Day 4 and the ride so far

Destination: Duquesne, PA

Mileage: 62

Today was a pretty successful day! We got a very strong start with all groups completing 20 miles before 10 am. All groups got in by 5 pm, which was a great accomplishment compared to our other days.

Monongahela River

Great Allegheny Passage trail. 304 miles from DC!

So instead of going over details of the ride, since it was pretty straightforward, today I’ll talk about what it’s like to be on the ride. After 4 days I definitely have some comments and observations.

The ride:

First, it’s amazing to be seeing the country on a bicycle. The feeling of cresting a hill is really satisfying. Pennsylvania, while having some really ridiculous hills, is beautiful. We’ve passed probably a hundred dairy farms and dozens of small, sleepy towns. People often stop to watch us go by and we smile and wave. People ask us what we’re doing all the time and it’s fun to explain and see people’s excitement.

The biking:

When I’m on the bike on the road I am very anxious. I think I’m probably the most nervous rider on this team. I’m constantly looking forward for road obstacles, directions, and what the riders in front of me are doing. I’m also listening behind me for “Car back,” which is what we yell up the line when a car is coming up behind us, and looking over my shoulder to make sure we’re still all together. When cars pass it is scary, although most drivers so far have been courteous. Also, I’m terrified of downhills. I’d rather go up hills all day than go downhill. I won’t go over 31 mph, which means I’m braking a little, while most riders are comfortable going up to 40. This means that on the downhills I let everyone pass me before we descend, so we don’t create a hazard trying to pass at high speeds. A major part of group cycling is communication. We communicate all road obstacles (gravel, grates, holes, glass) by yelling it out, pointing at it, or both. We also yell “slowing” and “stopping” or put our hand behind our backs, and signal our turns both for us and for cars. If we cross an intersection without stopping we say “clear” to indicate to the next rider that it’s safe to cross and we are crossing. The next rider then clears the intersection themselves as well.

The Packing:

I’ve also quickly realized that I don’t miss anything that I didn’t pack… and I will probably get rid of some of the stuff I did pack. Re-packing my suitcase every morning is not fun. It’s a struggle to close.

Apparently not all of us have this problem. Jared, who we have nicknamed Princess, somehow had room for a twin-sized self-inflating air mattress, a sheet, a blanket, and two pillows -- one shaped like a cat, which is named Diego. I don't think he brought any clothes... but he does have the most comfortable sleeping arrangements.

The Team dynamics:

Team dynamics are interesting… in a group of 25 there are bound to be some very different personalities. Our ride leadership is by two guys named Dan and Andrew who have very different leadership styles. However, their strengths are each other’s weaknesses, which is good. There is also a wide range of athletic talent on the team. Some riders have been cyclists for 10 years; others have barely ridden a bike before. Also, everyone’s motivation and travel styles are different. Some people want to race to the host and do pace lines and drafting, while some want to take their time, stop and take pictures, and explore. We’ve had some frustrations in ride groups and with leadership for the past few days, but we’ve had a couple very productive conversations that have led us to understand each other better, and figure out how to organize ourselves in the future to lead to the best experience for everyone.

A rather disorganized photo of the team, before we left the Inner Harbor

The Laundry and showers:

Laundry = necessity. We are so gross at the end of the day. Also, hand washing things does not really work. Maybe I’m doing it wrong?? I don’t know, but the clothes don’t smell clean. I would say about half our hosts are going to have laundry facilities for us to use, and half don’t. If they do we just throw all our stuff in together (we labeled every single thing we brought on this trip) and if not we either hand wash or wait until the next time we have laundry.

Showers = sooooo welcome at the end of the day. Every shower is amazing. One of our hosts (repeat host) had a shower put into their church JUST FOR US! Because last year they didn’t have one for riders to use. Another host also had only a hose in an alley last year, and this year the pastor actually constructed three outdoor showers using PVC pipes and the hose… again JUST FOR US! We are so grateful for hosts that love us.

The food:

I’ve never eaten as much food as I have this week. It’s amazing how much food you can consume when you’re doing this much physical activity. I probably eat twice the amount I did at home. Which makes sense, since we’re burning some 3,000 calories per day.

What do we eat? Sometimes we get fed by our hosts (which is amazing). Whatever we don’t get from our hosts, we get donated. One of our vans is the “food van” and their job for the day (1 driver and 1 passenger) is to go out and get food donated. They may go to food establishments or grocery stores, whoever is willing to help.

Lunchtime.

We have a spiel that we give that typically goes like this: “Hi, my name is X and I am with the 4K for Cancer. We are a group of college students cycling from Baltimore to Portland this summer raising money and awareness for the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults. We rely on food donations so that we can donate all the money we raise to our cause. Today we are riding from X to Y, and I have 25 riders out on the road today. I was wondering if you would be able to help us out with a food donation.” We get a lot of no’s, and a lot of “I’d have to go through corporate”s, but we have a few tricks to push a little further and make sure there’s really nothing they can do for us. A lot of people say yes right off the bat, though. So far, I haven’t had a turn in the food van, but the food van drivers have had very much success even in our first days. They’ve gotten 25 Subway sandwiches, Chipotle burritos, 8 pizzas, and Luna bars, just to name a few. They’ve also gotten gift cards to grocery stores and purchased bananas, peanut butter, bread, and other snacks. We are never hungry!!

While on the road, we are supposed to eat a snack from the water van every time we see it, which is approximately every 2 hours. And we definitely want to because we are burning so many calories and need the energy. We stop every 20 miles for water, and halfway through the day for lunch.