In her hit song, “California Gurls,” iconic pop star Katy Perry aptly sings, “you can travel the world, but nothing comes close to the golden coast.” We’ve now officially reached the West Coast, have played the aforementioned tune an obnoxious yet necessary amount of times, and can confirm her wise words. Although we can’t say we’ve traveled the world, our journey takes us across the expansive United States. The feeling of having biked from one end of this gigantic country to the other (the long way, might we add) is absolutely unmatched — today was the first time we’ve seen the ocean since New York, and also our last border crossing into the closing state of this ride: California. We’re all feeling a constant mix of emotions, whether it’s in the moment (picture us awestruck before the staggering beauty of redwood trees) or shaped by the past and future of the ride — reminiscing on who we were when we started I4K and who we’ve become by the end of it all. This experience is undoubtedly life-changing in so many multifaceted ways, and we’re gonna make the most of it in these last few days. 

Ride Overview, Days 69 & 70

Mileage: ~52

Elevation: ~1,800’

Ride Dedication: Amanda, Izzy’s relative, who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer

Points of Interest: California (!) Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, Smith River National Recreation Area, Oregon Mountain

Quote(s) of the Day

“WHAT’S A GIRL GOTTA DO TO GET A PULLOUT???” - Maaike, as a long line of cars piles up behind us

“The sand looks like everything bagel seasoning.” - Kev

Tales of the Trail, Days 69 & 70

We spent our last rest day in fittingly typical fashion — breakfast at McDonald’s, going to the laundromat, napping, calling loved ones, and fixing mechanical issues — with a couple of new things like watching the Olympics and shopping for I4Prom outfits sprinkled into the team routine. 

The team awoke the next day to the now discomfitingly familiar sight of smoke on the horizon and a dangerously high AQI, which meant we shuttled the first 20 or so miles out of the red zone. 

This was a comparatively shorter chip in our day though, and we were back on our bikes in no time. The roads out of Oregon and into California were blissfully smooth (save for the questionably placed rumble strips in the shoulder), almost as though they were cushioning our safe passage into the last week of the ride. A steady stream of cars indicated the first of the heavy traffic that we would have to navigate for the rest of the route. 

From the beginning to the end, our surroundings were a natural treat to witness. We stopped at the “Welcome to California” sign amidst lush, varied greenery (shoutout to the cars who noticed our obvious celebration of this milestone and gave us a couple of friendly honks) and continued on into the tall and wooded, near-mythical jungle of the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. Best of all, we escaped the high temperatures of the day before and basked in the coolness of the clouded skies above us. 

Our ability to take in these sights were somewhat diminished by the constant line of cars that shared the scenic but narrow roads with us. Callouts rang through the air with more volume and frequency than ever before (some of our favorites being “car up,” “car back,” and “slowing”) as we testified to our now well-practiced teamwork and sense of safety. 

We ended the day on the straightforward US 101, a breath of fresh air after the stimulation of prior roads and a preview of the route we’ll be following for the entirety of tomorrow. 

Once we got to our lovely stayover at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, we headed to the beach to dip our wheels in the long-awaited waters of the Pacific Ocean. This was our affirmation of reality — that we’re palpably and incredibly close to this crazy goal that we all committed to a few months ago. 

Back at our stayover, we hungrily ate our staple meal of pasta and lentils (it turns out Alfredo sauce instead of the usual tomato is a game changer), vaguely considered the repercussions of dipping our bikes in eroding saltwater, and distracted ourselves with the results of Claudia’s morning activity — take the most creative picture (see below). In first place: Olaf, Lucas, Tommy, Kavin, and Logan. In second place, Olivia, Riddhima, Maaike, Neal, and Kev. In third place: Anthony, Emma, Jack, and Joey.

Cyclist’s Corner (DOUBLE EDITION! Don’t forget to scroll to see both interviews!)

Today’s Rider: Lucas Dion

How are you feeling today?

I’m doing really well. Had a fun group, we made it to the Redwoods, which is really really cool. And we’re at a very nice stayover today. I remember [our host] from 2022, very sweet. Olivia is making funny faces at me. 

Which chore have you been doing for the team during the ride? Can you share your process doing this chore?

I’m one of the ride leaders on the ride. It’s my second time around the block, the block being the continental United States. Me and my homie Olivia make sure that everyone else are doing their chores, and that everything on the ride goes smoothly, from making sure the team is happy and safe, and that we’re representing the organization really well! Which is how we represent ourselves at stayovers, with all the people we meet. So yeah, I think this is an organization I’m really passionate about, and that’s why I chose to come back, and run it back a second time. It’s been a lot of fun getting to do this again. 

What’s the best food you’ve eaten on the ride so far?

Ooh, I really like the chili we had in Everett. They had like a little chili bar. That was very tasty, I’m a big chili fan, so I think they made some really good stuff, it made for a really tasty meal. A few other people mentioned in their journals the ice cream in La Crosse, Wisconsin. That was also very tasty. I got a root beer float with Neal, and they make the root beer in house. We love root beer. Yeah, those are two that come to mind. A lot of really good foods along the way. You also gotta love the love bags from Randy.

Do you have a favorite team memory?

Every moment is my favorite moment with the team. I liked when we were going rafting, we flipped you three off the raft. That made me laugh, it was funny. They call it a dump truck, when half the raft falls off the side. Very recently, I went on a fun little ride with Logan and Jack, on a descent by Crater Lake…it was really fun, and I didn’t have to wear bibs during it. 

Is there anything you’ve learned during the ride that you didn’t expect?

Being on a trip like this, you learn a lot about the generosity of others. There’s a lot of really kind people you meet along the way as far as little faith in humanity, which is always nice. You hear a lot of stories. I think I said one of my big takeaways from my first ride, and something I continue to take away from this organization, is to not compare yourself to others. As an individual, you’re capable of a lot of big things, and there’s other people also doing a lot of big things — there’s no point to it. I think the US national park system is really cool. I think I gained a lot of appreciation for that, being in the Redwoods today. You know, getting to go to Mount Rainier, Crater Lake, all these really cool places that are so well preserved, all the park rangers and stuff being so helpful. That’s one thing that I’m really grateful we have here in the US. This is one I’m taking from Bang, who made a really cool video recently, but also practice minimalism. Being here for so long without having any of your things, as many pieces of clothing, all the things you’re used to having in life, just kind of living a more simple way in life. Sometimes it’s not the things in life that make things great, it’s the experiences, it’s the people. 

What’s the first thing you’re going to do when you get home?

Probably fire up some Fortnite with the boys. But before I do that, gotta drive the van home with Kavin. We’re going to a lot of fun stops, which I’m looking forward to. Hopefully we’ll go to Yosemite, and Denver, and Richfield, Utah. I’m excited for all those things too, it’ll be a fun little bonus journey. 

Anything else you want to talk about?

As we come to these final days, I’m just really grateful for all the people I’ve gotten to spend time with in this organization, and all the cool people we’ve gotten to meet. Yeah, thank you to everyone for all the support. Join I4K!

Today’s Rider: Riddhima Patlollu

How are you feeling today?

I’m feeling really good! I would describe today as stimulating, for sure. It was like a little bit of everything I4K, because we had the shuttling, the wildfires. Then we rolled into California, which is our final state, and then we went to Redwoods — like, we rolled into Redwoods, my most anticipated destination of the ride so far. And there was so much traffic, and we listened to Katy Perry, and now we’re here at this really awesome stayover that has apparently hosted thousands of cyclists, and I just had McDonald’s. So I feel like I have no reason to feel sad right now! We went to the beach to celebrate our finally reaching the literal West coast. But yeah, overall, I am feeling great.

Which chore have you been doing for the team during the ride? Can you share your process doing this chore?

So I have had the pleasure of doing the journalist chore! My process is always interwoven with my chore partner, Maaike. But it’s pretty simple, I’m gonna point you to Maaike’s interview for that, because it’s just me being repetitive. But overall, I think we really got it down to a tee! And I’m really glad that I have a chore partner, otherwise I don’t think I could do this with so much detail. I’ve already been going back and reading the old journals and realizing how bad my memory is, because I get to be like “oh! We did that!” And then I get to describe, like playback videos in my head, those things that happened. I’ve really been enjoying the journals chore. Even though sometimes, when you’re in the moment and tired, you don’t want to sit down and write — I find when I actually do it, it’s really helpful to recount the day. And interviewing people has been fun!

What’s the best food you’ve eaten on the ride so far?

There was this one really bad day on the East coast, I don’t even remember where it was, I just remember it being super hot, like one of the hottest days we’ve had so far. We rolled into the stayover…they had these little bottles of cool blue Gatorade, and it was genuinely the greatest thing I’ve ever had ever. They also had a really great dinner. They had baked beans and brats and stuff like that, and that was just really good. It was delicious. That was definitely best food…This has been mentioned so many times already, but Pearl Ice Cream Parlor, the butter pecan was just decadent. Also it was the experience of it, because it has a history to it, and it has a very antique vibe. That was cool. I think it’s hard because I’ve just been really shocked and grateful at the sheer volume of great food we’ve had, that it’s hard to choose. Most people who do this kind of stuff, they do not have that luxury, they just get by on very little. So I’m grateful for the fact that this question is difficult to answer. 

Do you have a favorite team memory?

I think that no matter what I say for this question, I’ll always look back on it and be like “oh, but there was this day, and there was that day.” So I’m gonna say, my favorite team memory is just the amalgamation of little moments with the team. Like, one thing that comes to mind is just our van trips to showers, or the laundromat and stuff like that. Whether people are full on conversing and making jokes, or the team is just quiet and taking their alone time, I have little moments where I look up and look around, and I’m like, “these are the people I’m biking across the country with,” and it’s so cool! Like when we were cleaning the van, we were all just being really dumb, and people were saying dumb but funny things, I remember just looking around and being like, “I’m biking across the country with you guys, and I kind of love it.” Or when Lucas announced that he would join us for the entire summer, and we sang “See You Again” in the van and everyone sang along. I liked that. I just like the little moments, they make me happy. 

Is there anything you’ve learned during the ride that you didn’t expect?

I feel like my whole life, I’ve been building up to this lesson, I just didn’t know how to articulate it — and I still probably don’t, this is gonna be a very messy answer. Olaf and I are buddy-reading this book called “To Shake the Sleeping Self,” and it’s about this dude who rode from Oregon to Patagonia, which is obviously a way more massive journey than ours. But it was really cool to read because it’s still kind of a similar setting. And one thing that he comes to realize at the end of the book is that he wanted to have, like, this huge epiphany, or really neat series of life lessons he learned from the trip. But what he ended up getting is just life. And I think that’s what I’ve learned — when you do something as big as this, it’s not like neat, and packaged into a little short film or book or something that is easy to identify. It kind of is just life. And I’ve learned to be comfortable in that indescribableness, I guess? I’ve learned to just feel more. I think I’ve learned to be more comfortable with reality, and not be disappointed when my experiences don’t meet expectations. This trip, I had this sort of picture in my head as to what I would’ve learned from it, and the picture now is a lot more disorganized, but in a really cool way. You have things like the wildfires, and things like the generosity of people, all together and all equally as important. 

What’s the first thing you’re going to do when you get home?

Probably hug my parents. I miss my parents. Take a big nap, just spend some alone time with myself. Probably read, watch shows. Probably not touch a bike for a while. There’s not a lot of time after the ride ends before college begins again, so getting ready for that too. All the usual things, get accustomed to the comforts of modern life again. 

Anything else you want to talk about?

I want to note that, for some reason, “Shrek” is playing on the TV in what you would call the living room right now, and no one is paying attention to it, and I love that. I just love that. 

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