Today was the FINAL day of our trip, which started with a longer-than-usual morning. Our final coffee stop was at Dr. Insomniac’s, where the team enjoyed coffee and breakfast with each other for the last time. The ride itself was through the busy Bay Area, with a variety of roads, bike paths, and bike lanes. We had our final rest stop at a gas station before entering Sausalito and taking on a hectic climb to reach the Golden Gate Bridge overlook. Everyone took in some amazing views, and we started the final portion of our ride across to the Golden Gate Bridge, before reaching our friends and families in Chrissy Field. It was an emotional end to the day, as we said our final goodbyes and dispersed.
RIDE OVERVIEW
Mileage: 39.4 mi
Elevation: 1,723 ft
Points of Interest: Dr. Insomniacs, Golden Gate Bridge, Chrissy Field
Ride Dedication: Marian Lendas, Fransisco Juarez, Ben Lee, Kira Spedale, Bev Downs, Tracie Barreca, Olivo + Nicla Sivilotti, Seungpyo Yang, Xunqin Fang, Ruiping Wang, Roman Huchko, Bohdan Huchko, Scott + Wendy Fornek, Karen Scott, Vichi Kobel, Lauren Wardell, Li Ren, Yuting Li, Ivan Pidzamkiv, Linda Fornek, Ela Tchorz, Irina Ziminski, Steve Riccabona, Darlene Gagnon, Colleen Organ, Monica Trant, Zhang Aihua, Ruth McMichens
Tales of the Trail
The FINAL morning of the trip started bright and early after a fun night of dancing, celebrating, and signing! We were a bit slower this morning, but for good reason since it was our last time scarfing down oatmeal at dawn. Once we got out to morning circle, Andres gave his last speech as routemaster, and we all chose a ride dedication for our final ride. Soon after, we huddled up for the second-to-last time and got rolling. The start of the ride was mostly flat with some rolling hills and bike paths. The first rest stop and final coffee stop was at Dr. Insomnics in Novato. We took our time drinking coffee, eating breakfast and scuffins, and enjoyed these last moments with each other. Some would say coffee stops have been a foundation of our trip, and we chose an amazing place with an outdoor patio and an active cycling community to enjoy our final coffee stop!
After a delightful stop at Dr. Insomniacs, we made our way into more urban parts of the Bay Area, where we encountered busier roads, bike lanes, and bike paths – there was a great variety! At mile 23, we made it to our final rest stop at a gas station, where we fueled up, contributed to Eli’s potion, and took a picture in front of the gas pump to commemorate the last official rest stop. Once we got back on the road, we hit another bike path before entering Sausalito, which was busy with lots of cars and bike traffic. This was by far the most chaotic part of the ride, with bikes and cars all around us and a final climb as the views of the Golden Gate Bridge opened up to us in all its glory. We stopped at the Golden Gate Bridge overlook, where we were surprised to see Sam Michalak, our faithful VP, who trained us all year! We took in some amazing views of San Francisco across the bay, got some great pictures, and felt the surrealness of being so close to the end. Just before crossing the bridge, we had one final team huddle, with Matt starting us off and the rest of the team shouting at the top of their lungs. Soon after, we started our journey across the Golden Gate Bridge! Crossing the bridge was very chaotic, with strong winds, heavy bike traffic, and a narrow path, but we had amazing views of the San Francisco Bay. This was an insane moment for all of us, as we were experiencing the last moments of biking after 77 long days, but we didn’t have too much time to think, since riding across the bridge required an incredible amount of focus.
Once we made it across the bridge, we were a bit split up and made some wrong turns, but we finally rolled into Chrissy Field, and we were met by a cheering crowd of friends and family, who we were all exhilarated to see. After hopping off our bikes, we hugged our loved ones and felt the overwhelming support of all the family/friends who travelled to see us. Shortly after, we lined up and were handed flowers and medals by Stephanie’s parents, and we took even more group photos. Our families planned an amazing celebration for us with food and drinks, and everyone spent some time catching up with their family/friends before heading over to the van. We unpacked all of our bags, stacked our bikes in the van, and spent some final moments with each other. As we sat there, it started to hit that we would have to say goodbye. Some tears were shed, and emotions started to get heavy as we said our final goodbyes, and just like that, the trip was over as everyone went their separate ways.
As a team, we’ve raised over $70,000, collected 22 portraits, and biked 4,717 miles for the fight against cancer! We’re incredibly grateful to all the churches, rec centers, and communities that have given us a place to spend the night, donated meals, and supported our cause. This trip wouldn’t be possible without all the support we’ve received, and it’s amazing to feel the overwhelming kindness of people across the country.
Thank you to everyone who has followed the journals these past 77 days. We’ve had a great time writing them, and we hope you’ve enjoyed keeping up with the team!
“To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, draw closer, to find each other, and to feel. That is the purpose of life.”