This morning we had to say goodbye to Krissy (from the Ulman Cancer Fund) who had been supporting us since the night we lost Jamie. We were sad to see her go as she had been there for us so much the past couple of days. We gave her a big group hug to say goodbye to her early that morning after our dedication circle. Side note: group hugs have become common for my team as we've been grieving...est. day 14 in a Taco Bell parking lot (we must've looked very odd to people passing by).
Now on to the ride: today was a really tough 77 miles. The heat, humidity, gravel and strong headwinds all were working against us as we trekked through Indiana. I had an awesome group (as always) which made our riding pass by a little faster! Team girl talk: Kelsey, Katie, Chelsea and I...and Mitch (poor boy had to listen to our girl talk the whole ride). The ride and scenery was gorgeous until we hit the gravel and hot black tar roads. Luckily that day we also had Brian, the COO of the Ulman Cancer Fund, there to support us for a few days on our journey. He was a lifesaver with his rental car as he helped to shuttle groups over the rough patches of gravel (we HATE gravel...see picture below). After talking with him I found out he also graduated from UVA and played football there. Woo go hoos!
Our host that night, The First Baptist Church, was amazing. They provided us with dinner, mechanics from the local bike shop, lots of room to sleep and even air mattresses! My team and I were so thankful for such a great host. We are also so thankful that Brian came to spend time with us as the loss of Jamie was still fresh on our minds. He left us with lots of kind words and encouragement to help keep us going despite all of our grief. And he put up with our craziness - props to him! Tomorrow we will be crossing into Illinois: state number 6 here we come!!!