After yesterday’s 104 miles, today’s 72 flew by! Never mind the headwinds and heat, we had a solid pace going in every group. I can’t really talk about today being "easy” since I didn’t ride yesterday, but a slight drizzle cooled us off every now and again, and otherwise the sun shone through the trees. We also spent a long time on a gorgeous bike trail that was the pride of a man we met while at a stop. He was absolutely right to be proud of the path running through his town— it made biking infinitely more pleasant than it was on the roads. At the same time, we talked to a few other people about the Portraits Project and the mission of the ride. It feels good to share the why of our trip after initial reactions to finding out that we’re biking across the country.

This morning started off very well with a friendly cat and adorable snail to keep us company. They really set the playful mood of the day!

Our rest stop was at a park that clearly was a highlight of the day— let’s be honest, who isn’t still a kid at heart? We spent a long time there “refueling” (see: eating cookies) and “resting” (see: playing on the playground).

After a quick lunch stop, we arrived in Indianapolis at around 2, and some of us headed to Indianapolis Zoo! They had a beautiful butterfly garden and a cool bubble inside the dolphin’s habitat that was both amazing and kind of scary.

This evening we got dinner thanks to our stayover, and got to meet an I4K alum and friend of Sofie and Ryan, which is awesome. Tomorrow we ride to Rockville, IN, which I’ve heard good things about. And then we’re headed to Champaign! I can’t believe we’re already so close to where this all started. It’s been over two weeks now, and it seems like no time has passed. But when I look back at the other blogs, my photos, and my journal, I’m reminded of how much we’ve done and how far we’ve already come. We still have 78 more days! I’m really proud of this team and so happy to be riding and fighting against cancer with these people.

— Marielle