time ago when treatment for cancer was not as advanced as it is now. We are honored to get to ride for Thomas and feel even more empowered to keep fundraising and keep giving those funds to further medical advancements.

Today was an absolutely beautiful ride into the Redwoods campground! It was only a 47 mile day and we were not able to check in to our campsite until 2pm. This meant that we were able to wake up and leave later, as well as stop at a diner for a whole team brunch. It was delicious and a fun time to get to take a break mid ride and hang out together. We also made a bunch of stops along the route at gift shops and to take in the amazing beauty of the Redwoods. I personally never look up photos of our destinations because I like to be surprised. The Redwoods blew me away – I did not know that they are the tallest trees in the whole world. I think that’s pretty cool! Our campsite was really nice and full of other families enjoying vacations in California. We got to eat together and take a hike down to the river. We also tried to climb some of the trees, and were somewhat successful.

Erin is an absolute superstar on this team. First of all, she is about to go to MIT in the fall to earn her PhD. No big deal (just kidding that’s a HUGE deal and she is extremely humble and rarely talks about it but I want you all to know)! Second of all, Erin would be a first round draft pick to any team in any situation. She is reliable, rational, consistent, and extremely safe. She is also super funny and has the best little witty jokes. She crushes it on the bike every day and is always a great person to be around. I’m going to miss her “welcome to breakfast” every morning in a couple of days when the trip wraps up!

Shuttle Day (We made it to CALIFORNIA!)

Today we shuttled straight to Crescent City, CA due to wild fires. We are all safe and excited for our scheduled rest day tomorrow! Stay tuned for regular blog posts beginning back up again Monday evening :)

Day 69 & Day 70: Crescent, OR to Grants Pass*, OR

So we had a slight change in plans to our route as you may have noticed. Originally, we were supposed to go from Crescent, Oregon to Crater Lake National Park, and then the next day ride into Grants Pass. Unfortunately, there was a forest fire that went through the Crater Lake area and caused some damage to our campsite we were due to stay at. So instead of biking to that campsite, we shuttled from the viewpoint at Crater Lake into Grants Pass. Thankfully we still got to see beautiful Crater Lake, we knew about our campsite being closed before we biked there and we got a full refund, and the stayover hosts in Grants Pass were so kind and let us stay here an extra night and during our impromptu rest day today.

Our ride to Crater Lake was dedicated to Patricia Nelson. Patricia is a family friend of Viraat’s who hosted him back when we were in Cleveland. She recently found out that she has breast cancer, which is an impossibly difficult thing for anyone to find out. We biked with her and her family in mind as they process that news and begin the fight ahead of them.

Riding into Crater Lake was stunning. I know that many of us did not know what to expect, and at mile 53 when the lake finally came into view we were amazed. Crater Lake is a really cool area formed from volcanoes and rain/snow water deposits. The water was so unbelievably blue! I know that everyone always says that about any body of water, but seriously it was SO blue. While one group of riders shuttled to the stayover, the other group stayed and saw the sun set over the lake.

Our wonderful generous stayover for the past two nights has been St. Paul’s Lutheran church. They not only let us stay two nights on short notice, they also cooked us two dinners and two breakfasts. We are so thankful for them! They also arranged for us to have showers and laundry which was above and beyond anything we could have asked for. We were thankful for everything and for having a place to stay out of the smoke.

With two days passing I have two teammates to brag about!

First up: Jonathan (Jon as many of us call him)! Jon is a great teammate and a really strong biker. On the road, he is very deliberate with communicating with cars, and you never question what he is doing. He packs our van every single morning with all of our stuff, and he does an amazing job at it. Jon is also not afraid to speak up & out on his own behalf or the behalf of his friends. He is hands-down the most fashionable person on the team and somehow packed his entire stylish closet in his one backpack?? Not sure how he did that, but it is awesome and so is he!

Next up: Sisi. Sisi is a person who just gets more and more interesting the more that you talk to her. She has had so many life experiences and has a lot of stories to share. She loves sailing and enjoys deliberately getting lost in order to have an adventure. She is full of surprises and never fails to keep a day interesting! Sisi is also almost done with her PhD with is incredibly exciting. She does research on Ovarian cancer which is important and relevant to this trip.

Day 67 & 68: Bend, OR to Crescent, OR

Yesterday was our rest day in the amazing city of Bend! We all had a great time exploring, picking out Christmas gifts (Illini 4000 Christmas is on July 25th), and having some time to ourselves.

Today’s ride was dedicated to an individual that we had the chance to meet in Bend on our rest day, Al Hubard. Al is a cancer survivor who has also biked across the country from Virginia Beach to the Pacific Coast. He had a very inspiring story and we are happy to report that he is cancer free, and has an incredibly positive and uplifting attitude.

Today was a super short ride: only 47 miles into Crescent, OR. We got to the stayover before noon and were able to go to the market and get some food and relax. We all hung out for a bit before starting our ride in review meeting, which was a chance for us to reflect on the things that went great during the summer, and the things that could go even better in the future. After that, we all ate FREE Taco Bell for dinner thanks to a generous donation from the La Pine Taco Bell. We are staying in an abandoned restaurant/mall this evening. I promise it is way more awesome than it sounds! Free bowling all night and a lot of places to explore.

In short, today was a great day :)

A great part of my day was getting to watch a movie with Cari at the stayover! Cari is an awesome person and I am glad I have gotten to know her over the course of this ride. She has done all of the really cool artwork on our van which has allowed us to be more easily recognized no matter where we are. She is a part of the dinner chore, and does a great job portioning out food to make sure that everyone gets a fair amount. I also appreciate her passion for social justice and the fact that she will speak up and out when she sees or hears something that doesn’t feel right to her. I know that she was very apprehensive to do this ride (because who wouldn’t feel a little nervous!?) but she is absolutely killing it on the bike every day. She has taken some spills, but got back up stronger than ever.

Day 66: Maupin, OR to Bend, OR

Today’s ride was dedicated to Leon and Justin. Leon is the husband of Cari’s mom’s college roommate, and Justin is their son. They are both battling prostate cancer and are remaining incredibly positive throughout the entire process.

We had another very hot and pretty long ride today: 91 miles almost entirely uphill into Bend, OR. We took frequent water stops, pulled over into restaurants and gas stations, and found as much shade as possible to help the day go by safely! We also had a wonderful ice cream donation from Cold Stone Creamery that made the last 20 miles so much better!!!

Tonight’s stayover is at the Foundry Church which is in the beautiful, downtown part of Bend! There are so many restaurants and shops nearby that we are all excited to explore on our rest day tomorrow! We are mega ultra thankful to Marie for finding this stayover. Our original plan was going to be camping in our tents in the parking lot of a local cafe due to the fact that we could not find an indoor stayover. Marie made a couple of calls and made this happen, including in-house laundry and a ton of room for everybody to spread out. We are SO thankful and happy to be here.

I have got to tell you all about Zihao, who is the team favorite. Seriously, it is impossible to not love this kid. He is absolutely hilarious and can make anybody laugh at any time, even on the hardest of days. If he senses that someone is down (they don’t even have to say a word about it), he will offer to help in any way that he can and will bring people back up by asking them questions, telling stories, or just being his hilarious self. Even when Zihao himself is not having the best day, he is still enjoyable to be around and will never, ever take his not-so-good day out on other people. He has an extensive knowledge about basketball and I know that I have personally learned a lot from him and enjoy hearing him talk about something he is so passionate about. Zihao would be the perfect person to have on your team in any sort of situation because he would always be positive and reliable, and everybody on this team especially knows that. I’m thankful that I have gotten to know Zihao on this trip, and thankful for his reducing fractions (today is day 11/13!) and discussing prime numbers with me.

Day 65: Goldendale, WA to Maupin, OR

Today we dedicated our ride to Kenneth Ballom, who battled a brain cancer diagnosis. We met Kenneth’s father the other day in Pullman, WA. He had recognized our support van and saw the Illini paint on it and asked us if we were from Champaign. It turned out that his father, Kenneth, used to be a vice chancellor there, and they were both from Illinois originally. We were excited to hear about his story and to talk about Illinois with someone who knew the area!

It is HOT out there now, folks, we have been outrunning summer so far but today it finally caught up to us. Today was a 71 mile day that we thankfully finished fairly quickly before it got too extremely hot out there for us. We had some truly beautiful downhills today: one into Oregon and one into the Deschutes River Valley. It is interesting because we are on the east side of Oregon that does not get much rain, so today was a ride through the desert! Tonight we are at Maupin Junior High School where we are lucky to have in-house showers! That is big time after such a hot day.

Another very important person on our team is one of our ride leaders: Steven. Steven did the ride in 2016 when he was a freshman, and had one of the most impactful experiences of his life. He applied to be a ride leader this year to give back that life-changing experience to all of us on the ride, and he has definitely accomplished that. The team agrees that we probably would have had a difficult time ever getting out of New York if it wasn’t for Steven. He has kept us really organized and has strived to run a tight ship since day one. He is really good at calling for food donations and has secured us countless meals and showers. He is always down to pull off of the road for something cool and engage with any and every stranger that we meet. He is a great, safe leader and I am really thankful to have spent the summer getting to know him and learning from him.

Day 64: Yakima, WA to Goldendale*, WA

Today’s ride was dedicated to Sister Regina Dubickas. Sister Regina is a friend of Viraat’s father, and is currently battling cancer. She is fighting hard and with such admirable strength, and we thought of her throughout the day while we biked our last full day in Washington.

You may notice that our original route has us in Maryhill State Park this evening instead of in Goldendale. Originally, the plan was to bike to the State Park and then camp tonight. However, camping after a long day of biking is not always the most comfortable, especially at this time of year when the heat is starting to take hold. We were really excited when Viraat reached out to the Father’s House Fellowship and they told us that we could use their church to sleep in tonight. Instead of camping in the heat, we were able to stay in this wonderful facility that has in-house showers AND laundry (so good because the last time we did laundry was 2 weeks ago and things were getting a little smelly)! 75 miles up hills in the heat is a lot easier to do when you know that you have a comfortable place to stay that night when you are done, that is for sure!

In two weeks, we will be in San Francisco! I am not sure where the time has gone, but I know that I am excited for these next couple of weeks with this wonderful team.

Our team would not be nearly as wonderful if it wasn’t for Mike, one of our ride leaders. Mike completed the ride just one year ago in 2018! It was really fun to get to do the ride with him because he so vividly remembers a lot of our stayovers and knows a lot of the cool spots in town to show us. On the days that we bike a different route from his year, Mike is always down to explore cafes or cliffs or anything that comes up along the way. He collects license plates that he finds on the side of the road – which I didn’t think would be a common occurrence, but he has at least 25 license plates by now if I had to guess, and it is fun to see what he has collected by the end of the day. Not only is Mike an adventurous person who genuinely enjoys biking and finds adventure in every day, he is hands down the most kind and patient person I have ever met (and the whole team agrees with me about this). You can go to Mike for anything at all and he will be there to listen and help. He is a trustworthy leader and also an amazing friend to everybody on the team. Sometimes it can be easy for tensions to run a little high when you are around the same people for 70+ days, but Mike is always there to remind us that we are a team and should always be kind to one another. I have learned a lot from Mike about how to be a good friend and a great leader, and we are all thankful that he was selected to help lead us across the country.

Day 63: Connell, WA to Yakima, WA

Today’s ride was dedicated to Tammy, a good friend of Marie’s mom. Tammy is a breast cancer survivor who has undergone many different surgeries and a year of chemo during her battle with cancer. She has always remained positive and it was an honor to dedicate the ride to her today.

Well, today’s ride was supposed to be the longest remaining ride of the trip ringing in at 96 miles. However, we ended up shuttling for about 35 miles due to some smoke coming from wildfires in the distance. It was really far away from us, but the fact that we could see the smoke in the air was enough for us to get off of the bikes and shuttle to where there was no more smoke visible at all. Shuttling creates a different kind of long day that involves a lot more waiting around than biking, but we had a nice time getting to hang out together and did get to finish the ride after we were past the smoke!

Tonight we are staying at the Wesley United Methodist Church. They are so kind and cooked us some food, shuttled us to showers, and gave us 12 whole bags of fresh cherries! I did not know that cherries are primarily grown in the state of Washington, and they are DELICIOUS. We also got some food donations from some area restaurants that made for a really big dinner ensuring we are all going to bed stuffed :)

You might recall from previous posts that Marc is our team mechanic, and I really want to emphasize how much he does for the team! Our bikes are definitely the most important tool that we have in this adventure of cycling across the country. Bikes are a little more fragile than cars in the sense that if one little thing is off, the whole vehicle can be off. Marc used to work as a mechanic in his local bike shop and he knows a TON about bikes. He has been able to fix almost every single bike problem both big and small no matter what. He always offers to work on people’s bikes at any hour of the day, even if it is during the middle of the ride at a rest stop and he has not even gotten a snack or a drink of water yet. You can tell that he enjoys the work and he offers so often that you don’t even feel bad asking for help, which is really important because it means that if someone has the tiniest of issues, they don’t feel intimidated to ask Marc for help because he is so open and will never make you feel bad for not knowing how to fix it yourself. I think that’s such an important characteristic to have as a teammate, and it is something I really appreciate about Marc. I have learned a lot about bikes from him and continue to learn more and more each day!

Day 62: Pullman, WA to Connell, WA

Today’s ride was dedicated to Joe Wadden. Joe is a friend of Steven’s Aunt Gail, and is currently undergoing treatment for metastatic kidney cancer. Joe has a wife, a 9 year-old daughter, and a 7 year-old son who he is fighting hard for. He rode his bike across the United States about 30 years ago (so cool!) and intends to do it again some day. We hope that Joe is able to follow along with our cross-country adventure and will be able to set out on another of his own soon!

Today was a long trek: 101 miles with a 15+ mile per hour headwind the entire route. It seemed that no matter what direction we turned, the wind kept blowing right in our faces. Nevertheless, we kept pedaling and kept moving. We biked through the rolling hills of wheat that turned into rolling hills of rocks – none of us knew what to expect from this part of Washington but it certainly has not been like we imagined it would be!

Tonight we are staying at Connell High School where we are lucky to be warm (it’s pretty chilly outside – sorry to our IL friends and family going through this heat wave!) and dry and clean because of their awesome facilities that include showers. We also want to thank the Pizza Station for providing the whole team with a delicious dinner tonight complete with a salad bar to make sure we have our nutrients!

Today was tough for a lot of riders, but Viraat especially kept morale very high today and I definitely want to say more about him & his spirit! I remember doing my Illini 4000 formal interview AND physical try-out with Viraat and I was thankful through both that he was very positive and a very thoughtful person. Viraat notices when people are down and always goes out of his way to ask if he can do anything or will just keep up his own positive attitude to spread to others. He is always there to help out, lighten the mood, or simply be by your side through a tough day. Viraat is also our Portraits director while on the ride, which means he is in charge of the filming and organization of our Portraits – definitely the most important thing we do on the ride. We all like to poke fun at him a little bit for his “Portraits Pitch” (he uses the word serendipitous every time he talks about Portraits – Viraat definitely has a large and unique vocabulary!), but I admire his passion for the Portraits Project and know that he believes each and every word he says and genuinely wants to hear people’s stories. He has met so many people on this ride just by starting up a conversation, and many of our ride dedications have been found because of his passion for talking to others.
He is also famous for turning anything you say into a pun (I guess you could say he is punstoppable).

Day 61: Plummer, ID to Pullman, WA

Today’s ride was dedicated to Richard Hill, Sherry Hoon, and Becky Campbell. All three of these individuals are people we met during our ride a couple of days ago into Mullan. Richard is a survivor of kidney cancer who has been cancer free for five years! He means the world to his family and it was an honor to be able to ride for him today. Sherry Hook is a breast cancer survivor (!!!!!!), and Becky Campbell is currently battling breast cancer. We are thinking of Becky and her fight ahead of her and admire both her and Sherry’s strength.

Our ride today was 57 miles (for most groups – one group had a little 10-mile detour and made it a 67 mile day) into Pullman, WASHINGTON! We have officially reached the west coast!!!! We have not seen the pacific yet, but knowing it is at the other side of this state is incredible. The ride today was pretty windy and absolutely beautiful. It is pretty crazy how drastically the scenery changes when we enter a new state. So far we have seen rolling hills with wheat and a lot of pine trees.

Tonight we are at the Emmanuel Baptist Church and it is AMAZING! We are able to sleep in their very comfortable community room and are also able to hang out in their youth room – complete with air hockey and video games. The church members were so kind to us and grilled us burgers and hot dogs and provided salads, chips, cookies, fruits & veggies, and other treats! They are also cooking us some breakfast casseroles for the morning which we are extremely thankful for. There are definitely many teammates who have grown pretty tired of our oatmeal breakfast so it will be extra special to change it up a bit :)

Today I want to highlight the iconic Marie Hubbard! Marie is such a character and adds so much to this team. Her iconic sayings have become integrated into my own vocabulary and will probably always be a part of the way that I speak. Marie is a natural leader who is very organized herself and keeps our group on track so much. She is always one of the first people ready in the morning and is always helping others with their tasks while encouraging people to be a little more speedy (which is very necessary when everyone is groggy in the morning). Marie was only a freshman this past year, which I would never have guessed just by knowing her. She is an incredibly responsible teammate and an excellent rider. I know that I do not only speak for myself when I say that I would trust Marie to accomplish any task and would want her on my team through any type of situation on and off of the bike. She will be on the board next year and will help pick the 2020 Bike America Team and will contribute to the decisions that the organization will make. I couldn’t think of a better person to represent the 2019 team and am so thankful to have spent the summer around her!
(and that’s the tea!)

Day 60: Mullan, ID to Plummer, ID

Today’s ride was dedicated to Sandy. Sandy is a close friend of Steven’s mom, and is currently battling renal cancer. She is staying incredibly strong fighting the fight with her family right by her side. We thought of her and her family and friends all throughout the day as we biked.

Today was 72 miles from Mullan to Plummer Idaho entirely on a trail!!!!! And this trail was paved and absolutely beautiful. We had a fun treat today because we got to play music out loud on our bikes due to the fact that we were exclusively on a trail and therefore did not have to worry about any cars around us. Of course we kept it to a reasonable level so that we could still hear each other, and it sure made the day go a lot faster! Along the way, we say an old mine, a moose, and a lot of kind people.

Tonight we are staying at Lakeside High School in Plummer. We were able to shower, swim, AND use the hot tub at the Marimn Health Wellness Center thanks to Terry who is a local and was able to talk to the staff there. We were really excited to get to relax and swim and take our time there. We are also getting various food items from generous nearby restaurants who donated to us! The team has gotten pretty good at calling for food donations: this evening everyone was on the phone making 109 calls (but who’s counting) in order to make sure we had enough food for the team! It was a really fun team effort.

It is so weird/sad/exciting to say that I am getting down to the last couple of weeks of posting on the blog each day. I love doing the rider shout-outs, and I’m going to switch it up a little bit and do some longer posts about each rider starting today and continuing until we cross the Golden Gate Bridge. Maybe these posts will reach them, and maybe they won’t, but I want all of you out there to know a little bit more about each of these very special teammates of mine:

The first rider to be written about is going to be my good pal and honorary lil’ brother Zane Inman. Zane is from a small midwestern town just like myself, and he understands how important Casey’s gas stations are and is able to be confused about the Chicago suburbs just like I am. Zane does not like biking. Which is really funny, because this is, after all, a cross-country bike tour. Zane joined the Illini 4000 under the impression that it was a casual cycling club. Zane’s dad passed away after battling cancer when Zane was in high school. His dad enjoyed casual cycling and so Zane figured he would try out a cycling club. When he found out the mission of the organization was to fund cancer research and patient support services, he knew it was fate and that he had to do this trip. Hearing about Zane’s dad from him & his mom during a portrait back in Paxton IL really impacted me and several others on the team who were present. Zane still does not like biking. Nevertheless, he puts himself out there every day and does the thing. When I ask him how the day is going, I know he is going to be real with me. Sometimes he says “not that great” other times he says “today is a good day.” There is value in being positive, and there is also value in being real with one another and sharing our struggles and how we are doing and what keeps us pedaling every day. I’m thankful to have spent all of this time with Zane and have loved hearing about his dad and all of the great memories they have together. I also like his jokes even though sometimes they really aren’t that good (sorry buddy). Big shout-out to Zane’s mom & aunt, who I know give him a lot of strength on hard days.

Stay tuned for more rider info over the next couple of weeks! We are already leaving Idaho tomorrow and entering Washington state on the west coast. I am already sentimental about this team if you can’t tell!

Day 59: Superior, MT to Mullan, ID

(written in the Pacific Time Zone!!!!!!!)

Today’s ride was dedicated to Donna, who is the mother of Marie’s friend’s. Donna has a tumor in her throat, and this is her third time having cancer. At the current time, she has a lot of trouble with speaking due to her tumor, but has no trouble remaining positive for herself and her family and everyone around her. Such strength and positivity is what drives us every day to get through even the toughest days.

Today was about a 67 mile day that took a bit longer than expected! We began our day on normal roads, and then had planned on being on trails throughout the rest of the day. However, when we approached the trails it was evident that the trails were designed for mountain bikes, which would not be the best for our road bikes! Mountain bikes typically have larger and heavier tires that allow a person to go over rocks without skidding or losing control, and allows you to climb and go down rocky roads like this trail was. Our road bikes are, as named, mostly meant for paved roads due to their smaller tires that are kept at a higher tire pressure (say that five times fast). SO, we had a little reroute onto interstate 90, which we have rode on in several states now because a lot of states out west allow bikes on their interstates. Despite detours, we made it into Idaho and the Pacific Time Zone, therefore gaining an hour!

Tonight we are lucky to be at the Mullan Athletic Pavilion, where we have been able to make ourselves at home and take warm showers. At this point, we are undoubtedly the cleanest team in Illini 4000 history. A combination of luck and determination has allowed us to find showers in well over 85% of the places we have been thus far. The athletic pavilion also has basketball and volleyball which we have been playing all night, having a really great time.

Today’s shout-out goes to Mike, who was awesome in the van today. The reroutes were pretty stressful because we were in a part of the mountains that did not receive service, but Mike thought through every possibility and made sure that all of the teams were safe and together and knew the plan. We know he is not excited that his bike is broken and he is in the van, but he is a trooper anyway and always positive, supportive, and great to be around.

Day 57 & 58: Missoula, MT to Superior*, MT

Our rest day in Missoula was so much fun!!!! We started our day off touring the Adventure Cycling facilities. Adventure Cycling is a non for profit organization that leads groups of cyclists all around America throughout the year. We even derived our early Illini 4000 routes from their organization because the routes are very safe and cycling friendly. It was awesome to see some old bicycles around the room and read stories of cross country cyclists that came before us. After that, we split off and some group members went white water rafting, while others decided to take a more restful approach to the rest day and hang out at coffee shops, diners, and other local establishments. At the end of the day we all came together for a free meal at Five on Black (think, a Chipotle style restaurant but for Brazilian food!) and then had some ice cream before calling isna successful day off.

This morning we dedicated our ride to Viraat’s neighbor Tony Spicer. Tony is currently battling cancer, and we kept him and his family in mind throughout our ride today.

Our ride today was an easy 57 miles, except for it wasn’t that easy because we managed to get ourselves into some adventures today! There are times as I’m sure you know where Google maps leads you astray and you end up where maybe you shouldn’t be. Today, we were on a gravel road that eventually ended and lead to someone’s private property. After some impromptu hiking with our bikes, bridge climbing, and a lot of hard pedaling on gravel, we made it into Superior Montana (our website says Riverbend – this is the town just up the road!) with a lot of time to relax.

Our stayover this evening is the amazing air-conditioned Superior Community Church, complete with warm showers and a delicious home cooked meal. We are thankful to be here during our last night in Montana!

A huge shout-out for Marc and his family for sending us food on our rest day! We ate a lot of it today and it kept spirits high

(also shout-out to my own family for the snacks and words of encouragement, I love you!)

Day 56: Drummond, MT to Missoula, MT

Today’s ride was dedicated to Jodi’s brother-in-law Kelly Flynn, who has renal cancer. Jodi is the amazing librarian in Drummond who invited us into the library to present about our organization and she and her husband provided us with refreshments. We were thankful to meet her and honored to dedicate the ride to her brother-in-law.

Our ride today was beautiful once again through Montana into Missoula. The first 20 miles were very eventful. Our route on the frontage road next to I-90 was partially closed due to a landslide from the neighboring mountain! Luckily because we are on bikes, we were able to navigate around the rocks and did not have to change our route (our route had already been changed by the amazing Nathan who cut our day down from 90 miles to 55 miles!!!) and were able to continue on. Along the way we also found a “hot springs” which could probably be renamed to warm/cold springs. They were absolutely beautiful and we enjoyed a little morning swim before getting on the bikes to finish the rest of the ride.

The rider shout-out for today goes to Maria for being incredibly helpful in the van! She is off the bike for a little bit due to doctor’s orders but continues to be an amazing part of the team and always a smiling and kind face to see at each rest stop. She helps have snacks ready and fills water bottles and is all around an amazing and supportive teammate!

We are staying at the Grace United Methodist Church for the next 2 days and are thankful for their in-house showers and the food they have provided us. We are thrilled to be in Missoula and have a rest day tomorrow! Our last rest day was spent camping in the Tetons, which was beautiful and a ton of fun, but being inside and being able to sleep in past sunrise will truly feel so restful and is necessary as we set out to complete our last 20 days of this adventure.

Day 55: Butte, MT to Drummond, MT

Today’s ride was dedicated to Marie’s neighbor Tasha. Tasha has had several experiences with cancer, including her husband passing away after a battle with cancer, and having a current diagnosis of her own. Tasha has a young son that she is raising while fighting cancer and while staying positive throughout her experiences. We were honored to ride in memory of her husband and with her current battle in mind.

Today was an 80 mile day into Drummond Montana. Montana reminds us a little more of the Midwest in terms of having a bunch of little towns along our route, and we were excited to get to stop at some gas stations and stores for our rest stops compared to the side of the road stops we have done lately. We got to do a beautiful climb and descent up and down a mountain (easier said than done but everyone killed it as always!) and we arrived at our stayover at a decent time today.

Our stayover today is Drummond High School. They have graciously provided us a place to sleep, showers, and food!!!! We ate soup, bread, chili, salad, and cookies. After dinner, we went to an event at the local library where we got to present about our mission to community members! They were amazing and engaged and had a lot of questions that we had fun answering. Then we went to a little bonfire with smores and games. Such an awesome night where we feel right at home!

Today’s shout-out goes to Zihao. Zihao’s chore involves inventorying our cooler every evening and night to make sure that our food stays good and we always know what we have. He and his chore partner Anisha had a brilliant idea to save the ice/make our own ice every night where a freezer is available to make sure that we don’t ever have to buy ice from a gas station. It seems like a little thing, but buying a bag of ice each day really adds up over 78 days. Zihao is also constantly positive and makes everybody laugh, which is so valuable on some of these tough days out west.

Day 54: Bozeman, MT to Butte, MT

Yesterday while at a rest stop, we had the chance to talk to a lot of community members and share our mission with them. We heard many stories of those affected by cancer, and today we dedicated our ride to two of those individuals: Robert Martes who has battled bladder cancer and Julie Caldwell who has battled lung cancer.

Today’s ride was 97 miles, so almost a century! We made great time as we biked through the beautiful mountainous roads of Montana and got to have lunch at the Lewis & Clark State Park. The end of the ride had a steep 12 mile, 2,000 foot climb and then a beautiful descent into Butte, where we are lucky to stay tonight.

We are so thankful to be staying at the Abundant Life Fellowship this evening. They have so much room for us and in-house, warm showers, which are extra nice after such a long ride today. We are also thankful to be getting food this evening in the form of pizza, sandwiches, and food from the Montana Rib & Chop House. Our team has done an awesome job with calling pretty much every food establishment in every town we have gotten to stay in and have been successful almost every day finding generous restaurants that donate food to us.

Today’s shout-out definitely goes to Viraat. He has really lead the charge to call all of these restaurants in his down time. It makes a huge difference in team morale to have local food, so we are thankful for Viraat and all of his work!