Day 37: From Kendallville, IN to Napoleon, OH

Today I rode my bicycle for 70 miles and felt as if I hadn’t pedaled one bit. We had a great tailwind coming from the west and soared along and really all I can say about today was that it was a lot of fun, pure, child-like, fun on a bike. We caught an amazing sun rise coming out of our campground after a catered egg and pancake breakfast by the Parks and Rec Dept.

 We crossed into State #10 and once again, no state sign per se BUT a little street sign and the beginning of a yellow line marked the start of Ohio and Melanie, Ali, and I thought it sufficient enough to take photos. I rode the rest of the day with Melanie and probably bored her to death talking about how cool I thought Immunology is but since she majored in Entomology, maybe I’m wrong.

We are staying at a campground and it’s pretty cool because we have rode our bicycles from Seattle to the home state of riders Olivia and Jeff. I also think it’s amazing we will be in Sandusky tomorrow, a place where I have driven from Buffalo. I AM CLOSE ENOUGH TO DRIVE HOME. This is crazy and the kind of day I needed to get my spirits back in order.

Day 36: From Valparaiso, IN to Kendallville, IN: 109 miles

Today we crossed into EASTERN TIME (welcome hommmme!) and rode another century+ for the week (110 miles) and it went much better than last time. I have found that when I am thinking on the bike, time passes pretty quickly. I managed to plan my workout/school schedule today (exciting I know) but that killed about 20 miles. Then I dozed off into this relaxation state of cycling, it’s strange to be physically working yet somehow remaining calm and at rest, almost as if I was in some sort of meditation. This got me through to mile 60. After that, it was a series of emotional highs and lows, meaning ‘this is great’ to ‘are we there yet,’ kind of things.

Some things of note that I did not take a picture of I saw a sign that said “Free Pickles” and sure enough there was a container full of pickles next to the road. I don’t care if it would have been gross, had I liked pickles or had this been ‘free ice cream,’ I would have downed them. Since we were in Amish country, I saw many horse drawn buggies and some were even moving so slowly that I managed to pass them (on the left of course) on my bicycle. It’s crazy to see farmland and know that people wake up at dawn to mend and plant their crops, take care of their animals, etc just so we, the consumers, can eat meat. I got a taste of the hard work that goes into this because my roommate’s boyfriend is a dairy farmer but to see the work first hand is pretty cool. All the people passing in buggies and on bicycle looked so happy and so content with their version of simple living and even those working hard on the land still managed to wave. America brings together people of all cultures, all ideals, and all perspectives and seeing each one of these for a number of miles by bicycle has really made me appreciate our country.

Jeff Sloan, the happy dentist on the trip, had an incident where his derailer broke this morning after 20 miles and he had to ride the rest of the day in 1 gear. I think I change gears every 30 seconds and I use all of mine so you can imagine how difficult/frustrating this must be. When I arrived into camp, riders were setting up his tent because they knew he’d be late and wanted to perform a kind gesture. Yesterday, Tim, the Marine Corps pulled Martha (let her draft behind him), one of the slower riders, the entire 80 miles and made sure she hadn’t fallen back every step of the way. We are becoming a community and although we are all very different and may never have been friends in the real world if that was left to choice, the choice to do this ride was enough of a choice. I think we have all come to the conclusion that if someone chooses to ride their bicycle across the country in 48 days for charity, chooses to get up in the face of heat and thunderstorms, chooses to mindlessly set up and take down tents every day, chooses to do all of this to become more mentally and physically well rounded, then that person is someone we want to get to know or at least we want to help out. Attitude is everything for this trip and when I am in a bad mood, I do not try and pretend like my day is going great because I know if I am honest in speaking what I am feeling, someone will give me honest advice or pay a little more attention to helping me along. I love that. And I love seeing others do it as well.

By the way, in case anyone was wondering (this is the boring stuff but I feel like I should write it so it can trigger cool stuff that happened that day), we are camping at a state park in Kendallville, IN and dinner was pulled pork and salad catered by the Parks and Rec Dept. The mayor was here along with the press and we were treated with an entire soft serve ice cream machine.

Day 35: From Coal City, IL to Valparaiso, IN: 81 miles

So today we crossed into state #9! But there was no state sign so we plan on getting a picture once we leave the state. Like yesterday, not a whole lot to see. We had a slight headwind and some small rolling hills so these "challenges" made the ride a bit more interesting for me than yesterday. On the contrary, everyone else seemed to hate today's ride. The roads were terrible, extremely bumpy, old, and just not easy on the butt or hands. The motorists here are also kind of jerks. But once again, these things kept me alert and after lunch, time seemed to fly by. I am headed for a long nap and we are staying at a dorm so a good night's sleep is also in the mix.

The sunrise this morning was beautiful..good thing b/c wake up time was 4am

Another gigantic fake thing--astronaut?

Day 34: From Garden Prairie, IL to Coal City, IL: 106 miles

Why did I post this? It's all I saw for 106 miles..or 108 if you count the 2 when I missed the turn

Everyone seemed to love today’s ride…that is everyone but me. Yes, it was ‘scenic’ if you count the same bright green corn fields for 106 miles and yes it was relatively easy but to me that just means 6+ hours on a bike to zone out and I realized if I zone for 20 minutes, I am lucky. I much prefer big days with climbs, challenges, sweating, and brief torture, rewarded with mountainous landscape and maybe some cooked corn at the end (which we did have tonight). Thank you Jenny for getting me through this one. I need a real mental strengthener for the next 4 days because I think they are going to be pretty similar and I am getting pretty homesick/antsy about getting back into my routine (even if that means medical school…), my workouts, and my final days of summer.

I am looking at this positively though and realizing how much I appreciate my current life which truly is an amazing feeling. Up until now, my more ‘spiritual’ moments of the rides have involved the realization that America and its people are truly beautiful and should be discorvered by all. I also wrote how I am thankful for being healthy and fit enough to do this.  I have also realized how easy it is to get to place by bicycle, whether it be 5 or 15 miles, and plan to incorporate this into errands such as going to the gym, going to pick up an item at the grocery store, etc.. Makes for cleaner air, fitter people, and a great message. Today though, the realization that my life is good, despite me thinking it’s stressful at times is rewarding. To understand that I actually miss school is kind of crazy but I know I am in the right place, in the right field, (word is still out about at the right school but it’s growing on me), and surrounded by an AMAZING support system. Speaking of, I want to thank everyone for their facebook comments and texts because they really do get me through the day and I need them now more than ever. I have been blessed with the best friends from Pomona (Claremont)  and Buffalo/Rochester and Melbourne that a girl could ask for.

Today dinner was quite the treat as we had a camp picnic with fresh deli sandwiches, quinoa, edamame, salad, corn on the cob, and amazing shortbread chocolate cookies and blueberry/peach fruit salad. We are staying at a privately owned camp/country club and got into camp in time to go swimming and diving at their beach before dinner. Olivia’s friend from England arrived today and will be riding with us for one week. One a sadder note, somebody stole my luxurious bathroom bag filled with a toothbrush that needed to be thrown out, toothpaste, a prescription and contacts (which is why I am mad), and minimal makeup (for rest days) that was almost gone so whoever you are, karma will get you and I looked better in that makeup than you ever will. Tomorrow is a new day, I hope for the best.

Boats and jet skis near our camp

Day 33: From Madison, WI to Garden Prairie, IL: 93 miles

I was very sad to leave Madison but I keep telling myself I will be at Cedar Point in less than a week and that gets me through the day. Today was kind of uneventful, some rolling hills, some flats, and a lot of cues. I actually like the urban riding that we have been doing because despite more traffic, it means more cute neighborhoods, more mental alertness, and less mileage before the next turn. We went from riding entire 60 miles+ on one route to today, not riding for longer than about 10 miles before our next cue. It was refreshing and the tailwind we had helped the day go by. The last 10 miles were tough because the tailwind became a headwind but somehow we dodged this for most of the ride and also dodged the thunderstorms. We truly have been really lucky with the weather and the heat, or lack thereof. It was supposedly 94 but with the wind, lack of humidity, and cloud coverage, it was perfect riding weather.

We crossed into state #7 today and the sign/location was not very aesthetically pleasing

These are for you Dee

Day 31: From Viroqua, WI to Madison, WI: 99 miles

We woke up this morning and Team 3 (my team) was on breakfast duty which means I was up by 4:40AM. After Charlton gave us an extended pre ride talk (about 20 minutes because some people have not been texting him when they stop or get lost which sends everyone into a frenzy), I was a little worried about the ride and the rest of the trip. We didn't end up leaving until 6:30am and by then, it was already blazingly hot. We have two stretches of 6 days coming up and mentally, I am kind of done with cycling. I am missing my everyday life of cooking my own meals (with variety), going to the gym for one hour for a solid sweat session, lounging with friends, seeing movies, going out dancing in Buffalo, etc. The routine of early morning wake ups, lunch at 9:30am, and dinner super early is wearing on me just because of the monotony. Luckily, today's ride broke that up.

Early morning fog

After the first 20 miles, I looked like I had just showered...showered in my own sweat that is. The sun and humidity was brutal, but bearable. We had rolling hills for most of teh day, with a couple of steep climbs that I seemed to conquer pretty strongly. I was out in the lead (minus Jeff, Tim, and Kendall), until the last 10 miles when I decided to stop to get frozen yogurt. The cue sheet indicated a smoothie place about 15 miles from camp but turns out it closed down and t'was a blessing in disguise because I got my fro yo. I climbed very well today and very fast and needed that to show myself that I am indeed getting stronger. I rolled in behind, Jeff, Olivia, and Tom who were in a pace line for most of the day so I was pretty proud that I kept their pace without the draft. On my weaker days, I am sure I will take advantage of the glories of riding behind another person to expend less energy, although sometimes I feel like I am sprinting to catch up with them and end up expending more. It is cool to see other riders improving as well. Olivia has gone from being in the later group to roll into camp to today being one of the first. Melanie is climbing like a monkey, Jenny is super speedy on the flats, and Nelle will appear from nowhere when she turns on the gas. I think my niche is rolling hills and that's what today was.

We had lunch at Peck's Farms, a crazy establishment equipped with market, petting zoo, a million oversized games (lifesize hess, dice, etc) and rides.
  



Madison is AMAZING and everything I expected and more. I really wish I could have gone to medical school here (damn you out of state statistics). The city is built around the University of Wisconsin and thus equipped with cafes, bars, restaurants, gourmet food carts, and shops all on one street (State St), leading up to the Capitol Building. The food carts blew my mind, sushi, fresh salad, smoothies, HIBACHI?!, basically all non greasy, non hot-dog esque carts that seemed to outdo some of the restaurants around here. And they are all stationed in a pedestrian mall that has chalkboards asking the residents to write on the board what they like and dislike about the city in order to make changes. The city is very bike friendly and has entire streets devoted to cycling in hopes of pushing cyclists off main streets but giving them alternate, safer, less trafficky routes (it's called bicycle boulevard and signs encourage cyclists to use the whole lane). We are staying on the 11th floor (penthoussse) of Chadbourn Dorms.

State St

Chalkboard things I was talking about

Last night, we went to a bar that Melanie works at called the Buck and Badger for trivia and stayed there the whole night because, to be frank, the bartender was quite the stud and it was his first day on the job so we had fun teaching him how to make specialty shots (and we got discounted prices). I've already had frozen yogurt 3 times and just tried the famous Wisconsin dairy in the form of ice cream from the Chocolate Shoppe. They have about 50 flavors and of course, I sampled many, but went with the Elvis which is banana ice cream with real banana, peanut butter swirls, and chocolate chunks. It is not as good as Lake Effect but is very close and the best on the trip so far. We went to the Great Dane for lunch, a pub restaurant with amazing local food and brews.

              The Buck and Badger                                              The Great Dane

                      

I am about to head to the Terrace for dinner. It is a beach located right in the student Union (how cool is that), with live music on the water every Thurs, Fri, Saturday. There are places to eat, buy pitchers of craft beer, go swimming. sail, lounge, and is really all a student could ever want. It's so weird being in a city built around the college because I came from an undergrad where the student life was all on campus, rather than in the hopping town of Claremont. Made for great, close knit friendships and was what I needed at the time but for graduate life, I think Madison would be absolutely ideal.

The Terrace (stage for bands on left)

 Giant Chair

Day 30: From Winona, MN to Viroqua WI: 70 some miles

So the cue sheet for today told us we were going to be going 66 miles but we ended up doing over 70 (some people a lot more) in order to make a special stop. The morning started off hot because we left after 7am in order to eat breakfast in Winona State's cafeteria. The humidity was somewhat brutal but I did not notice it until we would stop biking and then the sweat would start pouring. We took a slight detour in the first 20 miles in order to tackle a steep 1 mile climb that ended up being very challenging but scenic and rewarding (just like our ride coordinator's told us it would be)! We then continued on to the Myer's house. Apparently, these two young girls had seen the Big Riders around 20 years ago, when the ride was MUCH larger (hundreds of bikers) because the route passed their house. They then decided to make a lemonade stand for when the riders came by every year. Eventually this turned into them hosting the riders at their house in lieu of our first check point and offering us fruit, veggies, hummus, and homemade muffins. They had an entire banquet display for us, equipped with photo books from past riders, rider paraphernalia including a book that a previous rider got published, guest books to sign and write comments in, an interview station, and personal photo cards that we got to autograph. We were truly celebrities.

                                                Nelle and I at the Myer's House

                                                                  Myers' Family

After my interview, which consisted of a series of recorded questions about the Big Ride, I got to pick out a homemade bracelet 

Found Ben's photo!

We continued the ride by crossing into Wisconsin (State #7) and across the Mississippi River. This was followed with another brutal 1.5 mile climb into Amish country. Everything was green, spacious, and beautiful. Every climb was followed by a fun descent and I finally hit 40mph today (even though the cue sheet said to take it easy---I was determined). We had our last checkpoint at a pond around mile 60. Ben, my friend from medical school who did the ride last year, had told me that today's ride was his favorite and there was a fun rope swing across the pond at lunch. Well, the pond was green and the rope swing ended up being too short to reach (it had broke) but the swim out to the other side was well worth it, quite refreshing, and I just chose to ignore the algae. Olivia, Nelle, Melanie, and I got some great shots with Olivia's waterproof camera.

 World's Largest 6 pack

 Note the green water

      We swam from the dock to the other side, found short rope swing, made sad face, and swam back

We rolled into town and cooled off at a local co-OP and I am currently sitting in a cafe that sells local meats and greens for 12 dollar dinner night. YUM.