Another eventful day occurred as we passed into our final stop in Indiana: Rockville. Our diabolically incredible ride leader Mike Rotter had his last(?) official ride with our team today and we will be very sad to see him go. Champaign is within sight! We can’t wait to roll in to where it all started! :)

Ride Overview

Mileage: 61.8

Elevation: +1926’/-1886’

General Direction: Ride southwest from Lafayette and due south on country roads, pass through towns of New Richmond, Crawfordsville, and take State Road 47 to Waveland at mile 45.5, navigate in a zig zag pattern to eventually merge onto U.S. 36 into Rockville.

Points of Interest: Cows!!!

Tales of the Trail

We began today’s ride with open fields and an overcast sky as the team rode south toward the larger town of Crawfordsville. Sprinkles turned into heavy droplets for what became the first rain of the entire ride, and it was definitely intense. Miles 25-61 made for a bunch of soaked cyclists and bikes, but we pushed through all the way to the end. Extra care was taken on the wet roads, especially on descents, and our groups became parades of bike lights.

The end of the rain-soaked route came to one of our most treasured stayover locations: Rockville, Indiana. For all but one of the past sixteen years of rides, Randy Randall and the First United Methodist Church have hosted I4K. “Hosted” is an understatement. Randy, along with many members of the congregation, prepared a massive and very tasty dinner, arranged showers and beds from members of the community, and donated a heap of snacks to our team in the form of make-your-own two-gallon goodie bags! The tradition of Rockville and First United Methodist immediately preceding Champaign is a truly special part of the ride. I’ll let the pictures do the rest of the talking from here.

Cyclist’s Corner

Today’s Rider: Mike Rotter, Ride Leader

How are you today? I am doing great today. It’s nice to be in Rockville, a place I have been a lot of times and to be with people I have talked to over the course of my rides. It is also bittersweet as this is probably my last ride day with Illini 4000.

What make and model of bicycle are you riding? A black Felt FR40, the same as I used for my first two rides, named “Black Betty”.

What is your favorite aspect about the ride so far? Why is it your favorite? I would say it’s been a fun challenge to try and get all of the ride leader tasks done in 16 days before sending the team off for the rest of the ride, and, it’s been nice to see the team grow so quickly.

How much cycling did you do before training for I4K specifically? Before my first ride in 2018, I had never biked more than 10 miles at once. In preparation for this ride, I barely did any riding and just kind of trusted that my legs still had it in them. My first ride that I had done before this summer was 50 miles which was my longest in over a year.

Is there anyone you are riding for today and would like to share a few words for? Today, we rode for Angela, the nurse that took out Emily’s stitches yesterday and who shared her story. In general for this summer’s ride, I am doing it for anyone who feels like they are dealing with cancer on their own, and I hope that for those people, seeing us biking is a sign that they are not alone and that we are supporting them.

Where on today’s route (generally or specific mile marker) was the most memorable for you? What happened? I think the most memorable moment was right at the end: pulling up and seeing this church. It is one that I have been to at least five or six times and recognizing it and knowing we are here is powerful.

Anything you’d like to say to those cheering you on? If my parents are reading this then I love you guys and I will see you soon! :)

Bonus Question 1: As our ride leader from NYC to Champaign, as well as being both a rider and ride leader in the past, how was this ride for you? This ride has been really different because I’ve felt like the wise old sage that others are coming to for advice and to lead them. It’s been a little different being in the van for a lot of it, and it’s also been really nice to see that the organization is still going strong and there’s a lot of people on the team that really want to be here. I felt better equipped to be a leader this time.

Bonus Question 2: How does it feel to have the most I4K miles out of anyone? It does feel nice to have put in a lot of work physically and mentally into this organization and there is a sense of pride of having ridden so many miles and surpassing Marie as well.

Please visit the rider profiles page on the website to learn more about this year’s riders! :)

~Dictionary of I4K~

Bike Lights: Front (white) and rear (red, flashing) mounted lights. Illuminate road conditions and signal presence to vehicles. Typically battery powered or USB rechargeable. Required for I4K.