Day 25-37

Sorry for the long delay in blog updates! I have been camping and without internet for a week and a half or so now, which has made it difficult to post as frequently. So much has happened!

Day 25

Today we rode from Dubois to Grand Tetons National Park…quite possibly some of the most beautiful country I’ve ever seen. I dedicated my ride today to a woman named Claudia who was our waitress at the restaurant which fed us last night and a breast cancer survivor. The ride today was hard. The wind was not too bad, but we climbed to the continental divide before entering the park…And my legs were tired before we even started the ride. We reached the continental divide in the late morning at an altitude of over 9600 ft. This was the highest elevation we have had the whole team at to-date. My rider who had altitude sickness was moving pretty slow, but she stuck it out and finished the whole ride. When we reached the continental divide we ran into another group which was bicycling across America from the west coast to the east. Though their ride was a commercial operation which people paid to participate in, two of the riders we met were also fundraising for a cancer hospital in Colorado. One of the guys was a prostate cancer survivor and the wife of the other man was a breast cancer survivor. We also met a guy from Austin with the group who was a testicular cancer survivor! At the point we met all of these riders we were not yet in Grand Tetons NP. As we got closer to the park, the scenery became progressively more beautiful and the downhills became progressively longer, which made for smiles on the faces of all of our riders. We arrived in the park in the late afternoon, and checked into our campsite—our first night of camping on the trip! We set up the tents and cooked dinner, and after a few songs around the fire turned in hoping for bear-free nights.

Day 26

I rode for the men I met yesterday with the Ride Across America route. Two were cancer survivors and the wife of the other man was a breast cancer survivor. We rode from Grand Tetons to Yellowstone NP today. The two parks are right next to each other such that when you excite Grand Tetons via the North Entrance, you are actually heading into the South Entrance of Yellowstone. We got up early and took our time wandering through the Tetons because it was only 20 miles from our campsite to Yellowstone. What we did not realize at that time though was that once we got into Yellowstone, it was another 55 miles to our campsite. Oops. Right before we entered Yellowstone, we had a rest stop to collect everyone and saw our first buffalo. Once inside the park we had a 37 or so mile ride to Old Faithful, where we stopped for a late afternoon rest stop. I was the sweep rider today, and as I didn’t get into Old Faithful until pretty late, I didn’t actually get to see the geyser erupt. I had seen it before when I was driving across the country in college though so I wasn’t too disappointed. Most of the rest of the team got to see it though. Finally we were off on our way towards our campsite near Moran Junction. After dinner, we made smores and hung out around the campfire before crashing for the night.

Day 27

Day off in Yellowstone! As I write this after experiencing today, I will tell you in advance that today was the most relaxing day off I have had yet on this trip. Cities are great to be in so you can get things done, but being in a national park prevented me from doing that this time, which was great. I woke up early because I have become so used to getting up early at this point. I wandered out of my tent and found two other riders sitting around the campfire reading books, so I joined them. After awhile, more people started getting up and we made breakfast and moved campsites. Unfortunately, the reservations for the two nights we are staying at Yellowstone were made at different times so we actually had to move campsites in the middle of our stay. The move was fairly uneventful except for the parade of tents through the campground. People did not want to completely disassemble their tents and then have to reassemble them half an hour later, so they just picked them up and carried them through the campground to the new site. Whatever works! After the big move, part of the team went back to see Old Faithful because they missed it yesterday. Four of us decided we wanted to go swimming, so we took the other van and went in search of every swimming hole in the park. We drove a few miles back down the road, spotted a small trail and found ourselves wandering down to the river. We found a somewhat secluded spot and went swimming. Afterwards we sat on the rocks drying off and I started reading Siddhartha (the book I was reading) out loud. At the end of the chapter we decided it was time to move on and we went in search of hot springs and the prismatic geyser. The latter was very colorful and made me start ask questions...Why did I leave earth science? What kind of bacteria cause that color to appear? Who works on this research? How does this stuff relate to geology stuff I was doing a few things back about the origins of multicellular life? The questions were (are) a mix of both the science behind what I was looking at and me questioning what I’m doing with my life. I suppose trips like this make one do that. There have definitely been a lot of things floating through my head lately. When we got back to camp, I finished my book and then went and sat by the river for awhile to write in my journal. We turned in somewhat early because tomorrow is a ride day.

Day 28

I didn’t actually participate in the ride dedication today for a reason I will explain in a moment, but I did dedicate my day to Boogie. He was the brother of a woman at the campsite next to us who recently died from cancer. The reason I didn’t participate in the ride dedication today was because I was running. The ride today was 14 miles from our campsite in Yellowstone to West Yellowstone, MT, the city at the west entrance to the park. Because the ride was only 14 miles, myself and the other runner on the team decided to run the distance. We started running about an hour and a half before the riders were supposed to start riding and we were going to race them to the WY-MT border. Well, the riders started early and caught up to us about a mile or two before the exit to the park. Bummer. We were not deterred though because it was only the fastest few riders who passed us, so we continued on our way bound to beat at least some of the cyclists. I really enjoyed the run actually. We were cruising at an 8:15 or 8:30 minute per mile pace and talking about running and life the whole time. When we were less than half a mile from the exit to the park though we saw something that made our hearts jump into our throats…On the other side of the road (we were running against traffic), we saw a few orange jerseys off their bikes standing on the side of the road and several stopped cars. My heart jumped into my throat—a rider was on the ground. Needless to say we picked up the pace to get us there as quickly as our legs could carry us. No one knew exactly what happened other than that one of the riders had hit a road sign on the shoulder, fallen and appeared to have a seizure. One of the motorists who had stopped was a doctor and was watching over the rider until the ambulance arrived. They loaded the rider onto a stretcher, and he, the EMT and myself hopped in the back of the ambulance drove up the road to get us out of traffic. The EMT was a little worried and recommended the rider head to the hospital to get checked out by a doctor to be on the safe side. The options were Rexburg or Bozeman and as the team was headed to Bozeman after West Yellowstone anyways, I suggested he go there. The ambulance took him away. As no one thought it was too serious at that point, I made sure the rider had my number and then had hopped out of the ambulance. I then ran to the church at which we were staying (all the other riders and our vehicles had gone ahead). I think I needed that extra couple of miles of running to clear my head and figure out what to do next. I arrived at the church and found the phone number of our hosts in Bozeman. I gave them a call and left a message explaining the situation and asked if they might be able to host our rider over night until the rest of the team got there the following day. Our hosts called me back and informed me that they were already on their way to the hospital to see the rider and we stayed in contact for the next hour or two. Then the rider called me and said it was more serious then we thought. There was bleeding in the brain and a broken collar bone. He needed his belongings because they were taking him in a helicopter to a bigger city. The assistant ride director and I hopped in the car with the injured riders things and drove 90+ miles to Bozeman to get the injured rider his things. We got there and the flight crew was preparing the rider for the flight. We got to talk to him for maybe 10 minutes before they wheeled him outside. I had brought all my stuff to Bozeman so that I could go with him if I needed to, but as we were driving, I had been informed that his mom was flying out to see him. Two neurosurgeons had been lined up to see the rider upon his arrival in Billings. As I look back on this situation, I’m not sure the rider could have received better care. The EMT was awesome, and the staff in Bozeman were great. The neurosurgeons were at the hospital waiting to see the rider as soon as he got off the flight. Our hosts sat and talked with the rider for a couple hours as he waited for the helicopter to arrive as if he were their own son. I cannot have asked for anything better. The kindness and concern showed by everyone involved today really touched me to the core. Thank you to everyone who was involved in the care of this rider. I (and I’m sure he) appreciate it more than you know. Once we saw the rider off, our Bozeman hosts took the assistant ride director and I to dinner, which we were not expecting but for which we were very grateful. It had been a long day. After a very nice dinner, we headed back to West Yellowstone and the rest of the team. We arrived around 8p, and as it was the 4^th of July, most of the team headed out to see the fireworks. Honestly, I was in no mood for fireworks at that time, and I stayed at the church with the intentions of reading my book. A few minutes after the team left, I got a call from the injured rider with an update. He sounded much better and said they were going to monitor him for a bit. I read a book for a bit after that before falling asleep, exhausted from the day.

Day 29

We were up early this morning in anticipation of a somewhat long ride from West Yellowstone to Bozeman, MT. I dedicated my ride today to the daughter of one of our Bozeman hosts who passed away from cancer a couple years ago. The ride was mostly downhill and along the river. The scenery was beautiful, but I didn’t see much of it. I spent most of the day lost in thought. About 80 miles or so into the ride, I was pretty upset and took off from the rest station a little earlier than everyone else and rode as hard as I could for 15 miles or so and was exhausted. I felt better after this. We arrived at our hosts’ home in the mid- to late afternoon. They had quite a spread prepared for us, but I didn’t get to enjoy much at that point because I hopped in car with one of the hosts and headed straight to Costco, so I could shop for food for the team. We arrived back from shopping and after taking a quick shower, all the neighbors came over for a huge potluck dinner. The food was absolutely amazing, and the eating out on the porch which had a great view was the perfect way to end the day. After dessert the riders dispersed to host family houses. Two other girls and I went over to one of the neighbors houses and they showed us to the guest house. I slept in a cubby hole that the kids always play in, and it was one of the best nights of sleep I have had on the trip. The daughter of my host family had her hair cut really short, and though I wouldn’t say it planted a seed, it definitely made me start thinking more seriously about cutting my hair. I’ve had it really short before and have been contemplating doing it again and donating my hair to Locks of Love, or a similar organization, which makes wigs for kids with cancer.

Day 30

I dedicated my ride today to Kevin Wilkinson, the son of our Bozeman hosts, who is currently undergoing treatment for cancer. Our ride today was from Bozeman to Helena, MT, and it was one of my days to drive. The day started off with a great breakfast, beautiful weather and a flat road. The afternoon was where it got a little interesting. First, I was pulled over by a cop. Apparently I was going over a speed limit I hadn’t seen marked. He left me off, much to my relief, with a warning. I’ve definitely been on the look out for speed limit signs on every road every since. Shortly after this, the wind started pick up and the riders were faced with a stiff headwind for the last 30 or so miles of the ride. Ouch. As I was in the minivan and we were not exactly sure how many miles were left in the ride at the 60 mile rest stop, I had to stay out on the road and make sure the riders had the water and snacks they needed to finish the ride. When the last rider passed us at 80 miles, I and the other rider in my van drove ahead to the host church. We missed a turn and had to turn around but fortunately there was traffic circle. I’m not sure how most people deal with traffic circles, but I find them kind of silly looking. Every time I see one, I feel that I should drive around it more than once no matter how unnecessary it is. So I and the other rider drove around and around and were giggling hysterically. After the second lap he suggested I go around again, I think expecting that I wouldn’t do it, but I did. By this point I was laughing so hard I was crying. I am probably the one of the most easily amused people one could ever meet, and this was a great way to end the day. After the third lap, we excited the circle and went to the church. I took a shower and joined our hosts for dinner. They had made us ravioli, which I haven’t had in months, and they really hit the spot. There was group of people on a mission from Mississippi staying at the church as well, and I got to talk to a couple of the folks who were about my age and find out what they were doing. After dinner, we made a quick trip to Walmart and then headed back to the church for some much needed sleep.

Day 31

I dedicated my ride today to Chris Condit, the founder and executive director of Texas 4000. I’m very grateful for all the guidance and help he’s given me as I’ve been filling the role of Ride Director. He included a note of encouragement in a recent package he had sent, and I read it aloud to the team during ride dedication. The team laughed when I read his comments about us all doing pushups at rest stops. Our ride today was from Helena to Great Falls, MT. The men from the congregation cooked us breakfast this morning. I had the opportunity to sit with three of them this morning for breakfast, and for a number of reasons I was glad I did. One of the guys started talking about the power of positive thinking. He stopped himself in the mid sentence though saying he didn’t know if what he was saying was relevant. I assure him it was, thinking of my own struggles with moving to Texas, and he continued. I have thought about his words everyday since then. I was glad that he shared. Our ride today took us along the frontage road for Hwy 15. The frontage road wove along switching sides of the highway and occasionally wandering out of sight but always following the river. It was quite peaceful. I had a lot on my mind too. Early in the ride one of the other riders on the team and I had been chatting and he suggested that I should do more stuff with the group socially. Spending all one’s time with a group, as we do on this ride, will very quickly show you how much (or little) time you spend by yourself, and there have been a couple times when we were not with hosts where I preferred to sit with a book or go do something by myself than be with the group. For some people I think this would be torture, but for me, it’s energizing. I think I’m experiencing a different stress level on this trip than everyone else, and it’s nice to occasionally have an hour to myself to sit in quiet and decompress. Anyhow, the whole idea of how much time (all vs. almost all) of my time to spend with the team occupied my thoughts for a good chunk of the ride today. The last 20 miles or so of the ride I spent talking with people. Though I generally don’t like pacelines, I was riding in a double one those 20 miles. We arrived at the church and found that our hosts had left us 10 huge, fresh pizzas for dinner—mmmm. After dinner, a few of us went to a nearby Starbucks and sat with cups of tea and books while a few others went to the nearby sporting goods store to pick up some camping essentials. Sleeping conditions for this evening appear to be ideal. We are allowed to sleep wherever in the building…and the basement is finished. Yes, that’s right—cold, dark sleeping conditions. It could be a very good night!

Day 32

This morning we woke up early to ride from Great Falls to Dupuyer, MT. I dedicated my ride to my PhD advisor Jon Dingwell who is a cancer survivor. Our host joined us in our dedication circle and offered a prayer over us before we left. I figured out directions out of town, and as no one wrote them on the official direction board, I had to lead the way out of town. This may seem insignificant, but it is not. It means that the whole team rode together through town this morning. We always ride in groups, but due to the variety of paces on the team, we tend to divide up into groups with similar paces—very rarely are we actually all together. I stayed at the front and we formed a double paceline on the edge of town. About 10 of us stayed together the first 20 miles. We were chatting the whole way, which always make the time (and miles) fly. Our first rest stop of the day was in a grove of cottonwood trees, which was quite peaceful. The ride went pretty smoothly until the last 30 miles or so. At this point, a stiff headwind picked up and the terrain became quite hilly. I stayed back with some of the girls and pulled them through the first 15 or more miles before joining up with another rider and riding with him for the last 15 miles. To briefly explain what I mean when I say I was pulling some of the riders, I mean that I was riding at the front of the paceline the entire time, so everyone got to draft off of me. Drafting cuts down the wind resistance you’re experiencing, so it’s easier to ride. I was pretty tired at the end of the day, but I felt like I had had a good ride. We arrived in the late afternoon at the elementary school where we were spending the night. There were no showers, but there was a hose. The water coming out of the hose might be described in the following way: nice to have a glass of on a hot day, but not ideal for showering. It was very cold, but one of the first lessons you learn on this trip is to make use of what you have. So, I showered with the hose. I was covered in goosebumps when I finished, but at least I was clean. A local pub had offered to feed us dinner, so we walked over and hung out there for a bit. I got back from the restaurant and got ready for bed. I was out when my head touched the pillow, so much so that I didn’t hear the five or so riders who came in an hour later apparently making a lot of noise looking for their stuff in the dark and slamming the front door. I guess I was tired!

Day 33

Today we rode from Dupuyer to Glacier National Park (NP), MT, and I dedicated my ride to Tim Ricketts, a pancreatic cancer survivor we met in Ft. Collins, CO. His story was really quite amazing, and he was actually deemed cancer-free a day or two before the group arrived in Ft. Collins. I don’t know a lot about pancreatic cancer except that it’s very hard to treat and Tim is one of few success stories. He is really an inspiration. I have one word to describe the ride today: windy. There was head wind and cross wind but definitely no tail wind. Most of the ride today was through the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, which was very beautiful. The second 20 mile stretch of the day was probably the most difficult riding we have experience yet. I rode with four other riders the whole way and we did our best to keep each others spirits high. I found myself focusing on the wildflowers on the sides of the road because their beauty was about the only positive thing I could think of at that point. My little group of four arrived at the 40 mile aid station tired but hanging in there. Thirty minutes or so later a group of three girls and our two (male) sweep riders came in and a couple looked pretty upset. Apparently a couple guys in a truck at driven by them made a few comments then circled around and come back and actually slapped two of the girls on their butts. Everyone was enraged by this to say the least. The truck had the license plate covered so we couldn’t even get a plate number to report to the authorities. It’s difficult to express the frustration felt at this point, but it really makes one wonder, who does that kind of thing?! We got everyone calmed down and fed and decided that it was best we got out of there as soon as possible. The guys on the team re-distributed themselves so that there were a few more guys riding with the group of girls at the back. One thing that has continually impressed me about this team is what they do without me having to ask. I did not have to ask one of those guys to ride with the girls. We all look after each other. It is not even a question. As we got back on the road, the wind started to die down, but at the same time, the terrain became hillier. At the same time, the haze that had appeared to cover the mountains cleared up and the world was really brought to life. I was amazed all of the shades of green in the grass and how blue the sky was. The wildflowers were very bright and all sorts of different colors as well. We finally arrived at Glacier NP in the late afternoon. We checked into the campsite and set up the tents. The local lodge donated four huge pizzas for the team and after eating these several of us decided to try huckleberry ice cream for dessert. Yum! After dinner, we hung around the campsite and made smores. A few people stayed up playing the guitar and singing, but most people headed to bed for some much needed rest.

Day 34

Rest day in Glacier NP! I woke up early again as I am in the habit of doing on rest days. I laid in my tent reading for a little bit and then decided to go for a run. I did an out and back loop along St. Mary’s Lake, which was absolutely beautiful. The temperature was perfect while I was running, but shortly after I got back to camp, the temperature dropped. The sky looked a little cloudy, and several of us decided to do laundry. I ended up sitting in the laundry mat for a couple hours waiting for loads to change and reading and writing. It was actually quite nice. When everything was done, we headed back to camp and grabbed some lunch. Then a group of people wanted to go explore the park. A few of us were dropped off at one of the lodges so we could shower. That shower lasted eight exquisite minutes before my time ran out, but it was just what I needed. After showering three of us sat in the restaurant and talked over tea and food for a couple hours. One of the guys and I got into a deep conversation about joy. Some people just radiate joy and you can feel it when you’re around them. I was telling the other rider that when I was doing laundry earlier in the morning I had been thinking about things that make me happy. So he and I started talking about things that make one happy in the short term versus in the long term and what really makes people shine. We had a lot of different ideas, most of which I have been mulling over since the conversation, but we didn’t reach any conclusion that one specific thing caused people to glow. The van finally picked us up and we headed back down the road to our campsite. Six of us piled into a small tent and started talking while the rest of the group started a dance party near one of our vans. At one point the music got way too loud and I had to go say something. One rider in particular got pretty annoyed with me about this, and while he never said anything to me about it, several other people took him aside and tried to reason with him. I hate people being mad at me, but the noise level was really not appropriate. I headed to bed pretty upset that I had had to say anything. It started pouring down rain (great way to end an already tough evening!). I lay in my tent listening to the rain and talking things over with my tentmate.

Day 35

At some point last night a cold front moved in because we all woke up this morning and had to put on just about every piece of cold weather clothing we had brought. As I emerged from my tent I discovered that on of the other tents had leaked and the two riders in that tent had had to move to other tents in the middle of the night. In addition, the rain cover for another tent had come completely off in the wind and the riders had woken soaked with puddles in their tent. Let’s suffice it to say that that is not a good way to start the day. We all moved a little slowly this morning. I approached the rider who had been mad at me the night before and said I knew he was annoyed with me but that if he wanted to talk about anything that I would be happy to talk it over with him. To my surprise he apologized and said he had been out of line. I accepted the apology but assured him that if he wanted to talk about anything I was serious about the offer to talk about it. It’s hard to tell your peers you don’t agree with something they’re doing. A rider being mad had really made me think about whether I had also crossed a line in saying something. In the end, I think it was a good experience to learn from on both sides. We got breakfast and finally got on our way close to 10a (a very late start for us). The ride today was from Glacier NP to Claresholm, Alberta—our first country border crossing! I dedicated my ride today to my teammate Dylan LeBlanc who was diagnosed with testicular cancer earlier this year, had chemo and is still riding with us this summer on the other route. It was cold this morning, and I ended up riding with arm and leg warmers, a wind vest and gloves. The border turned out to be 20 miles from our campsite in the park, so we had our first rest stop there. I talked to a border agent briefly on the US side and he told me they’d actually had a dusting of snow there this morning from the cold front that moved in last night. Snow in July?! Seriously?! Crossing the border was relatively uneventful. All the riders had to go inside the immigration office while they checked our passports. We were finally on our way around 12:30p…with 80 miles to go on ride. Ouch. The ride was mostly flat with a headwind though it wasn’t as bad as the wind we had heading into Glacier NP. At one point during the ride, I was leading the group of girls at the back in a double paceline. I distinctly remember pulling into the last rest stop and having the front pack of riders staring with their mouths open. That back pack is notorious in our group for not riding in a paceline, so the front pack, which does it all the time, was impressed. I don’t ride with the girls all the time, so it was really cool to be part of the paceline. We arrived at our campsite in Claresholm around 7p. Our drivers for the day had gone out and found a restaurant to donate dinner. We showered quickly and then went to eat. Dinner was delicious and then they surprised us by giving us homemade ice cream for dessert! Afterwards we headed back to the campsite and while a few people hung out chatting, most people went to bed. Today was the half way mark day-wise through the trip!

Day 36

I dedicated my day today to two people. The first is the manager of the campsite we stayed at last night. She is currently undergoing treatment for cancer. I also dedicated my day to Mr. Bruno, the father of my brother’s girlfriend. He was diagnosed with kidney cancer awhile back and it went into remission and then came back again. He passed away about two years ago now. The ride today was from Claresholm to Calgary. It wasn’t windy today, but it was probably one of the hardest days I have had. My whole body felt like lead and I was really struggling to ride. We were on Hwy 2 all the way into town. It started getting more and more busy, and eventually we just pulled ourselves off the ride because it was just plain dangerous. I was with five other riders at that point and we headed into a Starbucks. The girls behind the counter were excited to hear about what we were doing and even gave us free drinks and pastries! We hung out there until another rider came to pick us up with the van and trailer. It turned out that he had already picked up three other riders from the highway and while we were loading the van, the rest of the riders had called and said they had pulled themselves off the road as well. We arrived at our hosts’ location and there was food waiting for us. After a hot shower, I got shown around the facility and then sat talking to the network manager for the company about a route out of the city for the day after tomorrow. Shortly after that, dinner was served. I have been catching up on my blogs almost ever since. Half the team or so headed into town this evening to check it out and the rest of us have been hanging out and chatting. It’s been very relaxing.

Day 37

Day off in Calgary! I woke up before 6a this morning…after a little more than three hours of sleep. Someone came into the cubicle I was sleeping in during the middle of the night, curled up under the desk and started snoring. I had no idea who it was but I couldn’t get the snoring to stop, so I just got out of my sleeping bag and went for a run. My legs felt pretty heavy, but it was nice to be outside in the sun and cool air. I finished my run and headed to the kitchen to grab some food and talk to the caterer. She introduced me to her sister who took me with her to the Canadian version of Costco. The team seems to be keen on beans and rice, so I picked up several different kinds of beans and a bunch of spices. I figure that we’ll try this, see what people like and go from there. Upon return to the host building, a bunch of us jumped in the 15 passenger van and headed out to do laundry. Fortunately, the laundromat was in a small shopping complex and we discovered Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian restaurants. I joined a few others at the Indian restaurant as I’ve been missing Indian food lately, and it was just what I needed. We finished up our laundry and again headed back to the building at which we’re staying. Realizing that it was only 3p, I decided the day was young and rallied the troops to head to a tea shop and internet café. I’m currently sitting in said tea shop (Oolong Tea House), and the atmosphere here is exactly what I wanted to be around on our rest day. There is very chill music playing and my large chai is delicious. I’m heading to what appears to be the largest used bookstore in the city in a few minutes and will be looking for a few new books to start eating for breakfast. I was just looking for free wireless, which was how I found this place, but it turns out that this is the young/hip/artsy neighborhood in town. We haven’t made it to Stampede and don’t know that we will, but at least we’re seeing the parts of the city where our Canadian peers hang out.