Day 70 - 4,000 Miles To Date - San Francisco, CA

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do, so throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." - Mark Twain

When I first thought about signing up for the 4k For Cancer, I was in the car on the way to a triathlon. I filled out the application on my iPhone and texted my parents "I'm biking across the country next summer." They told me no way, until I got an interview and got accepted and at that point they finally started to accept it. When I was in that car listening to Kelly tell me about the 4k, all I was thinking was how cool it would be to bike across the country. What I didn't find out about the 4k until this very moment, was the new family I would become a part of. I didn't know how inspired I would feel every single morning simply standing in a circle and hearing everyone's story. I didn't know I would care for people more than I even knew I could, I didn't know that I would gain 29 people that care equally as much about me. I was never told I would cry. Before this trip, the idea of losing a little brother, a father, a mother, a boyfriend were all ideas and I couldn't fully imagine what it would be like. I look at some of my teammates every single day and I feel like I am fighting with them, I feel like I know their family members that have passed away because I know them. I also feel their strength day in and day out. What they have been through, no one should ever have to deal with and the way they have fought through every single day is so admirable. I truly have never met such strong people and I wish every day that I can once be as courageous as they are. The day I rode for every one of the people my teammates were riding for this summer, I specifically thought of each of them up the hardest climb that day. I thought of Chad, Samy, Gerry, Dani, Dom, Ryan and it got me up that mountain faster than I could have imagined and I could have never done it by myself and with my own thoughts. When I signed up for 4k, I was never told the emotions I would feel during and directly after this amazing trip. I will carry everything I learned this summer and all of the strength from my teammates throughout all I do in life. I will always remember the Appalachians we got through together, the headwinds we fought through by each taking our turn in the front, the Rockies we got up with our climbing partners, the tears we shared the night before San Francisco, and the pride we felt as we ran into the Pacific Ocean.

It's a very weird feeling I have right now. To be completely honest, I do not feel like I biked across the country. I feel like I met 29 people, I rode my bike a lot and in a lot of different places, and got incredibly closer to these complete strangers from 70 days ago. A lot of people have been texting or commenting about how amazing I must feel, and don't get me wrong this is incredible, but I physically don't know what I feel. I was confused this morning when I didn't wake up next to my 29 new family members, rushing to the bathroom to put on my bike shorts and brush my teeth, and try to find the nearest coffee place before I did my chore for the morning. That being said, even if I don't feel physically different at this very moment, I cannot describe to you how appreciative I am of all of the people following my trip and cheering me on. I could not have done it without everyone who donated, sent me mail, wished me luck, texted me to see how it was going, etc. It is truly amazing the support and love we felt everyday and especially as we rode into that beach just yesterday afternoon, as all of our family and friends were waiting for us and cheering us on. I will absolutely never forget this summer and I know we are all already looking forward to send-off weekend next year when we meet up and ride out with next year's team. Everyone in the age range to do this trip should absolutely consider it, you will not regret it for one second. What an amazing experience. From San Francisco, CA, have a great day! What's next?! 

A few fun facts for you:
Though we collectively did 4,000 miles, I physically rode my bike for 3,604 miles. We climbed the equivalent of 4 Mount Everests and the fastest I went on my bike was 49mph. My least favorite state was Kansas, favorite state was Colorado, and favorite city was South Lake Tahoe by a landslide. I will never eat Subway or a Clif Bar another day in my life, but I think I still like bagels.Thanks again to my teammates, my supporters back home, and most importantly the 4k For Cancer and the Ulman Cancer Fund.

Day 64 - 3,722 Miles To Date - Yosemite, CA

We made it to Cali!! We literally rode our bikes from Maryland to California, so crazy! I'm currently sitting in a lounge in Curry Village in the middle of Yosemite National Park. I got a cup of coffee and my team is just relaxing and waiting for some more of us to show up. Our last rest day was probably the best yet. We woke up and headed over to the Carson City Cancer Center to deliver chemo care bags and get a tour of the facility. It was pretty neat and towards the end we were able to learn about some of the hats and wigs they make. After listening to what the woman had to say, Holden decided he wanted to donate his long ponytail to make a wig for a cancer patient. The woman set up the appointment and half of us went with him while the other half went to talk about our trip to the Rotary Club that hosted us. Once we finished up with both of those things, we were able to go over to one of the beaches on the lake and hang out on the water for a while. Jeff made a jet ski reservation for us, so after laying on the beach for about an hour we took it out. It was so much fun and I definitely wish I brought my GoPro. I think I can now update my list of scariest things I've ever done in my life: Jetskiing with Jeff driving, ATVs with Jeff driving, and skydiving. The Rotary Club hosted a dinner for us a little while later on the beach so we were able to hang out into sunset. None of us wanted to leave after a really fun day, but eventually we went back to the host and prepared for a long, hard day (though I was scheduled for a van day.) The next day went like most van days do, boring and long. Everyone else definitely had a much longer day because it was about 118 miles full of heat, wind, and climbing. Everyone made it to Lee Vining though, and we ate dinner and slept, like most century days go. This morning we got ready and were told breakfast was at a different location two miles away, so we biked out and followed the van to what looked like the airport. We all arrived to Landis' parents by their little plane and breakfast set up on the wings for us. We were all really excited and surprised but of course Landis was very surprised and happy to see her parents again. We ate a delicious meal and had a really great dedication circle and cheer and headed off to Yosemite. Today was also going to be another hard day of climbing, so I decided to dedicate it to all of the people my teammates are riding for. I've gotten to know everyone really well and as I've said in previous posts, they are so inspiring and I really wanted to ride for all of their families and friends. Today's ride ended up being kind of a - pardon my French - shit show, but it was also SO beautiful and I really enjoyed it. My group got split up and Jeff and I ended up finishing out the ride through the national park and to Curry Village where we eventually met up with Draper, Casey, Chris, and Emily again. The ride was definitely a tough one but the descent through Yosemite was absolutely worth it, as usual I'll let the pictures do the talking. Tonight, we camp.