The Campaign of Hope

The war against cancer has many fronts, and our commitment to this fight in the past included providing funds for research and fostering hope through our Bike America ride and our Portraits Project.  In 2009, we have decided to also commit to another side of this battle. 

We will be designating a portion of the proceeds of our ride to the American Cancer Society's Campaign of Hope to be tripled in a match by two charitable foundations.  The Campaign of Hope is an initiative that supports the American Cancer Society’s Patient Navigation Services program.  Patient Navigation Services is a suite of free, hands-on services that provide cancer patients and caregivers with medical information and resources, helpful day-to-day assistance and emotional support for every step of their cancer journey. All of this is possible because of the generous donors and volunteers of the American Cancer Society.

We did not make this decision lightly, but in the end considered it an opportunity that we could not pass up:  A challenge grant from the Coleman Foundation will match half of our contribution.  This in turn will be matched dollar-for-dollar by The Duchossois Family Foundation.  A minimum contribution of $1,000 will thus be tripled, becoming $3,000.  This generous grant matching program only lasts through 2009.

Cancer is not in recession.  This economic climate has more cancer patients than ever turning to the ACS for help, and findings suggest that the sooner it connects patients with its services after a cancer diagnosis, the better the outcome.  We believe that our participation in the Campaign of Hope will have a significant impact in the lives of cancer patients and that it will not diminish the impact of our contribution to the ACS's research fund and Camp Kesem.

hills hills and more hills

So I'm a little behind on blogging, but I'll catch you up! New York was delightful I was super excited because I hadn't been to the city before! And the ride out from central park wasn't too bad! Although I am amazed at how many dead possums I've seen on the road. But now that we're into the hills the rides are so much more difficult. I definetly had some difficult times, but my awesome teammates helped me through it! I'm already on my third flat, but I still haven't fallen which is pretty amazing considering how clumsy I am!! We also rode on some crazy bike paths. One was going into Philly and the other into DC. Whoever thought putting cobblestone on a bike path was a smart idea didn't know what they were talking about! Today we got into washington DC and I still can't believe it! Tomorrow when I see the Lincoln Memorial there's a 100% chance that I'll be thinking of Jimmy Stewart in Mr. Smith goes to Washington. I'm super pumped and can't wait to see more!!!

Thanks for all the support!!!!!!!!

Sarah :) 

My Legs Hate Me

After our first five days of riding my legs are really letting me know that I am not used to riding this far every day.  Tomorrow is a well needed rest day in D.C.  So far the trip has been awesome.  Maryland was very hilly, which was really tough riding, but also scenic.  At this point I am ready to get off of the east coast and start heading west.  I have had about all of the city traffic/riding I can take.

On this trip it is easy to just enjoy the ride and take in all the sights, but on the past couple days I have really been moved by the generosity that has been shown not only to myself, but the entire group.  It is really nice to see that people really appreciate what we are doing, and it also reminds us of why we are doing this.  Since leaving New York City I have received donations from people I have never met, food from people who just want to help us out, and kind words from everyone we meet along the way.  In every nearly every place we stop along the route somebody tells me thank you, good luck, or God Bless.  I just can't say enough about the generosity that people have showed us.  In a time when it can be hard to find the good in people, it has been easy on this trip.  So if anyone that I have met along the way is reading this, I just wanted to say thank you.  I am so happy to be a part of something like this.

Hills Shmills

Man, if anyone ever told you that there aren't hills on the east coast...they were slightly off. The past couple of days have been pretty hilly and tough and hot but every so often there are some great sights of rolling meadows and flowers. And let me tell you, after hours of riding up and down hills in the sun, PB&J never tasted so good, especially stacked four pieces of bread high. Honestly, d-el-i-c-i-o-u-s.

Today, it took a while to get out of Baltimore with flats and potential chain breaks. But once we got out, I got pretty excited to head to D.C. It's crazy that we're already this far in such a short period of time. And it's also really awesome.

Tomorrow we're getting a tour of the Walter Reed Hospital which should be really great. After that I'm gonna check out the Holocaust museum, the Vietnam Memorial, and whatever else the city has to offer. I'm ready for our first rest day, it will be really nice to have a break adn check out a city I've never been too, so I'm stoked!

Day 4 & 5 into Baltimore and Washington D.C.

We'd like to start by saying when Brad says it is going to be a hard day, he is not kidding around. Yesterday was a hilly 75 mile ride from Delaware to Baltimore. The first half of the ride was gorgeous, but exhausting. We were happy to have a warm welcome at alumni rider Ben's ghetto. Dinner was some what of a fiasco, so thank you Jay's for the pizza! We also received $42 in donations.

Today was a 60 mile ride into Washington D.C. The ride was hilly, but definitely easier than the previous ride. A cool Maryland rider, Mike, rode with us for 10 miles, and donated $100 to our cause. We also received a donation of food from Convenience Catering, thanks Doug Henley! U of I alum Alyssa in Washington D.C. treated us to Lebanese food and tomorrow's Portrait participant Jan made us some amazing brownies : ). Tonight the group is split, and each place is having an event of their own. One group had to bike an extra 20 miles in the rain, but they were warmly welcomed with (meaty and veggie) burgers, corn, and potato salad. The rest of the boys are spending the evening in style at Brad's generous friend Brian's place.The girls are having a night on the town, and staying at alum rider, Andrea's, house. Their evening may entail almond butter, chile spiced mangos, dark chocolate raspberry trail mix, snuggling, but absolutely no gluten.

We are all looking forward to our team reunion at Walter Reed Hospital where we are lucky to receive a tour. More to come tomorrow...

A quick update on the donut eating competition: Caroline is beating Matt Cady 7-6 (he only has 60 days to catch up).

4000 Miles Down, 4000 Miles to Go

Hello Illini 4000 Supporters,

Once again I find myself on the road with the Illini 4000. Having completed the ride in 2008 I have returned as a ride leader for this summer. I must say that I am very impressed with this year's team. They bring their own uniqueness and style to the table. Even though the first week has brought its share of logistical nightmares they have been very understanding and incredibly resourceful. Today the team divided up and brought in several food donations from local pizzarias after we had problems preparing a meal. I look forward to the days and weeks ahead with the 2009 Illini 4000 Team. I can't wait to see the country all over again with them.
I would also like to take some time to thank some of our stayovers. In NYC the Chou's and Tim O'Conner's cousin, Chris really pulled through offering us a place to stay last minute. In Hillsborough, the Thakkars, who are the parents of Illini 4000 Co-Founder Anish Thakkar, once again welcomed us into their home and showered us with food. They have offered us a safe haven over the last two years that has been extremely helpful. The day the team rides out of NYC is stressful and very tiring. As we finally break out of the urban sprawl on that day's ride the Thakkar household has always been a shinning beacon for the team. And lastly I would also like to give a shoutout to the Salem Methodist Church in Newark. We have always felt extremely welcomed there both years. They have also fed us until we were bursting and sent us on our way.
Thanks to everyone who has been supporting the team and all of those people who have provided us with a place to stay. Without you this ride would not be possible.

Brad Topol
Illini 4000 Ride Leader

Rollin' Down the East Coast

Bike, eat, sleep, bathroom!
My thoughts...
pedal pedal, hill, grunt, ah the pain, gah, whooo at the top, weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee 10, 20, 30, 35 mph down hilllllll!!!!!*
*repeat
Ah, the life of biking across the country. So, much has happened in so little time, each day seems like 5 because absolutely everything that we pass, see,smell and place we stay is new and an experience that will only happen once. While I have had a rocky start first time being sick in 2 years, a small crash and experiencing what an actual hill is like (fyi it is nothing like a highway overpass) I still look forward to the next day. The generous people that we meet each day who are interested in what we are doing (stopping and asking us wherever we go)and are willing to donate (even handing out money from their car window and going to donut shop I saw 7 years ago on the food network to only get free donuts and a donation!) puts a lot of hope in me about people in general and that what we are doing means a lot more than I know.
Furthermore, we did our first portrait project yesterday with Becky Vanderslice and her husband Warren, nicknamed slice, about her experience with cancer. They were very humorous and loving people who have turned their experience into a way to make a positive imapct. They made a great point about choosing how to look at a situation, and how with humor and not accepting defeat you can find strength to fight anything. I will try to remember this and the things that I find everyday inspiration in throughout the ride.
Well, tomorrow is another day and I can not wait to meet more eccentric people and see more of United States, we've already done 5 states in 4 days!
Love all of you,
Caroline

gettin flat tires

The ride into Baltimore today was alright- super hot and super hilly.  today our group expanded as the "fast group" decided to roll with us since they realized that we were having way more fun than them, they loved us, and they're not actually faster- so we were rolling about 9 deep.  I felt super strong and was rolling up the hills, which I was surprised by.

The group had a bunch of technical errors-four flat tires, 2 of which were mine, and a broken front derailur. I got my second flat about 5 miles from the finish- which was frustrating, but fortunately it happened right next to a McDonalds- we didn't think twice about ice cream cones.  I had two- super refreshing. 

A woman we meant from the American Cancer Society in Baltimore that we meant last night let a bunch of people here know about us so we had a bunch of people cheering and honking for us. When people seewhat we're doing, theyjust get so excited andvery generous.  Today when our group stopped for lunch and the support van was way back/lost, the pizza hut we were camped out by just gave us two pizzas.  Another woman just gave us 40 dollars at a stop light.

Got another run in when I got in, which was cool... Baltimore seems just ok- seems unlikely that I'll go downtown, just too tired.  We are currently trying to figure out the dinner situation- I'm gonna need a lot.  seriously.

riding into D.C. tomorrow, about the same length as tomorrow, 80 miles or so.  Then we have a rest day the next day- I think beer will be in order.

First

I do not even know where to begin. The first day riding out of NYC was really awesome. The ride was really fun even with me hitting a dead possum. Then when we were riding in PA it was beautiful, however not even close to as beautiful as VT. Then yesterday we were riding in DE and that was really great since the ride was only 40 miles. We had our first portrait project and that was so awesome to hear this woman\'s story about her fight with breast cancer. I found myself thinking about her constantly today during our 80 mile ride. Today\'s ride was hard but fun. It was hilly and super hot- I got pretty burned. The ride was really pretty but the hills got tiresome after a while- but I have many reasons to keep pedling. Tomorrow we leave for DC and I am really excited not only to be in DC but I will get to meet up with my grandmother, sister, and dad for a bit. That\'s it. Keep sending emails they really make my day!

One to Get Me started

With the first few turns of my pedals, I've learned more about biking than I had in my whole life. The first three days of this journey have been an experience to say the least. I can't believe that I have already seen so many great things and met such wonderful people. To date, New York is B-E-AUTIFUL and lively and fun. New Jersey is splendid, rolling meadows I never knew existed. Pennsylvania is so gorgeous and bike happy, it's inspiring. Delaware is home to some truly amazing people.

Each day of this ride brings something new into my life and I can only thank the people who made it possible: my family, friends, all the people who have given me support to help me start this adventure. I cannot thank you enough and I can't wait to share more of it with you.

While the rides can be long and tough, each turn of the pedals is one closer to understanding something bigger and grander than I can begin to describe.

Catching Up on I4k

     Well, so much for blogging everyday! Its been a busy and hectic first few days on the trip so far and its been difficult to find time and the internet needed to catch up on the blog.  In addition, my team chore has been to help out with the website updates which has taken the place of my personal blog updates.  Excuses aside, I will try to come up to date here.    

    First of all I would like to take a second to thank all of the donors who helped me to experience this trip.  I was amazed to see how much support that family, friends, and even strangers offered me towards this trip, and none of this would be possible without your help.    Like I said above, these last few days have been really crazy.  It feels like its been weeks since leaving Chicago last Wednesday.  The journey started with a 20+ hour train ride, that felt even longer, but offered a new way to see the countryside.  Once we arrived at our destination of New York City, we scrambled for a place to stay the two nights because our planned location could not accommodate us at the last minute.  Luckily, we found accommodations in two different apartments on opposite sides of Manhattan for both nights.  This meant using the subway system many times in our short time in NYC, but also meant we got a chance to see a lot of the city.  After doing some sightseeing on our free day, we finally started our journey with a send off in Central Park and a great 67 mile ride.    

  After finishing the ride, we stayed over at an I4K alum's house in Hillsboro, New Jersey.  The Thakkar family was very welcoming to the team and gave us a great resting place between rides.  The next day we headed out around 7am towards Philadelphia, PA which ended in around 86 miles total.  This was a great ride because of the amazing countryside, but also meant climbing and descending many, many hills.  At one point, going somewhere close to 1mph I tipped my bike off the road and spilled off the side.  Fortunately, there was a large thorn bush to break my fall and leave my leg bleeding slightly.  Even with the harder route, my group was able to persevere and arrive first to the stay over in Philly.  We made the trip so quickly that we not only beat the support vehicle to the destination, but also the rabbi that was going to meet us to open up the chabad house where we stayed.  As the rest of the groups arrived, a few of us made our way out to a local eatery to get some authentic Philly Cheese steaks.  Shortly after returning to the chabad house, we all went to sleep wiped out from the long day.    

 This brings us up to today, where we did a quick 40 mile ride out to Delaware where we are staying at a great church that fed us some awesome food from a local pizza place.  Most of us spent the day catching up on lost sleep and repairing bikes that have had some trouble in the last few days of hard riding. Of course even with the easier ride I found time to fall over on the road and make my other leg bleed.  Overall this short day was much needed, as we have an 80 mile day tomorrow with even more hills.      

  That pretty much sums up the last few days of the trip.  I will try to keep up with this blog more often in the future to give you more breaking news.

Gettin Tired

So I'm writing from Newark, DE.  I can only find wireless on the outside of the very corner of this church we are staying over at tonight- Salem United Methodist Church in Newark, DE, dangerously close to the U of Delaware (the destination of one of the most historical road trips of my life, about six years ago) but I'll get to that soon.

So riding out of NYC was pretty nuts.  We had great weather and left Central Park at about 8:30 Saturday morning and it seemed like it took forever to get out of the city.  Riding over the GW Bridge into Jersey was really cool.  We had about a 65 mile ride to our next destination and once we got across the bridge we split into groups.  I didn't feel like hammering so I settled into the second group-great decision.  Great group of dudes, decent pace, and a lot of good laughs... After leaving the city we rode through a lot of suburban NJ and then into Newark, which was, well... ok.  We made some wrong turns but eventually found our way out of that place and only for the last 15 miles did we get on some decent countryish sort of roads.  We didn't get into Hillsborough until maybe 3:30 or so due to the constant stopping and wrong turns, but when we did, it felt great.  That night we stayed with the family of the one of the founders of the I4k ride.  They were absolutely amazing.  Had tons of food waiting for us when we got in and a huge dinner for us later on.  Needless to say, I did some work.

The next day we rode into Philly- about an 86 mile ride, which I really was not super pumped about.  We took a minor wrong turn at the beginning, but didn't go too far out of the way... Once we crossed the Delaware river and left the dirty jerz in the dust, the ride really got beautiful.  The first town across the bridge was a quaint small town that seemed to be filled with cyclists... That swwwweeeeet Pennsylvania air was tasty.  About a mile into PA we saw this huge, odd abandoned castle looking type thing, which we stopped and explored for awhile.  The bike through the PA countryside was amazing.  Eventually we stopped for lunch (pretty much always PB & J) in some small town across from a baseball field.  We went over to check out some little league action and saw a game clinching inside the park grand slam... We went nuts for that 11 year old, probably the best day of his life... We spent about the last 20 miles on the Skuykill (spelling?) trail which leads right into downtown philly.  Even with the long ride the day before, I managed to be feeling super strong and our group was rolling pretty good on the last stretch.  Then, about 5 miles from our destination, suddeness happened and I bit the dust big time, nailing this huge hole and going over the handlebars... I have no idea how, but somehow I managed to will myself into a small patch of grass and escape with just a sore knee and a bent brake hood, which was an easy fix- I felt pretty lucky.  Our group rolled in around 3:30, the first group for the second day in a row, even though we're labeled as the second group.... As they stay, slow and steady and also hilarious, always wins the race. 

Last night we stayed in Chabad (Jewish) house at UPenn and dinner was on our own- Philly cheesesteak, cheese fries, and a Yuengling, even got to watch some of the hockey game (man I still cant believe the Sabres missed the playoffs)- what more could a Pennsylvania boy want...

Today we had a short 40 mile ride into Newark, which was awesome after the day before.  We pretty much just saw a lot of the not so pretty parts of PA (who knew the even existed).  I got a flat tire and so did another kid in our group and so did Saebin- this Korean kid from Vancouver who can change a faster than anyone you've ever met.  We got to the church around 11 and had the whole day to chill out.  Naturally, I got in a good 7 miles on my feet, without wheels.  It was nice to finally get a run in, gotta start doin that more but im just so dead after these long days... I also got a new saddle today.  The one I had was tearin my shorts apart and tearin me a new one... hopefully this new one works out ok.

Tomorrow we have a 80 mile ride into Baltimore, followed by another 80 mile day into D.C... man I hope my legs feel good.

Outside of the ridin- the hangin out is great.  Amazing group of people- a good "rowdy bunch" as our fearless leader Brad likes to call us.  After just a couple of days, we're already makin fun of eachother quite a bit and throwin around a good amount of dirty jokes... Most people generally laugh at my jokes, which I think is a good sign.... I can't believe this is all I have to do this summer.  This blog is the closest thing to work I'm gonna do for like the next 60 days.  On that note, I've been staring at this screen far too long...

P.S. I'm not proofreading or spell checking any of this- so don't judge

I suppose I'll look at some Bills fan pages real quick... PEACE

Day 3 - "Going Back to Philly...I Don't Think So"

Today we rode from Philly, PA to Newark, DE.  I was expecting Delaware to be especially beautiful for some reason, but so far, we haven't seen any evidence of that, just lots of broken glass.  The ride was pretty boring, it was only 40 miles, and we made it to the Salem United Methodist Church in only 2 and a half hours, and had the rest of the day to relax.  The trip here was mainly through industrial areas, so we didn't get to see anything too interesting and the roads were not in very good biking conditions.  Matt and Sae-bin both got flat tires today, and Conor wiped out again, a lot harder this time, but he managed to avoid major injuries again.

We got a great welcome from the Salem church, they were very happy to see us, and gave us little cancer pins, snacks, and water, which we really appreciated.  They also have a piano, so Matt H and Isaac gave us another few songs from their Illini 4000 musical which they are working on, and we played some chess(I lost).  We are excited for dinner tonight, the Salem Church is providing most of the food for our stayover, and we are looking forward to some good home cooking.  Tomorrow we ride to Baltimore, Maryland, and it should be about an 80 mile ride again, so we have another long day ahead of us.  Pics of the church and our living area are online, so check my Flickr page.  http://www.flickr.com/photos/8300819@N03/

States traveled through:4(NY,NJ,PA,DE)
Distance today: 40 mi
Total Distance traveled: 192 mi

Day 2 - It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Today was a lot of fun.  We rode from Hillsborough, NJ to Philadelphia, PA, a total distance of 85 miles.  The ride was beautiful today, from start to finish and the weather once again cooperated, giving us a perfectly sunny 75 degree day. 

The second we crossed into Pennsylvania, it was amazingly beautiful, and the hills and forests were perfect.  Right after we made into Pennsylvania, we took pictures under the "Welcome to Pennsylvania" sign, saw a stationary but functioning steam train engine, and found a crazy castle with huge vultures that were pretty angry that we had disturbed with their homes.  Conor fell down a hill when we were trying to start from a stop, and fell right into a thorn-bush, so he had to ride the rest of the ride with bloody fingers and calves.  At our lunch stop, and really the only time we stopped for more than five minutes, we all ate our peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches and crossed the street to watch some Pennsylvanian 8-year-olds play little league baseball, and we got to witness an inside-the-park grand slam, which was pretty awesome.  I also hit my top speed ever of 38.3 mph down one of the Pennsylvania mountains.

When we got to the Schuykill Trail, my uncle Kevin and Chris met me and we rode the rest of the trail into Philadelphia with him(about 10 miles).  Our riding group of me, Matt C, Tim, Conor, and David (Matt was calling us Team 2)made it into our destination, the UPenn Chabat house first, proving once again that, going fast and following directions always beats going really fast and ignoring directions(Team 1).  We arrived at about 3:30 in Philly only to find that we were not only 45 minutes ahead of our van, but the rabbi wouldn't be in Philly to let us into the house for another hour and a half!  We were all exhausted, the ride ended up being 85 miles in around 6 hours.  Eventually we found another rabbi to let us in and Kevin, Chris and I went out to dinner while the rest of the guys went to a Whole Foods place to stock up. The rest of the team straggled in, apparently they had a few more flats and crashes, and Caroline broke her handlebars, so she had to be picked up, but she was alright.  I also tallied my first crash, but it was just me trying to ride up a curb at very low speeds onto grass, so it wasn't at all painful.

At night, Brad, Sae-bin, Conor, David, Matt C and I went looking for some decent Philly Cheesesteaks, and found the best cheeseteak of my life at Abner's Cheesesteaks.  After that, Matt, David and I went to this gelato(light ice cream) place that was delicious, and had really crazy flavors, like Avacado and Strawberry Tequila. Finally, we came back to the house, did my chore for the day(dish-washing) and went to bed to prepare for the next days ride.  Tomorrow we will be riding about 40 miles into Newmark, Delaware.  Hopefully the weather stays nice! Check my Flickr for all the pics, this server won't post my pics for some reason!!  http://www.flickr.com/photos/8300819@N03/

States Traveled through: 3(NY,NJ,PA)
Distance today: 85 mi
Total Distance traveled: 152 mi
Interesting Animals Seen: 1 skunk, 1 groundhog/beaver?

One day down, 63 to go

We kicked off our trip today successfully around 8:45 am from Central Park.  The ride out of Manhattan was easier than I thought it would be, and we had an amazing view riding on the George Washington Bridge out of New York towards New Jersey and we had awesome weather, it was about 70 and sunny all day.  New Jersey was not too fun to ride in, there were potholes everywhere and it wasn't very nice to look at until the 20 miles or so.  Those last 20 miles were really cool though, and we got to ride alongside some pretty sweet rivers.

The ride felt really long just because we were in urban areas all day today, it took us until about 3:30 pm to go about 65 miles, and we were the first group to arrive!  I felt good today, the ride was long, but I still had enough energy to play some volleyball and ultimate frisbee.

Once we finally made it to our destination in Hillsborough, it is a really beautiful place.  The parents of former I4K founder and rider Anish Thakkar were hosting us, and immediately handed out water, juice, watermelon, and yogurt, and once the entire team arrived, gave us the most amazing meal I think we'll ever have during the trip.  

Tomorrow we ride to Philadelphia, its a 90+ mile ride, so i expect to be exhausted tomorrow night. 

A Day in Delaware

Today, the team completed a short 40 mile ride out to Newark, Delaware.  This ride was a relief after two hard days of riding, and the weather continued to be cooperative.  Everyone made the trip successfully in good time and had a well earned afternoon off. Tonight we are staying at the Salem United Methodist Church which gave us a warm welcome.  We are thankful for the hospitality the church has offered us with a place to stay and for great food and drink.  Our thanks also go out to Season's Pizza Inc for donating us a great meal to eat! Tomorrow the team is heading out to Baltimore, MD.

Greetings from Philadelphia!

After a long and arduous ride, the team has arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  With a total distance of around 86 miles, this was the team's longest ride to date.  The ride today included New Jersey and the beautiful stretches of Pennsylvania countryside.  The day's ride was not without complications, but the good news is that lessons have been learned.  One incident in particular was made much easier by the help of a local bike shop.  Our thanks go out to the Human Zoom bike shop in the Philadelphia area for helping out one of our riders on short notice.  If you are ever in the area and need anything make sure to stop by this great shop.  Tomorrow's ride brings us to Delaware, and needless to say we're stoked.

The Big Apple

During an incredibly long train ride to NYC we received the bad news that our stayover had to cancel on us about 4 hours out from arriving.  In a mad dash to find a place to stay our team ended up staying in two different apartments, but in the end everything worked out.  After exploring NYC for two days, we departed this morning from Central Park.  Our first official ride went great.  It lead us from NYC to Essex County New Jersey, to Newark, New Jersey, and finally to the suburb of Hillsborough where we stayed with the Thakkar family who was extremely nice and hospitable.  My legs are feeling good so far and I think I am ready for the 90 mile ride to Philadelphia in the morning.

The Journey Begins

After two exciting days in the big apple, the Illini 4000 hit the road.  We departed New York City from Central Park early this morning after a quick breakfast and send off from a handful of our supporters, which was greatly appreciated.  Our first ride led us out of NYC and into New Jersey, where we finished in the city of Hillsborough.  Our first ride was a great success, we experienced heavy traffic, three flat tires, a few wrong turns, but in the end everyone made it safely.  We are spending the night with the Thakkar family who treated us amazingly.  We would like to thank the Thakkar family for all the kindness and hospitality they showed us.  In the morning the Illini 4000 is off for a 90 mile ride to Philadelphia.

Manhattan

It's almost time!  We are all together in New York finally!  Our place to stay at fell through on Monday, so half the team is staying at one rider(Zernyu)'s apartment in New York, and the other half is staying at a different rider(Tim)'s cousin's place.  I am at Zernyu's which is way south of Central Park, we will be taking the train about 100 blocks all the way up to Central Park tomorrow morning, where we have to be at 7AM to kick off the ride. 

On Wednesday my mom, my sister and I drove into Philly to meet with family, and today, I got into New York at about 1PM from Philly, where I had a great dinner and night with all my family members on Thursday.  Once we got to New York, I moved all my stuff into Zernyu's and then Justin, Z and I went to get pizza from this apparently famous place called Artichoke, which was pretty good, then just walked around the city for a while and went into a few bike shops, went to a local bar to hang out for a little, saw a guy walking around with a live cat balanced on his head, then headed back to Zernyu's to meet up with the group.  Unfortunately I didn't get the opportunity to go to Times Square with the rest of the group since I didn't get to New York in time, but I have already been there, so it's not that big a loss.

Once the whole group met up, we all went to check out the river, so I can say that I saw the Atlantic Ocean (or something that runs directly into the Atlantic) and then headed to an alumni event.  We also got to go up on the roof and get some pictures with the Empire State Building, which was awesome. PIctures of my bike and gear are on my Flickr page, http://www.flickr.com/photos/8300819@N03/,  thats where I will probably be posting most of my pictures.

Next up is some crazy city biking to get out of Manhattan, and tomorrow we will be in the middle of New Jersey.