Two days. Same distance. Very different scenery, segmented and overall levels of exertion, and overall feel for each. The first of these witnessed the end of the Bike America Team’s short stay in Utah, and their entrance into Wyoming, the Equality State and our thirteenth visited. Wyoming, as well as being one of the newest states in the U.S., is its least populated at 578,803 people as of 2021. For some, the lack of fellow humans brings about feelings of desolation, and for others, it brings peace.
In a way, this sort of phenomenon ties into our mission. All I4K riders past and present are riding for all who experience cancer, and that includes those who feel, or are, completely alone. This could mean having few or no others to talk to, feeling that nothing is working for one’s treatment plan or financial coverage or because of relapse, or perhaps feeling dull from gestures of sympathy without really understanding. We raise funds, we ride, we fight for every one of them.
Days 49 and 50, the first quite scenic and difficult at first but easy later, and the second not as scenic and gradually increasing in exertion, presented their own unique challenges, including those surrounding loneliness. In the material sense, services are fewer and farther between, electronic communication is more difficult, etc. From here, there also exists a lack of people, which makes us eager to talk to those we do meet. Despite our fatigue and this lack of outside stimulation, we are stronger than ever as a team and will press on. The vastness of Wyoming, and the West in general, is truly epic.
I decided to combine this post due to the interesting combination of these two days and because of a recent lack of good cell service and wifi over the past few days. But don’t worry! Journals will be posted as I am able, even if they are a little late. :)
Ride Overview, Day 49
Mileage: 72.7
Elevation: +5333’/-5227’
General Direction: Turn left out of the campsite onto Little Hole Rd. and continue for 3.3 miles, turn right onto U.S. 191, cross into Wyoming at mile 11.4, and continue for 51.5 miles beyond this point, at the intersection with I-80, take the westbound onramp and ride on the shoulder for 7.1 miles, exit for Green River and turn right onto Uinta Dr., cross the Green River and use residential streets to reach the stayover.
Points of Interest: Rocky Mountains, route as a whole
Ride Overview, Day 50
Mileage: 72.7
Elevation: +2936’/-2111’
General Direction: Ride northwest through the town of Green River, turn left onto westbound WY-374, turn onto the westbound I-80 on ramp in Little America at mile 23.0, after two miles, exit onto U.S. 30 and ride for the duration of the route to Kemmerer and the stayover.
Points of Interest: Little America Travel Center, Ham’s Fork Creek, J.C. Penney original store
Tales of the Trail, Day 49
The morning was a bit chilly, but nothing too serious. We rolled away from a still rising sun and biked between a few interesting rock formations before reaching the Wyoming border and our first large climb at mile 11. This climb began with a steady slope, followed by a flat section, then a taxing 8% grade for 1.8 miles which took us to 8,100 feet. After a rest stop, we flew down some descents along a deep and utterly massive basin with mountains arcing up from its rear. A second steady climb took us to the top of a grassy plateau that allowed us witness the depths of canyons and heights of nearby mountains on all sides. The fauna were quite spectacular too - groups caught their first (some ever) sightings of wild antelope, and butterflies flitted around our second rest stop at the top.
After this, we cruised along the top of this plateau at a gradual descent that took us 28 miles toward the small town of Purple Sage and a massive hogback range behind it. From here, we took our lunch and hopped onto another interstate segment, this time on I-80, for about seven miles. We reached Green River before our host was ready so, you guessed it, it was ice cream time at Stellar Coffee and Ice Cream.
Note the adorable stuffed animals!
Patrick and Nina took us to the gun show.
Tonight we are staying at Lincoln Middle School. The superintendent, Craig, graciously let us stay here for the night and we enjoyed a dinner donation from Don Pedro’s. A bit before bedtime, a fun game of kickball ensued. Tomorrow will be another long, yet average day for this team, and we will ride to the town of Kemmerer.
A truly awesome kickball showdown.
Day 49 plate haul.
Tales of the Trail, Day 50
Bumpy was the road out of Green River past the rock pillars and into the gradual rolling plains. These pillars were a temporary goodbye to the stunning visuals we had seen the day before, as slowly rolling plains dotted with grasses took over the surrounding landscape. The occasional ridge stood its ground while distant factories and chemical plants let loose their smoky byproducts into the air. To the south, the Uinta Mountains stood proud and distant, their snowy peaks around 55 miles south of Wyoming 374. At around mile 15, some groups were able to tail a buck antelope as it bounded in the same direction as we were rolling. We watched it, while dodging potholes of course, as it tried to unsuccessfully jump a nearby fence, and we even called out cars for it whenever it crossed the road. At mile 22 was Little America, an oasis in the desert of sorts for truckers and travelers, but more importantly, the home of 75 cent ice cream cones! It was around 8 AM, so this became our breakfast stop and many of us had at least two to start. From here, it was another two mile stretch on I-80 (which had a closed right lane so we had plenty of room!) and a quick merge onto U.S. 30, where we would spend the rest of the day.
$2.25 spent in this whole photo - no tax either. :)
The temperature rose as more plains, hills, and small ridges filled in the distance from the road. There wasn’t much to say for the ride conditions, other than there were plenty of rolling hills. Riders made the time pass by keeping track of drivers, talking, listening to music, and license plate hunting, and the last of these resulted in quite the haul by the end of the day. Distant freight trains with miles of cars sometimes meandered by, snaking their way through the open land. As the time crept on, so did the fatigue of this long of a ride with this little to see. In truth, there was really a lot of beauty to it, but it becomes harder to notice after days such as the one before. A headwind picked up in our last twenty miles to Kemmerer and it continued to push us for all of that distance, especially on inclines. At about 3 PM local time, we rolled into our stayover.
Tonight we are staying at Kemmerer Jr.-Sr. High School. We prepared our own lovely pasta and lentil dinner with the addition of a run to the store for some necessary items, snacks, and O-so Butterscotch Root Beer, also known as ride leader Mike’s “favorite liquid on the planet”. Fun fact: Kemmerer is where J.C. Penney was born, and its original 1902 store is still there and operating! Our after-dinner routines were very normal, but as always full of conversation and laughter as we wound down for the evening. 70 miles lie between us and Big Piney tomorrow.
Group 2 arriving in Kemmerer.
Day 50 plate haul.
Cyclist’s Corner
Today’s Rider: Kathryn Choate
How are you today? I’m vibing. Today’s been a good day, we were on a gorgeous ridge for half of today and we just could see the mountains of Wyoming laid out beneath us. The downhill was shallow enough to where we barely had to pedal and it almost felt like floating downward through the ridgeline. The road was also so smooth that I could really concentrate on the beauty of the nature surrounding us and not have to constantly watch the road for hazards. It just felt so good to be out in the middle of it all and I really felt in tune with nature today.
In your opinion, what makes a good I4K teammate? Compassionate people who are also good listeners. This is a hard trip and we’re going through many different things so saying “How are you doing?” and meaning it, and then following up later is really sweet and helpful. Knowing that a teammate may be having a bad day today for x reasons and being able to talk about it with them really helps to make their day better. Also, understanding that things that come easy to you don’t necessarily come easy to other people, and understanding that associated friction that may come up because of this, learning from it, and being able to mitigate this frustration on the team are very important.
Where was the best ice cream you’ve had so far? That’s so hard! I really feel like we’ve been taking an ice cream tour of America as our side quest and I have been thoroughly enjoying it. One that sticks out is the first day in Ohio, where we went to Udderly Sweet Treats in Lake Milton. We waited about thirty minutes for it to open and had ice cream for lunch! It was a long, hot day and the ice cream was incredible. Being able to have it mid-ride really added to the day. I had black raspberry fudge, and this gave me my fruit kick (it was real fruit!) as well as added the sweetness of the fudge.
How have you improved in handling the bike during the ride? I’ve been able to navigate turns a lot more easily. I remember earlier in the ride I would unclip and scream when about to go around a corner. Since then, I’ve been able to successfully navigate them, even on mountains with switchbacks! In Colorado, I went into my drops for the first time, and I can do that consistently now too!
If you could snapshot one favorite or at least special sight, place, or moment in your mind that you’ve experienced on the bike, what would it be, where was it, and on what ride day? On Day 3, we had three large climbs, and on the third, Olivia, Jon Y, and I were walking our bikes up the 15% grade while Edward kept pedaling up. Eventually, he got far ahead enough to where we couldn’t see him, and the hill just kept going and going but we were laughing all the way. Later on, we saw what appeared to be an orange object in the distance so we started yelling thinking it was Edward. When Olivia yelled, “Edward, move if you’re real!” it was absolutely hilarious. It turned out not to be him, but after two more fake Edward sightings, we finally found the real Edward at the top of the hill.
In ten words or less, how will you remember this ride when we complete it? Transcending limitations, incredible human beings, and delicious ice cream.
Please visit the rider profiles page on the website to learn more about this year’s riders! :)
Drafting this edition in Green River. :)