Mountains? We got ‘em! As we celebrated our first official week of riding together, the team rode a little over 70 miles back into Pennsylvania. We saw breathtaking sights from the Appalachian mountains, although that does indeed mean what you’ve probably already inferred — yes, we did have to climb them. Or in some cases, go under them! As our teammate Logan wisely said, “you can’t go around it, you can’t go under it… gotta go over or through it.”

ride overview

Mileage: 70.9

Elevation: 4,603’

Points of Interest: The Mason Dixon Line, returning to Pennsylvania, the Whistle Stop Deli & Market, Burnt Cabins Grist Mill & Campground, Cowans Gap State Park

quote of the day

tales of the trail

The I4K team had a somewhat interesting night, as around 10:30 p.m. (only an hour and a half after bedtime), they all woke up to an accidentally triggered motion sensor (except for Claudia, who magically slept through EVERYTHING and is still convinced this is all an elaborate lie we’re telling her). The security glitch combined with a whirlwind first week of cycling has the team further convinced that we will never experience a completely normal day this summer. 

We rolled out of Hagerstown, MD around 7:00 a.m. for a mountainous day in Northern Maryland and Southern Pennsylvania. Things started out relatively flat (we should’ve known it wouldn’t last for long), as we made our way to Mason Dixon Road, a portion of the Mason-Dixon line which separates the states of Pennsylvania and Maryland. We officially re-entered Pennsylvania, which we’ll be cycling through for the next three days. We unanimously agreed that the wheat fields are much prettier than our home cornfields, and enjoyed the view while trying not to think about the implication of the looming mountains in the distance.

A favorite aspect of these full day rides is encountering assorted local cafes and shops along the route. A highlight of today was a quick stop we made at the Whistle Stop Deli & Market, a newly opened business in the small town of Mercersburg, PA. We enjoyed drinks and sandwiches, a much needed restroom stop, and chatted with the store owner about the impact of cancer on their tight-knit community. Hearing people’s stories is forever at the center of our journey with Illini 4000, and it’s been amazing to get to know so many unique people in just one week.

Despite our frequent references to the climbs as though they’re some sort of horror movie villain, various members of our team do really enjoy them. The Appalachian mountains have brought beautiful views to our eyes, and quite a bit of wear to our legs. We’re all very excited for our new insanely large leg muscles to grow in (hopefully before we get to the rockies out west). The growing pains are here and severe, and a few of our riders are already experiencing a bit of unpleasant knee pain, keeping them off the route for sections at a time. However, as we get to know our bikes and bodies better, we’re learning how to take care of ourselves and conquer the obstacles ahead of us as a team.

Making our way through Cowans Gap State Park, we mainly found passes between the mountains to travel along, but eventually we had no other choice than to go — through them? An abandoned Pennsylvanian highway has been fashioned into a couple of tunnels running through the mountains, which we enjoyed exploring with our bike lights (they also made for a very unique location to get a flat tire). 

A couple of the hardest climbs we’ve encountered as a team rounded off the end of the ride, bringing both length and steepness in force to tire out our legs in time for a delicious dinner at Everett United Methodist Church in our destination of Everett, PA. An enormous thank you to the Everett community and the church for sharing a delicious meal with us and allowing us to share our mission with them. As we continue on this ride, we are endlessly wowed by the amount of love and support we have been shown from the communities we encounter. We’re all able to forget about the pain in our legs a bit when we’re eating an amazing  meal with beautiful people.

cyclist’s corner

Today’s rider: Olaf Schwink

How are you feeling today?

I’m feeling good today. The ride was long in climbs, but the time that it took felt shorter than other days. I think that we kept a good pace even though there were a lot of climbs. Physically, I was really exhausted today and my knee started hurting, but I figured out a way to pedal that felt better and I killed it. We made it through.

What make and model of bicycle are you riding?

A 2024 bright red Trek Domane AL4.

Before joining Illini 4000, how much bike training had you done, and did you have any other athletic background that you feel prepared you for this ride?

My biking experience was just commuting. I’ve biked since I was a little kid, but just short rides — nothing too extreme. My longest before the ride was 50 miles for a boy scouts merit badge. Other than communing, I haven’t done any hardcore cycling in the last few years. I’ve always done things that were athletic, just not a lot of organized sports. But, I stay active — I hike, and one of my biggest things for a while has been skating. I started on longboard and I moved on to inline skates.

What has been your favorite part of the ride so far?

I was surprised at how fast our team grew to be friends. We’ve only been riding bikes together for seven days but it already feels like we’re kind of a tightknit unit. I also feel like everyone is a really valuable part of that unit.

Is there anyone you’re doing this ride for, or any specific person you think of when you’re on the ride?

I don’t think there’s a specific person. I feel like I’m doing it for a lot of different reasons. Part of it is to test myself and my resilience. My sister has done this ride two times now, and she encouraged me a lot. I saw the way that it changed her when she went on her first ride. When she finished it, I think that she was more thoughtful — not that she wasn’t thoughtful before, just that she had a different view on others. Then her second ride, it did the same thing. I really wanted to have an experience that would allow me to talk to people from a lot of different places and learn about the differences between them.

Is there anything you want to say to the people who are cheering you on during this ride?

I’m gonna make it. Just like how today there were lots of hills to climb, on this ride there are gonna be a lot of challenges to overcome. The thing is, after the hills come the descents — they’re really fun, and when you hit the curve at the bottom, you get to lean in super hard. In the same way, the challenges that we face on this journey lead to really close relationships and really awesome times and experiences that I could never have in any other thing in my life.

Is there anything else you’d like to talk about?

My cat… I always wanna talk about my cat. I miss her a lot.

(Apologies for any bad photo quality — our Wi-Fi access has been a bit inconsistent lately!)

(A reminder that any unfamiliar terms can be found in our handy I4K dictionary.)