The team was incredibly happy (and a little relieved) to enjoy a shorter 50 mile day — yes, we’re aware of how insane that sounds — riding into the historic city of Pittsburgh, PA. With quite a bit of soreness in our legs from yesterday, we crossed many of Pittsburgh’s 446 bridges, did a little climbing, and a lot of trail riding. We’re slowly but steadily getting adjusted to this new lifestyle, but have gotten quicker at our team routines and arrived before 1 p.m. This left us with time to explore the city, eat some great food, and even get some laundry in!

Ride Overview

Mileage: 51.1

Elevation: 2,582’

Points of Interest: Great Allegheny Passage, Monongohala River, McKee’s Point Trailhead, Youghiogheny River, Dead Man’s Hollow Conservation Area, Pittsburgh!

Quote of the day

Tales of the Trail

We had a glorious 5:40 a.m. wake-up this morning as opposed to our usual 4:40 a.m., as we went to bed an hour later last night knowing we had a much shorter day ahead. After a bit of morning push-up time for some team members to get caught up on their daily workout challenge, we set off for Pittsburgh looking forward to a little less climbing and a little more relaxation.

The ride started a little cruel with a good deal of elevation, which wore on our sore legs more than any of us wanted it to. The back-to-back aspect of the ride has stayed one of the most challenging things, as keeping ourselves energized can be difficult in day after day of heat. However, the closeness of our team has been incredibly helpful in pushing ourselves through. Reminding ourselves that we went through much worse yesterday, we powered through the rolling hills of Pennsylvania to hop on the Great Allegheny Passage, which we spent a good deal of the ride following.

We took two quick rest stops, and although we shoot more for convenience on these and less for scenery, one was underneath a bridge! Simple as it may sound, bridges are one of those wonders that we only realize we never see in Illinois once we leave. The bridges of the Pittsburgh area are gorgeous, and allow for some truly stunning views — and top tier selfies of course.

We hit Pittsburgh quickly enough, ending the shorter ride on a particularly steep stretch of a cobblestone street. Our team is still finding their comfort level with difficult terrain — some of us choose to get off our bikes and walk when things look sketchy, while others enjoy barreling uphill as fast as we can like Tour de France riders. Again, the community we’ve developed within our team has made it easy for us to communicate about what conditions we’re comfortable riding in. No one is ever pressured to ride on roads in even slightly scary conditions; going the old-fashioned way and walking is always an option!

Our stayover for the night is one of the most beautiful buildings we’ve ever seen (Riddhima would gladly make this her future house if she could). Formerly the mansion of an old oil baron, when the original owner of the building passed away he swore on his life for it to never be used by people of color or people within the Jewish religion. So, the building has now been turned into a Jewish Temple :) Our hosts threw a lovely community dinner for us, which we enjoyed after an afternoon of exploring bike shops, restaurants, and even an REI store in Pittsburgh.

We look forward to a longer day tomorrow with roughly the same amount of climbing — which means it’s more spread out! Looking on the bright side here — and would like to thank you again for reading and sharing some very optimistic comments with us. They truly are what keep us pedaling day after day :)

Cyclist’s Corner

Today’s Rider: Izzy Perpich

How are you feeling today?

I’m pretty good, I’m pretty tired. I think I caught someone’s cold so I’m a little sniffly, but the trip’s been going good so far — I feel like there were some ups and downs in the beginning, but now it seems like we’re starting to iron out some of our issues. We’ve been getting to our stayovers a little earlier, which is nice. It’s nice to see the progress from Week 1. It’s been really cool so far.

What make and model of bicycle are you riding?

A silver Cannondale Optimo 4. It’s aluminum. 

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?

I wouldn’t really say that I was a cyclist and I honestly don’t think I’m a cyclist currently. Yes, I ride a bicycle and I do that motion, but I’ve never ridden like this before. Growing up, I rode a lot of bikes with my parents in Michigan and Chicago on the Lakefront Trail… I was a bike instructor my first job. I taught kids how to ride bikes when I was sixteen at a summer camp in Chicago. And, I’ve been biking as a form of transportation at U of I to get to classes… Not a ton of cycling. I am on the women's hockey team at U of I, which has definitely kept me conditioned for a ride like this, but I think that even playing hockey or those faster sprints don’t prepare you fully for the longevity of the rides that we do.

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

All the trails. I really enjoyed exploring the one that was in Delaware, the one in the West coast of New York City... I feel like there’s been a variety of different trails that are similar in a lot of ways to the Lakefront Trail in Chicago, which I’ve really enjoyed since I was a kid. And, I really enjoyed the 300-mile span (I think?) of the Washington, DC to Pittsburgh C&O trail that we took just because it was right around the Potomac River — it was gorgeous, it was pretty flat, I felt like we were just flying by, and there were tons of other cyclists so we felt right in place. It was just a really nice ride that day. It was 100 miles, but it was good.

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

I have a lot of close family members that have had cancer. Obviously, it’s a very cancer centered ride, because that’s our main goal — to improve the lives of or help out the people that have these different experiences. During COVID, my dad was diagnosed with prostate cancer. It was pretty early — my parents acted really chill about it — so I didn’t really know the severity of it, but he ended up having surgery and he’s been cancer-free. He’s also had different smaller skin cancers. So I would say I think of him a lot… it was an impactful life event that worried me. I remember when I found out, I literally went to the bathroom and cut all my hair off. That was my reaction… [cancer’s] been very prominent in my family, so I think of my family a lot when I’m doing the ride. I think, closest to me is my dad, even though it wasn’t a super severe bout of cancer, it still was present. He also was the one who initially found this RSO online, so I think of him because I found out about I4K through my dad and then he ended up having a diagnosis. 

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

I am super grateful for the support that my friends and family have given me. My parents are pretty endlessly supportive. My extended family on my father’s side are the kindest and sweetest, and I have so much gratitude and thankfulness for them because the cause touches them very personally too… obviously there’s financial limits, so it’s been really helpful that people have been willing to donate to the cause and are so unapologetically present and supportive. It’s really awesome. So, thank you!

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

Thank you for reading and taking the time to support our mission and this experience… feel free to reach out to us if you’d like to share your story with The Portraits Project. I’m excited to see my family and a few friends soon when we pass through Champaign and Chicago, so that will be a nice boost. But yeah, I’m really having a good time, this is a very unique experience.

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