I woke up to the sound of what I thought was a car passing by, only to realize that one of my fellow riders (and temporary roommate) was snoring away next to me. Sleep is precious when you have to bike 100 miles the next day so I decided not to lose any over Taylor's 9th symphony. As I moved to the room next door so did the other riders who were trying to get some sleep.
An hour later we all had a wake up call to Madonna's new single and a mix of our own grunts, ready to take on our ride across three states in one day! As all the riders indulged in a breakfast consisting of fresh bagels, homemade muffins, and delicious French toast made by our great hosts at Fayette, Ohio, we packed and began our ride west on route 120 towards Indiana.
Along with me were riders Alison, Meg, and Katie. As we biked out of Ohio and went in and out of Michigan to reach the Indiana state line, we were welcomed into a country side that many of us had never seen before. Being close to New York City as I now live in Paramus, NJ, I was never in an environment that has more livestock than people. It was a new atmosphere that I greatly enjoyed.
As we continued riding after our first water stop, Meg kept our team updated with her phone about the latest weather reports which were not sounding too good. “This is us,” pointing to a small dot on the map, “and this is the storm.” It was a massive green blob moving from the west and going straight through Chicago to meet us very soon.
As we met everyone for lunch under a pavilion a couple miles into Indiana, it began to pour, making us have to decide if we should go any further. Because of constant thunderstorm and tornado warnings we decided to shuttle to our gracious hosts in Elkhart, Indiana making our day's trip 30 miles shorter.
Although we ride rain or shine, our safety always comes first. It is very comforting knowing that no matter what there will always be 27 other people with you who care for you like family. After all, following months of time with each other—from the team huddles to the snoring—we have become one big happy family.
-Mohammad “MoMo” Modarres
3 comments:
Aww I miss the family! Thanks for the updates on the website though; five minute phone calls a day isn't enough to feel up to date. Great job of mentioning all your teammates, too; it's fun to know who you ride with.
you guys are awesome!
Raffi
Still praying for you each day. Must be crazy hot. Do you ride super early and late evening? Hope the bikes are holding up. Be safe and ride fast. Jim
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