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!