Unfortunately, that wasn't really a possibility and we had to get on our bikes the next morning. We were headed to Vancouver, Washington. Initially we were planning to go to Beaverton, Oregon, but we had decided, hey, let's add another state to our list and cross the river into Washington. Why? Because we can!
Our Leg 3 leaders and ride directors worked on a route during breakfast, and they came out with some bad news. Apparently what we thought was going to be a flat, 95-mile day was actually going to be close to 110 miles with several very challenging climbs. Surprise century!!!!! This was not exactly welcome with the team. We would've started earlier had we known how difficult the day would be, but it was past 8 already.
I set off that day with a really big group: me, Dave Wolfe, Tom, Paul, Meredith, Gavin, and Zach. Normally I would've avoided a group that size like the plague, but since it was our last real riding day we just all wanted to spend time together, so we were fine with it.
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| Riding next to the Columbia River |
A stop at Dutch Bros., a stop at the gas station for someone to use the bathroom, a stop at another gas station for coffee break #2, and yet another gas station for bathroom break #2 were next on the list. We had a major Disney dance party at the water stop. We sat in a parking lot talking about life while Paul drank his coffee. We took a 40-minute nap in another parking lot while waiting for the water van to deliver Tom a tire. It was the most relaxing of days...which was a problem since we had over a hundred miles to ride.
Zach and I split off from the group when Tom's tire blew, because there was no reason for everyone to wait. We made it up a tough climb from sea level to almost 1000 feet, and then down a fun descent and across the Columbia River into Washington!
Waiting on the other side of the river were Becky, Porter, and Rowen, who had also been majorly delayed with flats, so Zach and I joined up with them. At that point we were all really hangry and the food van wasn't available to bring us food, so we started looking for our own food. Just then the water van pulled up with the members of our original group and some leftovers for us.
We were sitting on a curb eating cold pizza (4K OK) when a lady pulled up in her car and offered to buy us all frozen yogurt! It was so nice of her.
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| The lady that bought us fro yo had hosted the Texas 4K (similar ride from Texas to Alaska) the week prior! |
After a night of very comfortable sleep in the awesome hotel beds, our last morning dawned on us way too early. We couldn't believe we were really there, and that we only had 15 miles to ride to Portland.
Our arrival in Portland was scheduled for noon, so we actually got to sleep in until 9. Meredith, Sarah and I decided to make a trip to Starbucks to get breakfast. We mapped out the nearest Starbucks, which was only 3/4 of a mile away, and headed there on our bikes.
In typical 4K fashion, our outing did not quite go as planned. As we neared the Starbucks it became clear that the establishment was inside a mall. But also in typical 4K fashion, that did not stop us from going.
We snuck our bikes in and walked them through the mall.
Just as we were getting our drinks we were approached by a security guard and asked to take our bikes outside. Oops. We were expecting that but were glad we got our drinks first ;)
After getting back to the hotel, people were running late as usual, so we spent some time rounding people up, packing the vans, and signing jerseys. We then did our final dedication circle. Most people dedicated the last day either to the main person they were doing the whole ride for, or to Team Portland.
I dedicated the last 15 miles to my mom. My mom was initially planning on coming to Portland to meet me at the finish line. With her diagnosis she had to cancel her trip, and unfortunately wouldn't be there. But I knew she was going to be so proud of me for finishing. And also relieved that I would finally be off the roads ;)
After dedication, we got in a close team hug. It would be the last time we were together alone as a team. We put on the song "Leaving on a Jet Plane" on someone's phone in the middle of the circle. Dan said it was a tradition from when he was a summer camp counselor. We stood in a circle swaying back and forth and listened to the song together.
As you can imagine, it didn't take long for the waterworks to begin. Everyone was thinking about all the good times we had and how much we were going to miss the 25 crazy people around us. By the end of the song not a single girl had dry eyes, and not many of the guys did either. We then went around giving teary hugs to each other. It wasn't terribly sad though, we were all smiling and happy, but just emotional to be leaving each other!
After we got it together, we got on our bikes to begin our final ride. We rode as a "supergroup" for the entire ride for the first and last time all summer. Normally we don't ride all together because it's dangerous, but for our last 15 miles it was obviously necessary to all be together. The pros of "supergrouping" are that we can take up the whole lane, and cars really stay out of our way since there are so many of us.
In the 15 miles from Vancouver to Portland we managed to get lost... it wouldn't be the 4K if we didn't get lost on the last day :) We eventually found our way, and Joanna and I, pretty good navigators, led the pack the rest of the way into Portland. I felt a great sense of team unity as we were all riding together. We felt unstoppable!
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| Bridge back into Oregon |
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| Bridge #2 |
Getting into Portland was pretty exciting as it is a VERY bike-friendly city. There are bike lanes and even bike-specific stoplights!! So cute!
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| Bike stoplight! |
We were aware that we were almost there when Angelica joined us - she was still off her bike for the concussion, but was joining us for the last half mile so she could ride into the finish line, which was Pioneer Square in downtown Portland. We were all smiles and waves as we glimpsed our families and friends in the distance eagerly awaiting us with cameras, balloons and flowers.
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| Riding into Pioneer Square! |
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| Me and my "little" bro! |
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I felt lucky to have them there and it meant a lot to me. Thanks guys!!!
After everyone finished greeting their families and friends, we sat down on the steps and had a "graduation" ceremony.
First Stephen Hersey, the program director, got up and congratulated us and thanked us for all we had done, and then the ride directors took the floor and invited each rider up with a few words about them, to receive their 4K "diploma," 4K flag, and a balloon.
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| Officially a 4K alum! :) :( |
We brought it in for one final team hug before parting our separate ways.
It was strange to think that my life was now POST-4K!!!
Michael and I were staying with Jared's family members for the night. Jared had like 12 family members in town to see him, and they are awesome people. They were also taking in Gina and Maroun. After putting our duffels and backpacks in their car, we all headed to Bike Gallery, a bike shop just a few blocks up to drop our bikes off.
To answer the FAQ "how is your bike getting home??": I had arranged for the bike shop to package up my bike and then through a website called BikeFlights I arranged for FedEx to pick it up and ship it to my house in Maryland. OK to be fair I did not do any of that arranging. My mom did it for me from home so I wouldn't have to worry about it :)
We then went out to lunch, where Jared's family had all kinds of questions about the trip and we were glad to talk about it! It was already starting to feel weird to be separated from the rest of the team!!
When we got to Jared's family's house which was about 30 minutes outside of Portland, all 4 of us riders immediately took naps. We were exhausted as sleep had not been a priority for the team in our last few nights. We conveniently woke up around dinner time (4K problems: we were hungry) and showered and then joined in the festivities with Jared's family. They are all great people, unfortunately a family touched deeply by cancer, but so positive and energetic nonetheless. I was happy to be around them, and my brother and I had a lot of fun.
The next morning we were up bright and early to go to the airport. Many of my team members were sticking around in Portland or on the west coast for awhile, but I wanted to get home to my family. By the time we got through security we didn't have much time, and I had like three minutes to buy Portland souvenirs for my parents and myself. I managed to do it, though!
We had a nonstop flight to Philadelphia and I thought it was funny that it took me 70 days to get there and was going to take me 5 hours to get back.
Other than the following incredible view of Mt. Hood just as we were leaving Portland:
And after that, the flight was uneventful and while I had planned to blog, I ended up just sleeping the whole flight...
I was greeted in PHL by my aunt, uncle, and other brother James picking me up from the airport. They had a gigantic sign that said Welcome Home Mary :)
So... that's the story of how we got to Portland!
Stay tuned for several more posts I'm still working on which should be good:
-a reflection
-rider profiles of my teammates
-a childrens'-book style summary of the whole trip
-a Why You Should Do the 4K post.
Until then!!
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