My trek to the Pacific @mikerenoe - Tumblr Blog

It's come to an end.

I'm back in Florida currently; classes start in a day and there is no proper way I can sum up what this summer has meant for me. Over the course of the summer I met quite a few alumni and all of them say they think back on their B&B trip daily whether it's something they ate at a lunch stop or an impression someone made upon them. I now know exactly what they mean. It's been only a week and i've thought upon my teammates in one way or another everyday. As my friends will attest, it's hard for me not to bring conversations at some point or another to a story from this amazing summer.

But it's still over. I'm fairly reaccustomed to peeing indoors and normal eating habits but my mind is forever changed. I can't look at a map of the US without smiling and thinking about all of the amazing people I've met in every state.

My mindset is forever changed: I know there are amazing people trying to make the world a better place in every state, city and town.

I probably won't be updating this blog again until I return for another B&B trip but don't worry, I will be doing another; if I have any say in it at all, it will be Maine To Santa Barbara too!

#bike and build #bike #cycling #cross country #bike & Build

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We made it to California the other day and now I have only 7 days left on this amazing journey!

I wish the tumblr windows app let me post multiple pictures at once but it won't. So here's a panorama of the view from Lassen volcano today. We biked to the roads peak and proceeded to hike up another 1.3 miles to a secondary peak. I've seen more snow this summer than I have all year.

I'm awful consistently blogging. So here's a rather rad bike to supplement my lack of content!

We climbed our highest peak today!

Before that though, we stayed the night at Twin Lakes, CO. It was a town of about 20-some full timers and perhaps 130-some partial residents. The town itself was exuberantly friendly and one of the few small towns I’ve come through and thought: “I could live here”. The collegiate peaks were right down the road, Mt. Elbert was in their backyard and we were surrounded on all sides by other peaks. The highlight of the stay was the stars. Travis and I sat by the lake for about an hour watching the stars and discussing space in general.

After the stargazing, I braved the 40 degree weather and slept outside. I was entirely out of my element coming from Florida. By 3am I woke up shivering and unable to go back to sleep for a few minutes. I was able to see the Milky Way and be blinded by the stars before I finally went back to sleep.

5am wake up and it was time to ride.

Independence pass has an elevation of 12,000 feet. We started at about 9000 feet in the town of Twin Lakes at the base and it was a beautiful climb the entire way. The ride to the peak was about 20 miles and it was entirely gradual and an even slope; probably my favorite climb thus far and most importantly not the hardest. I’ve never enjoyed climbing a mountain so much.

I was the third rider to the top and every rider waited around for the last riders to make it to the top, cheering on every single person that rode up, even the riders that weren’t bike and build. At around 11am, all the riders were on top. We had a dance party, took group pictures and just cheered until we had no one left to cheer for.

After the summit, we rode down this amazing descent. Along the way we stopped at a grotto that had a glacier inside. It was referred to as an ice cave. It was amazing but it could not compare to our next stop, Devils Punch Bowl. It was this tiny swimming hole that had surrounding cliffs that we inevitably jumped off of. The jump itself wasn’t too high, Alabama had much better cliff jumping, and the thing that really got to us was the cold water. It literally took our breath away. The water was apparently snow run off that stays just that cold year round.

After a single jump, I couldn’t do anymore and started to bike down. The final descent was just as gorgeous as the ride before. Mountainside trees, waterfalls, and just amazing landscapes. I rolled into Aspen, found a coffee shop and really just relaxed and napped there for a few hours before we could get into the host. Aspen is an amazing town, it’s just quite pricey. Bikes are everywhere. Everyone is super active and it’s just a beautiful landscape.

Colorado is definitely my favorite state so far.

So today, we rode from Des Moines, New Mexico to Trinidad, Colorado. I was sweep again with my sweep buddy for the day Rachel! Some riders decided to ride up a mountain before they started their day so I was resigned to waiting around the host site until they were finished. It wasn't too bad though, I got to squeeze in a nap! We only stayed for a night in New Mexico unfortunately but the town we stayed at was awesome. It was a village of 140 or so and we stayed in the first Baptist church. They had THE coldest shower of the entire trip. It was colder than our plunge into the icy Savannah river! It was a hose shower as well but it was rather nice. It was arranged like an actual shower with a shower head and everything, it really was only missing a curtain. The showers never quite make or break the host but any host can really be improved by a wonderful shower. That's entirely subjective though, some days the cold shower is exactly what I need whereas some days I just need a warm shower to relax my body from the ride. Really though, anything is better than a 2 mile walk to a YMCA. Usually though, unfortunate showers are entirely made up by the host being awesome. Tomorrow is our day off in Trinidad!

We crossed into Texas! Texas is flat, hot, windy and barren. I'm through messing with Texas and I'm ready to hit some hills and the occasional town with a population over 5000. Don't get me wrong though, I've met some wonderful Texans, seen some gorgeous scenery, and gained some great experiences I'll carry with me for my entire life. Going 10 mph for 2 days on 30+ mile stretches takes a lot out of you. But here I am still. Most of our hosts recently have lived in towns of less than 4000 people and before this trip I might have written a town like that off. Between my occasional talks with James Havu and the people I've met in these towns, I think I'm beginning to understand why someone would live in a town like that. It's more complicated than I could ever cover in a blog but it's related to a common thing I've been thinking about on this trip. Embracing discomfort, comfort or finding comfort in discomfort. For the life I want to lead, I think embracing discomfort would be the best mentality but when you're in a hugely discomforting place, that can be a hard mentality to put into practice. I haven't got past just thinking about the ideas a lot but I'm truly relying on my ability to learn new behavior and embrace discomfort, this experience is just one step on my path to doing so.

i did sc2sc11! ahh henryetta, cant forget the first century with a wicked head wind starting at mile 90. days like that stick in your mind :P i remember loving those posters they had! i think that was the host that provided us with the most food haha

Oh? I'm trying to remember who i've met from that trip. I've met leaders from SC2SC10, Travis and Brian. Then i met Mac! He gave us a place to stay in Little Rock!

I had a rad post ready about my day in the van yesterday but unfortunately my phone ate it. Today we rode into Arnett, Oklahoma. I had heard a few things about this town ahead of time but I truly didn't know what to expect. The ride into the town was cursed with crosswinds and unfair rolling hills. I yearned for Georgia's hills as well as its unleashed dogs as I fought all of the hills and the wind simultaneously. It was an 85 mile day and overall, it wasn't too rough. The hardest part is the vast expanses of nothing and staring at the road while the grasshoppers fly at my unsuspecting face. Arnett is a small town Pop. 500-600 near the panhandle of the state. Why they lack in population, they make up in awesome food and hospitality. I spent the day riding with Travis and Cassie, hence the picture of them on the haybales. Talking with Cassie, who's girlfriend was a leader last year, made me really nostalgic and wish I could have joined their route. I love my route and my team entirely but it was still incredibly heartbreaking finding out I couldn't ride last summer. Anyway, tomorrow we'll be off and on to Texas!

After our second build day in Oklahoma city, we drove out to Moore. This was one of the towns hit by the major tornadoes earlier in May. It's incredible building homes and helping people all summer just to see a town like this where towns are ripped apart and only the foundation remains. Not only that, every few homes looked untouched while others were not even there anymore. My thoughts are with any city dealing with natural disasters.

Yesterday we rode into Van Buren, Arkansas. It was an 82 mile ride and it was one of the easier rides of the trip so far. I started off the morning riding with Rae until she had to get in the van to get to the doctors. It was a really gorgeous ride with lots of mountain and lake views. I haven't ridden with her in quite a while. Shes been riding in the front of the pack whereas I've been chilling in the back. After riding with her, it poured. Like, my chamois were soggy until we reached the host. The host was awesome though! The town was old and had a really interesting downtown with at least 2 used book stores! I had a chai tea and read the intro to "3 cups of tea". Today we rode 106 miles. It was our first official century, some riders had reached their first on our 90 mile days previously. Despite the incredible mileage, it was a rather easy day. We rode up to the state line, took our border pictures and Rae and I were off! It's great riding with her, she doesn't care to stop too often and she likes pushing herself and myself to go faster and stay at the front of the pack. So it's a nice workout riding with her and a good changeup from some of my more relaxed days. We skipped 2nd lunch because the van was 30 mins away and we didn't really need help or refills. We did however, take pictures on top of ton hay bales as well as get milkshakes from a place called Braums! Apparently they're like the steak and shake out here. The host tonight has bee. Wonderful as always and I was even able to get onto a computer! I'm sweep tomorrow on our 92 mile day into Oklahoma City! Should be a fun ride, let's hope I don't get too burnt!

bikinganddancingandsinging

Ask me about my bike trip!!!

I’ll do a real blog tonight about my ride (WE HAVE WIFI!!!) tonight (106 miles) but if anyone has any questions about my ride, send me an ask or email me at [email protected] or checkout bikeandbuild.org.

stay strong man! the heat will eventually break. it felt like it would never end for us, im talking 90+ everyday in the south and 116 degree days in texas, but it stopped. its going to be complete turn around when you get to the mountains and theres still snow!

Windows phones can't see asks so i'm just getting this! You did SC2SC right? What year? We're staying in Henryetta, OK and there are signed posters from all the past routes. So rad to see all the names. Today was our 106 mile day and it was wonderful.

Today we rode up to the top of petit jean in Arkansas. From what I gather from alums, this was one of the hardest climbs and best day of the trip for most of them. I personally loved all of it today. It was supposed to be a 92 mile day but it turned into a 75 for me due to a slight injury and a friend not feeling well. We actually stopped at a farm in what appeared to be the middle of nowhere and ended up getting a ride to the host in Russellville from the owner. Today started out rainy, we rode along the Arkansas river bike path from little rock for most of the day. Crossed the big dam bridge. Got lost in the middle of nowhere and suddenly the sun came back out as we started the steepest climb yet. I was told it was 12% and 13% grades in some parts. The incline was about a mile long. Now its about 9 and I'm excited to get to sleep early! Onward to Fort Smith!

bikinganddancingandsinging

I’m a few hours late with this but yesterday on the way into Stuttgart, Arkansas we rode nearly a century. This is while I had an ankle full of fireant bites and the temperatures were over 100 degrees.

In the morning, knowing I was going to be approaching 100 but not reaching, I thought I would ride on to make sure I had a legit century. By the time I made it though,I only wanted to fall to the ground and pass out.

It was a beautiful ride yesterday, we crossed the mighty Mississippi and saw the flood plains of the Mississippi. I never would have imagined exploring this part of the world but I’m so glad I’m here.

Today I’m in the van to rest my leg and maybe take care of the chest congestion I might be coming down with.

Kid Currey with Elaina at the build site.

With the rides getting longer and hotter I'm finding it harder and harder to keep this updated. Last I wrote, I think I was coming down with something, I think its staph but I won't know for another day or 2. Until then, I'm on the antibiotics necessary and keeping it covered at all times. I skipped the ride into Tupelo Mississippi because I wanted to get to a doctor asap. So I vanned myself due to illness. It was a fun van day with Sarah, Ethan and Eliza. Lots of dancing and creepy doll placing. The hosts in tupelo were amazing. Jennifer, as soon as she heard I might be sick, called her doctor friend and drove me to get tested. Not only that, she picked me up and waited the 20 minutes to fill my prescription. Her and her husband were such great hosts; everyone provides such different environments for us and it's such a great way to break up the days. We ate dinner with the local habitat chapter and church congregation. Chris and I ended up talking to the executive director for over an hour about engineering and how it can impact your life as a degree. She has a masters in safety engineering and runs tupelo habitat for humanity. The next day was a build day. They split us into 2 groups. I was with the group that framed an entire house. We didn't get to raise the walls but it was amazing to see another side of the build nonetheless. After the build, my aunt Barbara who lives in the area was able to visit and show me around the area. It's probably going to be my last visitor until Santa Cruz and I'm so happy to have spent the time with her. Now we're in oxford Mississippi staying at a church on the ole miss campus. Todays ride was sweltering. It was the hottest day we've had so far. 90+ for the whole day at 60 miles. We arrived though and had showers!.... 2 miles away. Laini, Hawa and I being stubborn and tired decided to walk. It wasn't bad except it was around 2 hours of walking. After we returned and had dinner, we explored downtown. It was almost like a smaller Athens, Georgia. I spent most of my time at the book store and talking up bike & build with the locals. Things are going much better I think, mentally especially. I had a bout of depression and homesickness, which I rarely feel. Talking and being around my team has really helped. Truthfully though, this journey and my entire life journey is too short to let myself be sad for longer than necessary. On to Clarksdale, Mississippi!

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My trek to the Pacific