The night of day 10 was one of the best nights of the trip! We rode all day. I started off with the Penn van, but got picked up by Jake and Jesse around 11am so they could bring me to the Bucknell van for the second half of the ride. On our way between vans, we stopped at Sonic! My first Sonic experience, and let me tell you, it was pretty legit. I always wondered why Sonic advertised so much in the northeast, given that the closest Sonic is in Richmond, VA. I figured it out; the drinks there are THAT good. Get a smoothie…you won’t be disappointed.
So back to the night. I jumped in the Bucknell van because we had to get in early in order to drive 2 and a half hours to Kansas City for dinner with some Bucknell folks. Dinner was arranged by Ron Benjamin and family…easily the best dinner of our trip thus far, and maybe the dinner of my year. We got to see the Logans again, Andy Logan’s (VP OIPS’) parents, who are always a lot of fun to talk to and who taught us a lot more about some of the better sides of Kansas (it took some convincing that the state was more than boring roads and cows). So we ate and drank like kings for a few hours, Kyle and I showed everyone our nightly tradition: shot of Jack, a beer and a glass of Bailey’s on the rocks. Then on the car ride home we talked to some girls we know from Bucknell who invited Kyle and I to a date party when we get back to Bucknell (we know, they miss us that much…right).
Today, day 11, I was back in the Penn van and ready for action. At this point I would prefer to ride the entire day by myself if I had the option, I’m running hot and getting psyched up, but I need to pay my duty to drive the van every now and then. I learned what the Ozarks look like and how nice old ladies in the Midwest can be. The lady that ran the lodge we stayed in last night was the nicest woman we’ve met on the trip. Not to mention the room Kyle, Jay and I shared was soooo sweet. We had 4 beds, a kitchen and a room big enough to house 30 of our closest friends.
Also learned today that we have already hit our goal of raising $1 million for Bucknell, and we still have over a week to go! Wow, the days seem very long, but this trip is cruising by. It’s going to take a few days, once this is all over, and probably a few nights of celebration for everything to hit me. Jay and I try to sit back a lot on this trip and figure out what exactly is going on, it’s more comic relief than anything, but we seriously have been really lucky to end up where we are right now. For instance, we just got back from dinner, we’re in Missouri and nobody has any concept of what day of the week it is. We just raised $1 million by riding our bikes and having the time of our lives with a group of guys we had never met (besides the 3 of us) before a week and a half ago.
Shout out to Kellan, sorry I forgot to include you in our previous story (blame K-rO for that because he didn’t believe me that you were there) and stay strong with your running to get ready for the marathon g-pop. So I’m sitting on the bed of our hotel room right now. About to go up to Jake and Jess’ room to post this blog, before Kyle and I go take care of our nightcap routine, is it weird that I spend most of my day on the bike thinking about how I don’t have much to think about? I generally spend more time wondering why I don’t have anything tot think about than actually thinking of something useful. Maybe it’s because my mind can’t really ponder many things unless it’s out loud? Maybe I think I already have things figured out? Maybe because things are going so well that I have nothing to fill my thoughts with? I think a big part of it may deal with how fast everything is happening and has happened. Just yesterday I was sharing a mod room with Dan Mayo and learning the ins and outs of our fraternity by the older guys that paved the way. Ever since, things have just flown by and now, instead of sitting in an auditing room, I’m riding my bike across the United States with two of my best friends and a handful of older guys that have since become new best friends of mine.
It’s just weird the way things work out. You could see somebody awkwardly sing a rendition of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star on stage one day and the next day you could be flying to Seattle to go visit them. The connections made along the way are wild when you think back on them. I know I may have repeated a few things from previous postings, but each day gets me closer to realizing how much fun I’ve had thus far and how great things to come will be. Can’t wait to get back to DC and rock out with Goldie, Martin, Gracie and all the other clowns we have down there. I strangely can’t wait to start work to meet new people and learn new things each day. I guess I’m rambling, so I’ll go find Kyle to grab a drink before bed. Thank you to everybody who has helped us reach the $1 million, let’s try to make it $2 million!! Go Bison, can’t wait to see everybody when we get back!
