Day 9-Missoula, Montana

Today was all business on the road. The team had a scheduled lunch with Adventure Cycling at one, so we had to do 100 miles before then; we woke up at 5AM and were on the road by 6:15. Usually we play games and tell stories while were on the road to make the time pass faster but today we took turns putting our bodies through agony pulling up front in a strong headwind. In order to make the ride without being racked we had to hit 85 miles by noon, we pushed hard all day and make it to the rack point by 11:40. We finished our ride into town and met the rest of the team that had been racked to prepare for our arrival. One all cleaned up and looking pretty we formed a double paceline and road to adventure cycling. Adventure cycling is a NPO which organizes ride routes across the country and around the world. They provided us with stickers for our bikes that say "I Ride Therefore, I Transam" which everyone proudly displayed.

Those of us who made the rack point, Wahoo!

Adventure Cycling

After lunch we set up camp in Hellgate Highschool and showered up for our friendship visit. We loaded up in the vans and headed to a home where we met 8 amazing individuals who were very excited to have us visit. They prepared amazing pork ribs for us and we all really enjoyed talking to them and meeting them.

After dinner we headed to a local homemade ice cream shop where I had the recommend Huckleberry Malt which was fantastic.

Day 8-Paradise? Montana

Today we arrived in Paradise Montana after a long day from Kellogg. The scheduled ride was 105 miles today, the first fifteen or so being on the trail we took from Coeur D'alene to Kellogg. The ride had two very tough climbs which were short and steep; we were told from Pi Alphas that today was our hardest day on the trip and it certainly was a tough one. We reached the second peak at 12:30 to conclude our 5000 ft. ascent, it was a real sense of accomplishment looking back on what we had just climbed.

9% Grade

At the top of the second pass

After the climbing was done everyone was hungry so we ate lunch at the bottom and continued on our very long ride. We still had 50 miles to do after lunch and we continued riding until we were racked at 85 miles due to lightning. Everyone was disappointed to not have ridden as far as they wanted but it was a great day of riding and everyone finished the day safely.

A long days ride

We bunked up at Quinns hot spring resort (yeah we're roughing it alright) and since we didn't have any programming for the afternoon we were able to enjoy the spring to relax after a hard day.

The staff was kind enough to cook us a fantastic spaghetti dinner that we all had no problem finishing. I spent the rest of the night posting my blogs that I had written but did not have internet to post. Tomorrow is going to be a killer, another 105 mile day that we have to finish by 1:00pm because of an arrival.

Thanks for reading!

Day 7 – Kellogg Idaho

Today we rode from Coeur D’alene to Kellogg Idaho, and it will be our last stop in Idaho before Montana. Before we could pack all of our stuff on the boat to leave Camp Sweyolakan, we had to unload 3000 lb of food that was being brought across on it. It was the least we could do with the hospitality provided, so we formed a line and passed the stuff from the boat to the kitchen with the help of the camp staff. Once on the other side we began our 85 mile ride to Kellogg. Our original ride was supposed to be 45 miles but our project manager heard about a trail that was supposed to be gorgeous, so our ride was increased to 85 miles.

Ride route

The first 30 miles to get to the trail were tough because they were uphill with a very strong headwind which made for a long day.

The team taking a break

Once on the trail it was smooth sailing, as the route is part of a “rails to trails” program converting old rail road bed into bike paths, and the trail was nearly flat the entire way. Along the way we saw 3 moose, and we stopped and took pictures.

Bullwinkle

Today was physically the toughest day for me, while we didn’t have a large climb or even long miles I’m still terribly saddle sore and it makes 5 hours in the saddle extremely uncomfortable; I hope to find a new saddle in Montana. We arrived in Kellogg around 5pm and did a quick photo shoot. Jeremy, our PM, decided we had earned a dinner out so we all went out and got what we wanted, and while at dinner we found a newspaper with an article about us on the front page. On the way home we were flagged down by people who saw the decals on our vans and ran waiving to us, we really are out here changing the way society views fraternities and people with disabilities. Tomorrow is a long day of 105 miles, and two very tough climbs, it will certainly be our hardest test yet, but I’m confident we can finish it as a team.

Day 6- Camp Sweyolaka, 1 state down

Today was supposed to be a very easy 35 mile ride from Spokane, Washington to Coeur D’alene, Idaho on a bike trail. We finished the day at 55 miles after getting lost several times throughout the ride. The scenery along the ride was gorgeous and crossing into another state was a real sense of accomplishment.

State Line Crossing

Tech Pride

35 miles turned into 55 miles

We arrived at our scheduled lodging Camp Sweyolakan around noon and took a pontoon boat across to the camp, the only way in and out of the camp.

The boat packed to full capacity

The camp counselors had just arrived and were in training, so we served as their practice campers. Sloppy Joes were served for lunch, truly bringing home the camp feeling. The afternoon was open and the counselors were nice enough to open up their stations for all of us, so we all had an opportunity to do the high ropes course, archery, and play on the water trampoline and go swimming. The day was relaxing and a perfect way to spend a day, somewhat nostalgic for me.

Day 5-Day Off

Today was our first day off and we really needed the rest. After 325 miles in the saddle in 4 days everyone was ready for a break from the bike. The team was fortunate enough to be able to sleep in to 9:30, which is like 3 in the afternoon these days. The team cleaned up and prepared for our friendship visit that morning at Meribeau Park. This friendship visit was very special for me because I met my cousin Pam that I had not had the opportunity to meet before. Pam and her husband Gary live in the area and I invited them to our friendship visit, Gary was on his way back from a fishing trip, but Pam was kind enough to come out and meet the team and organization we were working with.

Me with my cousin Pam

Kathy coloring my hair (She had a blast)

The team at MD family fun day

We spent the afternoon at MD (muscular-dystrophy) family fun day which had lots of games that the team participated in and the kids had a great time. Kathy spray-painted my head orange and pink which looked awesome! (took forever to get out of my hair though) A kids on the block puppet show was put on by several members of the team educating everyone about the incredible abilities of people with disabilities. The afternoon was finished with a giant water balloon fight which none of us seemed to escape unscathed.

The afternoon was spent doing laundry, getting the paint out of my hair, and picking up a new pillow at REI. We were all re-energized and prepared for the days to come. Tomorrow we have an easy 35 mile day.

Day 4 – Spokane (Pronounced SPO-CAN)-First Century

Today was our first century (or 100 miles) and it was a blast. We woke up early (as usual) to depart from Coulee city. There must have been something in the ice cream from the night before because we flew on the road.

First Century

We had a fantastic lunch provided by a Pi Alpha from subway 60 miles into our ride. The food and rest off the bike gave us the energy we needed to finish the ride strong. We finished our ride in just under 6 hours, which was great time. The day went flawlessly with zero flats, which is practically unheard of for a century ride for 21 cyclists.

We had a police escort into Spokane which was very cool and made us feel like pro’s riding into a big city. Dinner was provided by Pi Alpha’s and their family and was delicious, we had burgers and hot dogs and there was even an eating contest to see who could eat the most burgers.

The day was finished off with KOB practice and then everyone hit the town, we walked around Spokane trying to find a place with milkshakes, but had trouble finding a place to serve 27 guys at 11p.m.

Day 3-Coulee City

We awoke early to prepare for another long day in the saddle on our ride to Coulee city. A great breakfast was prepared for us including bagels, cereal, and fresh fruit. After breakfast the day began with a short ride on a bike path and then onto route two which we followed to Coulee city. The scenery of the ride was incredible; I’ve never been to the grand canyon but cliffs and rock faces we saw were amazing. The total ride was about 70 miles, but my computer died a few miles into the ride so I don't have any data for the days ride.

The view from the bike path

A tough climb early on in the day

Terrie and I at lunch

The view at lunch

Tech boys at Dry Falls

Once we arrived we showered and had time to relax before the Cattle Women arrived for dinner. We had a fantastic meal from the Cattle women's association. The rest of the evening was spent with a trip to dry falls and ice cream at Big Wally's.