Day 21-22: Bradley, IL to Chicago, IL

I haven't been cycling for the past two days. Instead, I've been eating a lot of delicious food. On Day 21, I had van duty and was driving the food van, which meant that I went around to beg for food donations. It was my second time in the food van. Although I was a bit bummed that I didn't get to ride into Chicago, I enjoyed the extra rest day driving the van with Ariana. My butt surely did, after cycling over 300 miles in the past four days. 

Ari and I went to a Panera, Krogers, a drugstore, and a few family-owned restaurants. Almost everyone was really friendly and was willing to help. We got donations at four out of the six places we asked. I was happy to bring my teammates a great lunch of sandwiches, wraps, paninis, salad, homemade potato chips, and a bunch of snack foods and veggies. And we got all that stuff before 11 am, too! The morning went by smoothly and we were able to have an early lunch stop. 

Getting into Chicago and reaching our host at UIC was a bit of a pain. There was some confusion about our dorm rooms which took over three hours to figure out. We finally got rooms and everyone arrived and was able to shower. Everyone was really hungry by then. A group of us decided to go to a steakhouse, and chose a random steakhouse. Turned out, it was kind of fancier than we thought, about on par with Ruth's Chris. Whoops, I was wearing running shorts and my 4K shirt with flip flops. Oh well. 

I wanted to splurge a little since we were in Chicago, so I ordered two oysters, a 16oz ribeye, a side of truffled peas, and a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon. 

I also stole other people's sweet potato fries which were some of the best I've ever had. My medium rare steak was delicous. 

The next morning, my body automatically wanted to wake up at 5am, but I made myself sleep in until 6:40. I wanted to go for a run to the Navy Pier and see the lake path since I didn't get to ride into Chicago on it. I went for a 5ish mile run with Chris and enjoyed the views of the lake. 

The mist shrouding the skyscrapers was eerie and pretty cool. 

There are a few interesting sculptures along the lake path. I thought this whale sculpture made with plastic bottles and scrap metal was interesting. 

After we got back and showered, a group of us headed to Chinatown for some dimsum. Ki Young, a teammate who is from Chicago, took us to a really great dimsum restaurant. 

I sat at a table of four, and we ended up ordering 13 dishes, including chicken feet and congee. 

I ate so much food and it was amazing. I needed to lie down for a bit afterwards. 

In the afternoon, Ki Young took us on a tour of UC. It was a really beautiful campus with huge gothic buildings covered in ivy. The cathedral was immense. 

We also went downtown to walk around and see the bean. Chicago seems like a pretty bike-friendly city with a lot of bike lanes. I guess I'll see when I bike out of the city on Day 23. 

This was the second time I've visited the Bean. We took a bunch of group photos and some people got hot dogs in honor of Jamie, since it was her favorite food. We still laugh about that. 

It was a fun day in Chicago and I wish we had more time to do stuff. I'll just have to come back again. 

Read More

Day 20: Champaign, IL to Bradley, IL

Mileage: 91.9 miles

Day 20 was our longest day so far. The morning started with a downpour as we were leaving the host at University of Illinois. I wasn't too happy riding in the rain, but at least it wasn't scorching hot like the past couple of days. Fortunately, the rain stopped soon and the sky started to clear up. From Champaign, we quickly turned onto the back country roads with hardly any cars.

Before the first water stop, we saw a bunch of airplanes at an airport/museum and stopped for the photo op.

The miles went by pretty quickly, despite the highest mileage so far. The roads we took were great; virtually no traffic through the farm fields in the middle of nowhere. We usually ride in groups of four (me, Ari, Chris, and Brady) but since the roads were so deserted, a bunch of groups started riding together. We were able to ride side by side and take up the whole road, just chatting away the miles.

Whenever someone gets a flat, we have something called "Flatchat" and we take a selfie with the person who got the flat. I kind of failed with this pic because I didn't include the person who actually got the flat.

In the afternoon, we all congregated under a large tree for a moment of silence in remembrance of Jamie Roberts, our teammate who was killed a week ago in an accident. We all stood under the tree in a circle, holding hands. It was an emotional moment, and although it still makes my heart wrench to think about it, I felt as though Jamie was smiling down on us and felt peaceful.

We do a hand signal every day during our team cheer called "Jamie Love", which is like the Vulcan greeting (from Star Trek) with the four fingers making a V and the thumb at the side. It was her way of saying "I love you".

This ride was the most fun I've had. I got to ride with different people in our large "super groups" and had a blast. I also pacelined with Aaron, Brady, and Victor on a long, flat stretch going east with a tailwind at our backs. We were flying. And I love going fast and hard on the bike, which doesn't happen much on our rides. Our max speed was 35.4 mph.  Can't wait for more days like this :)

Read More

Day 13-18: Lexington, KY to Effingham, IL

I honestly don't know where to begin to describe what has happened in the past week. The days have been filled with a lot of heartbreak and tears, but also a lot of love, laughs, hope, and inspiration. It has been a tough time, but I am glad to say that my team, Team Portland, is going to be okay. Or as we like to say, "4K OK".

Today is day 20, a week after my 4K team experienced a terrible tragedy and a huge loss. If you haven't already heard on the news, Jamie Roberts was hit by a car on the side of the road in Kentucky on Friday, June 13th. It was a freak accident and so sudden. Another teammate was standing right next to her, and walked away with non life-threatening injuries.

The following few days were so tough. In the middle of the worst case scenario, being together as a team was the best possible way to get through it. Everyone was so supportive of each other and there were a lot of massive group hugs full of tears and laughter. We were also surrounded by family and friends whose love and support really helped make things better. The tragedy hit our team hard, but we are slowly healing together.

This was the first time I had lost someone that was close to me. I had known Jamie for only the first two weeks of the 4K, but when you are cycling across the country, time seems to stretch out. Two weeks honestly felt like at least a month; our whole team got to know each other pretty quickly. I am grateful for having the privilege of knowing Jamie for this short time, though I am sad that I won't get to know her better. Jamie was such a joyful and warm person; I honestly don't remember ever seeing her without a smile on her face.

As a team, we have decided to bring her bike to Portland, OR. Jamie has touched everyone in a special way, and we all carry a piece of her with us. We are taking turns riding her bike each day, so that she can finish the ride to Portland. Getting back on the bike after the incident took a lot of courage, but I think we are all the more stronger and determined to keep on riding for Jamie. We will get to Portland, and Jamie will definitely be with us the entire way.

Today, we observed the time that Jamie left this earth a week ago with a moment of silence. Our team stopped under a large tree in the middle of the countryside, with fields of corn and soy stretching as far as the eye could see. As we gathered under that tree, holding hands in a circle and reflecting on our memories of Jamie, I could swear that she was sending us sunshine and beautiful blue skies dotted with white clouds after a morning that started with a downpour.

Read More

Day 19: Effingham, IL to Champaign, IL

Scenes from Day 19: Effingham, IL to Champaign, IL

Mileage: 83 miles

Cows to greet us at our first water stop

Hot and sunny day, but beautiful low-traffic roads through the countryside

I rode with Ki Young, Emily, and Chris today. Our team name was "Creamy Hydration"

The miles flew by as we chatted and played games. It was a fun day since the roads we road on were basically deserted and we could ride four across

Corn and soy was the theme for today. It seemed endless

Went out for dinner tonight at a sushi restaurant

Fried tofu with bonito flakes and dashi sauce for an appetizer, and a bowl of raw fish and veggies over rice, mixed with a hot pepper sauce. Everything was delicious.

I was craving froyo so badly. Finally got some and I was very content :)

Read More

Day 12: Oakwood, OH to Cincinnati, OH

I wrote a draft of this post for Day 11 a few days ago, but haven't posted it yet, so I might as well today.

Today is Day 14 of our trip, and we are currently in Lexington, KY. The past 36 hours has been a crazy whirlwind of chaos that has rocked my team. I just can not bring myself to write about it just yet. For the next few days, my blog will be on hiatus for an indeterminate amount of time. For those of my readers who do not know what happened, I apologize for keeping you in suspense.

Tomorrow we will be in Louisville, KY for a service day.

Here's a brief recap of Day 11:


The Rotary Club in Oakwood, OH invited us to their breakfast meeting at a country club. It was a really delicious and fancy breakfast. A nice change from the usual banana and peanut butter on whatever random bread I can find.

The Rotary Club members were happy to have us and chat about what the 4K is about. A few of us presented our experiences with the trip so far, our logistics, and why we decided to do the 4K.

The president made us step out for about five minutes, and in that short time, they did a fundraiser right then and there. The handed us a wad of cash, over $580, to donate to the Ulman Cancer Fund. That was so incredible of them.

Before we left, we invited the members to join our dedication circle, where we share who we are riding for that day. A few of them asked us to ride in honor of their loved ones who were either battling cancer, beaten cancer, or succumbed to it. It was really special and emotional to have the Rotary Club members participate in our dedication circle.

We did our Team Portland cheer, and got ready to head out for the day. Before we left, though, we stopped by the Wright Brother's house, which was nearby.

I honestly don't remember much of the details of the ride; my memory isn't the best right now. It went smoothly for the most part, and a lot of it was on bike trails. It was nice to ride on traffic-free trails for a change; it is so much less stressful. 

We got to our host, the American Cancer Society Hope Lodge, in Cincinnati, OH. We did some group laundry at a laundromat, which was an interesting experience since I don't remember the last time I was at a laundromat.

Where we were and going for the next few days:

6/13- Lexington, KY

6/14- Lexington, KY

6/15- Louisville, KY

6/16- Bloomington, IN

Read More

Day 11: Columbia, OH to Oakwood, OH

Mileage: 83 miles

Day 11 went by really quickly, despite the higher mileage. The route we took was really flat, and quite a large portion was on the extensive bike trails of Ohio. It was so nice to ride on traffic-free trails for a change. It is much less stressful. 

A highlight of the day was stopping at a bank for ice pops. A lady was standing by the side of the rode with a "free popscicles"  sign and we slammed on the brakes. We chatted with the people from the bank as we ate our ice pops and told them about the cross country bike ride and how the Ulman Cancer Fund helps young adults with cancer. 

We got to the host, a high school in Oakwood, OH around 4pm. The local rotary club invited us to dinner at one of the member's houses. We had a great dinner with plenty of Dewey's pizza (so excited for it since I've had it in StL), salad, various sides, and a ton of desserts. 

One of our teammates, Peter, had his 24th birthday, so we got him a cake. It was decorated with bananas because he challenged himself to eat 24 bananas throughout the day (though thankfully he quit after about 11 bananas). 

Read More

Day 10: Service Day in Columbus, OH

Day 10 was our first service day in Columbus, OH. We went to the Ronald McDonald House to help out. The house is a place for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. It is designed to be a home away from home, and is run by mostly volunteers. 

When we arrived at the house, we got to take a tour. The house is under going an expansion that adds over 40 more rooms, making it the largest Ronald McDonalds house in the world. 

The rooms that we saw were so nice. There were fitness rooms, game rooms, a music room with fun instruments, a library, theater, and more. The house looked like a great place to stay while a family is going through a rough time when their child is sick. People process stress of illness and worry differently, and the organization does a good job to provide families with everything they would need. Some stay for 7-10 days as their children receive treatment, but some patients are long term. They are currently working on a few houses next to the building for families who stay longer. 

After taking a tour, we got to work. I helped with getting the newly built rooms ready. They were pretty dusty from all the construction, so our job was to sweep the floors, clean the bathrooms, put in lampshades and lightbulbs, and polish the furniture. I ended up polishing the wooden furniture for two hours. It was pretty fun to work together, listening to music blasting from our iPhones. 

Some of us also helped with laundry, stock a food pantry, and assemble some furniture. It's amazing how the place is run mostly by volunteers. It was like a hotel. 

After about two hours of work, we were pretty exhausted and took advantage of the new Tempurpedic mattresses. I power napped for a few minutes. 

We finished at about 3, and many of us had only eaten breakfast. We were all hungry and needed something to tide us over before dinner. But before we left, we had to take a photo with Ronald McDonald. Of course. 

We were recommended to Jenis by a waitress for delicious homemade ice cream, so we decided to go there. Jenis has some really interesting ice cream flavors, including Saison with Sunflower, Cantaloupe and Suntea, and Brambleberry Crisp. I love anything yogurty, so I decided on Lemon and Blueberry Frozen Yogurt, Brambleberry Crisp, and Brown Butter Almond Brittle. 

And when there is a waffle come option, I will most certainly get it. This was delicious and so worth it! 

Read More