There’s only one word to describe today – HARD. We rolled out of Lehighton bright and early with the prospect of a hard day. We faced three really hard climbs, with the last one posing a big challenge to the entire team. We still managed to get through the day, despite the brutal elevation and heat.
Quote of the day
“Sweet things not only make you full but stimulate your spirit”
Ride Overview
Mileage: 74.7 miles
Elevation: 4,939 ft
Points of Interest: Weiss Market, Ringtown Valley Veterinary Hospital
Ride Dedication: Lauren Wardell
Tails of the Trail
We all woke up at our usual time of 5:45 am and rolled out of Lehighton around 7:30 am, ready to tackle the day. The first 18 miles before our first rest stop felt pretty good, and we faced some inclines that weren’t too bad. At our first rest stop, we all snacked up and hydrated for the climbs ahead of us, and we knew we’d be in for a challenge.
The real challenge of today came with three challenging ascents that proved to be super difficult. The first ascent was challenging, but we all still had enough energy to easily make it up the hill without being too tired. The second big hill was far more challenging, and my group took multiple stops while making our ascent. After the second climb, we stopped to rest at Ringtown Valley Veterinary Hospital and ate lunch. We all snacked - a lot - and we had a lot of leftovers to grub on. Next was the final ascent, which proved to be the most difficult of them all. We slowly but surely made our way up the hill with the peak in mind. My group would go about 50ft up the hill and stop to rest for a bit before continuing onwards. We eventually made it to the top and took some time to rest before making a fast and safe descent.
Our third rest stop was at Weiss Market, where many riders waited inside to cool off. We all took a long breather before heading back on the road and finishing up our ride. We finished up today’s ride with a couple of hills before rolling into Milton. Everyone was super beat, and many of us passed out after taking a shower and eating.
Thank you to the community members of Trinity Lutheran Church for giving us a place to sleep! It was great to meet you, and we really enjoyed staying at your church!
Cyclists Corner
Today’s Rider: Matt Guibord
How are you feeling today
I am the most tired out of all three days since today was the longest day and hottest day we've had so far – The heat really just took it out of me. There were some good stretches where we were going pretty quickly, and my legs felt good, and then we hit three hills where we just stopped so many times to go up, like everyone stopped. So, yeah, it was tough, but glad that the day's done. We can go on to the next.
What was your favorite part of today’s ride?
My favorite part of today's ride – there were some gorgeous views. It was right after the third rest stop. So at like mile 55, we were going over these rolling hills, and you could see hills just for miles and miles and miles. And we were kind of like on top of one, kind of going down it, and it was just so green, and it was very, very cool scenery.
What motivated you to join Illini 4000?
I am a big fan of cycling, or biking, and then that with the opportunity to go and take a cross country trip, coupled with being able to support cancer research and spread awareness of support services, and do that for some of the others that are fighting cancer right now, and in memory of some of the people such as my family members and friends that I've lost to cancer.
Before joining Illini 4000, how much bike training had you done, and did you have any other athletic background that you feel prepared you for this ride?
Yeah, I was a pretty athletic kid growing up, played like all the sports, pretty much, and then kind of narrowed it down to baseball, switched over to track for a few years in high school. But then after that, I pretty much switched to the arts in high school, so like, jazz band, marching band, concert band, things like that. Then COVID hit, and I got really into mountain biking, so that was kind of the start of my cycling journey. But yeah, pretty much COVID was mountain biking, and then I kind of fell off when I hit college, because I couldn't bring a bike to Illinois.
What is your bike's name? Model?
The long name is Peddle Pusher McWeezy, but the short name is Julia, and the model it's a Trek Domani. It's a sweet bike, I recommend.
What are you most nervous/excited about?
I’m most excited to do something that I've never done before, and for a good cause. And that's just a one once in a lifetime opportunity. One thing I'm nervous about is how long it’s been for the first three days, very, very fun, very cool, but also quite long. So we have what? 74 more days? 73 more days of this, it's gonna be quite the adventure.
Anything else you want to talk about?
I just want to thank the exec board for taking their time out of their year, like they didn't go on the trip, and they basically planned the entire trip. And so I'm really thankful for them and all my teammates – It's been a blast so far. So, thank you.