And so it begins... Ghana bound.

I woke up at 6:30 am and unable to fall back to sleep I lay in bed until my roommate Alex’s group, The Gambia, was ready to leave for the airport at around 8:00 am. After Alex left I got up and showered before heading to the commuter lounge to grab breakfast. I bought a bagel and coffee and took it back to the dorm so Megan, Sarahann and I could do our laundry before everyone else got up and wanted to use the washers too. After putting our wash in the washer Megan and I headed downstairs to register our travelers insurance and register our trips with the State Department’s website. At 9:30 am I had my pre-trip individual meeting with Alex Shirreffs (my group leader) to discuss my expectations of the trip for myself, for the group and of Alex. I then picked up my laundry from the dryer and went back to my room to pack my bags. After I puzzled my backpack back together and got everything to fit I headed out to find a postal box on campus to mail a letter to my friend Alex (from Illinois) and an envelope of stuff from orientation home to myself. It was still pouring rain at this point and I was soaked upon returning. Once back at the dorm I headed up to the third floor (where there was a secret computer) to check my email one last time and found my financial aid for MSUM for next year finally posted and leaving me with a pretty big decision to make. Peter who is also in my group then came in and still needed to register his insurance so I let him take the computer and headed to my dorm room to gather my stuff and take it downstairs. Both of the OCA groups heading to Ghana for the summer departed around 1:00 pm with Ghana II (I’m Ghana I) leaving a little before my group. We hit a bit of traffic on the way to JFK airport but it wasn’t too bad and once there we found the lines rather short to check in and check our baggage. After checking in and going through security I headed to find something to eat for lunch and call my sister. I ended up paying a lot for a piece of spinach quiche and a bottle of mango Snapple juice, which I ate while talking to my sister as we waited to board. Our plane left JFK on time and was rather uneventful for the first leg to Frankfort, Germany. We ate dinner, watched a movie and then ate breakfast before landing in Frankfort around 5:30 am Frankfort time. After landing in Germany we found our gate for our departure to Lagos, Nigeria/Accra and then caught up on rest while we waited as we had a 5-hour layover.

Bicycle Separation Anxiety

It hit me last week as I was crossing the New York state line on my way back from Delaware that I was in New York in June for the first time in three years. I traveled down to Newark to meet up with 2009 Illini 4000 bike team and talk about their journey during a church service on healing the day prior to their arrival in Newark. It was awesome to see them and hear their stories from the road thus far; it was also a little weird, as aside from Brad I didn’t know any of the riders! Salem United Methodist in Newark gave the team a warm welcome for the second straight year showering them with food, arranging showers at the local YMCA, providing dinner and rising early to make them breakfast. From Newark, I rode out to the first water stop with the team hanging with Brad, Sarah, Kristen, Erik and Matt. Less than half a mile out of the church driveway Sarah got a flat as a piece of wire made its way through her tire. After stopping to change it we continued on through Newark and into Maryland on 273. Riding along the same route we rode in 2008 it all seemed so familiar, as though I’d just ridden the route yesterday. Miss it, I did.

Part of the 2009 Illini 4000 team in Newark, Delaware

I don’t know where the past nine months have gone. While it seems like it’s been forever since I parted ways with my I4K 2K8 teammates the memories are still crystal clear in my mind as if it were yesterday. From the roads we traveled, the sights, the sounds, the people, and the weather. They are all part of a continuous timeline in my mind that put a smile on my face whenever I think of them - something that occurs on a daily basis. Since I4K I guess you could say I’ve gotten the cycling bug – riding to and from work whenever my schedule permits and trekking through the rolling hills/mountains of upstate New York whenever I get the chance. I had surgery on March 31st which sidelined me for about 4-weeks while I regained my strength but as soon as I could I was back on the bike. The 800 miles that I’ve ridden this spring pale in comparison to the past two years while training for I4K.

What I’m about to say probably makes me a bicycle dork but in five days I will leave for a 7-week journey to Ghana and I’m already going through bicycle withdraw!!! I have spent the past couple of days riding through the green rolling hills of Otsego and Delaware County and had forgotten just how much I miss beauty of upstate New York summers. This summer will be the longest I’ve been off a bike since I started riding in 2005 and the longest I’ve ever been separated from Squeakers (my precious road/touring bike). I’m not sure if it’s a good or bad thing that my bicycle seems to have overtaken my identity as when people hear I’m heading to Ghana 9 out of 10 people reply, “to bike?” As crazy and exciting as that would be, that is not the case. Why on earth have I decided to spend my summer in Africa you may ask? Long story short – blame I4K for opening my eyes to the cultures of others, the long days of daydreaming on the bike that anything is possible and realizing that there are a lot of extra materialistic things that I don’t need to be happy - i.e. I'm looking forward to life at a slower pace again. I’ve always had an interest in Africa but my views are from the prospective of what I see on television, read in magazines, etc. Through traveling to Ghana I’m hoping to see things and experience the culture from another point of view (there is a word for this that is slipping my mind).

Anyway, I’m headed to Kpando, Ghana where I (along with the eight others in my group) will be working with the HardtHaven Foundation and the Community Health and Safety Network conducting a community education program focusing on health issues and working with children in the HardtHaven Children's home – at least that is what my program description tells me. As a bonus (a big reason I decided to invest in this) I will also be earning credit toward my master degree in Experiential Education at Minnesota State University. I’m excited and nervous at the same time. I’m excited for the experience but nervous as the 16-total hours of flight time to get to Ghana is not something that excites me. I leave for orientation at Adelphi University next Monday, June 15th and fly to Ghana on the 18th/19th. I then return to New York August 9th. I admit, I’m not even close to being ready to leave; I guess I need to work on that soon as I have a long list of things that need to be done prior to getting on the bus bound for NYC. I’m not sure what kind of access to the outside world (interwebz) I will have over the summer but I’m thankful to know that the place where my group is staying has running water and electricity, a luxury in many parts of the world. If I do find an Internet connection I will try to update here, via email or twitter (yes, I caved as I though it would be a simple way to post updates). You can subscribe to this blog via email (when I update it will email you my latest update) by clicking the link on the top right side of the page. A link to my twitter page is also there.

I know it’s not officially summer until next week but Happy Summer to all!

Spring/Summer in Oneonta, New York

Rhubarb Pie!

I promise I will post a real update soon (ie sometime in the next month)! But, my mother wanted me to let anyone who may still be lingering know that she made me the rhubarb pie that I was longing for and she refused to send me last summer.


And for the record.. it tasted just as good as I dreamed it would all last summer!

Over the river and through the woods

Hello from the great white north -- in this case the north I'm referring to is snowy upstate New York. It's been awhile since I last posted but fresh off a 16-hour work day I'm strangely wide awake.

It's been about six months since we rode into Seattle and in those six months not a day has past that I haven't thought about I4K in some way or another. Having spent the past two summers with the Illini 4000 it seems extremely weird not to be preparing for another ride this summer. I feel like I should be sending out fundraising letters, calling host of potential stay overs and beginning to train. It's a feeling I really can't describe, nor can I describe just how my experiences the past two summers have changed my perception of the world and those around me. From the countless memories that wonder through my mind at any give time to all the amazingly generous people that we met, I will cherish the memories of the past two summers forever. In a time of economic crisis I often find myself thinking what the world would be like if everyone was like the people we encountered day in and day out the past two summers. It's a question I don't know the answer to, but I'm pretty sure it would be amazing.

I leave you with the 'trailer' to a DVD I put together from videos and photos of last summers ride. If you are a 2008 rider or a family member of a rider and you would like the full DVD just email me with your mailing address. (The actual movie is to big for youtube which is why I'm calling this the trailer.) Enjoy and Happy riding!

Happy Holidays!

Happy Holidays to all and thank you for your support the past two years!

72 days of cycling, working for a cure

72 days of cycling, working for a cure

Hitting the Pacific Ocean, Brad Topol, senior in engineering, was as far west as he could go. After bicycling for 72 days, Topol and the other 20 members of the Illini 4000 team finished their cross-country journey from New York City to Seattle, Wash... <more>

72 days, 4000 miles, 1 cause & memories to last a lifetime!

Hello again! As promised here is my ride wrap-up, something that I’ve been putting off in part because writing this brings to reality the fact that the ride is indeed over. It’s been exactly two weeks since I said goodbye to my Illini 4000 teammates in Seattle, 14 days that have seemed like months and years as I miss them so much. For 72 days they were my family, our daily destination my home and we got up each morning and rode our bicycles. It may sound strange to say I feel homesick but then maybe that makes sense after spending 72 days with such an amazing group of people. Disconnected from the so called real world for sometimes days at a time it didn’t matter the day of the week or what the weather might be, braving the elements we got on our bikes and pushed through it together.

Since returning home I’ve often been asked the ever so popular question “How was your summer?” Impossible to sum up in just a few words I often find myself at a loss for words and reply amazing or awesome neither of which can really justify just how incredible the experience really was.

Starting in Central Park that chilly May morning with the Atlantic Ocean to our east we got on our bikes and pedaled through cities and over mountains, on back roads and highways. We laughed and cried and laughed some more growing as a team with each passing day. While I was reminded of the reason in which I was riding every day as I put on my (ever so wonderfully smelling) Illini 4000 jersey, it was the people we met who grabbed our hearts with their stories and brightened our days with their kindness and enthusiasm that made the hard days so much easier. There were days where the climbs seemed to last forever. Days where a lack of sleep and aching legs made me want to stop to nap or walk, but onward we went; rejuvenated by the thoughts of those affected by cancer, the sight of tippy hill signs and the sound of a teammate whistling or singing a silly song to take our mind off the task at hand. From the busy city streets of New York City, Philadelphia and D.C. to the rolling green hills of South Dakota. Over the Big Horns and Rockies, westward to the Pacific and north to Seattle, it wasn’t always easy, but it was an amazing summer that I will never forget.

I realize that not everyone has the luxury or means of taking 72 days to cycle across the country and hope that through our stories, photos, videos and blogs we were able to share our journey with those following along both near and a far. The support of so many people made the ride what it was and to them all I can say is thank you. From family, friends and alumni to generous strangers who so kindly opened their homes, places of worship and schools to provide for us, giving us food and donating however they could to the cause for which we ride, thank you – you’re amazing!

The memories from those 72 days will last a lifetime, spent with friends I will never forget. I can’t even begin to list the memories from this summer, but am reminded of them each day in some way or another. Onions will never be the same, as I learned this summer they are much more than a vegetable you grow in the garden. Sixth grade boys may not be able to cross state boundaries but with their moms permission can lead you in the right direction when you get lost. It’s amazing how a 120 mile day on the cue sheet can be shortened to 80, thanks to one special rider playing a joke on teammates! Bugs CAN find your ear canal when riding down the road, however thankfully come out with a few drops of water! From using plastic bags as rain jackets to eating blackberries off the side of the road, cold nights in Yellowstone to the mosquitoes of Wisdom, Montana. Ice cream circles, fiestas and mustache Montana. Christmas in July, Panera Bread, warm springs the list goes on forever!

We talked with numerous people touched by cancer this summer whether it was while touring hospital oncology units, sitting down in Portrait Project interviews, attending Relay for Life or the Northwest Cancer Summit! Together these experiences provided us with a small glimpse at the lives of those affected by cancer, with people telling us their stories of struggle and hope. The ride may now be over with everyone having gone their own ways, but the cause is still there and I know that as long as it is The Illini 4000 will continue to do its part in the fight. I’ve been asked numerous times to compare this summer’s ride to last and while I could I’m not sure that would be fair as while both were similar they were also quite different. Like an infant in its first year of life the Illini 4000 has grown by leaps and bounds in the last year, learning through experience to build toward a future that looks quite bright.

Looking back on the summer I have to say that this may just be the most amazing team I’ve ever been a part of and I’m truly proud to have been a member of it.

I4K 2K8’ers I miss you! Thanks for the memories!

Mini update!

It's been awhile! I haven't put together a final post yet as I want to let things sink in a little more and maybe write some post for all the weeks I missed before I post my final recap, however I know people have been patiently waiting for updates so I thought I'd say hello and let everyone know that I've made it home safely. So far I've moved and uploaded my photos (it looks the same just a different link address - with a lot more photos), I'll be adding video and filling in some blogs from my journal throughout the coming days so check back often as I'm not done yet!

I4K'ers - I MISS YOU!

Packing up

I woke up this morning with the mindset that it was just another rest day – which it was. Kind of. Those of us staying in the Chabad house were up at 8:30 a.m. and headed up the street to the AEPi house where we met the male members of our team and headed out on our final bike ride together making our way to downtown Seattle where the University of Illinois College of Medicine was hosting a brunch for us at a rather fancy restaurant called Campagne. The food was an amazing spread of egg casserole, fruit, organic yogurt and granola with enough food to send everyone out the door full. After leaving the restaurant we gathered in the street near Pike Place Market for a final team photo before exchanging hugs and saying goodbye to our teammates who were leaving from the brunch. A group of us headed a few blocks north to Olympic Sculpture Park where a press conference was suppose to be held. We waited in the park and then waited some more and finally took a group photo in front of the fountain before departing as the press forgot to show up! Nick, Dana, Rachel, Andrea and I all headed back to 21st Avenue NE (our stay over location) passing by Seattle’s Space Needle on the way. Back at the Chabad house Andrea left to spend the afternoon with her mother and Dana and I each spent about an hour re-packing our bags in preparation for our flights home tomorrow. I then journaled for awhile before heading out on my bike to explore the streets of northern Seattle stopping at Tully’s to buy a Green Tea Mango smoothie and then finding a shady spot on the University lawn to sit, relax and journal some more! (It’s been a busy few days and I have a lot to catch up on!) Around 6:00 p.m. I headed back to the Chabad house just in time to say goodbye to Brad and Yiming who were both getting ready to leave. Andrea, Dana and I sent them off by chasing the Topol’s car down the road waving to them! We then walked up to the AEPi house to see what our teammates there were doing for dinner. We ended up walking to the QFC grocery store with Allen managing to take the long way there, as we walked almost a mile when the store was actually just down the hill from where we were staying. I bought Ritz crackers and cheese for dinner along with peanut butter cup ice cream – the dinner of champions! On our walk back we dropped Andrea off at her mom’s hotel and then went to the AEPi house to dine. When we finished eating Jon and I began the daunting task of unpacking and repacking the support van. Doing this involved taking everything out of the van, sorting it into boxes that would be taken back with riders as checked baggage and securing everything with tape to ensure it all made it back safely. Around 1:00 a.m. Praveen and Dana joined in the packing party and by 2:00 a.m. we had everything sorted and the boxes ready to be tapped shut. I fell asleep around 3 a.m. to get three house of sleep before getting up at 6 a.m. as that’s when we will begin shuttling people to the airport in the morning.

Seattle = check!

Distance: 85.10 Time: 7:03:29 Avg: 12.0

Seattle! After 72 days on the road we arrived in Seattle, Washington today riding to the University of Washington and then Magnuson Park where we were greeted by family and friends.

The day began in Yelm where Pastor Gerry at Emmanuel Lutheran Church got up early to make us pancakes before sending us on our way. We all sang the 12 days of I4K for the pastor before Jay gave an amazing Mosher speech inspiring us and reminding us of how far we’ve come in the past couple of months. Nick then had everyone take a McDonald’s toy from the briefcase John and Allen had given him yesterday to attach to our bikes. I took a TailSpin toy of Kit in his racing plane and attached it to my handle bars so that my bendy Uncle Sam was hugging it. We then rolled out of the driveway of the church with roughly 70 miles separating us from a toilet paper finish line in Seattle.

Less than three miles up the road Amy got a flat and John, Connie and I pulled over to wait while she changed it. When she was done the four of us continued on until meeting up with our amazing morning van drive Allen Tran around the 20 mile mark for our first water stop. We grabbed a few handfuls of Fruit Loops and other random cereals that were in the snack door, filled up our water bottles and chilled for a few minutes with Jon, Nick and Brad before continuing on. Jon, Nick and Brad shortly caught up to us and rode we all rode the next 20 miles to lunch in Kent as a group. About two miles before lunch Kit tried to make a Dinosaur Dave escape, jumping out of Uncle Sam’s arms when I hit a bump crossing a bridge. Thankfully he bounced backward and not into the water below allowing me to rescue him and secure him inside my jacket pocket until we reached lunch. Lunch was in the parking lot of Safeway in Kent. There we met up with Mr. Ger who had kindly offered to drive the second part of the day thus allowing everyone to ride into Seattle together including honorary I4K 2K8 member Allen. We feasted on leftover toasted cheese sandwich from the night before along with the traditional peanut butter and jelly one last time. I reattached Kit to my handle bars this time with a shoe lace to prevent any further escapes in the busy Seattle traffic. Brad copied down the directions for Mr. Ger and by the time we were ready to leave lunch Nick’s bike was covered in toys all taped to the handle bars, seat post and fork.

We had about 20 miles to cover before reaching the University of Washington where we were meeting at the fountain before riding to Magnuson Park together as a team. I rode with Jon, Nick, Brad, Allen, John, Connie and Amy after lunch and as we got closer and closer to the city we could see the Blue Angles flying overhead as part of Seattle’s Summer Celebration. This celebration added a few complications to our route as a few of the roads we were going to follow were closed. After navigating up and down some rather steep hills we met up with a friendly biker who worked at the University of Washington and kindly led us the final few miles to campus and the fountain where our teammates were waiting. We had Allen take a few team photos in front of the fountain before getting back on our bikes and beginning to make our way toward Magnuson Park. The Burke-Gilman Trail took us the majority of the way from the University to the park, although getting into the park after getting off the trail proved to be a bit confusing. Once we finally made our way into the park we turned to the left and could see the orange and blue colorful Illini banners along with our family and friends gathered alongside the lake. In two lines we made our way down the sidewalk and toward the crowd where a toilet paper finish line was stretched across the sidewalk. As we approached the line Jay made a sprint for the finish crossing the line and breaking the toilet paper. About 20 people had come out to show their support for our team and their warm smiles greeted us along with two picnic tables of food! We took a few team photos in front of the lake before making our way toward the food tables covered with Pizzas, salads, veggies, fruits, chips and much more. Jill from ACS in Tacoma, WA was there to show her support on behalf of ACS and thanked us for what we had done while also reading some cancer statistics. Jon and Nick thanked everyone for coming out and Matt’s parents made a surprise presentation of t-shirts with the slogan “We Did It” to all team members! After about an hour of mingling with the crowd we packed all of the left over food into Nick’s father’s car and got back on our bikes to ride to our host location near the University.

The girls are staying at the Chabad House while the boys are only a few blocks down the street at the AEPi Fraternity house. It’s rather weird to be separated after spending 72 days together but in two days we will all go our own ways which I know will be an even bigger change. When we arrived at the Chabad house the Rabbi gave us a tour of the house after which we unloaded our bags from the van and said goodbye to Xixi as she has opted to forgo the Chabad house and stay with her parents at their hotel. After unpacking our bags we took advantage of the facilities offered to us and showered! It feels nice to be clean again although I still seem to find dirt that’s permanently attached itself to my legs. There are six of us staying at the Chabad house tonight with Amy and Xix both doing their own things. When we were all nice and clean Dana, Andrea, Yiming and I headed up the street to the AEPi house to see what the guys were up to. We found them gathered around a large screen television watching a movie ready to celebrate our arrival in Seattle! I was so tired that I fell asleep on the couch watching television. Around midnight I woke up and found most of my teammates downstairs celebrating. Still overtired I walked back to the Chabad house and went to bed. I’m a tired girl.