Hello everyone!I haven't posted in a while due to the stress and insane time consumption that final exams have had on me. But now that I'm back in good ole' Lake County (847 whutup!), this epic journey can now take up my full concentration. On Saturday I dropped my bike off with the great people at M&M Cyclery in my hometown of Mundelein where they gave me a complementary tune up. I picked it up today while running some errands and I couldn't help myself, I just had to go for a ride.Since I didn't start until mid-afternoon and my mom insisted that I get back for dinner I couldn't go on too long of a ride, but I definitely made the most of it. I rode 30 miles to some of my favorite spots in Lake County. I first went to this abandoned and pretty secret private beach in Lake Bluff and then moved south past some of the largest houses I've ever seen to Lake Forest Public Beach. I don't know what it is but there is something about being by a body of water that is very calming and allows for a much easier and peaceful ride. I've only been to the Atlantic once and never the Pacific, so needless to say I am ecstatic at the opportunity.Because it was just going to be a short ride, I tried to push myself as hard as I could and tried to work with aspects of riding that I do not have that much experience, mostly hills and gravel. Instead of riding on the road which I normally would, I rode on the North Shore Bike Path which is entirely sand and gravel and believe me, it is a much harder ride compared to that of asphalt. I also tried to hit the very few hills that are around me as many times as I could to get more experience because the Appalachian Mountains are only about a week and a half away. All the while, I kept my speed well above where I would normally be on a longer ride and as a result finished the 30 mile trip with two breaks at the beaches in under two hours!Tomorrow I hope to ride from my house to Grant Park in Downtown Chicago. It's an 84 mile trip total but again the majority of the trip will be down Lake Michigan, which I know will be very motivating. Friday is coming so close! I cannot wait to kick off from NYC!Well time to have some spaghetti. That's all for now folks!